Senior Assessment Officer (Food Security and Livelihoods) in Juba With Minimum Of 25 In Field And Deep Field Settings, South Sudan

Job Description

BACKGROUND ON IMPACT AND REACH

REACH was born in 2010 as a joint initiative of two International NGOs (IMPACT Initiatives and ACTED) and the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) Operational Satellite Applications Programme (UNOSAT). REACH’s purpose is to promote and facilitate the development of information products that enhance the humanitarian community’s decision making and planning capacity for emergency, reconstruction and development contexts, supporting and working within the framework of the humanitarian reform process. REACH facilitates information management for aid actors through three complementary services: (a) need and situation assessments facilitated by REACH teams; (b) situation Analysis using satellite imagery; (c) provision of related database and (web)-Mapping facilities and expertise.

IMPACT Initiatives is a humanitarian NGO, based in Geneva, Switzerland. The organisation manages several initiatives, including the REACH Initiative. The IMPACT team comprises specialists in Data Collection, management and analysis, GIS and remote-sensing. IMPACT was launched at the initiative of ACTED, an international NGO whose headquarter is based in Paris and is present in thirty countries. The two organizations have a strong complementarity formalized in a global partnership, which allows particularly IMPACT to benefit from ACTED’s operational support on its fields of intervention.

We are currently looking for a REACH Senior Assessment Officer to support our team in South Sudan.

Supervisor: REACH Emergency Prioritisation Unit Research Manager

Title: REACH Food Security and Livelihood Senior Assessment Officer

Location: Juba, South Sudan with minimum of 25% in field and deep field settings

Contract duration: 12 months

Start Date: July 2023

COUNTRY PROFILE

IMPACT, through REACH, has been implementing programming in South Sudan since 2012 supporting humanitarian decision-making with assessments and information management activities focusing on the needs of displaced, returnees, and conflict-affected populations. Today, data collected and disseminated by REACH aims to provide a baseline for ongoing response planning efforts across South Sudan as well as highlight areas of highest need and concern as crises emerge. Broadly, REACH South Sudan implements assessments across three core pillars:

Monitoring of the humanitarian situation in South Sudan through Real Time Monitoring, through frequent assessments covering over 2,000 settlements in South Sudan; tracking and analyzing large-scale population movement trends including returns and seasonal movements; market monitoring including Joint Market Monitoring.
Informing Emergency Prioritization in the response through providing direct Technical Support to humanitarian clusters through active engagement with Coordination bodies, dedicated assessments and information products, and strategic engagement to promote evidence-based understanding and identification of emergency and catastrophic needs in South Sudan; engagement of Emergency Rapid Response Mechanism rapid assessments and tracking of Areas of Concern.
Mainstreaming Accountability to Affected Populations and Conflict Sensitivity, including through standalone assessments on community priorities relating to humanitarian needs and perceptions of assistance, contextual analysis of the impact of aid on community dynamics; as well as providing a critical AAP and CS lens to all REACH SSD research.

POSITION PROFILE

Under the supervision of, and in close coordination with the Emergency Prioritization (EP) Research Manager, IMPACT Deputy County Coordinator, REACH Assessment Specialist, IMPACT Country Coordinator and IMPACT HQ in Geneva, the REACH FSL Senior Assessment Officer will be responsible for the management and implementation of food security data collection and analysis at the national level and in hot-spots identified by the REACH Emergency Response High Council and external analysis frameworks and coordination bodies. The FSL SAO will engage relevant stakeholders to ensure that research and analysis conducted by REACH is properly utilized, in order to maximize impact on the humanitarian response.

