Women Lead in Emergencies (WLiE) Manager, Ukraine (Local Position)

Duty Station: Lviv – Ukraine

Starting Date: As soon as possible

Duration of Contract: One year with possible extension

Reporting Lines/Line Management: Assistant Country Director Programmes

Background:

Since February 2022, CARE International (CI) has geared up its humanitarian response work in Ukraine and bordering countries of Poland, Romania and Moldova. CARE Germany is Lead Member on behalf of the CI Confederation for the CARE Ukraine country office and programme and is recruiting a team to manage and deliver a multi-sector response, including WASH, Shelter, CASH, SRHMR, GBV/Protection and Women’s Participation and Leadership.

In line with CARE International’s Vision 2030, the CARE Ukraine Emergency Response Strategy has a strong focus on gender and inclusion. This includes strategic partnerships with women’s rights/led organisations, a standalone Women Lead in Emergences programme component and Gender in Emergencies as a cross-cutting principle for all programming, sectors and partnerships.

These aspects of the CARE Ukraine response responds to identified and urgent needs. Gender assessments and research since February 2022 find that women’s groups and CSOs have mobilised quickly to respond to the immediate priorities of their communities but face many challenges to providing support to IDPs, host-communities and those affected directly by violence and insecurity. This includes the urgent need for flexible funding for institutional support and adaption to humanitarian operations, and for support to ensure that women and other affected groups are able to actively participate in humanitarian planning, coordination and decision-making at all levels.

Overall Job Summary:

The Women Lead in Emergencies (WLiE) Manager will coordinate all aspects of the WLiE project in collaboration with partners in Ukraine. They will manage partnerships with women’s rights/led organisations and support their adaptation and use of the WLiE model and toolkit. This includes supporting them to use participatory tools and approaches to support women affected by crisis to participate in humanitarian decision-making and emergency response and early recovery. The WLiE Manager will also work with:

• CARE staff and partners to build their capacity to support gender transformative programming in humanitarian crises,
• MEAL colleagues to monitor and report on program activities and outcomes,
• the CARE Global Women Lead in Emergencies team to document learning about the Women Lead approach and how it can be improved.

They will also participate in the CARE WLiE Network and coordinate with other CARE women’s empowerment programmes to build knowledge and learning on what works to increase women’s voice and leadership in humanitarian and nexus programming and contexts.

Specific responsibilities and tasks:

1. Partnership management and staff/partner capacity building

   • Manage relationships with women rights/led organisations, including partnership agreements, due diligence and grant management.
   • Manage the Women Lead in Emergencies portfolio, including oversight of project budgets and donor reports.
   • Guide and support CARE and partner staff to conduct capacity assessments for partners to identify their strengths and weaknesses in the design and delivery of emergency response, and the use of the WLiE programming model for humanitarian response. Work with women led/rights organisations to strengthen their organisational capacity and independence.
   • Adapt and develop the Women Lead tools and materials, with support from the Global WLiE technical team, and provide training and other support in their use to CARE staff and partners, as well as women affected by the crisis.
   • Facilitate reflection and learning sessions with CARE Germany and Ukraine staff on gender, power and participation, and on gender responsive/transformative humanitarian programming, in collaboration with CARE REDI/GED/Social Analysis and Action focal points/specialist, and identify development needs.

2. Implementation of the WLiE approach

   • Coordinate and conduct/support partners to conduct Rapid Gender Analyses on Power and Participation, with technical support from the Global Women Lead technical team.
   • Support project staff/partners to facilitate reflection and co-creation spaces with women in crisis-affected communities to analyse the barriers and opportunities for women’s meaningful participation in decision-making, response and early recovery, and to develop WLiE action plans to support women’s leadership, with technical support from Global Women Lead technical team.
   • Provide technical assistance to CARE project staff and partners to support implementation of WLiE Action Plans to support the voice, leadership and decision-making of women affected by crisis, and manage small grant activities as relevant.
   • Monitor and maintain quality of implementation of the WLiE project and consistency and coordination with other staff and partners implementing complementing programmes, and ensure regular and accurate reporting in accordance with the project requirements.
   • Develop the subsequent phases of WLiE, exploring opportunities for expansion/further roll-out of the programme.

