Plan International is an independent development and humanitarian organization that advances children’s rights and equality for girls.
We believe in the power and potential of every child. But this is often suppressed by poverty, violence, exclusion and discrimination of girls who are most affected.
Working together with children, young people, our supporters and partners, we strive for a just world, tackling the root causes of the challenges facing girls and all vulnerable children.
We support children’s rights from birth until they reach adulthood. And we enable children to prepare for – and respond to – crises and adversity. We drive changes in practice and policy at local, national and global levels using our reach, experience and knowledge.
We have been building powerful partnerships for children for over 80 years, and are now active in more than 70 countries.
Purpose:
SWEET (Strengthening Women’s entrepreneurs in Egypt) project asserts that targeted gender-specific action is critical to empower women and girls to amplify their inherent individual and collective agency and create an enabling social and economic environment for them. The SWEET project is a five- year- project that will take a three-pronged, rights-based and gender-transformative approach for women and adolescent girls in the carpet industry in the Giza governorate of Egypt to: expand their knowledge and understanding of the sector, improve their social status, provide them a range of industry-relevant skills, and strengthen governance systems and business linkages to build a supportive social environment and an enabling institutional environment for women and adolescent girls.
The Gender & Women Economic Empowerment Specialist will be responsible for providing high strategic technical input to the implementation of SWEET project.
Dimensions of Role:
The post holder reports to the SWEET Project Manager and is responsible for providing top quality technical advisory and program development approaches in the area of the project which is the Economic Empowerment for women.
Typical Responsibilities – Key End Results of Position:
- Provide technical advisory support to SWEET project team in the area of women economic empowerment.
- Thorough analysis and research of the social and economic situation in Egypt that affects women economic empowerment and preparation of considerable inputs to the project team.
- Constant monitoring and analysis of the economic environment in Egypt with proactive suggestions for readjustment of the project interventions if feasible.
- Support in the value chain assessment including a gender-sensitive market study of the carpet value chain and a business case.
- Support in conduct an institutional capacity and gender equality assessment of partner CDAs.
- Identify the best providers of specific skills for women as needed for potential cooperation within the project.
- Provide context input to support the quality assurance of policy services and foster policy innovation in the specific thematic area to enhance project delivery.
- Conduct field visits to make sure the project activities being implemented are gender-informed and respond to the key women economic issues within the context of the community.
- Support in identifying the opportunities for the women entrepreneurs to benefit from funds provided by different institutions and the private sector and other donors.
- Support in building and maintaining close liaisons with relevant donors and other actors supporting women economic empowerment.
- Support in the implementation of relevant impactful advocacy activities and campaigns with key stakeholders for supporting the realization the project goal.
- Support the development and implementation of the gender strategy for the project during the planning phase.
- Develop tools and guidelines to support gender mainstreaming, and ensure cohesion and alignment.
- Support the project team to build the capacity of partners for mainstreaming gender transformative approaches in their activities.
- Provide technical input to the development of content and methodology for capacity building trainings on gender and economic empowerment for the project as required.
- Develop, implement and monitor the capacity building initiatives;
Identify good practices and strategic opportunities in women economic empowerment.
Accountabilities:
- Provide high technical support to SWEET project team in the area of women economic empowerment.
- Facilitation of knowledge building through developing, implementing and monitoring the capacity building initiatives in the area of economic empowerment.
- Support in identifying the opportunities for the women entrepreneurs to benefit from funds provided by different institutions and the private sector and other donors.
- Support in building and maintaining close liaisons with relevant stakeholders for Strategic partnerships building and resource mobilization support.
- Ensures that Plan International’s global policies for Child Protection (CPP) and Gender Equality and Inclusion (GEI) are fully embedded in accordance with the principles and requirements of the policy including relevant Implementation Standards and Guidelines as applicable to their area of responsibility. This includes, but is not limited to, ensuring staff and associates are aware of and understand their responsibilities under these policies and Plan International’s Code of Conduct (CoC), their relevance to their area of work, and that concerns are reported and managed in accordance with the appropriate procedures.