SUMMARY

The primary tasks of the FSL SAO will include:

Conduct food security assessments – including assessment design, data collection and analysis, output drafting, and dissemination of findings – which focus on building FSL partner capacity to fill FSL information gaps, primarily those that factor into the IPC analysis.
Collaborate closely with Emergency Prioritization sector leads to carry out rapid assessments. Provide input on FSL mainstreaming into REACH workstreams, including EP, and Humanitarian Situation Monitoring and assist with FSL analysis across other REACH workstreams.
Serve as field team leader during FSL assessments. Communicate regularly with the senior management team in Juba and implement ACTED security protocols.
Advocate for the establishment of a community of practice around common methodologies, tools and analysis, both within REACH and within the South Sudan humanitarian community at-large, including by providing technical support and guidance in the development and adoption of such methodologies and processes.
Participate in regular FSL cluster meetings, as well as other relevant coordination or analysis bodies, such as the Needs Analysis Working Group and ICCG. Share information from these meetings on suspected “hot-spots” as well as information on response gaps with the REACH senior management team and other focal points in various sectors.
Engage and provide technical support during IPC workshops, including training, planning and preparing REACH teams for the workshop.
Provide technical backstop for other REACH assessment officers and workstreams regarding correct FSL terminology, methodology, and analysis.
Coordinate logistical aspects of assessments with partner organisations; manage and direct data collection teams in the field.
Ensure the writing of timely and accurate assessment reports and factsheets from collaborative assessments. Work to ensure the harmonisation of FSL-related indicators between the FSL Cluster common tool and other critical, nation-wide assessments (REACH AoK, IOM VAS, ICWG IRNA, FSNMS, SMART).
Supporting the development/revision of assessment/programme strategies, reports or new proposals.
In coordination with the Country Coordinator external representation of REACH with donors, partners and the wider humanitarian community through clusters and sectoral working groups.

MANAGEMENT OF RESEARCH CYCLES AND COORDINATION

Objective 1: Conduct research on coping strategies in South Sudan

The Senior Assessment Officer, in close coordination with the EP Research Manager and IMPACT HQ, will conduct a nation-wide assessment aiming to better understand the use of livelihood coping strategies among food-insecure populations across the 12 livelihood zones of South Sudan. This will include integrating FSL partner’s feedback into the ToR, coordinating with both technical and programmatic food security partners, rolling out the data collection, conducting the analysis, and writing the final output. Lastly, they are responsible, in collaboration with research manager, for disseminating the findings to appropriate partners.

Objective 2: Conduct rapid food security assessments (as requested by FSL cluster or NAWG)

The Senior Assessment Officer for Food Security and Livelihoods, in close collaboration with the with EP Research Manager, the ERRM SAO, and the REACH Assessment Specialist, will conduct rapid assessments, as requested by the FSL Cluster, NAWG, or following the identification of a high-risk area by REACH workstreams or secondary sources. The Senior Assessment Officer will be responsible for attending and providing analysis on FSL hot-spots and high-risk areas at the REACH high council, participating in assessment design, data collection, analysis, output production, and dissemination. Rapid assessments may be conducted independently, jointly with the ERRM sub-unit or jointly with external partners. The FSL SAO may serve as team lead and security focal point while conducting assessments in field and deep field locations, and in such cases will be responsible for carrying out security protocols. Moreover, the FSL Senior Assessment Officer will serve as a general FSL technical backstop for rapid assessments and outputs in coordination with the global FSL specialist at IMPACT HQ.

Objective 3: Support at IPC workshops and capacity build REACH staff

The FSL SAO, in close coordination with EP Research Manager and IMPACT HQ, is responsible for regular attendance and participation in IPC workshop, providing support for REACH participants in analysing South Sudan-wide food security, including REACH outputs, in order to provide a joint FSL cluster understanding of priority areas for FSL responses. The FSL SAO will also act as an inter-agency liaison with other Food Security Analysis partners to maximize impact before and during the workshop. The SAO will provide Capacity Building opportunities for REACH staff to enhance their ability to provide technical input and analysis at the IPC workshop, and to better enable them to conduct FSL analysis in their respective work tasks.

Objective 4: Streamline tools and methodologies for food security analysis

The Senior Assessment Officer will work closely with the FSL cluster and other FSL partners to streamline the modules and methodologies used in data collection and analysis, including but not limited to ad-hoc rapid assessments, and IRNAs. Specifically, the FSL SAO will work with partners to better understand the tools and methodologies used across agencies to investigate and corroborate reports of hunger-related deaths.

