Child Rights Governance Advisor (CO) At Save the Children

***Due to the urgency to fill this role, applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. Kindly note that the position might be filled before the vacancy announcement is closed; therefore, early applications are encouraged.***

The Opportunity – Child Rights Governance Advisor (CO)

Post location: Ramallah, with travel across West Bank and Gaza

Contract Duration and Level of Effort: 1 year

ROLE PURPOSE:

As a member of the Programme Development & Quality (PDQ) Department, the Child Rights Governance (CRG) Advisor will be responsible for setting the strategic direction of our child rights governance work in oPT, which works with Palestinian Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) to advance the fulfilment of children’s human rights, ensuring that the diverse voices of children, girls and boys are equitably heard and represented. Save the Children’s CRG programmes includes advocacy, empowering children to claim their rights, legislative strengthening, influencing national development planning and financing for child rights, supporting Ministries responsible for vulnerable groups, as well as ensuring children’s representation and active participation in child-led monitoring activities and children’s councils.

The Advisor will refresh and implement the Palestine Country Strategic Plan in the area of child rights governance. They will lead on our partnership approach for child right governance with various stakeholders, including children, CSOs, line Ministries or NGOs in line with the SCI policies and standards. The Advisor will ensure adherence to SCI partnership principles of value-driven, empowering relationships, transparency, accountability and mutual benefit.

Further, in close coordination with the program operations department, the Advisor will provide technical guidance in the development, implementation, monitoring and reporting of all CRG activities, ensuring they are implemented in a high quality and timely manner. They will provide technical support to country and field office staff and partners to ensure compliance with SCI standards. This will include developing and implementing technical capacity building plans for SCI and partner teams.

The CRG Advisor will take lead on developing high quality proposals for this area of work, in close coordination with relevant Advisors, Program Managers and partner organizations. In addition to ensuring program development and quality, the CRG Advisor will represent SCI and ensure ongoing coordination with relevant Palestinian Government counterparts. They Advisor will also have opportunities to engage with global Technical Working Groups across SCI.

In the event of a major humanitarian emergency, the role holder will be expected to work outside the normal role profile and be able to vary working hours accordingly.

SCOPE OF ROLE:

Reports to: Director of PDQ

Staff reporting to this post: None.

Role Dimensions: oPt CO is a high complexity country, multi-member interest, with an annual budget of around $40+m, and 100+ staff. Currently the program is experiencing a growth in funding and complexity due to the war in Gaza.

Budget Responsibilities: None.

KEY AREAS OF ACCOUNTABILITY:

In Child Rights Governance:

Technical Leadership:

• Provide technical leadership for Child Rights Governance across Save the Children’s OPT portfolio, setting a strategic approach in relation to the wider country strategy.
• Build capacity of staff and partners in technical approaches related to CRG, e.g., advocacy, child participation, civil society strengthening, strengthening national systems, and ensuring State investment in children and child rights.
• Support SC senior management in engagement with child consultative groups (child board).

Ensuring Programme Quality (Design & Implementation):

• Ensure that a rights-based and systems strengthening approach is reflected in CRG programme design and implementation, with a strong focus on child participation.
• Lead high quality, integrated and standalone CRG programme design, working with cross-functional colleagues and local partners to design programmes that are evidence-based and in line with SC quality standards, partnership principles and donor requirements.
• Ensure CRG programmes can achieve scale, as well as equitable and sustainable results.
• Conduct partner scoping, mapping and review of current and potential partnerships. Cultivate a partnership culture, promoting innovation, learning, knowledge and collaboration.
• With support of Business Development colleagues, lead on funding strategies, donor engagement, capture planning, partnering and preparation of proposals for CRG activities.
• Provide oversight and guidance to programme implementation teams, to ensure that thematic components are technically sound, and implementation methods are consistent with global standards and acknowledged good practice.
• Undertake field visits, and work with implementation teams to understand impacts, operational challenges, and opportunities for learning and improvement.
• Ensure that learning from CRG programmes is shared across the Country Office and our partners, as well as with colleagues in the wider Save the Children movement.
• Contribute to strengthening CRG competencies via training and learning initiatives.
• Support the development of emergency preparedness plans and sectoral assessments (including child rights, gender and disability analysis using SC assessment tools) used to design and deliver emergency response programmes. Ensure children are consulted, and child rights upheld and advanced in SC’s emergency response.
• Support other thematic advisors to ensure a holistic vision of child rights is implemented across sectoral lines.
• In close coordination with our ACCM department, support a national child rights advocacy strategy, engaging children and local partners.

Capacity Building:

• Develop learning needs assessment and capacity building plans for SC staff and partner organizations on CRG.
• Coach and mentor SC staff, partners and national counterparts on child rights, child rights-based programming, good governance for children, equitable partnerships and link in to wider organisational talent development mechanisms.
• Capacity development of child consultative groups for SC and partner organizations.

Networking & External Engagement:

• In alignment with Country Office leadership, engage in strategic positioning with donors, partners and government to ensure Save the Children is a partner of choice in CRG.
• Lead Save the Children’s efforts to strengthen civil society engagement in national policy dialogues related to empowering children to claim their rights, safeguarding civil society ‘space,’ ensuring analysis and discourse on public investment in children, monitoring and reporting on child rights, and influencing national development planning processes (e.g. on the SDGs).
• Work with children’s councils to ensure that the diverse voices of children, girls and boys are equitably heard and represented.
• Represent Save the Children to National and Local government representatives, donors, partner agencies as required.

In order to be successful you will bring/have:

QUALIFICATIONS

• Masters degree in in political science, social science, international development or relations, public administration, governance, law, human rights, or similar, or equivalent experience.
• Professional qualification in law, public administration, public financial management, social policy.

EXPERIENCE AND SKILLS

Essential

• A minimum of 5+ years’ experience in the field or relevant fields.
• Understanding of the Child Rights Governance sector in oPt.
• Previous experience working on child rights with national and/or international civil society organisations.
• Familiarity with some or all of the following tools: political economy analyses, gender analyses, child rights situation analyses, and participatory research methodologies.
• Familiarity with human rights led approaches to programming, and particularly child rights programming approaches.
• Expertise in engaging children in advocacy and movement-building, with attention to child safeguarding.
• Track record in successful business development and program design with one or more of the following donor partners: SIDA, DANIDA, NORAD, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Netherlands, USAID, ECHO, UK FCDO, Irish Aid, Global Affairs Canada, Green Climate Fund.
• Experience in strategic development and planning.
• Experience supporting humanitarian preparedness, response and recovery.
• Significant experience in training, capacity building, and mentoring.
• English and Arabic.

We offer a competitive package in the context of the sector. This role is offered on the basis of national terms and conditions.

Save the Children promotes a diverse and inclusive work environment, women and people with different abilities are strongly encouraged to apply.

The Organisation

Save the Children works in development and humanitarian contexts with children and partners to help families, communities, and governments identify and use innovations to ensure all children survive, learn and are protected.

We employ approximately 25,000 people across the globe and work on the ground in over 100 countries to help children affected by crises, or those that need better healthcare, education and child protection. We also campaign and advocate at the highest levels to realize the right of children and to ensure their voices are heard.

We are working towards three breakthroughs in how the world treats children by 2030:

• No child dies from preventable causes before their 5th birthday
• All children learn from a quality basic education and that,
• Violence against children is no longer tolerated

We know that great people make a great organization, and that our employees play a crucial role in helping us achieve our ambitions for children. We value our people and offer a meaningful and rewarding career, along with a collaborative and inclusive environment where ambition, creativity, and integrity are highly valued.