Early Child Development (ECD) Coordinator

Requisition ID: req23921Job Title: Early Child Development (ECD) CoordinatorSector: Program AdministrationEmployment Category: Fixed TermEmployment Type: Full-TimeOpen to Expatriates: YesLocation: Erbil, IraqJob DescriptionA lead responder in Iraq since 2003, the IRC is providing robust programming across 5 governorates through women���s protection and empowerment, child protection, protection and rule of law, cash and livelihood, and integrated early childhood development programming. Our work spans the spectrum from emergency response to long-term programming supporting our clients to rebuild their lives. Ahlan Simsim program In December 2017, Sesame Workshop and the IRC were awarded the MacArthur Foundation���s inaugural 100&Change grant to make real progress toward solving a critical problem of our time. With the extraordinary investment of $100 million, our partnership will transform the language, early reading, math, and social-emotional skills of a generation of children ages 0-8 affected by the Syrian war. Focusing on children in Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria over the next five years, the plan combines the depth of in-person services, reaching 1.5 million children, with the breadth of mass media, reaching 9.4 million children. For more information, please visit: http://refugee.sesameinternational.org/.Reporting to the Deputy Director of Programs (DDP) and the Regional Deputy Project Director of Ahlan Simsim, the ECD Coordinator will serve as the project lead for IRC in Iraq and provide technical direction and leadership for the design, content creation, implementation, scaling, and advocacy of high-quality ECD programming within the region. In addition, the ECD coordinator will work on starting-up a new Education portfolio for the Iraq country program, in line with Iraq new strategy. The ECD Coordinator will work in close collaboration with the Ahlan Simsim Regional team and Technical Advisors.The Early Childhood Development Coordinator is responsible for five key objectives:Program Quality and Implementation: Plan and execute effective deployment of ECD resources and materials to support quality and inclusive programming for children and caregivers, as well as support related to the development and implementation of sound M&E systems and research-driven efforts;Business Development: identify opportunities to expand existing ECD portfolio and to start-up an Education portfolio. Work with Deputy Director for Programs (DDP) and Grants department to develop high quality concept notes and proposals. Actively work on expanding the network of ECD and Education partners in Iraq.Advocacy, partnerships and scaling: Establish and strengthen productive relationships with ECD-focused organizations and networks, technical experts, government agencies and donors within Iraq and work in collaboration with these actors for positive ECD outcomes for Children and Caregivers in Iraq in line with Simsim���s advocacy, scaling and sustainability objectives.Learning: Ensure high quality data and evidence consistently informs decision-making; create a culture of learning within the Iraq ECD team and share learnings internally and externally.Representation: with CD and DDP, represent IRC and the Ahlan Simsim program inside and outside Iraq at strategic meetings and events.Responsibilities Program Quality and Implementation Supervise the implementation of Ahlan Simsim���s child facing and caregiver facing programs in IRC and non-IRC centers;Ensuring reach targets and quality standards are met and in line with local or national standards for early childhood development and pre-primary education;With guidance from the Regional Technical Lead for ECD, develop country-specific programmatic standards for parenting/home visiting and early learning/ preschool/daycare programs implementation;Supervise the development of relevant M&E systems and ensure regular follow-up on monitoring data relevant to the Ahlan Simsim program and other ECD initiatives inside Iraq;Support the implementation of the Iraq Strategic Action Plan by ensuring that program activities align and contribute to achieving selected pathways of the prioritized signature and core sub outcomes. Business DevelopmentProactively support growth of the Iraq ECD portfolio through development of concept notes and proposals to existing and new donors; Identify opportunities to develop a new Education portfolio.Lead ECD and Education program design and development processes ensuring new programming is in line with the SAP and focused on maximizing quality, efficiencies, impact and integrated approaches, where appropriate;Collaborate with partners on the identification of business development opportunities, and the design of new interventions for ECD and EducationActively identify, build and promote partnerships with INGOs, UN agencies, local and national women’s groups, organizations and networks working on ECD and Education issues; Advocacy, partnerships and scaling Lead on the development of scaling and partnerships work as identified in the scaling strategy.Provide overall direction to align the scaling design with the Iraq national strategies and ECD and Education needs.Ensure scaling and partnerships efforts are rooted in the partnerships principles and abides by the IRC partnership management systemCoordinate the team dynamics to foster a shift in mindset towards scaling and oversee the scaling process and ensure different team members are accountable to their rolesEstablish and maintain solid relationships with ECD and Education stakeholders, networks and government agencies that support Ahlan Simsim���s scaling and sustainability objectives;Work closely and coordinate with line ministries to influence national ECD and Education strategies and initiatives, to ensure greater investments in ECD and greater access to ECD services, especially in conflict and crisis settings. Representation Represent the Ahlan Simsim/ECD team in Iraq to donors, the UN, international and national NGOs, line ministries, and key ECD actors inside and outside Iraq;As ECD focal point at country level, participate actively in external coordination forums; participate in internal coordination and management meetings to promote effective and efficient information sharing, problem-solving