Department: Programming
Salary Grade: 9

Job description
About CRS
Catholic Relief Services is the official international humanitarian agency of the Catholic community in the United States. CRS works to save, protect, and transform lives in need in more than 100 countries, without regard to race, religion or nationality. CRS’ relief and development work is accomplished through programs of emergency response, HIV, health, agriculture, education, microfinance and peacebuilding.

Job Summary
Start Network is seeking a highly experienced Crisis Financing Advisor to provide coordination and operational support to Start Network activities in the implementation of its flagship Disaster Risk Financing (DRF) programme in Senegal. The post holder will play a vital role in working to advance locally led action in Senegal and will provide technical advice to the members and stakeholders; supporting Start Network members to plan and implement timely anticipatory and early action activities. The postholder may periodically support Start Fund Alert process such as mobilising volunteers for project selection.


Roles and Key Responsibilities
• Coordinate Start Network members and local partners and enable them to enhance the current national DRF system, to support the prepositioning of financing in Start Ready and to raise alerts to the Start Fund.
• Support the development and drive of the disaster risk financing strategy and coordination with other crisis management actors alongside the members and the Technical Working Group (TWG).
• Develop and ensure optimal delivery of DRF and Start Funds alerts operations at a country level.
Programme management, coordination and partnership brokering
• Hold responsibility for the development, agreement, and management of workplans, protocols, budgets, reporting, and coordination structures to ensure the development and maintenance of the national DRF system in Senegal in line with the Building Blocks framework: the system includes both Start Network internal pool fund mechanism, Start Ready, and Africa Risk Capacity (ARC) Replica macro insurance mechanism
• Support with applications for Start Ready prepositioned financing and its administration.
• Lead the development of contingency planning, operational readiness, and prepositioned financing requests for ARC Replica and Start Ready
• In coordination with the Technical Advisor and the Crisis Anticipation and Risk Financing team, provide technical advice and support to Start Network members to ensure adequate levels of preparedness, ongoing monitoring of forecast information using applicable models and local data sources, timely disbursement of funds following activations, and delivery of effective emergency response.
• Lead in the coordination of ARC and Start Ready trigger alerting to ensure that operations are delivered in a timely manner with humanitarian principles applied throughout. Ensure the timely implementation of activities and delivery of project results.
• Support the wider Start Network activities in Senegal as required, including due diligence processes, mobilizing members for project section when Start Fund Alert Notes are raised and activated
• Lead in the development and review of the ToRs for the local program governance groups.
• Manage the effective coordination of different stakeholders and strengthen relationships with various in-country actors including NGOs, Government counterparts, consultants, and local civil society, and other partners to ensure that the appropriate stakeholders can support different parts of the program.
• Support in capacity strengthening activities of Start Network members, working alongside the Training and Capacity Building Advisor to identify gaps and opportunities to increase knowledge of DRF initiatives and Anticipatory Actions.
• Enhance collaboration amongst Anticipatory Actions and Early Actions stakeholders working in Senegal.


Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning
• Support with evidence-gathering activities, collaborating with the Global MEAL Team when contracting discrete pieces of research, communication, and advocacy about the initiatives.
• Support the monitoring, evaluation, accountability, and learning (MEAL) functions including reporting and compliance among the members.
• Strengthen emergency preparedness and response capacity of Start Network members and its partners including through training, lessons learned and knowledge management.
• Lead in the drafting of annual Quality Assurance Framework tools.
Advocacy and engagement with members and wider stakeholders
• Raise awareness of Start Network early action initiatives among Start Network members and other stakeholders in Senegal.
• Build and maintain relationships with relevant early action and coordination platforms, tools and mechanisms in Senegal where appropriate. Represent Start Network, including Start members, and support Senegal members to actively participate in these groups.
• Support the Start Network Resource Mobilisation team with donor communications, through partaking in meetings and presentations as required.
• Engage in regular exchanges between Crisis Financing Advisors in other countries in order to share learning and technical know-how, spot efficiencies of scale, exchange best practices, and promote cross-network innovations
• Attend conferences and events representing Start Network in the country.
Teamwork
• Participate in the development of a strong team identity and culture, developing effective ways of working with colleagues in other teams or other locations
• Contribute to the development of the relevant business plans for Senegal activities on annual basis, provide inputs and support to Resource Mobilisation team in preparing donor proposals and associated reporting.


