Mercy Corps
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.
Program / Department Summary
Mercy Corps exists to alleviate poverty, suffering, and oppression and works to build secure, productive, and just communities. Mercy Corps implements a variety of programming throughout the Middle East in response to the diverse humanitarian and long-term development needs of the region. Mercy Corps has ongoing programs in Syria,Yemen, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, and Palestine. Mercy Corps is committed to delivering high quality, high impact programming that reaches communities or individuals in need, wherever they are.
The Middle East region is currently establishing its regional technical team to provide sound, timely and contextualized technical support both operationally and strategically to country teams while developing and cross-regional learning and strengthening a regional cohesion in line with our global, regional and countries strategies. The Middle East region is closely connected with Mercy Corps’ Global Technical Support Unit (TSU) which along with the Regional Advisors is a key part of the Program Department. TSU subject-matter experts help set agency and regional strategy and provide consultation – from assessment and design through project implementation and results measurement – to field offices worldwide, in some of the world’s toughest places. Regional Technical Advisers are a vital part of this wider network of technical specialists, providing regionally-focused support services in close coordination with the global team while working more intensively with a small number of strategic programs in the region under the direction of the regional leadership team.
General Position Summary
Mercy Corps is seeking to recruit a short-term dynamic individual, who has a broad range of experiences working across relevant water approaches including: integrated water resources management, water governance, water service provisioning, ecosystem services, irrigation and climate change adaptation. The Temporary Regional Water and Climate Advisor is a key position who will engage and support programs in the region on specific tasks and deliverables along with broader support to teams building a strong foundation for the nascent Middle East Water Security strategy .This position will pave the way for a future longer term position when funding becomes available that will focus on mitigating water security risks and integrate climate and water resilience through sector interventions that focus on enhancing community understanding, participation and advocacy for improved surface and groundwater management and governance, widespread adoption of water saving technologies, and approaches. They will also leverage existing knowledge and expertise in the region from past and ongoing programming in the water and climate field to influence donors, peers, and national or local authorities on the importance of water resource management in the Middle East. As a key part of their role, the Temporary Middle East Water and Climate Advisor will support teams to initiate, write, review and design new proposals while supporting the design of the new regional and countries strategies, in line with our new global strategies where water security will be key. They will keep abreast of regional and global trends and work in close collaboration with Mercy Corps’ regional and country teams to identify and support opportunities to integrate water security outcomes in Mercy Corps programming.
Essential Job Responsibilities
STRATEGIC GROWTH OBJECTIVES
● Start the development of a unified regional vision for water security programming, including in supporting and integrating countries-specific water strategies and vision
● Establish and drive a new business development strategy to build the water security (quality, management, governance, utilization etc..) portfolio in the region, notably in Jordan, Iraq and Palestine
● In collaboration with country teams, start the development of country level strategies for addressing water security, including:
● Support climate-responsible diversification into alternative clean energies that decarbonize water systems
● Support approaches and/or models to increase private sector investment and participation in community-level water systems
● Support the enhancement of water security through adopting best agricultural, water, and irrigation practices
● Support resilience through Water Security that lines up with Mercy Corps’ new Community REsilience through Water Security (CREWS) guide
● Transitioning from WaSH sector to water management and climate resilience programming when feasible (e.g. Palestine, Lebanon)
● Support in operationalizing the Iraq Water Strategy with a focus on water resilience issue
● Feed into the Mercy Corps global water security strategy using Middle East expertise and collect generated evidence to strengthen the water security evidence-base framework.
● Identify in-country talent and expertise for future staffing positions
PROGRAM AND PROPOSAL DEVELOPMENT
● Support in writing/reviewing proposals and concept notes for funding from donors including foundations, corporations, and US, European, and UN agencies.
● Gather/analyze data and complete assessments to determine program needs and priorities and Mercy Corps’ competitive advantage for funding in the region.
● Work with programs, country/regional teams, and global technical support unit on prepositioning and development of program strategies.
