Lebanon Program Support Officer

NGO PRESENTATION   Handicap International is an independent and impartial international aid organisation 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 organisation 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.   Through its Emergency Response Department (ERD), created in 2006 after the merge with Atlas Logistique, the organization is committed to: Provide an adequate response to major natural disaster and conflict situations, anywhere in the world as much as possible within 72 hours; Provide assistance to vulnerable groups (refugees, IDPs, persons with injuries, elders, children, etc.) affected by a crisis and maximize the number of beneficiaries. Within vulnerable groups, target especially PwD and meet their specific needs; Constantly monitor chronic crises and/or conflicts to ensure preparedness for and rapid response to eventual emerging needs.   Directly linked to the Emergency Response Department of Handicap International France, the expatriate will be mandated for the following mission:     MISSION CONTEXT   The 2011 Syrian uprising began on March, 15th 2011 with public demonstrations as part of the wider Arab Spring and developed into a nationwide uprising and a civil war in 2012. Protesters have demanded the end to nearly five decades of Ba’ath Party rule, as well as the resignation of President Bashar al-Assad. In the spring of 2011, the Syrian government deployed the Syrian Army to quell the uprising. Several cities have been besieged, and soldiers were reportedly ordered to open fire on civilians. But up to now the crackdown failed to stop the unrest, instead triggering anti-government protests in other towns and cities across the country. Some civilians and army defectors began forming fighting units and unified under the banner of the Free Syrian Army, fighting in an increasingly organized fashion; however, the opposition is still divided and lacks of organized leadership. The Syrian government characterizes the insurgency as armed terrorist groups and foreign fighters bent on destabilizing the country. The violence inSyriahas caused around 1.2 million of people to flee their homes and to seek refuge in other part of the country (HCR). In addition, according the last toll of the Syrian Observatory of Human Rights, more than 26,000 people were killed since the beginning of the uprising inSyriain March 2011.   The humanitarian situation of the population insideSyriaappears to be catastrophic, and the population has immediate needs for health services to treat the wounded, food and non-food items. Host communities are seeing their resources progressively exhausted by the double burden of a degraded economy and their efforts to support the displaced. Scarcity of resources has added to the exasperation, and daily reports of exactions further fuel tensions. In parallel to the emergency response in the hot-spots, the support to host communities and displaced people has become essential in avoiding widespread desperation of a population. However, with little access to the field and significant constraints for humanitarian actors to operate in the country (difficulties in obtaining visas, ban on using questionnaires or organizing surveys, restrictions on coordination), assessing the needs has always been a major challenge inSyria. Finally, the situation does not allow humanitarian actors that were not inSyriabefore the unrest to intervene and tackle the needs withinSyria. Additionally, the violence inSyriahas caused the displacement of civilians fleeing from violence in the neighbouring countries ofLebanon,Jordan,TurkeyandIraq. On August 24, 2012, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reported that the number of Syrian refugees had reached over 200,000, exceeding the UNHCR estimate of 185,000 for In a very volatile and complex context, HI has carried out a detailed on-the-ground assessment of the situation inLebanon,TurkeyandJordanin March-April 2012 (Annexe 6- Handicap International-Initial Assessment and recommendation for a rapid intervention, March-April 2012). Following the recommendations of this assessment mission, the HI Emergency Response department launched a regional emergency intervention for the most vulnerable people affected by the Syrian crisis, which started beginning of May both in northJordanandLebanon.   InLebanon, as of December 2012, 123,00 displaced Syrians are currently registered with UNHCR. There are an additional estimated 43,000 people to be registered.       PROGRAMME OBJECTIVES   In the current context, the main objective is to alleviate suffering of vulnerable civilians and support their coping mechanisms as soon as possible. HI is prepared to respond to 4 specific objectives: 1)    Provide missing secondary health care for persons with injuries affected by the conflict through specialised rehabilitation services and equipment InLebanonphysical rehabilitation focal point will be deployed aiming at providing support, training and accompaniment to local professionals based in hospitals/specialised centres/private clinics, and aiming at linking persons in need of P&O appliance with national service providers with financial and operational support. 2)    Improve the coverage of basic and specific needs of persons at risk/vulnerable persons and their families In Lebanon, multidisciplinary teams will be deployed in partnership with local organizations (northern Bekaa in Lebanon, Akkar) in order to improve the coverage of specific needs of persons at risk/vulnerable persons and their families (Complementary identification and response to specific needs, referrals, on-the-job training and accompaniment) as well as the coverage of the basic needs in residual areas (winterization in Central and West Bekaa). 3)    Enhance rapid and flexible interventions through Preparedness and Pre-propositioning  In order to immediately respond to specific and residual needs as well as quickly adjust the response to emerging needs, HI has designed its emergency preparedness plan according to the analysis of most likely scenario. The purpose of this exercise was to identify and anticipate humanitarian needs which will follow. As any of the scenario can arise any time, HI response is designed to be light, mobile and at variable scale.   