About US:

Catholic Relief Services (CRS) is an international non-profit organization which implements the commitment of the Bishops of the United States to assist the poor and vulnerable overseas. Our Catholic identity is at the heart of our mission and operations. We welcome as a part of our staff and as partners people of all faiths and secular traditions who share our values and our commitment to serving those in need.

Job Summary:

The Senior Project Officer – Advocacy and Inclusion is required to support CRS’ programs to ensure the legal rights of refugees and landowners are protected and help the project team address challenges with ensuring women, the elderly, child headed households and persons with disabilities, who may not be able to travel to find work, or face protection risks or greater problems accessing homes, land and property, have appropriate access to all project activities.

Key Duties and Responsibilities:

Under the supervision of the Homes and Communities Program Manager, the Senior Project Officer – Advocacy and Inclusion will:

• Carry out an assessment of the context in Bidibidi refugee settlement and surrounding host communities to determine the current legal framework related to HLP. If one does not exist, in consultation with camp management, local government, NGO actors and refugee welfare committees lead the development of a legal framework for HLP;
• Prepare documentation for securing agricultural land access and rental agreements whilst ensuring rights of refugees and landowners are protected;
• Lead identification of landowners and liaise with them with regard to access arrangements;
• Lead discussions on Natural Resource Management with the community and local authorities;
• Monitor compliance with existing tenancy/land agreements;
• Manage landowner/access database;
• Produce regular reporting updates on the status of land access/tenancy related to CRS operations and the wider community;
• Compile and submit timely weekly activity reports and monthly progress reports
• Advise management about issues affecting project implementation, or key local issues affecting future project developments;
• Elaborate, compile and maintain database of protection referrals and support in the follow-up of referred cases as appropriate, including cases that are referred through the Community Centers;
• Elaborate, compile and maintain key protection and gender resources library;
• Form and build relationships to maximize the potential for collaborative programming with Local Government;
• Support Accountability staff to ensure Feedback Response Mechanisms (FRM) are in place and are accessible to all members of the community;
• Ensure protection and environmental issues are fully considered throughout the project cycle with women, elderly, most vulnerable being included in decision-making for all project activities;
• As required, lead trainings on HLP and awareness raising campaigns within target communities.
• Contribute in collecting good practices, case studies for documentation, evidence-building and demonstration. alternative solutions and designs that can reach scale;
• Pilot alternative HLP related solutions and processes for families to attain safe dignified home and community.

Qualifications, Skills and Experience:

• The ideal applicant for the Catholic Relief Services (CRS) Senior Project Officer – Advocacy and Inclusion job must hold a Bachelor’s degree or higher in law, agriculture, agroforestry, economic, business or social sciences from a recognized academic institution.
• Experience with HLP and land negotiation in refugee and host communities in West Nile.
• At least five years of professional experience. Appropriate relevant and comprehensive experience in the field of humanitarian response/early recovery with markets-based cash/voucher programming, agricultural livelihoods, or shelter/WASH experience a plus.
• Must have experience working in Housing, Land and Property and a demonstrated understanding of regulatory environment within the context of Ugandan refugee settlements.
• Good knowledge and experience of working with local partners.
• Proven experience in liaison with all levels of Local Government.
• Fluent English language (speaking and writing). Knowledge of the local languages spoken by South Sudanese and host communities living on or near Bidibidi settlement

Agency-Wide Competencies (for all CRS staff):

These are rooted in the mission, values, and principles of CRS and used by each staff member to fulfill his or her responsibilities and to achieve the desired results.

• Serves with Integrity
• Models Stewardship
• Cultivates Constructive Relationships
• Promotes Learning

Emergency Competencies:

Each staff member working in emergencies is expected to use the following competencies to fulfill his or her responsibilities and to achieve the desired results.

• Communicates strategically under pressure
• Manages stress and complexity
• Actively promotes safety and security
• Manages and implements high-quality emergency programs

Influence Competencies (for all Homes and Communities Staff)

• Effectively communicates the agency’s priorities and leverages local relationships to bring stakeholders perspective to decision-makers, based on job-specific responsibilities
• Transmitting feedback and local perspectives to project manager to reflect/adjust the Homes and Communities strategy and related influence hypothesis
• Supports thinking around scaling-up over time and impacting indirectly the lives Refugees in terms of access to land and housing (e.g. influencing legal policies around access to land and housing)
• Strategically represents the technical sector for influence

Desirable attributes:

• A capacity and desire to pass on skills and information, a confident communicator and willing to work in a collaborative and respectful way with target communities.
• Flexibility and ability to work under pressure and meeting deadlines in changing situations

All candidates should Email a cover letter and CV only to [email protected]. Large files and/or scans of documents will lead to rejection of your application, in the subject

line of the email, copy and paste - SENIORPROJECTOFFICERADVOCACY. All applications that do not contain this exact subject line will be rejected and not read.

Deadline: 20^th May 2020