3. Collaboration and learning

   • In collaboration with the MEAL Advisor, use the CARE Gender Marker Self-Assessment Tool to improve the quality of gender integration at all stages of the project cycle and facilitate regular reflection on the gender transformative impact of the project. This includes considering protection risks and unintended consequences of programme activities and mitigating harm, such as an increase in violence, harassment and backlash for women and partners through programme activities.
   • In collaboration with the MEAL Advisor and WLiE Global MEAL lead, develop WLiE M&E system, including adapting the WLiE global theory of change and MEAL framework to project M&E systems, and design and implementation of baselines, midterm reviews and specific learning events, end lines and/or final evaluations.
   • In collaboration with the MEAL Advisor and WLiE global MEAL lead, develop a plan for ongoing action learning to assess what does and does not work to support the voice and leadership of women affected by crisis, implementation of WLiE with women’s rights partners, feedback loops to modify the project implementation, and to document the process and promising practices.
   • In close consultation with MEAL Advisor and in collaboration with field staff, facilitate knowledge capture and exchange of learning on WLiE by CARE, partners and women affected by the crisis.
   • Participate in the piloting of the Global Women Lead Initiative, including working with the Global Women Lead coordinators to document and disseminate process and promising practices.
   • Build relationships with, and networks between, women-led groups and organisations advocating for women’s rights, gender equality and women’s voice, and inclusive governance.

4. Recruitment and Line Management of staff

Qualifications and competencies

• • Bachelors’ degree (or equivalent qualification) in relevant discipline e.g. Gender Studies,

Humanitarian/Development Studies, Social Work and Social Administration, Political Science

• • Advanced knowledge and at least five years of proven practical experience in partnerships with women rights/led organisations and in implementing and providing technical support to gender transformative programmes, including women’s leadership and political empowerment.
    – At least three years’ hands-on professional experience of working in an emergency and/or development context.
    – Experience of working with women and men from different cultures and facilitating conversations around sensitive/taboo topics, such as masculinity, sexuality and power.
    – Demonstrated skills in participatory techniques, community mobilization and facilitation, gender and power analysis, planning and training.
    – Highly developed analytical and inter-personal communication skills and sound judgment and decision-making.
    – Working knowledge in M&E, report writing and documentation.
    – Experience working with large, cross-cultural teams on projects with multiple deliverables is desirable.
    – Demonstrated ability to network, build relationships and establish collaboration with different partners, local agencies and international networks.
    – Existing relationships with women-led organisations and demonstrated ability to link community activists and social movements advocating for gender equality and women’s rights.
    – A demonstrated strong personal commitment to women’s empowerment and gender equality.
    – Fluency in Ukrainian and English

Working & Living Conditions

Main duty station will be the office in Lviv in the Western region of Ukriane with possibility of moving this office to Kyiv. Expected percentage of travel time: 10 – 15% to CARE project locations in any of the oblasts where CARE programs activities are conducted.

The security situation is currently moderate in Lviv but may differ in project locations.

About CARE

CARE International (CARE) is a non-religious, non-political international development and humanitarian organization, dedicated to fighting global poverty. CARE works in around 95 countries globally, engaging diverse partnerships to support communities to overcome poverty through development projects and delivers humanitarian assistance. CARE programmes address social injustice whilst placing women and girls at the core of programming in order to create sustainable positive change in poor communities. CARE is an equal opportunity employer irrespective of nationality, religion, ethnicity, caste or gender.

CARE is currently establishing its presence in Ukraine to provide relief and development assistance to vulnerable populations affected by conflict. The core sectors of CARE Ukraine’s work encompass WASH, Sexual Reproductive and Maternal Health services, Livelihoods, NFI, and multipurpose cash assistance and interventions to assist vulnerable households to meet basic needs and to increase their social-economic resilience. The Country Office continues re-orienting its programming to strengthen mainstreaming of gender and protection (GBV, Child Safeguarding, Disability Inclusion, etc.) with a focus on the empowerment of women and girls in all diversities, recognizing the disproportionate effect disasters have upon their lives.

Accountability within CARE

A commitment to CARE values and CARE’s integrity framework is critical to working with CARE. Any candidate offered a job with CARE will be expected to adhere to the following key areas of accountability:

• Comply with CARE’s policies and procedures with respect to safeguarding, code of conduct, health and safety, confidentiality, do no harm principles and unacceptable behaviour protocols.
• Report any concerns about the welfare of a child or vulnerable adult or any wrongdoings within our programming area.
• Report any concerns about inappropriate behaviour of a CARE staff or partner.

Safeguarding

Children and vulnerable adults who come into contact with CARE as a result of our activities must be safeguarded to the maximum possible extent from deliberate or inadvertent actions and failings that place them at risk of abuse, sexual exploitation, injury and any other harm. One of the ways that CARE shows this on-going commitment to safeguarding is to include rigorous background and reference checks in the selection process for all candidates.

Gender equality

CARE Ukraine is committed to meeting the standards of the CARE International Gender Policy (2019). Through this policy, CARE seeks to promote the equal realization of dignity and human rights for girls, women, boys and men in all diversities, and the elimination of poverty and injustice. Specifically, this policy seeks to improve the explicit incorporation of gender in programmatic and organizational practices.