Lebanon -Provision of emergency physical rehabilitation at secondary level (Tripoli) -Improvement of basic and specific needs coverage of persons at risk/vulnerable persons and their families (DVFP in northern Bekaa) -Disability and Vulnerability Mainstreaming toward humanitarian community -Emergency preparedness       MAIN RESPONSABILITIES OF THE POSITION     Under the responsibility of the Head of mission (HoM), you will be responsible for:   Context monitoring  of the Emergency Response Department intervention concerning the Syrian crisis: Under delegation of the HoM, representation of HI towards authorities and partners in projects, administrative and logistics aspects; Support the HoM in the follow-up of operational implementation of activities and respect of tools (project management cycle) In charge of capitalization classification Participation in coordination meetings concerning context, projects Monthly reporting and compilation of reporting; External communication documents (activity reports etc…) Contextual and security situations follow-up Gathering and compilation of humanitarian information, Building and maintenance of a strong and impartial network under strong monitoring of HoM   Moreover, in support to the Lebanon Emergency Head of Mission position, tasks will attributed to Program Support Officer as per the following, without hierarchical responsibility on Lebanon team:   Under delegation of the HoM, participation to national coordination events Ad hoc support toLebanonPMs in the implementation of their activities Liaison with national support persons already assigned (logistics, administration) to smoothe the communication process.     MAIN TASKS OF THE POSITION   Under close supervision of the HoM, you will be in charge of:    CONTEXT AND SECURITY FOLLOW-UP Issuing of a weekly media headlines selection related to the Syrian criss (arab media, translation when relevant) Transmission of security and contextual “hot” information to HoM, logistic coordinator and appropriate Field Security Officers (FSO) when relevant Compilation and analysis of countries Security Follow-up Tools (SFU) Active participation to the weekly context briefing (coordination meeting). In support to the PMs, develops contacts with national partners on a regional level (civil society, civil and military authorities, local NGOs, Ministry of Health representatives, etc.) in order to obtain all the information and agreements necessary for the integration of HI’s programmes in the local context. Alerts the HoM without delay of all security incidents or threats which could have an impact on personnel’s security and/or HI’s affairs, and writes up an incident report to this effect if relevant.     HUMANITARIAN INTELLIGENCE Follow up and dissemination of assessment reports and information gaps within the humanitarian community Mapping of humanitarian actors (4W) for both humanitarian and security issues Mapping of stakeholders related to the crisis Identifies the population’s needs, in close collaboration with his (her) field teams and raise the alert to the HoM regarding any deterioration in the humanitarian situation Propose Assessment following the approval of the HoM     EXTERNAL COMMUNICATION AND PARTICIPATION TO THE Representation of the association Under supervision of HoM, representation of HoM towards local authorities (Cazas, religious leaders, City Halls, etc…) at national level in the respect of the organization image and principles; Under supervision of HoM, participation in external coordination meetings Attendance to other meeting upon request from the HoM; Facilitation of HoM representation towards local partners and stakeholders (hospitals/specialised centres/private clinics, local organizations, international organizations, etc) in the respect of the organization image and principles; Issuing minutes of meetings Passes regular information to local partners concerning HI’s activities     INTERNAL COMMUNICATION The Program Support Officer will be the corner stone of internal communication within ERD NE mission. Therefore, he/she will be in charge of: Reminding and follow-up of issues potentially raised by national teams to HoM; Participation to conflict resolution (personal and professional) within the whole team Is responsible for the welcome and briefing of new arrivals (contextual and team briefing). Checks that personnel are properly integrated into the team and participate in the dynamic of the organisation. Following the approval of the HoM, plans and leads working meetings: project progress, security, team meetings (national and expatriate personnel) Represents the field teams with the Capital team and accounts for the Project’s activities. Participates in meetings organised by the Capital team and provides feedback to the field teams.     PROJECT MANAGEMENT FOLLOW UP Follow closely the progress of projects indicators in support to the HoM general follow up; Assist the HoM to monitor the implementation of Desk’s and Deputy Desk's recommendations Follow-up of partnership agreements and deadlines. Partnerships follow are under the responsibility of project managers or field coordinators. If follow-up is not properly done, inform HoM for appropriate measures;   PROPOSAL WRITING Compilation of program managers inputs Participation to the drafting of proposal narrative parts In link with HoM, liaison with administrative coordinator for adjustments of budget and narrative parts   REPORTING AND CAPITALIZATION Writing of minutes of internal and external meetings Updating of : Project indicators Context analysis and security follow-up Movement plannings Support the HoM in the monthly situation report (SITREP) redaction through data compilation and provision of context and project data ;   PROFILE REQUIRED   Experience at a similar position in INGO Experience at a project-related position Good knowledge and northernLebanonand Bekaa Very good writing skills in English and Arabic / Experience with writing in English Good command of written and spoken English (knowledge of French would be an asset). Good communication capacities Good networking capacities Ability to manage an important work load Knowledge of computers and Microsoft applications