About Mercy Corps

Mercy Corps is a leading global organization powered by the belief that a better world is possible. In disaster, in hardship, in more than 40 countries around the world, we partner to put bold solutions into action helping people triumph over adversity and build stronger communities from within. Now, and for the future.

The Program Summary

Mercy Corps seeks to alleviate suffering, poverty, and oppression around the world. We recognize that instances of sudden change within a country or region are rare moments to enact significant, lasting change. Mercy Corps, with its global experience working in countries undergoing major transitions, brings knowledge, expertise, and strong management skills to position the agency as a partner of choice for progressive change in Syria.

Mercy Corps has been operational in Syria since 2012 providing humanitarian assistance as well as implementing peace and conflict, and agriculture and livelihoods programming with a focus on resilience, early recovery, and social cohesion. Mercy Corps implements a range of activities aimed at supporting positive coping strategies by addressing the basic needs of vulnerable families while strengthening opportunities to generate income and increasing access to livelihoods and promoting social cohesion objectives.

The Position

The Gender Equality, Social Inclusion, and Protection Senior Coordinator (GESI/Protection), will be a member of the Whole of Syria (WoS) team, based in Amman or Beirut and reporting to the Program Performance and Quality (PaQ) Senior Manager. The GESI/Protection Senior Coordinator will be responsible for liaising with team members and partners across MC Syria programs to develop and execute gender sensitive programming (as a minimum standard) and gender transformative programming (when possible) according to Mercy Corps GESI strategy, vision and Commitments. The GESI/ Protection Senior Coordinator will ensure mainstreaming of protection principles, in order to contribute to improving the safety and dignity of all participants, including vulnerable and marginalized groups.

This may include training and capacity building of MC staff, partners and other stakeholders on GESI fundamentals and mainstreaming across the Country Office’s relevant thematic areas, field monitoring, propose GESI activities at the proposal development phase, and leading on GESI Analysis & protection risk assessments. The position holder will represent MC Syria country office in all GESI and protection cluster and sub-cluster coordination meetings and disseminate the relevant information to other teams and hub management. They will ensure program team members understand protection and gender mainstreaming and can self-identify GESI and protection gaps and needs within their intervention area, while working to improve and alleviate them. This is part of the long term objective of this role and ensuring ownership and awareness across MC Syria regarding basic humanitarian inclusion and protection principles.

Essential Responsibilities

PROGRAMMATIC TECHNICAL SUPPORT:

• Ensure adherence to MC Global and Regional best practice in all project design and implementation (GESI Toolkit, GESI Minimum Standards, protection principles, etc.).
• Support with the drafting, reviewing, and overseeing protection risk analysis and GESI Analysis studies and assessments.
• Support the development of GESI and Protection mainstreaming action plans across programs.
• Facilitate planning, monitoring, and quality reporting of all integrated and mainstreamed protection activities in accordance with MC program management minimum standards.
• Work closely with MEL team members to analyze, consolidate, and communicate findings from program and MEL data on gender equality, social inclusion, and protection to ensure capturing GESI/protection evidence generation and learning.
• Organize periodic lessons learned sessions with GESI/Protection focal points, document and share learning.
• Work closely with PaQ teams and program managers to ensure protection needs assessment and GESI analysis and aspects are considered in all project assessments tools.
• Support stakeholders’ analysis, service, mapping and development of referral pathways across program implementation areas.
• Serve as the focal point for coordinating referrals of program participants to other sectors or service providers and maintain follow up with other actors across Syria.
• Conduct regular field visits in project locations to identify protection, gender equality and social inclusion needs and make recommendations to programs.
• Integrate community approaches, gender sensitivity and capacity building into all activities as appropriate.
• Support the team during proposal/ Concept Note development processes through the suggestion of GESI/ Protection activities, budgeting and language.
• Keep up to date with all contextual changes and the impact on current and future projects.
• Ensure the integration and mainstreaming of protection, with an emphasis on enhancing program quality.
• Participate in cross-departmental collaboration and coordination to ensure that protection is mainstreamed into all program activities.
• Assist in any other task or duty assigned by the supervisor.

REPORTING

• Support PaQ Senior Manager with GESI/Protection data related to required reports and updates, e.g. monthly Situation Reports and others.
• Ensure alignment with existent internal processes, guidelines and procedures related to gender equality, social inclusion, and protection.
• Identify relevant impact and success stories from programs activities as well as successful examples of gender equality and social inclusion.

REPRESENTATION AND COORDINATION:

• Network among key actors, and lead on MC Syria representation to working groups, clusters and sub-cluster working groups at the hub and WoS level.
• Support on gender equality, social inclusion and protection related policies development and revisions for Mercy Corps at country level.
• Serve as MC Syria country office gender equality, social inclusion, and protection focal point.
• Represent MC Syria in the regional GESI Community of Practice and share Country specific achievements and learnings with the wider regional group.

