Iraq: Women Protection & Empowerment Coordinator

Nov 5, 2019 | International Rescue Committee
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Iraq is emerging from over three years of civil war against the Islamic State and remains one of the most complex operating environments in the world. The devastating human consequences to huge numbers of people will endure for decades and the destruction of communities, livelihoods, homes and infrastructure will take years to repair. Iraq has a new government in place, and while some parts of the country are beginning to stabilize, others remain precariously close to collapse. Over 4 million Iraqis have returned in the past year, but 1.9 million remain displaced. 230,000 Syrians continue to seek refuge in the Kurdish region. The new government will struggle to rebuild trust and restore basic services.

A lead responder in Iraq since 2003, the IRC delivers aid and services that help communities survive, recover, and gain control of their future. The IRC is providing robust programming across six governorates through women’s protection and empowerment, child protection and protection and rule of law programming; cash distributions and livelihoods programming in support of economic recovery and development; education programming; and integrated early childhood development programming. Our work spans the spectrum from emergency response within 72 hours to long-term programming supporting our clients to rebuild their lives through starting small businesses. Our work in these challenging settings gives rise to some of the most pressing issues facing contemporary humanitarian action, including questions of access, security, funding and coordination.

Job Overview/Summary: 

The Women's Protection and Empowerment (WPE) Coordinator will be responsible for overall leadership, coordination and providing technical oversight and support for  the women's protection and empowerment portfolio in Iraq including community based women's protection/GBV prevention and response programming targeting Iraqi displaced persons and vulnerable host communities central Iraq. This includes both direct delivery and collaboration with and mentoring of local partners in the implementation of 1) case management; psychosocial support; referrals ; and empowerment activities to GBV survivors and vulnerable women and girls through the operation of Women and Girls Safe Spaces ; 2) Community GBV prevention activities, including engaging men and boys in IDP and host communities; 3) training and capacity building activities with government ministries and  NGO actors to improve their knowledge on GBV and the quality of case management and psychosocial support to GBV survivors;. The WPE Coordinator will also be responsible for business development and strategic positioning of the WPE programming in Iraq.

The position will be based in Erbil, with frequent travel throughout the country including Mosul, Anbar, and Kirkuk, and possibly other cities and governorates as the security situation permits. S/He will report to the IRC Iraq Deputy Director of Programs (DDP) and coordinate closely with the regional WPE technical advisor and other members of the Violence Prevention and Response technical unit.

Major Responsibilities:

Program Management, Technical Quality, and Strategy:

  • Coordinate and manage IRC's WPE program Iraq and provide strategic direction, leadership and overall technical and management support to WPE programs in Iraq in line with the Strategy Action Plan;
  • Provide clear technical support, supervisory guidance, training and mentoring to all WPE programs and teams in Iraq to ensure consistent, harmonized and quality program design and implementation;
  • Provide technical support and guidance to WPE teams, partners, and other stakeholders on:
  • Safe spaces & mobile service delivery for women and girls to find support, learn, and become resilient
  • Supporting WPE staff on the rollout of the adolescent girl’s curriculum, Girl Shine and male engagement activities such as Engaging men through accountable practices (EMAP);
  • Strengthening women and girls' solidarity, network and movement building, enabling them to use their individual and collective power to confront violence and transform their lives;
  • Enhancing women and girls leadership, voice and participation, especially rural women and girls; opening up opportunities and supporting them to take part in, and lead on issues that affect their lives;
  • Opening up and nurturing in/formal education, learning, and social and economic empowerment initiatives opportunities for women and girls that are tied to activities that aim to reduce and prevent violence, specifically intimate partner violence;
  • Supporting communities to strengthen their engagement on protection and violence prevention and to enhance respect and value for women and girls human rights and gender equality;
  • Leading program design processes and provide technical oversight that ensure new or adapted programming for the WPE sector is focused on maximizing quality, efficiencies, impact and integrated approaches, where appropriate;
  • Coordinate closely and liaise regularly with the Deputy Director of Programs, Field Coordinators, Grants Coordinator, and Partnership Unit to ensure quality implementation, management and compliance with donor requirements and women and girls' needs;
  • Ensure smooth management and integration of project work plans and budgets (budget forecasting, development of spending plans, budget follow-up), procurement plans, timely recruitment, and accurate reporting in accordance with IRC and donor regulations;
  • Regularly liaise with Technical Advisors to support quality program design, ensure relevant support, tools, and resources are being provided and integrated into programming, that program implementation aligns to technical standards, and that program data and learning is used effectively.
  • Ensure IRC and its partners adhere to WPE/GBV best-practice, professional standards, and principles through technical support and mentoring;
  • Remain abreast of ongoing trends in Iraq as related to WPE programming, and provide regular updates on these trends and how they affect programming to the Senior Management Team.

