Africa Peacebuilding Advisor

Dec 5, 2016 | Catholic Relief Services
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Catholic Relief Services carries out the commitment of the Bishops of the United States to assist the poor and vulnerable overseas. Our Catholic identity is at the heart of our mission and operations. We welcome as a part of our staff and as partners people of all faiths and secular traditions who share our values and our commitment to serving those in need.

The Advisor will support the AJPWG Team Leader to ensure that the AJPWG meets its objectives and deliverables as specified by the AJPWG strategy and work plan. S/he will focus primarily on the first Strategic Objective, “Methodologies Identified, Documented and Disseminated.” To this end the Advisor will review, edit, test, evaluate and assist with rolling out peacebuilding tools. S/he will help raise awareness of and build staff and partner capacity to utilize the tools and other methods and approaches. In addition, s/he will contribute to business development, which entails pre-positioning the Agency for PBGG awards; representation at PBGG events; marketing to donors; and leading technical writing and proposal reviews.

CRS established the Africa Justice and Peace Working Group (AJPWG) in 2009 to assist and accompany the Catholic Church and its agencies to conduct justice, peacebuilding and governance activities on the Continent. In 2014 the AJPWG was restructured to align justice and peace field operations with the Agency’s “Hope to Harvest” strategy (2014-18). Presently, the AJPWG comprises a Team Leader based at Headquarters, three Advisors based in Africa, and a Governance Senior Technical Advisor. The AJPWG strategic plan encompasses three objectives: 1) to develop, assess, document, and disseminate Peacebuilding, Governance and Gender (PBGG) program approaches and tools; 2) to provide technical assistance and capacity strengthening for the Church and local partners; and 3) to advance the integration of peacebuilding approaches with CRS’ signature programming areas in Health, Agricultural Livelihoods and Emergency Response and Recovery. The Africa Peacebuilding Advisor (hereafter referred to as the Advisor) will work in close coordination with members the AJPWG team, with key CRS colleagues in Africa Regional Offices and Country Programs, and with technical advisors from other sectors to achieve these goals. The AJPWG members function as a Team and can be deployed as needed to achieve the AJPWG’s objectives and deliverables.

Specific Responsibilities:

  • Conducts field testing and leads training and learning events for roll out and scaling up of tools and methodologies;
  • Monitors, assesses, and documents promising PBGG practices and disseminates lessons learned in the form of success stories, case studies, reports and publications;
  • Visits country programs to design, monitor and evaluate approaches to programming and proposal development, including budgetary implications.
  • Monitors and evaluates projects, and helps with challenging implementation issues.
  • Markets CRS’s PBGG approaches, identifies business/growth opportunities, and leads technical design and review of proposals;
  • Provides technical assistance responsive to the needs of CRS’s Africa regional and country programs;
  • Accompanies Church, local partners and CRS networks to coordinate, harmonize and advocate for integrated and standalone PBGG programs;
  • Proposes and leads activities that strengthen CRS’s PBGG Community of Practice.

 

Key Working Relationships:

Internal

  • Reports to the AJPWG Team Leader and works closely with members of the AJPWG team;
  • Liaises with CRS Deputy Regional Directors for Program Quality in Africa, with Monitoring and Evaluation, Accountability and Learning (MEAL) RTAs and STAs, and with RTA/STAs in other sectors to advance PBGG integration;
  • Supports and advises Country Representatives; Heads of Programming; and PBGG Program and Project Managers;
  • Collaborates with members of CRS’s Peacebuilding Technical Commission (PBTC), and with members of CRS’s Partnership Capacity Strengthening unit.

External

  • Engages the leadership and staff of continental, regional and national episcopal conferences, institutions, and other organizations of the Catholic Church;
  • Liaises with peer PBGG stakeholders on the Continent;
  • Represents CRS peacebuilding practice to donors and governmental bodies in Africa.

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.

  • Serves with Integrity
  • Models Stewardship
  • Cultivates Constructive Relationships
  • Promotes Learning

Qualifications:

  • Master’s Degree in a social science specializing in one of the following subfields: peacebuilding, conflict studies, governance, international relations, economic and social development, or public policy/administration. Ph.D. desirable.
  • Five to 10 years of international experience in a technical, advisory or management role in Africa.
    Relevant development, peacebuilding and/or M&E experience in Africa.

Skills Set:

  • Broad understanding of and ability to apply PBGG principles, theories, concepts and best practices;
  • Expertise in program monitoring and evaluation including indicators, data collection tools and methodologies, data analysis, and data presentation. Ability to use MS Office software.
  • Experience developing successful proposals for external donor funding.
  • Excellent interpersonal and negotiating skills. Proven ability to provide technical assistance at country and regional level; to work effectively on an interdisciplinary and intercultural team to influence change; and to manage conflict and move groups toward consensus;
  • Outstanding oral and written communication skills; demonstrated success in proposal writing; publications desirable;
  • Ability to work independently; to plan, organize and implement work assignments; and to perform under pressure without close supervision;
  • Demonstrated ability to design training curricula, to make engaging and effective presentations, to lead andragogic trainings and workshops, and to mentor and accompany partners;
  • Strong understanding of and experience with faith-based organizations, local church structures, accompaniment and capacity-building principles in local partnerships, and commitment to the principles of Catholic Social Teaching; and
  • Cultural sensitivity, patience and flexibility.
  • Willingness to travel nationally and internationally up to 40% of time.
  • Fluency in spoken and written English and French.

Physical Requirements/Environment: The Advisor telecommutes or works out of a local CRS office. Up to 40% travel of 1-3 weeks per trip throughout Africa including conflict prone areas.



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