ECA Officer

INTERSOS is a non-profit humanitarian aid organisation that works to bring assistance to people in danger, victims of natural disasters and armed conflicts. Established in 1992 with support from the Italian Federation of Trade Unions, its actions are based on the values of solidarity, justice, human dignity, equal rights and opportunities for all people and respect for diversity and coexistence, paying particular attention to the most vulnerable and the unprotected.

INTERSOS identifies with the core values of CONCORD, the European Confederation of NGOs; it adheres to international codes of conduct for humanitarian organisations and the values and principles expressed within those codes. INTERSOS is recognised by the Italian Ministry for Foreign Affairs, the European Commission and the principal UN agencies; it is privileged to hold an advisory status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC).
INTERSOS is an independent association which, through its own humanitarian operators, intervenes to effectively answer the needs of people in serious crises situations, mainly in the world's poorest regions, who are suffering, deprived of rights, dignity and essentials goods. It maintains a flexible operating structure. The head office in Italy coordinates, supports and monitors the planned activities in the countries of intervention carried out by decentralised offices.

Job Title          : Emergency Cash Assistance (ECA) Officer

Reports to         : Project Activity Manager

Duty Station       : North & Akkar

Position Type    : Full time

Job Purpose:

The ECA officer will be mainly responsible for managing the Emergency Cash Assistance (ECA) component within the UNHCR funded protection program in the North and Akkar governorates. S/he will receive cases through self-referral, internal and external referral and then divide and follow up the cases among the team of ECA caseworkers, according to established SOPs. Furthermore, s/he will manage and supervise a team of 3 ECA caseworkers in regard to ECA related activities. At last, s/he will be acting as INTERSOS North referral focal point for CBI activities. S/he will be supervising the provision of ECA based on the below criteria:

• Refugee beneficiaries facing problems with ID confiscation
• Child Protection cases in need of ECA based on CP caseworker request and/or other child protection actors in T5 and Akkar

-   Children Patient share at the hospitals

Generic Duties:

1. Manage and coordinate the ECA program within the protection operation in close collaboration with the Protection Project Manager.
2. Manages the team of ECA Caseworkers in regard to the ECA component.
3. Plans and schedules the workflow.
4. Supervises and monitors the management of cases.
5. Ensures proper communication and coordination with Protection Project manager.
6. Liaises and coordinates with UNHCR and case management agencies in the catchment areas.
7. Ensures the proper handling of ECA data.
8. Reports (internally and externally) on achievements and challenges related to ECA.
9. Participate in ECA related meetings and working groups.
10. Participate in the recruitment of projects staff and provide objective feedback with regards to staff performance (evaluate performance and delivery against job descriptions), expectations and areas for growth and professional development.
11. Support the Protection Project manager in budgeting and financial aspects in regards the ECA component
12. Manage and coordinate all referrals received externally and internally and represent INTERSOS as referral focal point for the CBI services.
13. Accomplish any other task not here listed if necessary, to the project’s achievement.

Specific Duties:

1. Takes in cases that might be considered for ECA through referral.
2. Act as referrals and ECA focal point in North and Akkar.
3. Conducts interviews with beneficiaries in order to assess the case.
4. Plans and schedules the handling of assessed cases.
5. Dispatches cases to the ECA caseworkers.
6. Supervises and follows up on cases provided with ECA.
7. Tracks the cases provided with ECA.
8. Tracks the referrals received and provide proper follow-up and feedback.
9. Reports on a weekly, monthly and quarterly basis the expenditure tracking sheets and number of reached cases to Protection Project Manager and Reporting/MEAL Officer.
10. Contribute to quality reporting through protection trends analysis feeding into monthly and quarterly reports.
11. Revises the eligibility criteria for ECA cases, as needed.
12. Coordinates with other agencies that provide ECA within the area to avoid duplication.
13. Updates RAIS on a weekly basis for cases provided with ECA.
14. Lead the recruitment of the ECA caseworkers
15. Initiate routine case audits according to established audit procedures, to be undertaken as part of a general performance evaluation of ECA caseworkers.
16. Provides on time feedback to other agencies for referred cases.
17. Liaises with health facilitates in regard to ID confiscation cases and mediates if needed.
18. Liaise with Case Management officer in regard to the ECA provision for Child protection cases
19. Liaises closely with Protection Project Manager in case of challenges, constraints, or other needs.
20. Ensure that ECA team refer and monitor promptly vulnerable cases identified to the Agency in charge of case management in the different catchment areas
21. Draft a quarterly monitoring plan of the ECA activities and M&E tools to measure performance progress.
22. Support the MEAL department in the post distribution monitoring and lead in the quarterly report drafting.
23. Attend the North ECA task force and others when requested by PM

Education:

• University Degree in social work, psychology or international relations and any other related field.

Competencies: (Knowledge, Skills & Abilities)

Professional Competencies:

• Minimum 3 years of work experience
• Previous experience in humanitarian work (working on refugee related legal issues)
• Familiarity with Emergency Cash Assistance (ECA) SOPs and standards
• Basic knowledge of civil documentation issues and procedures, HLP, legal status and residency renewal process of refugees
• Knowledge on how to communicate with vulnerable population groups such as women, children, youth, elderly, disabled and refugees
• Knowledge and understanding of local communities and customary rules
• Computer/IT literacy (MS Office: Word, Excel, Internet etc.)
• Reporting skills
• Driving License issued more than one year ago

Behavioral competencies:

• Teamwork
• Communication Skills
• Planning and Organizing, Ability to work under pressure and independently
• Flexibility and adaptability; willingness to move across the assigned project areas and to spend extended periods within communities
• Initiative
• Problem solving and decision making
• Strategic vision
• Leadership: developing and motivating staff
• Driving and achieving results
• Humanitarian motivation and cultural awareness; High confidentiality, respect and non-discrimination attitude