Program Development:

  • Proactively support continued growth of the Iraq WPE portfolio through development of concept notes and proposals to existing and new donors, maintaining a coherent strategy across IRC's areas of intervention in Iraq;
  • Support the identification of opportunities for WPE programming initiatives in support of service delivery and/or thought leadership in collaboration with country program senior management, business development staff and technical advisors. Collaborate with partners on the identification of business development opportunities, and the design of new interventions;
  • Lead the development of business development skills and responsibility among the WPE team, with a particular focus on program managers;
  • Identify gaps in the WPE programs and work with the team and the WPE technical advisor to develop innovative approaches and mechanisms to address them;
  • Actively identify, build and promote partnerships with INGOs, UN agencies, local and national women's groups, organizations and networks working on violence against women and girls and WPE issues;
  • Proactively work with other IRC programs and technical units in protection, education, and economic recovery and development, to identify synergies and develop referral pathways.

Staff Performance Management, Learning & Development:

  • Hire, supervise, and build the capacity of WPE team members in relevant technical and management competencies;
  • Support collaborative partner relationships focused on mutual learning and capacity building as well as technical guidance in areas of IRC expertise, including training/mentoring support and performance management that fully reflects the skills and attitudes required to work effectively in partnership;
  • Develop and implement remote management capacity building approaches to build the strengths of the team in Iraq;
  • Coach, train, supervise and mentor direct-report staff, including communicating clear expectations, setting annual performance objectives, providing regular and timely positive and constructive performance feedback, and providing documented semi-annual performance reviews;
  • Place special emphasis on recruiting, identifying and invest in capacity building national staff to take senior management roles in WPE programming;
  • Ensure management strategy contributes to the goal of nationalization, with related milestones for succession planning across the team;
  • Maintain open and professional relations with team members, promoting a strong team spirit and providing oversight and guidance to enable staff to successfully perform in their positions;
  • Hold high-quality meetings with each direct report on a regular and predictable basis, at least monthly.

Representation, coordination and advocacy:

  • Coordinate with DDP/CD to forge connections with key government counterparts at the ministerial level, UN, I/NGOs, human rights actors, municipal and other sub-national government actors.
  • Represent the IRC in high level and strategic meetings involving protection actors such as protection working group meetings, inter-agency coordination meetings, and bi-lateral meetings.
  • Regularly coordinate with internal program and operational stakeholders, the Protection/Rule of Law Technical Advisors, Women’s Protection and Empowerment, Children’s Protection, Economic recovery and Development, Education and other IRC colleagues.
  • In collaboration with the DDP/CD and regional advocacy team, ensure that the protection program delivers on advocacy goals as articulated in the countrywide advocacy strategy.

Grant Monitoring & Reporting:

  • Undertake regular field monitoring visits to assess progress and identify technical quality issues and/or other implementation issues, provide solutions and implement modifications as required. 
  • Produce/contribute to IRC and donor reports as per set schedules (monthly, quarterly and annually) on grant activities, indicators and achievements.

Qualifications:

Education:

  • Post-graduate degree in social work, international law, human rights law, international relations, social sciences, or other related field;

Work Experience:

  • At least five years’ experience working in the field of GBV prevention and response programming in conflict-affected areas

Demonstrated Technical Skills:

  • Thorough understanding of best practices and evidence-based strategies in GBV response (case management, psychosocial support, legal support; medical support) and GBV secondary and tertiary prevention and risk reduction;
  • Demonstrated coordination and capacity building skills with key partners ; case management for survivors of GBV / VAWG;
  • Demonstrated experience in facilitating practical workshops and educating others on issues including - violence against women and girls, GBV, adolescent girls protection and empowerment, GBV response and service provision, women’s networking and movement building, leadership, advocacy, psychosocial support;
  • Strong experience, knowledge and skills in participatory methods, community development and partnership.

Demonstrated Managerial/Leadership Competencies:

  • Structured and systematic approach to managing teams and project cycle;
  • Self-reflective, collegial; and open to feedback;
  • Demonstrated experience in successfully leading, building and strengthening a program team of staff in a dynamic, remote and changing context;
  • Strong ability to respect differences of culture, opinion and lived experiences while upholding rights-based principles and women’s protection and empowerment;
  • Excellent interpersonal skills, positive and professional attitude, ability to lead and work well in a team setting and with multiple partners;
  • Strengths in listening, empathy, flexibility, and creativity.

Languages: 

  • Professional fluency in spoken and written English is required. Arabic a plus.
  • Computer/Other Tech Requirements:
  • Full professional competency in Microsoft Office Suite, especially Word, Excel, Outlook, and PowerPoint. 

Ability to Travel: 30 – 50% within Iraq for program oversight, in the region, and globally for workshops and conferences.