Emergency Coordinator at Catholic Relief Services - CRS

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Emergency Coordinator

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Employer: Catholic Relief Services - CRS

Employment: Full-Time | Contract

Place of Work: Mekelle - Ethiopia

Posted date: 4 years ago

Deadline: Submission date is over

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About CRS

Catholic Relief Services is the official international humanitarian agency of the Catholic community in the United States. CRS works to save, protect, and transform lives in need in more than 100 countries, without regard to race, religion or nationality. CRS’ relief and development work is accomplished through programs of emergency response, HIV, health, agriculture, education, microfinance and peacebuilding.

Job Responsibilities:
The Tigray Emergency Coordinator will provide senior management support to CRS’ emergency response in Tigray, Ethiopia; represent the CRS Ethiopia SMT with leadership presence in Tigray, including liaising with local authorities, partners and UN agencies; backstop CRS’ emergency programs and the JEOP; assess security and develop and implement protocols for staff safety, security and wellbeing. This position will support functions in Ethiopia linked to program quality, business development, human resources, staff security, and representation.

Background

CRS has been operational in Ethiopia since 1958 and currently implements a portfolio focused on agriculture, health, peacebuilding, WASH and emergency relief. CRS is active in nearly all regions of Ethiopia, including Tigray, Amhara, Oromia, Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region (SNNPR), Somali, Benishangul Gumuz, Afar, and Dire Dawa Regions, and implements projects through local and international partners.

In northern Ethiopia, clashes that started in Tigray region in November 2020 have forced hundreds of thousands of people to seek relative security in other parts of Tigray, other regions of Ethiopia and in neighboring countries. The humanitarian impact of the ongoing conflict in the region is deeply concerning and continues to persist. The clashes between the Federal and Tigray Regional government affected, and continue to affect, the security, wellbeing, and resilience capacity of thousands of people. CRS is undertaking a multi-sectoral approach to address the needs of conflict-affected populations in Tigray and surrounding areas as security and humanitarian access allow.

The goal of the Emergency Coordinator is to assist the country program with emergency coordination support and representation specific to the Tigray response. It is expected that the Tigray Response will continue to be funded by multiple donors across multiple awards. The Emergency Response Coordinator will represent CRS in high-level meetings and discussions to promote clear and open support to impacted communities while advocating for the continued support of CRS programs, partners and activities.

Specific Duties:

The Emergency Coordinator's responsibilities could include the following.  Given the highly fluid nature of the situation, the scope of the assignment will remain flexible to adapt to emerging needs:

• Communication and Coordination:
  • Support the CP to manage and share information to and from multiple sources including multiple coordination forums.
  • Attend key coordination meetings, including UN Cluster meetings, Emergency Operations Center (EOC), Interim Administration discussions and OCHA-organized interactions.
  • Provide input for SitReps for review by the CRS Ethiopia program team and CR for internal and external sharing.

• Program Implementation
  • Support the CRS emergency team and sector leads to coordinate approaches to targeting and program implementation with particular attention to highly vulnerable people, including the needs of people living with disabilities.
  • Promote high quality and timely implementation of emergency response project activities in collaboration with implementing partners as appropriate.
  • In coordination with the Head of Programs and BD Manager, contribute to emergency proposals in alignment with agency and donor standards.
• Partnership:
  • Frequently meet with CRS local and international partners to support their efforts and identify the capacity building and support needs.
  • Promote understanding of the roles and responsibilities of partners and CRS.

• Staffing:
  • Support the CP to identify and develop surge staff capacity for the overall Tigray emergency response. 
  • Monitor staff wellbeing and health to prevent over-work and arrange for staff rotation in the emergency setting. 
  • Work with the CR to plan for, implement and track training of staff in stress management and working with traumatized populations, as appropriate.
• Security:
  • Define, plan, support and monitor the implementation of security risk management systems for the protection of CRS staff, partners, visitors, program participants, facilities, assets and information in support of CRS programming in Tigray
  • Carry out the regular threat, vulnerability, security risk, and compliance assessments and amend working procedures accordingly
  • Develop and maintain an information network to provide analytics of (potential) threats to CRS programs

• Procurement:
  • Support the emergency team to identify local suppliers and service providers.
  • Ensure the validity of agreements for new responses and identify gaps to prioritize by the procurement team.

