REACH Assessment Officer (Humanitarian Program Cycle) for Syria At IMPACT Initiatives

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 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. 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 and GIS. 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, enabling IMPACT to benefit from ACTED’s operational support on its fields of intervention.

We are currently looking for an Assessment Officer to support our Humanitarian Program Cycle team.

Department: REACH

Position: Assessment Officer

Contract duration: 6 months

Location: Amman, Jordan

Starting Date: ASAP

COUNTRY PROFILE

Into its tenth year of conflict, conditions in Syria remain highly volatile and marked by intense violence and limited humanitarian access. The scale, complexity, and severity of humanitarian needs in Syria extends the necessity for up to date, timely, and accurate information. Evidence-based planning and programming remains paramount to ensure that the response adequately meets the needs of the most vulnerable people and is tailored to different realities across communities and over time. However, informing operational and strategic planning remains highly challenging, as accessibility and security issues impede systematic data collection. A lack of predictable and consistent data undermines the ability of humanitarian actors to review their approach in light of the dynamic context. REACH has been conducting assessments on the humanitarian situation in Syria since 2013 and has over the years grown significantly both in size and in influence as an actor in the Syria response. REACH works closely with OCHA, most clusters, key working groups (IM and technical), and several NGO fora within the Syria coordination system – in order to identify, address, and raise awareness of key information gaps, as well as to uphold the quality of data used to inform the response.

Broadly speaking, REACH Syria implements assessments within four key streams:

· Monitoring of the humanitarian situation in Syria, through i) monthly assessments covering over 1,600 communities in Syria, ii) market monitoring to track prices of goods as per the survival minimum expenditure basket, and iii) rapid assessments in times of conflict escalation or natural disasters.

· Displacement tracking, through tracking the movement of IDPs and Returnees down to a 24-48 hour basis, as well as monitoring the humanitarian situation inside IDP camps and informal settlements.

· Remote sensing activities, across all thematic areas, to serve as a triangulation source and facilitate a coordinated response, including shelter counts, flood assessments, camp boundary mapping, etc.

· Technical support to clusters, for example in the form of coordination and implementation of sector and multisector assessments to inform the HNO, production of thematic assessments, presentations of findings, and capacity building.

For an example of REACH Syria information products, please see below:

· Northeast Syria Market Monitoring Exercise – September 2021

· Northwest Syria Flood Susceptibility and Flood Hazard Assessment – January 2021

· Briefing Note: Humanitarian Situation Overview in Northeast Syria – June 2021

POSITION PROFILE

REACH Initiative Syria is currently seeking a professional with a background in research to serve as an Assessment Officer (AO) in the newly formed Humanitarian Program Cycle (HPC) team. This team was created to provide dedicated support to high-level, strategic planning throughout the annual Humanitarian Program Cycle cycle in the Whole of Syria response. REACH Syria is looking for a dedicated individual with a background in research to implement existing and new research cycles in coordination with the Whole of Syria response infrastructure. Past experience working on needs assessments, especially in coordination with other actors in the humanitarian system, is preferred. At minimum, experience with the humanitarian architecture and effective and proven analysis and communication skills are required.

FUNCTIONS

Under the line management of the Humanitarian Program Cycle Research Manager, or a Senior Assessment Officer in the team, the Assessment Officer is responsible for coordination and implementation of relevant research cycles. On the coordination side, this includes external engagement with OCHA and other relevant Sectors to design the project and disseminate information in a way that is of the greatest use for the humanitarian response. On the implementation side, this includes the preparation, data collection, analysis, drafting, and evaluation of research. S/he is also responsible for related logistics, partner coordination, and reporting requirements and will be required to provide input to the strategic development of REACH in country.

In his/her mission, the Assessment Officer will be hosted by IMPACT’s global partner ACTED and will fall under the direct responsibility and management of ACTED’s Country Director and his/her delegates for all Administrative, Security, and relevant Logistics and Finance issues. S/he will therefore fully abide to ACTED’s Security, Administration, and relevant HR, Logistics and Finance rules and regulations.

RESPONSIBILITIES

The Assessment Officer is responsible for the following:

· Supporting Senior Assessment Officer and/or unit manager in engaging partners for all project activities, including holding and attending meetings and ensuring consistent follow up and partner engagement.

· Ensuring that activities are implemented in a structured and coherent manner, in line with project and program objectives, and assuring that deadlines are met.

· Ensuring regular reporting on assessment progress and participating in internal coordination meetings.

· Developing research TORs and tools in collaboration with Senior Assessment Officer, ensuring these are validated and approved by management and external partners, and also ensuring these are understood and used by assessment staff and stakeholders.

· In collaboration with data officer, managing and coordinating data collection and processing whilst providing quality control to ensure data is clean and of acceptable standard.

· In collaboration with data officer, designing quantitative analyses with the support of the data unit, as well as providing technical input, guidance, and review of data analysis conducted by other team members.

· Providing technical and information management support to humanitarian stakeholders to inform strategic humanitarian planning documents.

· Coordinating with IMPACT HQ and OCHA on global and in country approaches to planning and analysis for the 2023 Syria Humanitarian Needs Overview (HNO) and Humanitarian Response Plan (HRP).

· General project management including grants reporting and project-related logistics.

· Supporting other members of the team as necessary in the development or revision of overall team research strategies, reports, or new proposals.

· Other tasks falling within his/her functions as requested by supervisors.

DATA CONFIDENTIALITY AND PROTECTION

The Assessment Officer will maintain the strictest confidentiality on all data collected and related processes, ensuring full compliance with IMPACT’s data protection policy and SOPs. 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

· Academic Excellent academic qualifications, preferably including a Master’s degree in a relevant discipline (international development, humanitarian response, political science, monitoring and evaluation, etc.);

· Research skills Proficiency and proven experience with research methods, including both quantitative and qualitative research. Excellent analytical skills;

· Software skills Proven knowledge of the Microsoft Office Suite, to include Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Advanced skills in R, SPSS and/or STATA or other statistical analysis software are an advantage; Experience with InDesign an asset.

· Years of work experience At least 2 years of relevant working experience. Experience in humanitarian settings and knowledge of the humanitarian program cycle highly desirable;

· Communication/reporting skills Excellent communication and drafting skills for effective reporting;

· Organizational and coordination skills Strong coordination, presentation, and organizational skills;

· Multi-tasking skills Ability to multitask with tight deadlines, on numerous research cycles;

· Level of independence Proven ability to work independently;

· Cross-cultural work environment Ability to operate in a cross-cultural environment requiring flexibility;

· Experience in geographical region Past experience working in Syria or the Middle East is desirable;

· Language skills Fluency in English required, fluency in Arabic and/or Kurdish an asset;