Manager, Climate, Environment and Community Resilience – (Re-advertised) – Join Us in Making a Difference at IFRC!

Manager, Climate, Environment and Community Resilience – (Re-advertised) – Join Us in Making a Difference at IFRC!

Vacancy No.: S03821

Contract Type: National

Application Deadline: 17-Oct-2023

Job Posted on: 03-Oct-2023

Country: AFRICA Different Locations

Duty Station: Nairobi, Kenya

Duration: 12 Months

Grade: National Staff

Organizational Context

Welcome to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), the world’s largest humanitarian organization. Our mission is to inspire, encourage, facilitate, and promote humanitarian activities, aiming to prevent and alleviate human suffering while upholding human dignity and peace worldwide.

At IFRC, we work tirelessly to meet the needs and enhance the lives of vulnerable individuals before, during, and after disasters, health emergencies, and crises. As part of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, we adhere to fundamental principles of humanity, impartiality, neutrality, independence, voluntary service, unity, and universality.

Headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, IFRC operates through three primary Divisions:

1. National Society Development and Operations Coordination
2. Global Relations, Humanitarian Diplomacy and Digitalization
3. Management Policy, Strategy, and Corporate Services

Our influence spans across five regional offices in Africa, Asia Pacific, Middle East and North Africa, Europe, and the Americas. In addition, we maintain country cluster delegations and country delegations across the globe. Together, our Geneva Headquarters and field structure form the IFRC Secretariat.

Climate, Environment and Community Resilience hold a critical role at IFRC, focusing on risk reduction and resilience strengthening, especially in climate adaptation within urban settings. We emphasize long-term disaster risk reduction and resilience programming while actively collaborating with various functional areas in ARO, Geneva, and CCD counterparts. Our collaborative approach extends to global Strategic Priority Areas and Pan Africa Initiatives, including Zero Hunger – Community Resilience and Food Security Livelihood programming, as well as Nature-Based Solutions, Tree Planting, and Care. As the Climate, Environment and Community Resilience Manager, you’ll provide technical expertise and coordination for climate adaptation, climate-smart community-based disaster risk reduction (CBDRR), food security livelihood, nature-based solutions (NBS), tree planting and care, and urban risk management. This includes connections to technical expertise within the broader HDCC department, encompassing Anticipatory Action, disaster preparedness and response, migration and displacement, health, and care.

Job Purpose

Reporting to the Head of Health, Disaster, Climate and Crisis (HoHDCC), as the Manager, Climate, Environment and Community Resilience, your responsibility is to lead the formulation of the regional strategy for climate, environment, and community resilience, including Food Security and Livelihood (FSL). You’ll oversee the design and execution of all related deliverables and coordinate delivery in this crucial area, focusing on policy dialogue and capacity building activities.

In this role, you will support the IFRC network in Africa to ensure high-quality, coherent, and well-coordinated scale-up of Climate Action, Environment and Community Resilience programming. You’ll provide strategic leadership and direction on climate adaptation, climate-smart community-based disaster risk reduction (CBDRR), food security livelihood, nature-based solutions (NBS), tree planting and care, and urban risk management.

Moreover, your responsibilities include building NS/IFRC/PNSs technical networks for peer-to-peer support, providing a clear framework for outcome setting and progress monitoring, multi-country resource mobilization, and proposal development. You will also ensure quality assurance and accountability for multi-country program implementation.

Your position will require overseeing regional policy advocacy and application in these areas, ensuring coordination and technical support for the implementation of related regional roadmaps, frameworks, and projects/programs. Additionally, you’ll supervise the adaptation and use of related guidance, standards, and tools for use within the IFRC network in the Africa Region.

The Climate, Environment and Community Resilience Manager will have regional responsibilities to influence and advise senior leadership within the organization. You’ll participate in other strategic level discussions with external stakeholders on related areas of work while positioning IFRC and National Societies in the region as key actors in climate, environment, and community resilience. The Manager plays a vital role in achieving IFRC’s commitments towards climate and environmental sustainability.

Job Duties and Responsibilities

Technical Leadership

1. Lead the finalization of the regional Climate Adaptation and Community Resilience strategy, including Food Security and Livelihood, ensuring its implementation across all IFRC Secretariat programs and operations in the Africa region.
2. Provide technical leadership on issues related to Climate, Environment, and Resilience programming, ensuring coherence and integration between relevant policies, strategies, frameworks, and tools.
3. Offer strategic support to IFRC delegations and African National Societies in climate change adaptation, disaster risk reduction, food security livelihood, nature-based solutions (NBS), tree planting, urban resilience, and other climate-resilience programming.
4. Support global initiatives relevant to the portfolio in the Africa Region, for example, IFRC global commitments under Climate and Environment Charter, Early Warnings for All (EW4ALL), Sendai frameworks Global Climate Resilience Programme, and Platform.
5. Ensure mapping of capabilities and capacity enhancement needs of NS in domains like climate change adaptation, disaster risk reduction, food security livelihood, NBS, tree planting and care, urban risk management, climate-induced displacement, and collaborate internally in assessing trends and developing guidance and programs to support National Societies.
6. Oversee the integration of climate risk management and environmental sustainability considerations across all programs, operations, and advocacy, and support capacity building of human resources in Africa Region in collaboration with relevant teams.
7. Promote systematic monitoring and evaluation of climate change adaptation, disaster risk reduction, food security livelihood, NBS, tree planting and care, and urban risk management programs, identifying best practices and lessons learned for organizational sharing and learning.
8. Support climate-related innovative financing.
9. Actively participate in and support IFRC’s knowledge and peer-to-peer networks, promoting the engagement and utilization of Red Cross Red Crescent reference centers and contributing to “shared leadership” initiatives.
10. Actively engage and collaborate with external regional stakeholders on issues related to Climate, Environment, and Resilience Programming.