Communication
• Lead or co-lead Start Network representation at high level external bodies and working groups in Senegal where needed
• Influence key stakeholders’ thinking on the technical components of anticipatory action by requesting, overseeing, producing or publicising robust research and relevant positioning papers.
• Work with the Start Communications and Digital Team and the Start Programmes Communications Manager to ensure visibility, awareness, and learning, on the role and use of forecast-based information for anticipatory responses.
• Support the communications team in disseminating learning around anticipation, early action and risk financing
• Represent Start Network at relevant conferences, panels and seminars to raise the profile of the learning element of this work.


Basic Qualifications
• Post-graduate degree in one of the following: Disaster risk science/management/resilience; Climate science/adaptation; Development studies; Natural hazard studies; or related studies
• Good knowledge of the humanitarian financing policy area (desirable)
• Additional experience may substitute for some education.
Languages – Working knowledge of English and French (essential)
Travel – include percentage of required travel, if applicable. Could be stated as Must be willing and able to travel up to 25 %.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities
• Substantial knowledge of Anticipatory Action (or Forecast-based Financing).
• Knowledge of disaster risk, including hazard forecasting, data analysis and/or risk modelling.
• Experience in preparing for, responding to and delivering programmes in developing countries and/or humanitarian emergencies, particularly in an information management role.
• Understanding of the challenges in the application of scientific data in humanitarian decision making
• Substantive experience of communication techniques, including communicating the uncertain nature of forecasting information effectively.
• Experience of building systems for humanitarian risk analysis, in particular Anticipatory Action systems.
• Proven experience in preparing for, responding to and delivering programmes in humanitarian emergencies
• Successful experience creating and implementing a partnership strategy, as well as engaging a variety of stakeholders to deliver against this strategy.
• Experience in managing technical consultants.
• Strong analytical and creative problem-solving skills to tackle complex problems.
• Strong presentation and writing skills, including project documentation and public communication.

Personal Skills
• A confident communicator and networker with excellent networking and relationship-building skills
• Proven analytical and problem-solving skills
• Great organisational and project management skills, showing ability to plan different tasks and activities during the year
• Ability to prioritise work across teams, managing time and resources effectively
• Effective communicator with stakeholders at different levels
• Excellent interpersonal skills, able to communicate with colleagues on all levels in a disbursed and multicultural professional environment
• Passionate about the potential of early action to mitigate impacts from forecasted crises, with an ability to foster a culture of innovation in learning approaches, combined with taking associated calculated risks.

Preferred Qualifications
• Project management experience in humanitarian context is highly desirable.
• Experience engaging with partner organizations.
• Experience contributing to the development of technical proposals.
• MEAL skills and experience preferred.
• Experience using MS Windows and MS Office packages (Excel, Word, PowerPoint), Web Conferencing Applications, information management systems.


Agency-wide Competencies (for all CRS Staff)
These are rooted in the mission, values, and guiding principles of CRS and used by each staff member to fulfill his or her responsibilities and achieve the desired results.
• Integrity
• Continuous Improvement & Innovation
• Builds Relationships
• Develops Talent
• Strategic Mindset
• Accountability & Stewardship
• Supervisory Responsibilities (if none, state none)
Key Working Relationships
Internal
The post holder will report on a day-to-day basis to the CRS Program Quality Manager for Senegal and Guinea Bissau.
External
The post is based in Senegal but will be part of the Operations unit of the Start Network Anticipation and Risk Finance team based in London and dispersed global locations. Start Network Members in West Africa.
***Our Catholic identity is at the heart of our mission and operations. Catholic Relief Services carries out the commitment of the Bishops of the United States to assist the poor and vulnerable overseas. We welcome as a part of our staff people of all faiths and secular traditions who share our values and our commitment to serving those in need. CRS’ processes and policies reflect our commitment to protecting children and vulnerable adults from abuse and exploitation.

Disclaimer: This job description is not an exhaustive list of the skill, effort, duties, and responsibilities associated with the position.


CRS’ talent acquisition procedures reflect our commitment to protecting children and vulnerable adults from abuse and exploitation.
CRS is an Equal Opportunity Employer.