Inclusion Officer - Wash Sector

PRESENTATION OF HANDICAP INTERNATIONAL Handicap International is an independent and impartial international aid organization working in situations of poverty and exclusion, conflict and disaster. Working alongside persons with disabilities and other vulnerable groups, our action and testimony are focused on responding to their essential needs, improving their living conditions and promoting respect for their dignity and their fundamental rights. Handicap International is a not-for-profit organization with no religious or political affiliation. It operates as a federation made up of a network of associations that provide it with human and financial resources, manage its projects and implement its actions and social mission.  For more details on the association: http://www.handicap-international.org  Handicap International is composed of 2 operational divisions: Humanitarian Action Division Development Division  MISSION CONTEXT  The Emergency Response Division in Lebanon was created in April 2012. All our activities target persons with disabilities or injuries among the Syrian refugee population but also Lebanese people with disabilities/injuries and their family members and caregivers.  We provide: 1-      Physical and Functional Rehabilitation services which consist of assessment, treatment planning, treatment, beneficiary education, caregiver education, provision of mobility aids and other assistive devices, and provision of prostheses and orthoses through qualified services in the community. 2-      Social Work services: assess beneficiaries for needs beyond physical and functional rehabilitation, refer to other services, provide beneficiaries with information on resources in the community. 3-      Psychosocial support services for those among the target group who are experiencing psychological or psychosocial distress, for example anxiety, mild depression, PTSD, acute stress, grief, mild psychosomatic reactions, isolation, withdrawal from people or from favorite activities, or lack of adaptation to a new environment. PSS interventions are provided to individuals, families, or through support groups and may involve psychoeducation, awareness sessions, and recreational activities. Handicap International recognizes that persons with injuries and persons with disabilities are often blocked from participation and access to basic services that are available to the general population by factors that exist in the environment. For example, a person with an injury who cannot reach a health facility may be much more disabled by the lack of access to a health facility than by the original injury. Or, a person who has difficulty walking may be blocked from using the sanitation facilities in a camp. The mobility difficulty may not ever be “fixed” but the physical barrier to a sanitation facility can and should be unblocked. Identifying specific barriers that make the effects of an injury or a disability worse, removing the barrier, and working to make the barrier identification and removal process part of other organizations’ normal procedures. Inclusion, meaning deliberate actions taken to ensure the access to essential services and the participation of the most vulnerable persons at risk of being excluded from the humanitarian response—whatever the factors of exclusion may be—is  the focus of this position.  GLOBAL OBJECTIVE OF THE POSITION  Under the line management of Program Manager, and in regular direct contact with the WASH Inclusion Technical Advisor, the WASH Inclusion Officer will be responsible for conducting assessments to identify specific barriers that block people with physical and functional limitations from reaching and using WASH facilities and programs, for contributing to the development of action plans to reduce or remove these barriers, for accompanying frontline staff through this process which includes the engagement of persons with specific needs, for raising the awareness of all relevant stakeholders of the results of the process, and for proposing actions for the next phanse of the process.  WORK RELATIONSHIPS  Line manager: Project Manager Line manager+1: Field Coordinator In direct cooperation with:  WASH Inclusion Technical Advisor, Technical Unit Coordinator  RESPONSIBILITIES & OBJECTIVES  Objective 1: Plan and implement assessments of the barriers that block people with physical and functional limitations from reaching, entering, circulating within, and using the WASH facilities and programs of UNICEF WASH-implementing partner organizations  Activities/Main duties: Maintain up to date information about WASH-specific inclusion activities, lessons learned, case studies, and related topics, following guidance from the WASH Inclusion Technical Advisor Adapt generic barrier assessment tools to the facilities and programs of UNICEF WASH-implementing partner organizations, including their management, technical and operational teams’ knowledge and practices regarding persons with specific needs Perform specific WASH-related barrier assessments starting with desk review of existing tools and policies of the 7 implementing partners Ensure the engagement of persons with physical and functional limitations and their families in the identification and analysis of barriers that block access to WASH facilities and programs through focus group discussions and key informant interviews  Objective 2: Develop action plans detailing interventions required to improve accessibility and inclusion into partners’ programming Activities/Main duties: Contribute to the development of action plans which propose specific actions to address key barriers to be removed or reduced, as the basis for the follow-up phase of this project Present action plans tailored to each implementing partner based on the assessment findings  Objective 3: Accompany frontline staff to develop targeted community awareness activities aimed at increasing fact-based analysis and awareness of the challenges to inclusion and equal access to serices among UNICEF WASH implementing partners Activities/Main duties: Following the results of the assessments mentioned above, in cooperation with the WASH Inclusion Technical Advisor, increase the understanding of frontline staff and communities of the specific challenges faced by persons with physical and functional limitations when accessing WASH facilities an programs through awareness raising activities whih include pre-test, activity and post-test Design and execute simulation exercises and practical experiences to raise awareness of key stakeholders of the challenges faced by persons with specific needs Ensure the continuous adaptation of awareness raising messages and activities following feedback and lessons learned Ensure the engagement of persons with physical and functional limitations and their families in the implementation of awareness-raising activities  Objective 4: Reporting Activities/Main duties: Participatory assessment reports for each partner will be produced, detailing results of data review, focus group discussions, key informant interviews and field observations Reports will highlight views of persons with specific needs Submit weekly reports to your line manager (Project Manager) and to your technical supervisor (WASH Inclusion Technical Advisor) Produce a monthly Situation Report (Sit Rep) related to the activities under your responsibility Report any problem or constraints and propose solutions for improvement to your line and technical supervisors  Objective 5: Demonstrate ethical and professional work habits Activities/Main duties Respect partner confidentiality Respect and promote HI Policies and report to your line manager any disrespect of HI’s policies amongst the teams or partners Address needs and requests in a professional way Report any incident or act that causes any harm to beneficiary or to others Always interact with children with the presence of their parents or caregivers  Objective 6: Demonstrate willingness to improve professional competencies and abilities to increase activity quality Activities/Main duties Demonstrate motivation for the work Demonstrate willingness to improve own knowledge and skills by participating actively in any training sessions, capacity building activities Participate in the activities that are common to all team members Respect other team member’s positions, work, and competencies