Knowledge, Skills, Behaviours, and Experience Required to Achieve Role’s Objectives
- Bachelor degree in, Economics, Business Administration, Management, International Development, Gender, Human Rights or in other related Social Sciences, with minimum 7 years relevant experience..
- Experience in programme, policy analysis, and strategic planning;
- Experience in working with, and building partnerships with governments, donors and civil society organizations internationally and in the field;
- Strong experience addressing the socio-economic situation in Egypt and its impact on women is essential.
- Analyse age based and gender based needs and design targeted programming.
- Engage/dialogue with adolescent girls and ensure their active participation in programmes.
- Able to analyse girls’ strategic interests and needs in a range of contexts, and develop holistic programmatic and influencing responses to address these needs.
- Knowledge of external and internal best practices on mainstreaming gender equality and inclusion (diversity) in all areas of work (including within offices and staff).
- Able to develop, implement, monitor and evaluate gender transformative approaches.
- Knowledge of best practices and specific challenges around engaging boys and men in development programmes on gendered violence.
- Ability to lead strategic planning, results-based management and reporting
- Consistently approaches work with energy and a positive, constructive attitude.
- Ability to advocate and provide policy advice.
- Demonstrates good oral and written communication skills
- Focuses on impact and result for the partners and responds positively to feedback.
- Knowledge and understanding of the local context and of interaction with local development actors and communities.
- Fluency in spoken and written English is required.
- Strong analytical skills and the ability to process large and complex data.
- Demonstrated writing skills (report writing, proposal, and concept paper writing)
- Excellent interpersonal communication skills and team work abilities.
- Understanding of and commitment to the promotion of gender equality, child protection and inclusion of the most vulnerable.
- Ability to work under stress and pressure and to meet multiple deadlines and targets.
- Involves others in setting and achieving goals
- Creates strong sense of ownership within one part of the business to different stakeholders.
- An open communicator and team player.
Behaviors – Plan International’s Values in Practice
We are open and accountable
- Promotes a culture of openness and transparency, including with sponsors and donors.
- Holds self and others accountable to achieve the highest standards of integrity.
- Consistent and fair in the treatment of people.
- Open about mistakes and keen to learn from them.
- Accountable for ensuring we are a safe organization for all children, girls & young people.
We strive for lasting impact
- Articulates a clear purpose for staff and sets high expectations.
- Creates a climate of continuous improvement, open to challenge and new ideas.
- Focuses resources to drive change and maximize long-term impact, responsive to changed priorities or crises.
- Evidence-based and evaluates effectiveness.
We work well together
- Seeks constructive outcomes, listens to others, willing to compromise when appropriate.
- Builds constructive relationships across Plan International to support our shared goals.
- Develops trusting and ‘win-win’ relationships with funders, partners and communities.
- Engages and works well with others outside the organization to build a better world for girls and all children.
We are inclusive and empowering
- Seeks constructive outcomes, listens to others, willing to compromise when appropriate.
- Builds constructive relationships across Plan International to support our shared goals.
- Develops trusting and ‘win-win’ relationships with funders, partners and communities.
- Engages and works well.
Physical Environment and Demands:
- The position will be based in Plan Country office in Maadi – Cairo.
- Typical office environment with frequent field visits in the project locations in Giza governorate.
Level of Contact with Children
Mid contact: Occasional interaction with children
Type of Role: One year fixed term contract
Location: The position is based in Plan International Egypt’s Country Office, Maadi.
Reports to: SWEET Project Manager
Closing Date: 29th of July 2020
Early application is encouraged as we will review applications throughout the advertising period and reserve the right to close the advert early.
Please note that only applications and CVs written in English will be accepted.
A range of pre-employment checks will be undertaken in conformity with Plan International’s Child Protection Policy.
As an international child centered community development organization, Plan International is fully committed to promoting the realization of children’s rights including their right to protection from violence and abuse. That means we have particular responsibilities to children that we come into contact with.
Plan International believes that in a world where children face so many threats of harm, it is our duty to ensure that we, as an organization, do everything we can to keep children safe. We must not contribute in any way to harming or placing children at risk.