Education Cluster Coordinator At Save the Children

The Opportunity

The Cluster Approach: The ‘cluster approach’ was adopted by the Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) as a key strategy to address the gaps in humanitarian response. UNICEF and Save the Children (SC) were designated as Co-Leads of the Global Education Cluster. At country level, the aim of the cluster approach is to strengthen humanitarian response by demanding high standards of predictability, accountability and partnership in all sectors or areas of activity, by clarifying the division of labour among organizations and better defining their roles and responsibilities within the different sectors of the response. It aims to make the international humanitarian community better organised and more accountable and professional, so that it can be a better partner for the affected people, host governments, local authorities, local civil society and resourcing partners.

Current Context in Afghanistan: Prior to 15 August 2021, Afghanistan’s protracted crisis was characterised by widespread armed conflict between government forces and armed opposition groups, political instability and corruption, earthquakes, droughts, floods, and other natural disasters, and poor infrastructure and inequitable access to basic services. 15 August marked the change of power which has triggered the suspension of all on-budget aid to Afghanistan, including capacity building support to the Ministry of Education. The de facto authorities indicated that their education budget in 2021 is less than 30 percent of all educational needs. Teacher and education personnel salaries have not been paid since August 2021, which has led to teacher absenteeism and, subsequently, student absenteeism or drop-out. In addition, other supply side barriers remain. Repairs to school buildings which were damaged during the escalation in conflict in 2021 are yet to be completed, making buildings unsafe for children and personnel to return. Lack of funding has interrupted the supply of teaching and learning materials (including computers and laboratory equipment), teacher trainings, and other administrative functions of the public system, including the Education Management Information System (EMIS).

Despite these circumstances, the Education Cluster continues to coordinate integrated humanitarian education delivery amongst approximately 30 active partners. Increased coordination and alignment with development partners has also been critical to preserving humanitarian space and operating along principled lines. The Cluster recently led the development of the Afghanistan Education Sector Transitional Framework, which will act as the guiding technical reference for structuring off-budget investment. In addition, the Cluster plans to reach 1.5 million girls and boys with EiE assistance through the Humanitarian Response Plan 2022, a 50% increase from last year’s targets.

KEY AREAS OF ACCOUNTABILITY: * Co-lead the Education Cluster (together with national SC-hosted Coordinator and UNICEF-hosted Coordinator co-leads) * Co-facilitate Education Cluster meetings and provide high quality standard representation of the Cluster in Inter-Cluster Coordination Team (ICCT) meetings * Represent the Education Cluster and undertake advocacy through/to Humanitarian Coordinator (HC), HCT, the broader humanitarian community, donors, and de facto authorities to ensure education is prioritized in the humanitarian response and equity remains foundational * Guide multi-donor pool funds (i.e., Education Cannot Wait, Global Partnership for Education), bilateral donor investment and partner implementation and advocacy in alignment with the Afghanistan Education Sector Transitional Framework to achieve sector-level results * Engage with de facto authorities, where indicated, and Development Partners to operationalise the Afghanistan Education Sector Transitional Framework, emphasising Humanitarian-Development Nexus entry points and alignment * Secure funding commitments to the Education Cluster from bilateral/multilateral donors, including pooled funding mechanisms, and ensure that partners are aware of funding opportunities * Work closely and collaboratively with the Development Partners Group (DPG) to ensure EiE response provides linkages to longer-term support and continuity of education * Contribute strategically to the periodic revision and development of Humanitarian Programme Cycle documents and Education Cluster strategy, including the following activities: * Reinforce and progress approach to EiE in Afghanistan with a specific focus on the needs of children most impacted by inequality, including those with disabilities, those in hard-to-reach areas and those discriminated by gender or other issues (utilizing secondary data and coordinating education-specific needs assessments to inform sector response planning) * Strengthen the quality of the response, including through the harmonisation of response activities (ensuring that activities prevent overlap and duplication) and lead on promoting interagency coordination on key approaches, taking into account the cross-cutting areas from other sectors or clusters (i.e., WASH, Protection, Health, Nutrition, etc.) * Systematically and intentionally engage with the Humanitarian Access Group and other relevant clusters and working groups to align with and guide other sectors, preserve humanitarian space, and enable adherence to shared operating principles * Support the revision of costing frameworks and funding targets based on market and operational realities and partners’ contributions * Facilitate partners’ inclusive participation in Education Cluster strategy and advocacy approach * Guide the revision of the Cluster architecture to improve localized and evidence-based EiE response coordination * Support sub-national strengthening, with support from Cluster Lead Agencies, and define funding needs for the Cluster set-up at national and sub-national levels, prioritising localization * Contribute to the development and strengthening of the sub-national cluster focal points, including designing planning, implementation, and evaluation processes which generate inputs from the field towards programmatic decision-making and advocacy * Support the capacity building objectives of the national SC-hosted Cluster Coordinator to independently fulfil the full scope of the role (i.e., the expectation is for this role to become obsolete as to fully handover to the national Coordinator) * Coach and build capacity of the SC national Cluster Co-Coordinator