REACH REPORTING

The Senior Assessment Officer is responsible for consolidating all analyses and conclusions from assessments into IMPACT products such as factsheets, reports and briefs using standard formats. The Senior Assessment Officer is responsible for following the designated timeline of reports to be submitted to project partners and donors. They must ensure the writing of timely and accurate assessment reports and factsheets, ensuring the quality and accuracy of technical information provided as well as the confidentiality and protection of collected information. They will ensure that assessment reports contribute to aid coordination and planning and add to the general base of field knowledge in the country for all organisations working in the areas.

They will also manage the drafting of narrative reports and contribute to the development of financial reports through regular budgetary follow-up.

The Senior Assessment Officer will also store, organize and disseminate assessments, project documents and best practices among partners and potential partners. He/she will coordinate timely and accurate reporting to IMPACT.

HR MANAGEMENT

The Senior Assessment Officer is responsible for day-to-day management of project and field staff both directly and remotely. He/she is expected to guide and direct IMPACT staff and prepare and follow up workplans with each staff member that directly reports to them. The Senior Assessment Officer will be required to take the lead in the recruitment of IMPACT assessment staff in coordination with the ACTED HR Officer. This will include the preparation of ToRs, observation of recruitment procedures by planning recruitment needs in advance, and undertake interviews.

The Senior Assessment Officer will ensure that all field teams are comprehensively briefed on the objective, expected outputs and that the overall implementation strategy of any given activity is clearly understood. He/she will ensure that project/field staff are given training and complete all the necessary documentation in line with program requirements set by IMPACT.

EXTERNAL ENGAGEMENT

The Senior Assessment Officer will be responsible for the representation of IMPACT in cluster and multi-sector meetings/technical working groups in country and follow up on technical issues identified in cluster meetings in other parts of the country. This specifically will include liaising with external partners to identify potential for data sets to be integrated into existing databases and mapped to support the coordination of the broader humanitarian community.

The Senior Assessment Officer will further represent IMPACT vis-a-vis current and potential donors and communicate relevant information to the IMPACT Country Coordinator. He/she will participate in inter-NGO meetings and those of UN agencies and any other relevant inter-governmental institutions at the national or provincial level.

ACCOUNTABILITY TO COMMUNITIES AND BENEFICIARIES

The RM is responsible for ensuring that all interactions with South Sudanese communities are conducted in a respectful and consultative manner. Due attention must be paid to ensuring that communities are adequately consulted and informed about IMPACT programme objectives, activities, beneficiary selection criteria, and methodologies. This is the responsibility of every IMPACT staff member.

CONFIDENTIALITY AND DATA PROTECTION

The Research Manager will maintain the strictest confidentiality on all data collected and related processes. He/she will actively take measures to prevent the unauthorized sharing of any information and data belonging to IMPACT and its partners, or collected during his/her assignment with IMPACT.

REQUIREMENTS

Excellent academic qualifications, including a Master degree in relevant discipline;
Excellent analytical skills;
At least 2 years’ experience working in humanitarian settings required;
At least 6 months’ experience leading FSL-related assessment required;
IPC – level 1 certification an asset
Excellent communication and drafting skills for effective reporting;
Excellent team management skills;
Ability to implement multi-sectoral assessments, both qualitative and quantitative.
Familiarity with the aid system, and understanding of donor and governmental requirements;
Familiarity with early warning systems / IPC or CH workshop an asset
Fluency in English required;
Ability to operate Microsoft Word, Excel and Project Management Software;
Ability to operate R / GIS is an asset
High level of autonomy and willingness to spend time in deep-field locations
Prior knowledge of the South Sudan context an asset;
Experience working and living in challenging environments, especially South Sudan, for extended periods of time an asset;
Willingness to relocate to South Sudan and living in the organisation’s guesthouse.