Requête nº: req12314
Intitulé de poste: Adolescent Girls Officer
Secteur d’activité: Santé
Type de contrat: Régulier
Taux d’occupation: Plein temps
Ouvert aux expatriés: Non
Lieu de travail: Kono, Sierra Leone
Descriptif du poste
Background: Present in Sierra Leone since 1999, IRC supports the Sierra Leonean institutions – government, civil society, community-based organizations and private sector – to provide improved social services, decrease youth unemployment and mitigate gender based violence. IRC do this through programs and partnerships designed to improve the life of women, youth and children by implementing Health, Education, Youth and Gender Based Violence programming. IRC has a Country Program office in Freetown, a Regional Field Office in Kenema, Field Offices in Kono, Kailahun, Tonkolili and Bo.
The IRC and IRC workers must adhere to the values and principles outlined in IRC Way – Standards for Professional Conduct. These are Integrity, Service, and Accountability. In accordance with these values, the IRC operates and enforces policies on Beneficiary Protection from Exploitation and Abuse, Child Safeguarding, Anti Workplace Harassment, and Anti-Retaliation.”
Women and girls’ safety, significance and solidarity have emerged as the benchmarks for both their protection and empowerment, and it is these aspects that this new program embraces through five cross-cutting themes: 1) adolescent girls protection & empowerment; 2) women and girls’ leadership, voice, advocacy, and movement building; 3) education and economic empowerment; 4) health, well-being, and psychosocial support (PSS); and 5) access to justice, social justice.
Job Summary
This position of Adolescent Girls Officer will form part of the health program team and will be based in Kono district. The Adolescent Girls Officer will be responsible for working day to day on continuing to establish and develop informal adolescent girls’ groups, outside of the school setting, within communities. Working closely with girls and communities, the Adolescent Girls Officer will ensure the selection of safe spaces, where girls meet regularly and relate to other girls and assigned a mentor. The safe spaces will allow girls to reduce their social isolation, build supportive friendships and solidarity. Girls will be encouraged to think, imagine, create and act will develop confidence and voice. Building their social, health and economic assets will enable girls to process their experiences and be empowered to make informed choices about their health. The reinforcement of their social and human capital will enhance girls’ safety and security, thus preventing violence. These groups will also aim to provide a route to disclosure for the girls with appropriate support and follow up.
Specific Responsibilities
Program implementation and quality
- Work directly on the implementation of the Adolescent Girls Protection and Empowerment program in their district, and manage associated day-to-day tasks, including:
- Work closely with the IRC health officers to provide practical and hands-on support to ensure that the resources developed for mentors and girls, and any activities and programming have a psychosocial and well-being component, and that girls in the program are provided with strong and regular psycho-social support
Budgeting
- Know and understand program-related lines across all budgets to ensure all activity spending is in line with the money budgeted for those activities
- Raise appropriate Purchase Requests (PRs) for activities, with correct budget codes and in-line with the allocated budget for those activities, and track until fully processed and complete
Monitoring and reporting
- Provide the District Delivery Senior Manager with regular updates on your work (daily/ weekly)
- Work closely with the health team and partner organizations to ensure systems and tools are in place to monitor the project
- Ensure that participatory monitoring and evaluation (M&E) is conducted for all girls group activities
- Provide timely and accurate information to the District Delivery Senior Manager for weekly/monthly project; contribute to writing reports against indicators relevant to the position
Staff development and support
- Actively take part in health capacity building opportunities and ensure learning and experiences are shared with the wider WGPE team and program partners
- Actively pursue professional development opportunities based on your performance and development objectives, and liaise with your supervisor for support on identifying and realizing these where possible
- Actively engage and contribute to weekly/monthly all health staff meetings at the district level to:
- Share experiences, learning, challenges and successes across all health programs and activities
- Track the impact of the program in the communities
- Identify and action plan around areas of collaboration across health programming.
- Plan joint events/activities
- Help strengthen communication and participation by all health staff
Representation and Advocacy
- Support the District Delivery Senior Manager by attending any girl-focused district or community level meeting/event, where requested
Other
- Undertake all other tasks as requested by the supervisor
Key Working Relationships:
External: MSWGCA, FSU, Rainbo Centres (where existing), and other partners (including – Community Based Women’s groups, CBOs), IRC Health, Education and WGPE Teams
Internal: District Delivery Senior Manager, Community-based Young Women Mentors, District Councils, Community structures
Profil
Education (Knowledge):
- Certificate/Diploma in Community Development, Social work or its equivalent in relevant education.
Experience:
- Proven practical work experience with adolescent girls on issues related to their empowerment, GBV and gender issues
- Proven experience and skills working with/engaging communities, especially adolescent girls/young women, using highly participatory, creative/innovative, inclusive and sustainable approaches
- Demonstrated ability to motivate, mobilize, energies, and inspire others, especially young people
- Excellent practical individual and group facilitation skills, that respect professional boundaries, with diverse individuals and groups
- Good understanding of how violence, gender inequality and Ebola impact upon the lives of girls, and how GBV intersects with traditional socio-cultural beliefs, traditions, and practices in Sierra Leone
- Strong networking skills and ability to constructively engage with a variety of stakeholders (INGOs, government officials, community leaders, women’s groups)
- Excellent listening and effective communication skills
- Ability to read and write in English; ability to speak at least one key local language in the target communities
- Ability to prepare small activity budgets and to handle financial resources and transactions in an organized, transparent, and reliable manner
- Able to work independently, and take initiative, but also able to ask for help as needed
- Willing and ready to travel frequently to communities, and work in very basic conditions
- Good motorbike riding skills and valid driving license, desired but not essential
Skill & Abilities:
Mandatory:
- Committed to the mission and principles of the International Rescue Committee
- A good, motivated team player with a positive attitude who can motivate and encourage others
- Results driven – ensures goals, objectives and deadlines are met
- Applies effective utilization of resources
- Self-Management – Knows own strengths and weaknesses and acts accordingly, copes well with pressure and adapts and learns; willingness and ability to work in a frequently changing and demanding context
- Interpersonal skills – Listens willingly and respectfully to the concerns of all groups and individuals and provides feedback, gaining commitment by persuasiveness not demands
- Ability to handle multiple tasks; proven self-initiative and problem solving abilities
- Effective negotiator in conflict situations
- Lives up to commitments and works towards the aims and principles of the IRC, showing consistency between words and actions and always acting with integrity