● Work with other members of the regional technical team and global TSU on the design and support of multi-sectoral programs that encompass elements of broader agency goals such as resilience, food security, economic opportunities, social cohesion and governance.
● Map out relevant strategies being developed or applied by significant governmental, academic, and non-profit groups. Work with Mercy Corps to determine how the agency can best work with and/or influence such materials.
● Work closely with field leaders to influence their engagement and support of program prepositioning, development and implementation.
RESEARCH, LEARNING AND IMPACT
● Work with the regional Program Performance and Quality (PaQ) Specialist, the Regional Research Specialist and the Country Offices in the region to ensure that Water Security and Climate approaches are reflected and integrated in both learning and research agendas at the regional and country levels
● Support new and ongoing programs with best practice advice and assistance on assessment, implementation, research, and evaluation needs.
● Collaborate with the relevant countries and regional teams on the Crisis Analytics products to develop further analysis in the field of water and climate in the Middle East.
● Support the nascent “Evidence-Based Hub’’ in the Middle East to use data, evidence and other sources generated to build and demonstrate our technical expertise and excellence in the field of water and climate in the Middle East.
● Nurture partnerships with universities, research institutions, and other organizations to produce case studies, assessments, and other learning documentation, as well as enhance program quality.
POLICY, ADVOCACY, REPRESENTATION
● Represent Mercy Corps in regional level forums related to water; lead and/or contribute to thought leadership in this area of expertise.
● Identify and map out strategic partnerships with other organizations and institutions present in the region.
● Start developing a strong and regularly updated regional network of technical experts and consultants that can serve as additional resources to be deployed for program support.
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 Corps as well as themselves.
ACCOUNTABILITY TO PARTICIPANTS
● Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our program participants and to international standards guiding international relief and development work, while actively engaging beneficiary communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects.
Supervisory Responsibility
None.
Accountability
Reports Directly To: Deputy Regional Director
Works Directly With: Middle East Country Teams, Middle East Regional Team, HQ and Regional Program Performance and Quality (PaQ) Teams, Mercy Corps’ HQ and Regional TSU teams.
Knowledge and Experience
● Broad experience in a range of water related technical areas including integrated water resource management, water governance, water service provisioning, ecosystem services, climate change adaptation.
● Bachelor’s degree required. M.A, M.S., M.Sc., or equivalent in a field related to the TSU team specialty and relevant technical certifications are preferred.
● 7 years of experience providing increasingly proficient technical support in the relevant field of expertise that includes:
● Driving the development of new and ambitious agency visions and strategies
● Developing, managing and measuring progress of business development strategies.
● Strategic partnership development
● Preparing writing and analysis on proposal development.
● Producing and publishing influential articles and blogs.
● Demonstrating strong theoretical and applied knowledge of the field of expertise.
● Using integrated approaches and applying systems thinking.
● Practical experience, that demonstrates an understanding of the challenges of working in a variety of complex humanitarian and development contexts.
● Delivering Capacity Building materials or other relevant processes
● Very strong English skills, Arabic skills preferred
Success Factors
The Temporary Middle East Water and Climate Advisor position will demonstrate the ability to see connections, and work across a range of technical areas related to water. The position will demonstrate an ability to provide quick and targeted support to a variety of teams across the region while leading cross-team efforts in developing ambitions strategies and visions, and leading agency level initiatives. The individual will show a strong ability to develop new business strategies through analysis, donor engagement, and concept development. The Temporary Water and Climate Advisor will demonstrate significant experience with providing technical support to field programs and country offices. This position requires strong interpersonal and cross-cultural communication skills, and a level of emotional intelligence proficiency that quickly builds and maintains productive relationships across teams. Being aware and sensitive to international development issues and diverse cultures is critical.
Living Conditions / Environmental Conditions
The position is based in Amman, Jordan or other Middle East or Mercy Corps locations within the region’s time zone, and it requires up to 40% travel to support country programs, which may include travel to insecure locations where freedom of movement is limited and areas where amenities are limited. Housing for this role is in individual housing and 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.