Supervisory Responsibility: No Direct Supervision.       

Key Working Relationships:
Internal: Ethiopia Country Representative, Head of Programming, Emergency Manager, Business Development team, EARO DRD-PQ and MQ, and Ethiopia country program staff.

External: Donor Representatives, Local Government and Church leaders, Partners (local and international).  

  Qualifications

Basic Qualifications

• Master's Degree in International Development, International Relations or relevant field.
• Minimum of 5 years of field-based work experience in a program/project management position with an international NGO, with preferably at least 2-3 years working in emergency response programming.
• Strong knowledge of emergency guidelines and standards.

 

Required Languages - Excellent written and communication skills (English).

Travel – Must be willing and able to travel up to 50% within the region.

 

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

• Strong strategic, analytical and problem-solving skills, with ability to make sound judgment and decisions with limited or incomplete information and offer innovative solutions.
• Strong representation and relationship management abilities. Ability to relate to people at all levels internally and externally.
• Ability to work long hours in a fast-paced environment and juggle multiple priorities.
• Able to live in an environment where everyday comforts are not ready available. 
• Ability to function well in a stressful environment, stay focused, and maintain sufficient work life balance with limited options for downtime activity. 
• Proactive, resourceful, solutions-oriented and results-oriented

 

Preferred Qualifications

• Demonstrated ability to represent the organization at coordination meetings with donors, local government, UN, and other international NGOs.
• Experience with emergency proposals and strategy design. Familiarity with policies, procedures, and priorities of USAID, DFID, UN agencies and Caritas agencies preferred.
• Strong experience implementing market-based approaches in emergency programming
• Experience in building and motivating diverse and talented teams.
• Experience using MS Windows and MS Office packages (Excel, Word, PowerPoint), Web Conferencing Applications, information management systems.
• Understanding of and compatible vision for grassroots-driven community development with a focus on networking and organizational management skills development.
• At least four years of experience managing donor funds and relationships.
• At least 3 years of management experience in overseas settings. 
• Experience managing initiatives that resulted in increased participation of women, youth or disadvantaged groups. 
• The ability to work with and through partners is key but also assisting with linking work to a range of stakeholders, including civil authorities, community group leaders, donors and other international NGOs on initiatives.

Dates & Location

The duration of the assignment will be an initial six-months with the strong potential for an extension, starting March 2021.

The first 7 days will be subject to quarantine restrictions as per the Government of Ethiopia’s COVID-19 controls.

The primary location of the assignment will be Mekelle, Tigray, with travel as feasible and appropriate.

Agency-wide Competencies (for all CRS Staff)

These are rooted in the mission, values, and guiding principles of CRS and used by each staff member to fulfill his or her responsibilities and achieve the desired results.

• Integrity
• Continuous Improvement & Innovation
• Builds Relationships
• Develops Talent
• Strategic Mindset
• Accountability & Stewardship

***Our Catholic identity is at the heart of our mission and operations. Catholic Relief Services carries out the commitment of the Bishops of the United States to assist the poor and vulnerable overseas. We welcome as a part of our staff people of all faiths and secular traditions who share our values and our commitment to serving those in need. CRS’ processes and policies reflect our commitment to protecting children and vulnerable adults from abuse and exploitation.

Disclaimer: This job description is not an exhaustive list of the skill, effort, duties, and responsibilities associated with the position.

Note:  All positions requiring residence or frequent travel outside their home country must undergo and clear a pre-employment medical examination.

CRS' talent acquisition procedures reflect our commitment to protecting children and vulnerable adults from abuse and exploitation.

CRS is an Equal Opportunity Employer

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