Panama: Senior Officer, Community, Engagement and Accountability

JOB PURPOSE

The Community Engagement and Accountability Senior Officer immediately support its response to the migration situation in the region and reports directly to the Americas Regional Office Communications Manager.

Priority contexts include Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Brazil, Trinidad and Tobago and Guyana. The list of priority contexts will increase as the migratory trail expands to other countries in the Americas.

The role requires extensive travel, a flexible attitude, team-oriented approach, and the ability to deliver quality product under pressure.

JOB DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Key responsibilities of the Community Engagement and Accountability Senior Officer are:

• Support National Societies to do a comprehensive mapping of main information needs, gaps and opportunities to mitigate risks and vulnerability of migrant population, at departure, on route and at destination level.
• Map the most used and trusted channel of communication to disseminate key information while engaging both migrant population and host communities
• Design, implement and monitor a Community Engagement strategy, which includes all affected countries of the Population Movement International Response, being context-specific and culturally appropriate in each country and community.
• Ensure that communities are taking part of the whole programme cycle, documenting as possible participation activities.
• Promote community participation and generate feedback mechanisms in order to track rumours, misinformation and suggestions from target population and continuously improve our information sharing.
• Generate evidence-based results to show efficiency of CEA interventions through KAP surveys, Key Informant Interviews, or other qualitative studies.
• Through the use of innovative tools such as social media, mobile cinema, volunteer’s desks or radio chat shows, provide timely, accurate and actionable information to affected population. Build the capacity of the affected Nationals Societies to integrate CEA into programmes, advocating and generating demand of CEA as a key cross cutting component oriented to build more resilient communities regionally,
• Coordinate with the Communications Delegate to support in generating public campaigns in key topics as: anti-stigma, social inclusion, integration, among others.
• Coordinate with other agencies working on migration in communication, community engagement and behaviour change communication initiatives and join coordination mechanism, seeking out opportunities for collaboration.

EDUCATION

• A university degree in a relevant area such as communication, behaviour change communication, community engagement or community media
• Basic Training Course/IMPACT (International Mobilization and Preparation for Action) or equivalent,preferre**d.**

EXPERIENCE

• 5 years’ experience in behavior change communication, risk communication, social mobilization, community engagement, accountability to beneficiaries, community media, with at least 3 years in developing countries (emergency experience and experience in the Americas an asset)
• Experience setting up and managing community media, communication and engagement tools such as radio, TV, social media, SMS, cinema/drama and complaints and response mechanisms
• Solid experience in delivering capacity building, project management support and training
• Proven communication experience in public health emergencies
• Experience of delivering behaviour change communication campaigns
• Solid experience developing communication material
• Red Cross Red Crescent experience, preferred
• Field experience (in migration context, an asset), preferred

KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS

• Knowledge of community engagement/beneficiary communication, including accountability to beneficiary standards and behaviour change communication theories
• Good understanding of challenges related to migration
• Sensitivity to challenging political contexts and understanding of risk management processes
• Advanced analytical skills and able to capture learning and use it to make improvements in programming
• Ability to multi task and work under pressure Excellent verbal and written skills
• Ability to negotiate with internal and external partners and develop relationships with key stakeholders
• Team player, self-motivated and proactive on own initiative to set and achieve goals
• Drive for change and improvements and ability to deliver strategies in a challenging environment
• Highly motivated, self-starter able to lead a process, engage others and create ownership.
• Self-supporting in computers (Windows, spreadsheets, word-processing)
• Knowledge about communication interventions under emergency situations, in complex and delicate situations, an asset

LANGUAGES:

• Fluently spoken and written Spanish
• Fluently spoken and written English
• Good command of another IFRC official language (i.e., French) or a language spoken in the country of mission (i.e., Portuguese), preferred

COMPETENCIES AND VALUES

• VALUES: Respect for diversity; Integrity; Professionalism; Accountability
• CORE COMPETENCIES: Communication; Collaboration and Teamwork; Judgement and Decision Making; National Societies and Customer Relations; Creativity and Innovation; Building Trust
• FUNCTIONAL COMPETENCIES: Building Alliances; Leadership; Empowering Others

A letter of motivation must be submitted along with the application no later than October 2, 2018**. In order to ensure a proper comparative evaluation of your application for this vacancy and to enable us to consider your profile against other similar current and future vacancies, we ask that you submit your application thru the following http://www.ifrc.org/en/who-we-are/working-with-us/current-vacancies/job-description/?id=13696 link into account the following:

Message for applicants:

Applicants will need to send their applications together with a letter of motivation no later than the closing date. In order for us to assure a proper comparative evaluation of your application for this vacancy and to enable us to consider your profile against other similar current and future vacancies, we ask that you submit your application considering the following:

• Please note that this vacancy seeks to hire the selected candidate through an international contract;
• The incumbent is responsible to abide by Federation policies, procedures, plans and applicable laws;
• The closing date is midnight Geneva time. Applications received after the closing date will not be considered;
• Only those candidates shortlisted for interviews will be notified.

The position will be based in Panama. If the selected candidate is a national or resident of Panama, a national contract will be offered in line with the applicable compensation and benefits. The position incumbent will travel frequently to the countries affected by the migratory crisis, identified within the appeal, as it evolves and as required by the operation.