Management

1. Oversee the overall day-to-day management, administration, and coordination of Africa Climate, Environment, and Community Resilience programmatic functional area activities.
2. Be accountable to the HoHDCC on the team’s Operational Plan, proactively manage and contribute to the HDCC management team.
3. Ensure effective cross-team collaboration across regional and delegation’s climate focal points and related technical leads.
4. Select, mentor, and manage team members under the programmatic functional area, including ensuring well-defined results-based priority plans and capacity to provide technical support to response operations.
5. Promote a culture of continuous learning, individual and team accountability, and set performance objectives, monitor team performance, and conduct timely performance reviews.
6. Ensure the team prepares accurate and timely operational reports and updates.
7. Oversee regionally implemented climate change adaptation, disaster risk reduction, food security livelihood, NBS, tree planning and care, and urban risk management projects/programs.
8. Identify risks and challenges to ongoing projects/programs and provide mitigation strategies.
9. Support strategic coherence and alignment, as well as programmatic and operational coordination between HDCC and other technical units.

Coordination and Networking

1. Lead the design and execution of regional policy dialogue engagements to promote climate adaptation and community resilience activities.
2. Oversee coordination and partnerships related to climate change adaptation, disaster risk reduction, food security livelihood, NBS, tree planting and care, migration and displacement, and urban risk management with relevant regional stakeholders.
3. Build and nurture solid relationships with key regional partners, including academia and the private sector, to promote climate and resilience thinking.
4. Ensure high-quality regional preparation and participation of IFRC network in inter-agency and inter-governmental processes.
5. Collaborate with Geneva counterparts to explore partnerships for research supporting advocacy on expanding investment in Climate and Anticipatory Action, longer-term DRR, food security livelihood, and Community Resilience strengthening.

Representation

1. Represent IFRC in regional inter-agency events on climate change adaptation, disaster risk reduction, food security livelihood, NBS, tree planting and care, and urban risk management.
2. Ensure IFRC’s representation in relevant inter-agency initiatives and events focusing on climate change adaptation, disaster risk reduction, food security livelihood, NBS, tree planting and care, migration and displacement, and urban risk management.

Education

• Relevant university education (in Disaster Management/DRR, Economics, Natural Resources Management, Environmental/Climate Science) or equivalent qualifying experience (Required)
• Basic Delegates Training Course (BTC), WORC, IMPACT, or equivalent knowledge (Preferred)
• Relevant training and experiences in climate change, forecast-based financing, anticipatory action, urban risk management, disaster risk reduction, disaster risk governance, community resilience programming (Required)

Experience

• 10 years of progressive and relevant leadership/management/adviser experience in the humanitarian sector, climate adaptation, or environmental science (Required)
• Experience in drafting and encouraging change management through implementation of policy/strategic guidance and developing practical tools and resources (Required)
• Experience working in the Red Cross Red Crescent Movement (Preferred)

Knowledge, Skills and Languages

• Communication and negotiation skills (Required)
• Outstanding networking and representation skills (Required)
• Proven good judgment and ability to work with complete integrity and confidentiality (Required)
• Results-oriented and demand-driven individual (Required)
• Demonstrated leadership and management skills (Required)
• Ability to lead within a matrix management structure (Required)
• Ability to lead multi-cultural, multilingual, and multidisciplinary teams (Required)
• Management and supervisory experience in a multicultural environment (Required)
• Experience in managing teams and budgets (Required)
• Experience in coordinating with authorities and other humanitarian/development actors (Required)
• Experience in narrative and financial reporting and proposal writing (Required)
• Experience in the Africa region (Required)
• Fluently spoken and written English (Required)
• Good command of written and spoken French (Required)
• Familiarity with other IFRC official language (Spanish or Arabic) (Preferred)

Competencies, Values, and Comments

Values: Respect for diversity; Integrity; Professionalism; Accountability

Core competencies: Communication; Collaboration and teamwork; Judgement and decision making; National society and customer relations; Creativity and innovation; Building trust.

Functional competencies: Strategic orientation; Building alliances; Leadership; Empowering others.

Managerial competencies: Managing staff performance; Managing staff development

Comments

The Manager, Climate, Environment and Community Resilience leads the IFRC climate team in Africa and reports directly to the Regional Head, Disasters, Climate and Crises. The position will be OUTPOSTED from the Africa Regional office in Nairobi to be located in ANY of our 15 Country Cluster Delegations depending on the nationality of the selected candidate. We highly encourage candidates who meet the required qualifications to apply to this national position.

Please write in English language.

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Expert Tips To Be A Successful Applicant

1. Tailor Your Application: Customize your resume and cover letter to highlight your relevant experience and skills related to disaster management, climate science, and community resilience.
2. Show Impact: When discussing your past roles, emphasize the impact you had, such as successful projects, improvements in processes, or positive outcomes for communities.
3. Highlight Cross-Cultural Experience: Emphasize your ability to work in multicultural environments and your experience in collaborating with diverse teams.
4. Speak the Language: Ensure your language skills, especially in English and French, are well-documented and reflect your ability to communicate effectively.
5. Evidence of Leadership: Showcase instances where you demonstrated leadership, managed budgets, and led teams.
6. Demonstrate Networking: Highlight your networking skills and your ability to build relationships with external stakeholders, as well as academia and the private sector.
7. Results-Driven: Use concrete examples to demonstrate your results-oriented approach in previous roles.
8. Commitment to Core Values: Emphasize your commitment to IFRC’s core values of respect for diversity, integrity, professionalism, and accountability.

Remember, your application is your first impression. Make it count!

Please ensure your application aligns with the job description, showcasing your qualifications, experiences, and skills relevant to this role.