Senior Livelihoods Officer- National Role

Shaping a stronger Oxfam for people living in poverty.

About Oxfam

Oxfam is a global community who believe poverty isn’t inevitable. It’s an injustice that can be overcome. We are shop volunteers, women’s right activists, marathon runners, aid workers, coffee farmers, street fundraisers, goat herders, policy experts, campaigners, water engineers and more. And we won’t stop until everyone can live life without poverty for good.

Oxfam GB is a member of the international confederation Oxfam.

Our Team

The Oxfam team in Lebanon implements integrated humanitarian, development and policy interventions in line with Oxfam’s country strategy for Lebanon as relevant to the Bekaa and north Lebanon areas, including protection & governance; cash safety net/social protection and economic development/livelihoods; WASH/water governance, with a focus on partnerships with local actors. The Economic Justice pillar of our work ensures that marginalised women and men, especially youth, are empowered to cope with the effects of economic poverty and have greater access to and control over livelihood assets for sustainable poverty reduction and reduced aid dependency.job purpose

The Senior Livelihoods Officer will be responsible for the effective management of the intervention, relationships with the partner organisation, manage the intervention throughout the project cycle, including budget management (including expenditure planning and expenditure monitoring), lead in preparing and developing high quality programme plans, including MEAL and procurement plans, progress and donor reports, ensure appropriate monitoring and project quality, and enhance internal and external learning and representation.

The Senior Livelihoods Officer is expected to work closely with the Economic Justice programme team towards common objectives. The Senior Livelihoods Officer will be supported by the MEAL Coordinator, by the Oxfam Grants Manager and by the Finance and Logistic teams. The Senior Livelihoods Officer is expected to be based in Oxfam’s Tripoli office with frequent visits to Zahle, Akkar and Beirut.

The technical main objectives of the position are:

 -Ensure local businesses are technically and financially supported to be able to maintain and/or create jobs

-The “Decent Working Conditions” are mainstreamed to employers, employees and job seekers.

- Youth entrepreneurs, job-seekers and employees are empowered through job placements, technical trainings and financial support.

what the recruiting manager has to say about the role?

We are seeking to recruit an experienced and dynamic Senior Livelihoods Officer to lead the implementation of the activities, ensure quality and respect of Oxfam’s and the donor’s procedures, and to coordinate with the partners and other relevant stakeholders. Negotiation and coordination skills are essential for this job.

Core Details:

Location: Tripoli with frequent trips to Zahle, Akkar and Beirut

Internal Grade: D1

Job Family: Programme

Contract type: Fixed Term – Till end of December 2020 (renewable)

This role reports to: Economic Justice Coordinator

Staff reporting to this post: Livelihoods Assistant

Annual budget          for the post: Budget management for 0.4M Euros

Key relationships/interactions: Economic Justice Coordinator, Economic Justice Project Manager, Deputy Country Director – Programmes, Policy Advisor, PMEAL Officers/Coordinator, Grants Manager, and the partners.

Screening checks: All successful candidates will be screened through Refinitiv World-Check One to comply with counter terrorism and financial sanctions regulations.

