CHILD SAFEGUARDING:
Level 3: The post holder will have contact with children and/or young people either frequently (e.g. once a week or more) or intensively (e.g. four days in one month or more or overnight) because they work country programs; or are visiting country programs; or because they are responsible for implementing the police checking/vetting process staff.
ROLE PURPOSE:
The Senior Education Technical Advisor is responsible for ensuring high quality programming of Education Projects. S/he will ensure technical standards are defined, shared and used across projects, coordination, standardization of approaches and use of common approaches in different projects, and that quality of program are of nationally/internationally accepted and recommended standards. The Advisor builds strong external relations, and produces and utilizes high quality and well-articulated project evidence and research for learning, advocacy and for the continued development of the Education portfolio.
The overall aim of the Senior Education Technical Adviser will be to monitor the needs and gaps, design appropriate interventions, and guide staff and partners in the initiation of programmes to address violations of children’s right to education and protection.
The post holder will ensure that programmes are designed in alignment with international quality standards and that the team has the appropriate level of capability to implement and monitor the programme. The post holder will be expected, with limited support, to lead on sectoral assessment, programme design and master budgeting, coordination, and support fundraising, recruitment, and procurement.
The Senior Education Technical Adviser will also be expected to play a leadership role within a response team, through 360-degree support to colleagues and work to ensure that broader sector coordination mechanisms are functioning effectively. In most circumstances, the post-holder will be expected to mentor and/or build capacity both international and national staff colleagues.
SCOPE OF ROLE:
Reports to: Head of Technical Unit
Staff reporting to this post: None but strong working relationship with MHPSS Programme Implementation team
KEY AREAS OF ACCOUNTABILITY:
Programming Quality and effectiveness
- Provide technical advice and support in education to support quality programming and implementation for education projects and the design and delivery of the Country Strategic Plans.
- Ensuring that needs are identified and that education projects address the identified needs, fill gaps and prevent overlap and duplication and to inform the development and delivery of the education strategy with integrated links with other sectors.
- Actively seek innovative programme improvements and programme design and proposals which encourage donor diversification and the opportunity to try new approaches.
- Ensure priority cross-cutting issues are embedded in programming interventions.
- Actively communicate and coordinate with other sector specialists and relevant technical advisors and project coordinators to ensure integrated approaches across themes.
- Ensure common approaches and SCI quality frameworks standards are incorporated into proposals and implemented.
- Work closely with the Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning (MEAL) team to ensure education work is contributing to all objectives across these priority quality areas.
- Contribute to the development of an M&E framework for the education programme that monitors the impact of projects and progress towards strategic operational and advocacy objectives.
- Conduct regular field visits to provide supportive supervision to all education programs and build capacity of staff.
- Review all education donor reports to ensure high quality.
- Build capacity of staff and partners to ensure they have skills to deliver programmes and objectives and meet donor and SCI quality standards.
- Support multiple education consortiums (which are led by SCI) technically where required
Fundraising and donor engagement
- Support donor engagement and strategic fundraising to secure sufficient funding to maintain or expand the country office’s education programs as per the country strategic plan needs and in a pro-active manner.
- Develop and maintain contacts with current and potential donors, partners and key technical agencies. Support donor meetings and visits.
- Ensure that members are aware of funding opportunities and support their capacity to access these.
- Secure sufficient funding to maintain or expand the country office’s education programs as per the country strategic plan needs.
Advocacy
- Develop policy briefs and position papers related to Education with the Head of Advocacy
- Keep abreast of national and global debate in Education and relevant sub-themes, analyse and use in programming and advocacy to pro-actively inform the advocacy activity and strategy
- With the support of the ACCM Director, develop and implement EiE advocacy work to achieve education advocacy objectives and outcomes.
- Represent Save the Children in the Education Cluster, the Afghanistan Strategic Group, and other relevant working groups, task forces, seminars and related fora in the thematic area; and among donors, UN agencies, International NGOs, and national and sub-national government counterparts in coordination.
COMPETENCIES FOR THIS ROLE:
- Applying Technical and Professional Expertise
Applies the required technical and professional expertise to the highest standards; promotes and shared best practice within and outside the organisation
Level required: Accomplished
- Delivering Results
Takes personal responsibility and holds others accountable for delivering our ambitious goals for children, continually improving their own performance or that of the team / organisation.
Level required: Leading Edge
- Problem Solving and Decision-Making
Takes effective, considered and timely decisions by gathering and evaluating relevant information from within or outside the organisation Level required: Leading Edge
- Advisor: Leading and Inspiring Others
Demonstrates leadership in all our work, embodies our values, and articulates a compelling vision to inspire others to achieve our goals for children. Level required: Accomplished
BEHAVIOURS (Values in Practice)
Accountability:
- Holds self-accountable for making decisions, managing resources efficiently, achieving and role modelling Save the Children values.
- Holds the team and partners accountable to deliver on their responsibilities - giving them the freedom to deliver in the best way they see fit, providing the necessary development to improve performance and applying appropriate consequences when results are not achieved.
Ambition:
- Sets ambitious and challenging goals for themselves and their team, takes responsibility for their own personal development and encourages their team to do the same.
- Widely shares their personal vision for Save the Children, engages and motivates others
- Future oriented, thinks strategically and on a global scale.
Collaboration:
- Builds and maintains effective relationships, with their team, colleagues, Members and external partners and supporters.
- Values diversity and sees it as a source of competitive strength.
- Approachable, good listener, easy to talk to.
Creativity:
- Develops and encourages new and innovative solutions.
- Willing to take disciplined risks.
Integrity:
- Honest, encourages openness and transparency and demonstrates highest levels of integrity.