Regional Head of Humanitarian Preparedness & Response

The Opportunity

With the current and emerging humanitarian crisis and emergency situations, Plan International West and Central Africa is committed to providing life-saving humanitarian assistance, protection, education and psychosocial support to the most vulnerable populations. Our programs are designed and executed in a way that protects girls, boys, children and youth in all their diversity.

To achieve greater change in children’s and their communities’ lives we are dramatically transforming how we operate, and we need bold, forward-thinking and innovative individuals to steer our country operations, driving change and delivering results that will allow us to transform the lives of 100 million girls globally.

The Regional Head of Humanitarian Preparedness & Response will support and monitor the implementation of the humanitarian scope of Plan International’s Global Strategy ‘100 Million Reasons’ and its anticipated future updated version, the global DRM strategy and compliance with the DRM Policy at regional and country level and contribute to global policy and practice in the sector. This is intended to be a pro-active role with significant influence within countries and regional programs. The post-holder will proactively engage with country programs and regional initiatives to improve preparedness levels, responsiveness and quality of the humanitarian work throughout the West and Central African region. This role will support Plan International’s Programming and Influencing portfolio with a focus on the humanitarian and triple nexus agenda across the region working closely with the other colleagues in the RH Programming and Influencing unit and across country offices.

Do you have what it takes?

As the Regional Head of Humanitarian Preparedness & Response, you will be responsible for overseeing and supporting the implementation of the humanitarian scope of Plan International’s Global Strategy ‘100 Million Reasons’ and the global DRM strategy and compliance with the DRM Policy in Plan International’s 14 country offices in the West and Central African region. You will contribute to global learning and initiatives aimed at strengthening DRM within the wider organization. You will also support Plan International’s Programming and Influencing portfolio with a focus on the humanitarian agenda across the region working closely with the other colleagues in the RH Programming and Influencing unit and across COs.

• You will be deployable as Emergency Response Manager in responses to large scale disasters in the region.
• You will lead the disaster preparedness programs through overseeing and supporting the implementation of the DRM strategy in the 14 COs in the region and ensuring readiness to respond to disasters through ensuring compliance of the Disaster Preparedness Process (DPP) and roll out of capacity building activities across all COs in the region.
• You will manage disaster response activities through the support and advise given to CO management for timely decision making in slow-onset, protracted and rapid onset emergencies.
• You will wet up and manage a small regional Emergency Response Fund (small/medium scale disasters) and advise on allocation of the global disaster fund (medium/large scale disasters
• You will contribute in program management and fundraising by overseeing a portfolio of regional DRM grants, fundraise if necessary, and ensure that the grants commitments are met in terms of performance, schedule and costs while promoting and ensuring compliance of humanitarian standards and principles that govern behavior of staff
• You will provide guidance and technical support to country offices for DRM integration and triple nexus programming in new County Strategies and support development of programmatic approaches and guidance.
• You will ensure that Plan International’s global policies for safeguarding, gender, diversity, equality and Inclusion are fully embedded in accordance with the principles and requirements of the policy including relevant Implementation Standards and Guidelines as applicable to their area of responsibility.
• You will engage externally with relevant actors and coordinate Plan International’s work with other international/regional agencies and networks, such as the regional IASC network and working groups and donors.
• You will actively participate in disaster coordination and interagency cooperation based on clear understanding of organizations’ perspective and approach.