and decision making. Grant Monitoring and Business Development Ensure sound and effective management of the ECD portfolio and donor compliance, including appropriate and timely spending of grants to achieve program goals, grant reporting contributions, use and distribution of supplies and resources;Ensure the submission of timely, accurate and well written donor reports and other reporting requirements for all ECD programming in Iraq ;Work closely and coordinate with IRC other technical unit, logistics, finance and grant staff to ensure timely and compliant program activities and expenditures; including active participation in grant opening/closing and review meetings and participation in bids opening and review. Staff Management and DevelopmentCoach, train, and mentor staff with the aim of strengthening their technical capacity, exchanging knowledge within the team and providing professional development guidance;Develop and implement staff capacity building plan to ensure quality ECD programming across programming teams and other IRC programming;Promote and support staff well-being and work-life balance;Conduct timely and quality performance evaluations.Key Working RelationshipsPosition Reports to: Deputy Director of Programs and Regional Deputy Project Director of Ahlan SimsimPosition directly supervises: ECD Deputy Coordinator, ECD Senior Manager, ECD Senior MEAL Manager, ECD Senior Admin OfficerOther Internal And/or External ContactsInternal: Regional Ahlan Simsim team, HQ Ahlan Simsim team, other IRC programs and support departments.External: all relevant donors, NGOS, DPOs, universities, partners, ministries, stakeholders, and government agencies.Job RequirementsMasters level qualification in Social Sciences, Education, Psychology, Human Development, Social Work, or related subject; Bachelors level qualification with additional work experience in the below area will also be considered;Passion for children���s issues especially in the area of child development, child health, and early childhood education with proven experience in managing and/or technically supporting early childhood development, education, health or child protection programsExperience working in positive partnerships with local actors across Iraq, and in particular government officials and line ministries in Federal IraqGood critical thinking; ability to synthesis a wide scope of information.Solid organizational skills, with a proven ability to prioritize projects with attention to detail.Understanding of monitoring and evaluation systems and use of data for learningStrong leadership, staff management and project management skills; Strong budget management and reporting, skills; and an ability to oversee multiple awards from a variety of donors.Excellent Computer skills: MS Word, Excel, PTT, OutlookSelf-directed, able to independently set priorities and solve problems with minimal guidance; comfortable working for a supervisor who is remotely located and to manage a team remotely if neededStrong written and oral communication skills, comfortable in a multi-cultural environment and effective in representation Fluent written and spoken Arabic and English.DesiredProven track record in building coalitions or networks for positive changeExperience working with Academic institutions to carry out rigorous research or learning studies and using those to inform program or policy changesExperience working in policy and advocacy, with proven experience developing and implementing policy and advocacy strategies resulting in changeWorking EnvironmentThe position will be based in Erbil or Baghdad, Iraq with at least 50% of time travelling to field sites in Baghdad, Ninawa, Anbar and other locations as needed. Travel outside of Iraq for meetings, conferences, and training will also be required.Standards of Professional Conduct: The IRC and IRC workers must adhere to the values and principles outlined in IRC Way – Standards for Professional Conduct. These are Integrity, Service, Equality and Accountability. In accordance with these values, the IRC operates and enforces policies on Beneficiary Protection from Exploitation and Abuse, Child Safeguarding, Anti Workplace Harassment, Fiscal Integrity, and Anti-Retaliation.Gender Equality: IRC is committed to narrowing the gender gap in leadership positions. We offer benefits that provide an enabling environment for women to participate in our workforce including maternity leave, gender-sensitive security protocols and other supportive benefits and allowances. Qualified female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.Attention Returning National Candidates: IRC strives to attract, motivate and retain qualified national staff in our programs. We strongly encourage national or returning national candidates to apply for this position. If you are a national of the country in which this position is based and are currently located outside of your home country and possess over two years of international work experience, IRC has introduced an attractive remuneration package. The package includes competitive compensation, return flight to post, shipping allowance, temporary housing and a relocation allowance. Certain restrictions may apply. Notice to all Job Seekers IRC implements an equal employment opportunity policy and our recruitment process is based on merit.Applicants and/or successful interview candidates (both internal and external) are not required to pay any fees at any stage of the recruitment process.If anyone asks you for any financial or non-financial favors to help you secure a job at IRC, kindly report to [email protected].������������ ������ ���������������� ���� �������������������� �������� �������������� �������������� ���������� ������ ������ �������������� ������ ���������� �������������� ���������� ���������� ������ �������������� .�������������� ������ ������������������ ������ ���������� ���� ���������������� ������������������ (�������� ���������� �������������� ���������� ���� �������������� ���� �������� ��������������) ������ ���� �������� �������� �������� ���� ���������� ���� ���������� ��������������.������ ������ ���� ������ �������� ���� �������� ���������� ���� ������ ���������� �������� ���������������� ���� ���������� �������� ������ �������� �������������� ���������� �������������� ���� ������ ������ [email protected]