CAPACITY BUILDING:

• Identify gaps in gender equality, social inclusion and protection mainstreaming and make recommendations to MC Syria leadership regarding the development of tools, training, and resources to address gaps identified.
• Support developing and implementing gender equality, social inclusion and protection mainstreaming capacity building plans for team members, partners, and casual labors, including sensitization prior to starting field activities.
• Ensure external service providers are trained on GESI and protection and are provided with refresher training sessions whenever needed.
• Regularly, assess, review, and strengthen partner agencies’ capacity and systems in the areas of gender equality, social inclusion and protection when needed.

FINANCE & COMPLIANCE MANAGEMENT:

• Ensure compliance with donor and Mercy Corps regulations related to gender equality, social inclusion and protection mainstreaming related programming.
• Support the budget development of gender equality, social inclusion, and protection interventions and activities.

ORGANIZATIONAL LEARNING:

As part of our commitment to organizational learning and in support of our understanding that learning organizations are more effective, efficient, and relevant to the communities they serve, we expect all team members to commit 5% of their time to learning activities that benefit Mercy Corp as well as themselves.

Supervisory Responsibility

Supervise: None.

Accountability

Reports Directly To: Senior Programs Performance and Quality (PaQ) Manager.

Works Directly With: PaQ team, Programs teams, Grants Management team, Regional GESI Advisor, and Global Protection Team.

Accountability to Participants and Stakeholders

Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our program participants, community partners, other stakeholders, and to international standards guiding international relief and development work. We are committed to actively engaging communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects.

Minimum Qualification & Transferable Skills

• Fluency in written and spoken Arabic; Working proficient in spoken and written English.
• 3-6 years of experience in development and/or humanitarian organizations, including significant experience working with partners to deliver development and/or humanitarian interventions.
• Holds a bachelor’s degree in sociology, psychology, social work, women’s studies, gender equality, or any other related area of study. Master’s degree is a plus.
• Very good level of knowledge and extensive understanding of social inclusion, gender equality, and protection standards, safeguarding and humanitarian principles.
• Extensive experience and background in conducting assessments (including experience in GESI Analysis), training and coaching of staff and partners.
• Experience working on Syria context is preferred.
• Strong writing skills, including experience writing proposals and donor reports and managing complex information.
• Willingness to travel and work in hard-to-reach areas when needed.

Success Factors

• Ability to work under pressure and to meet tight deadlines.
• Demonstrated ability to handle sensitive situations diplomatically and in a confidential manner.
• Strong influencing and advocacy skills for internal and external audiences with the confidence to challenge in an informed and approachable way.
• Developed cultural awareness and ability to work well in an international environment with people from diverse backgrounds and cultures.
• Proven skills in partnership building, influencing, and negotiating with a range of development actors, including governments, UN agencies, networks, national/local NGOs and community groups.
• Experience in networking and humanitarian and development coordination.

Competencies

• Understanding of protection in humanitarian principles and their application including right-based and community-based approaches.
• Very good interpersonal skills with the ability to clearly communicate and effectively negotiate taking diversity into account.
• Strong critical thinking and ability to take initiative.

Living Conditions / Environmental Conditions

The position is based in Amman or Beirut with travel across MC Regional offices of up to 30% to support country programs, which may include travel to insecure locations where freedom of movement is limited and areas where amenities are limited. Staff will have access to good medical services.

Ongoing Learning

In support of our belief that learning organizations are more effective, efficient and relevant to the communities we serve, we empower all team members to dedicate 5% of their time to learning activities that further their personal and/or professional growth and development.

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

Achieving our mission begins with how we build our team and work together. Through our commitment to enriching our organization with people of different origins, beliefs, backgrounds, and ways of thinking, we are better able to leverage the collective power of our teams and solve the world’s most complex challenges. We strive for a culture of trust and respect, where everyone contributes their perspectives and authentic selves, reaches their potential as individuals and teams, and collaborates to do the best work of their lives.

We recognize that diversity and inclusion is a journey, and we are committed to learning, listening, and evolving to become more diverse, equitable and inclusive than we are today.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Mercy Corps is an equal opportunity employer that does not tolerate discrimination on any basis. We actively seek out diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be collectively stronger and have sustained global impact.

We are committed to providing an environment of respect and psychological safety where equal employment opportunities are available to all. We do not engage in or tolerate discrimination on the basis of race, color, gender identity, gender expression, religion, age, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin, disability (including HIV/AIDS status), marital status, military veteran status or any other protected group in the locations where we work.

Safeguarding & Ethics

Mercy Corps is committed to ensuring that all individuals we come into contact with through our work, whether team members, community members, program participants or others, are treated with respect and dignity. We are committed to the core principles regarding prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse laid out by the UN Secretary General and IASC. We will not tolerate child abuse, sexual exploitation, abuse, or harassment by or of our team members. As part of our commitment to a safe and inclusive work environment, team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner, respect local laws and customs, and to adhere to Mercy Corps Code of Conduct Policies and values at all times. Team members are required to complete mandatory Code of Conduct elearning courses upon hire and on an annual basis.