Local Economic Development Coordinator

Background Building on core Shelter, WASH, and protection programs, CARE has developed an urban-specific community-based approach in Lebanon to improve the living conditions of vulnerable refugee and host communities. The Urban Neighborhood Approach considers whole neighborhoods as an ‘entry point’ for assistance. Interventions target extremely vulnerable families (refugees and host community members) living in dangerous conditions in poor neighborhoods by providing integrated assistance to address vital needs, protection issues and health and safety risks. Activities target both Syrian refugees and vulnerable Lebanese host communities in order to improve the sub-standard living conditions of families at risk and to facilitate community engagement and social stability. CiL has identified ’building resilient livelihoods’ as a one of the key intervention areas to support women and youth living in poverty and contexts of protracted crisis. Resilient livelihoods are important as they provide a stable source of income and enable people to thrive and act as a buffer in times of shocks and stresses. Building resilient livelihoods will also allow the linkage of humanitarian with longer term economic development programming. CiL has begun its programming with several livelihood projects and looks to further expand its portfolio and evolve its strategy to focus on longer term economic development. CARE Lebanon is seeking qualified local economic development specialist for its Lebanon Country Office, in Beirut. She/he will be responsible for the design, planning and implementation of all urban economic development aspects CARE’s programming in Lebanon. Detailed Responsibilities & Tasks: Leads the strategy development of the urban Economic Development and women’s economic empowerment programs   Oversee the overall implementation of CARE Lebanon’s local economic development (LED) program Coordinate the necessary market assessments, needs assessment, gap analysis and scoping exercises to redefine CARE’s priority interventions and strategic planning in the Lebanese context. Support the Country Director and Deputy Country Director-Program in the identification of funding opportunities for longer term economic development programming Lead on the development of new programs and partnerships, in line with identified needs and within CARE’s strategy in Lebanon, including the elaboration of donor proposals, in close collaboration with program teams, Area Managers, and Program Support team. Actively participate in the reviews of the mission’s strategic documents and planning. In close collaboration with the Gender Advisor, ensure that programs and interventions reflect properly gender concerns.  Contribute to the technical and operational advocacy strategies of the CO, in collaboration with the regional operations and CARE network   Support in technical expertise to programs Ensure the coordination between CARE’s different sectors and economic development projects to guarantee a homogenous programmatic approach in CARE’s areas of interventions. Provide technical support to the program teams for the setting of an adequate implementation methodology in programs and support the overall implementation of the programs. Ensure and/or supervise regular training of the teams Produce Standard Operational Procedures and Processes to enable a quality project implementation in line with CARE’s Accountability Framework and donors’ compliance. Support the Project Managers to produce program reports as necessary. Support new business development through contribution to proposal development Work closely with the Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning (MEAL) team to advise on the specifics of cash based interventions and/or local economic development exercises, as well as with other Technical Advisors and Coordinators at central level to ensure coherence and complementarity of LED interventions with other sector programs implemented and developed by CARE Lebanon.  Oversight development projects Develop detailed work plan for the project (for all project teams) and overseeing the implementation of activities, updating work plan accordingly on a weekly basis; Determining technical specifications and quantities needed for proposed projects in coordination with local authorities and technical staff Providing daily and weekly progress reports and a bi-weekly update of the project management framework; Support in recruiting and training staff of the LED team Promote learning and research within the LED Department Ensure that lessons learned from the local economic development interventions are well disseminated and understood by all staff of CARE Lebanon and integrated into current and planned programs. Explore the modalities of scientific and technical partnerships (laboratories, universities, private sector, etc.)  Support the data collection and analysis and contribute to reports writing External Representation Establish positive relations and close collaboration with other agencies involved economic development & livelihood programs in Lebanon. Ensures information is efficiently communicated between the field and the national coordination. Represent CIL in sectorial coordination at regional, national and sub-national levels and with the technical authorities Coordinate, with the support of the DCD-P, the Economic Development program representation of CIL among partners, donors, private sector, and different authorities  Essential Profile of the Applicant: Operational experience in urban economic development programming in middle income countries Knowledge and experience of the ways of working of emergency NGOs, UN, local organizations and donors Post-graduate qualification in a relevant discipline The ability to assemble vast amounts of information and identify critical aspects Able to communicate complex subject matter (in a written and oral form) into accessible and simple guidance that is accessible to people with varying language skills Experience of working with a diverse range of stakeholders, ensuring effective consultation and engagement is achieved Fluency (written and oral) in English. Arabic an asset