Thematic Areas of Save the Children value add as Education Cluster Co-Lead Agency:

* Mainstream localization by encouraging participation and representation of local partners in membership and decision-making mechanisms and identifying and addressing their institutional capacity gaps * Ensure that children’s perspectives are solicited and included in all stages of the HPC and that the cluster and members have systems to institutionalise child participation * Ensure that child safeguarding protocols are streamlined across the Education Cluster membership and are a pre-requisite for receiving endorsement for funding by the Cluster * Lead the engagement with the Child Protection Area of Responsibility and identification of areas for joint collaboration between CPiE and EiE

General: * Comply with Save the Children policies and practice with respect to child safeguarding, code of conduct, health and safety, equal opportunities and other relevant policies and procedures * Display neutrality and act as the representative of all education cluster members * Develop and maintain a strong and positive relationship with UNICEF, the education cluster co-lead agency * Develop and maintain a strong and positive relationship with Cluster partners in country and colleagues at regional and global levels.

QUALIFICATIONS

* University degree, preferably a Master’s degree, in a subject area relevant to education, international relations/politics, humanitarian coordination/management * Formal training in cluster coordination (Global Education Cluster, Core 1 of the Core Coordination Skills Training) is desirable.

EXPERIENCE AND SKILLS Essential: Experience: * At least 8 years progressively responsible work experience with UN, government and/or NGO, including in a humanitarian context * Significant experience in a senior management role/cluster coordination in an emergency response/fragile state including field operations * Proven experience in leading sector planning, strategy development, and humanitarian response planning processes that focus on the needs of the hardest to reach and most marginalized children * Experience applying relevant interagency humanitarian frameworks and standards in education in emergencies (for example INEE Minimum Standards) * Previous experience working in or on Afghanistan is desired Skills: * Politically and culturally sensitive with excellent interpersonal, communication and diplomatic skills * Effective negotiator, with the ability to positively influence investments and prioritization of the education sector in the humanitarian response * Solid project management skills related to program development cycle with a proven history of delivering results * Demonstrable ability to work and represent views across different stakeholders taking part in the Education Cluster. * A high level of written and spoken English (Dari/Pashto proficiency is desirable)

Knowledge * Draw on knowledge of EiE concepts, issues, innovations, INEE minimum standards and Global Education Cluster tools to drive strategic-level discussions and inform standards and practices * Knowledge of the IASC Cluster System and recent humanitarian reform developments, including the Transformative Agenda ad Grand Bargain * Understanding of the Consolidated Appeals Process and other funding mechanisms * Knowledge of information management processes within the cluster system * Demonstrable knowledge of Afghan context and political situation

Other: * Demonstrated commitment to Humanitarian Principles and the Principles of Partnership * Capacity and willingness to be extremely flexible and accommodating in difficult and sometimes insecure working circumstances.

Application Information

Please apply using a cover letter and up-to-date CV as a single document. Please also include details of your current remuneration and salary expectations. A copy of the full role profile can be found at www.savethechildren.net/careers

We need to keep children safe so our selection process, which includes rigorous background checks, reflects our commitment to the protection of children from abuse.

All employees are expected to carry out their duties in accordance with our global anti-harassment policy.

How to apply

Please follow this link to apply: https://www.aplitrak.com/?adid=YS50YW1iYS41Mzc5MC4xMjE4NUBzYXZldGhlY2hpbGRyZW5hby5hcGxpdHJhay5jb20

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