Overview
This role provides technical and operational guidance in designing and delivering strategies and actions that support children, adolescents, and youth, especially girls and young women, to live free from violence. It also supports the design and implementation of monitoring and evaluation systems and engages in external representation on child protection and gender equality issues.
Key Responsibilities
- Lead the development of Child Protection interventions, including gender transformative projects.
- Develop interventions for short-term and longer-term programming.
- Ensure child protection, gender, and inclusion programming are results-oriented.
- Conduct child protection needs assessments and gender analyses.
- Collaborate with programme thematic leads to ensure coordinated and integrated CP programming.
- Stay updated on national/regional/international development priorities on child protection and rights, gender, and social inclusion.
- Formulate, design, and prepare program/project proposals for the sector.
- Work collaboratively with internal and external colleagues and partners to discuss strategies and methodologies.
- Provide technical guidance in child rights, gender, and social inclusion programming.
- Ensure project plans include outcome-level monitoring and evaluation plans.
- Ensure the implementation of child protection, gender, and social inclusion activities are planned and implemented in a phased and prioritised manner.
- Provide technical guidance and direction for effective planning, implementation, and monitoring of child protection plans.
- Conduct programme visits to monitor activity implementation, identify opportunities and constraints, and any needed adjustments.
- Integrate child protection, gender, and inclusion sustainability plans into all project activities.
- Ensure Project Managers/Coordinators have access to and use routine monitoring and periodic assessment/survey data.
- Provide technical leadership in project reflection meetings for learnings and stock-taking.
- Draft and/or review scopes of work to hire and manage child protection, gender, and inclusion technical consultants.
- Conduct field supportive supervision of the team implementing projects/interventions.
- Participate in proposal development to secure new grants.
- Provide technical inputs to Business Development for concept notes, proposals, and other documents.
- Establish and maintain effective linkage and relationship with National Offices, donors, and development partners.
- Pro-actively engage with development partners and donors to mobilize resources and project funding.
- Ensure a robust understanding of Plan International sponsorship vision and support strategic alignment.
- Identify areas of continuous improvement to create a protective environment for children.
- Undertake training of staff, project teams, and partner staff.
- Provide technical support to partners to improve child protection and gender transformative programming and influencing.
- Ensure strong gender transformation is embedded in all projects.
- Contribute to the identification of best practices and lessons learned.
- Build and scale-up programme approaches and methodologies from lessons learnt.
- Build strategic relationships with government ministries, UN agencies, and non-government institutions.
- Identify key implementing and strategic partners.
- Work with public, private, and international actors to influence policy frameworks.
- Represent Plan International Malawi in child protection fora, networks, clusters, technical working groups, and other inter-agency meetings.
- Lead documentation and sharing of best practices.
- Participate in strategic program discussions on the planning of child protection programs/projects.
- Ensure Plan International’s global policies for Safeguarding Children and Young People, and Gender Equality and Inclusion (GEI) are embedded.
- Provide guidance in identifying and mitigating complex risks and problems.
- Demonstrate gender transformative programming and activities in reports.
- Advocate internally for adaptations of Plan International’s policies, processes, attitudes, and behaviours.
- Monitor internal and external environment including government that may affect programme planning and implementation.
- Demonstrate flexibility and strategic thinking in working with and influencing national level government officials.
Required Experience
8 years of practical experience in Child Protection. Experience in the development of Gender Transformative Child Protection programs and projects. Experience in planning and facilitating training/workshops on Child Protection and Safeguarding. Experience in writing/contributing significantly to successful grant proposals. Experience working with children and understanding their special needs. Experience with rights-based approaches. Experience managing staff, including demonstrated experience in staff training, coaching, and mentoring. Experience in Civil society strengthening and engagement. Experience working directly in gender, age, disability or social inclusion programming, related issues and/or broader protection issues, preferably in an NGO, UN context. Solid experience in resource mobilisation with a variety of donors.
Qualifications
A Master’s degree in Social Science, International Development, Gender Development, Human Rights, International Development, Law, Public Policy or other related field. Those with a Bachelors’ degree but with at least 8 years of Child protection experience will be considered.
