Humanitarian Programme Coordinator, Afghanistan

Cordaid believes in a world without poverty and exclusion. We strive for just and sustainable societies where every person counts. We stand for knowledge and talent sharing between North and South, between farmers and businesses, between activists and policymakers. Where poverty, conflict and exclusion divide societies, we connect people and communities. We stand for professionalism, expertise and solidarity across borders. We aim at maximizing our social impact and contributing to systemic change. We operate where natural disasters strike, where conflicts tear up communities and where lack of opportunities and service delivery keep families in extreme poverty.

Cordaid is one of the leading CSO’s in the Netherlands, working in fragile contexts on Health, Resilience, Economic opportunities, Humanitarian aid and Security & Justice. Apart from our work abroad we also contribute to new forms of job creation and social innovation in The Netherlands. Cordaid is a member of the international Catholic networks Caritas and CIDSE and we are active in worldwide civil society networks. We work in around 30 countries in Africa, Middle East and Asia.

Introduction

Cordaid has been working in Afghanistan for over 15 years. Its programme focuses on several intervention areas, including health, humanitarian aid, security and justice and women leadership. Cordaid manages and supports this programme largely from its country office in Kabul, with other staff and local implementing partners in project areas. Currently Cordaid Humanitarian unit is implementing Multi Purpose Cash and shelter projects.

To address the plight of the large number of returnees and IDPs that have settled in different parts of Afghanistan, the on-going violence and other humanitarian emergencies related to natural disasters, Cordaid together with local and international NGO partners is involved in Humanitarian programme development, programme implementation, monitoring and capacity building.

Position and responsibility

The Humanitarian Programme Coordinator (HPC) is responsible for designing, coordinating, managing and monitoring Cordaid’s humanitarian aid programme in Afghanistan. He/ she will also support the capacity building of local partner organizations in these areas.

The HPC will report to the Cordaid Country Director in Kabul and liaise closely with the relevant technical officers of the Humanitarian Aid unit at Cordaid HQ in The Hague. The HPC will also cooperate closely with the Programme Managers in Health and Security & Justice of Cordaid in Afghanistan, as well as liaise and coordinate with other programmes implemented by Cordaid in Afghanistan.

General objective of the posting

• Support programme development and strategic position of Cordaid on Humanitarian Aid (HA); 
• Support capacity development of selected local partner organizations in the areas of HA; 
• Link where possible with other Cordaid programmes in country; 
• Contribute to Cordaid Afghanistan’s contingency planning and that of partners including preparedness; 
• Lead the Afghanistan Joint Response, an alliance of Dutch NGOs responding to humanitarian needs in the country;
• Develop consortia and identify, develop and support new HA projects;  
• Acquisition, networking, representation and coordination within the Afghanistan and International network, International NGO community, UN agencies and UN clusters, and potential back donors (ECHO, EC, Netherlands Embassy & Foreign Affairs, UN agencies and Private funds, amongst others); 
• Any other responsibilities that can reasonably be asked from the HPC position.

Specific objectives

Programme development and strategic positioning:

• Explore opportunities and threats for the Cordaid HA programme in Afghanistan as well as the strengths and weaknesses of Cordaid herein;
• Explore potential local and international partner organization to cooperate with in Cordaid HA Programme;
• Actively contribute towards the design and updating of Country Strategic Plans and Annual Work Plans.

Identify, develop and support proposals and projects:

• Carry out and lead assessments;
• Develop consortia;
• Develop project proposals (narrative, logframe, budget, workplan) for ECHO, DFID, USAID and OCHA and/or other donors on HA;
• Support and cooperate with local and International partners in developing their proposals (narrative, work plan, budget, logframe) and implement their funded projects for HA, using project cycle management tools;
• Support project development to strengthen and build upon linking HA with CMDRR and Livelihood projects, and possible other projects (e.g. Health, Security & Justice));
• Responsible for planning, evaluation and audits (with support of financial experts) as foreseen per grant contract;
• Regular visits to project sites to monitor progress of projects funded by Cordaid and back donors;
• Responsible for reporting to Cordaid HQ and others based on partner reports and visits.

Capacity development on HA and disaster preparedness (DP):

• Help organize and facilitate trainings for staff of local partner organizations in the areas of emergency preparedness & response, based on International Humanitarian Standards.
• Provide technical assistance on HA and DP and accompany/backstop staff of local partner organizations to enable long-term skills-transfer;
• Improve learning, linking and coordination between partner organizations, key stake holders ( local government, institutional donors, etc.) to strengthen networks and establish contingency plans;
• Support documentation of human interest stories, lessons learned, best practices and strategic opportunities related to Cordaid and partners’ programmes and projects.

Networking, representation and acquisition:

• Identify and establish contacts with relevant organizations and stakeholders as strategic to Cordaid’s HA and DP interventions in Afghanistan;
• Explore added value of Cordaid and promote Cordaid’s interests within relevant clusters;
• Explore potential areas for collaboration and mobilize opportunities and resources;
• Provide regular humanitarian situation updates and ensure issues calling for intervention of the Cordaid Humanitarian Aid team are reported in a timely manner;
• Represent Cordaid’s HA programme in relevant UN and other humanitarian coordination / thematic cluster meetings, in coordination with the Country Director.

Qualifications

• Relevant education in Humanitarian Aid and related development studies;
• At least 5 years proven experience with analysing, developing, managing and monitoring emergency response programs and participatory needs assessments;
• Proven experience with developing, managing and monitoring emergency preparedness programs;
• Strong proposal writing skills (ECHO, EC, UN, etc.);
• Experience in assessing needs for and/or delivering HA and DP training;
• Experience in building capacity and backstopping local partners in conflict-affected states, preferably in Afghanistan;
• Experience with cash based interventions and shelter projects;
• Experience in training local partners in DP and preparing contingency plans
• Experience in assessing needs for and/or delivering HA and DP training;
• Experience in building capacity and backstopping local partners in conflict-affected states, preferably in Afghanistan;
• Experience with cash based interventions and shelter projects;
• Experience in training local partners in DP and preparing contingency plans with them is an asset
• Strong (financial) project management, analytical and problem-solving skills;
• Experience of working with internationally-funded programmes, including coordination, reporting and monitoring according to different donor templates (e.g. ECHO, OCHA);
• Previous work experience in and knowledge of Afghanistan’s socio- political environment is a must;
• Be diplomatic, culturally sensitive and result-oriented;
• Experience in working in security sensitive environment in complex (post)conflict situations;
• Excellent English language writing and communication skills.

Specifics of duty station

The Humanitarian Programme Coordinator will be based in Kabul. Kabul has fair medical facilities, international shops and local markets and an international airport. Movement is limited. The safety and security situation in Afghanistan remains volatile, but is constantly monitored by Cordaid and appropriate policies are in place and the fact that Afghanistan remains a single-posting country. Pending security, the successful candidate will have to travel regularly to the field (Nangarhar, Herat, Uruzgan) for project monitoring and for consultation and coordination meetings. This is a non-accompanied posting.

Contract information

The contract period is for an initial period of six months, with the possibility of extension, starting as soon as possible (preferably 1 October 2017). We offer a Cordaid contract with a competitive salary and a benefit package which includes R&R, comprehensive insurance cover, social security, pension contribution and a holiday allowance.