Key Responsibilities

Project Cycle Management & Programme Quality

• Support the Economic Justice Coordinator to develop an overall programme guidance in terms of work plans/budget work plans, spending plans, MEAL plans, procurement plans;
• Work closely with the Oxfam technical coordinators and support staff to provide appropriate guidance and managerial support to implement the project in line with the objectives laid out in the donor approved proposal (s);
• To report regularly, verbally and in writing to the Economic Justice Coordinator on regular basis on programme progress;
• To lead in preparing mid-term and final reports for the donor in collaboration with partners, project staff, technical coordinators, Funding Coordinator, Support teams. Ensure narrative reporting and financial accounting meet Oxfam and donor’s requirements;
• Support and promote programme quality and project strengthening activities e.g. data management, project quality meetings, learning events and partnership reviews;
• Ensure Oxfam’s Programme Management system, OPAL, is up dated and relevant for the programme in question;
• Monitoring and evaluating the project regularly, ensuring partners’ and community participation as appropriate, as well as accountability towards communities;
• Follow up on MEAL activities and findings ensuring that learning from monitoring and evaluation is included and strategies and programme implementation are adapted accordingly;
• Monitor program implementation and ensure regular reporting by the partner;
• Mainstream gender within the intervention, with advice from the Gender Advisor;
• Establish and maintain clear lines of communication with project staff and ensure internal communication is effective;
• Ensure partner is submitting timely financial and narrative reports in line with donor and Oxfam system requirements.
• Ensure project activities have the appropriate visibility in compliance with donor requirements and procedures.
• Actively participate in monthly financial review meetings to plan and monitor the budget expenditure, review procurement and spending plans, and ensure funds are spent within the time frame acceptable to Oxfam and the donor and ensuring rules and regulations of Oxfam are adhered to;
• Support the Economic Justice Coordinator to review actual financial performance against the budget, and explain variances on a regular basis;
• Ensure that donor contractual requirements are fulfilled, including by partners, with particular reference to the Grant Agreement and internal regulations, throughout the entire project period;
• Responsible for overseeing activity and financial progress against project partnership agreements;
• Support the Economic Justice Coordinator to ensure appropriate monitoring (financial, technical, implementation) of the partner;
• Lead on initiating relevant procurement processes, with support from Logistics, in line with programme spending and procurement planning.

Management

• Line manage relevant staff in line with Oxfam policies, ensuring that they have the necessary training and support as required;
• Ensure staff are compliant with key internal procedures, including security requirements and code of conduct;
• Solicit appropriate training and learning opportunities for team members in line with development objectives and ensure regular coaching of staff;
• Oversee performance management and staff development of team members, and provide necessary and timely feedback to all staff being directly managed;
• Build the capacity of staff in key project management principles, tools and approaches and ensure that these new skills are utilized on the job;
• Facilitate effective working relations with colleagues around communications, policy and advocacy issues and concerns, ensuring evidence-based programmatic input into policy and media messaging.

External Representation and Consortium Coordination

• Serve as primary project representative to local stakeholders and partners, responsible for addressing all project matters;
• Develop and maintain positive relations with relevant partner/consortium members;
• Assist with the coordination of visits of donors, and/or partners related to the project;
• Facilitate effective working relations with colleagues around communications, policy and advocacy issues and concerns, ensuring evidence-based programmatic input into policy and media messaging;
• When needed, lead on organizing events, such as joint advocacy, research, project launch etc., coordinating closely with the policy and media team.

Your commitment to Oxfam

• Required to adhere to Oxfam’s principles and values as well as the promotion of gender justice and women's rights
• Understanding of and commitment to adhere to equity, diversity, gender, child safety and staff health and wellbeing principles

Essential - Experience, Knowledge, Qualifications & Competencies

• A Bachelor’s degree in a relevant discipline such as Business Management, Economics, Development studies, Social Sciences or related fields;
• Minimum 3 years of professional work experience in development work (specifically in managing programmes in the livelihoods sector) including in the MENA region;
• Demonstrated technical expertise and experience in local economic development, livelihoods and/or social integration programming;
• Experience in working with youth;
• Experience in implementing Business Development Support projects and Private Sector engagement initiatives;
• Familiar with the “Decent Working Conditions” and the indecent aspects faced in country by stakeholders (employees, women, People with Disabilities, refugees, children and more);
• Good knowledge of developing and implementing monitoring systems to track the effectiveness of programmes and an ability to build cooperative, professional relationships with donors, partners and peer organisations;
• Management skills & experience, including line management, management of other resources, evidence of capacity to support others;
• Evidence of project cycle management experience, including design, planning, budgeting, monitoring & evaluation and reporting;
• Experience in implementing projects involving local organisations as implementing partners;
• Diplomacy, tact and negotiating skills;
• Good interpersonal, influencing and communication skills;
• Proven team leadership and ability to work independently as required;
• Sensitivity to cultural differences, and the ability to work in a wide variety of cultural contexts;
• Good written and spoken English and Arabic;
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office applications;

Desirable

• Technical expertise and experience in Business Development and employment interventions
• Experience in working within a consortium and with external stakeholders

Oxfam is committed to preventing any type of unwanted behaviour at work including sexual harassment, exploitation and abuse, lack of integrity and financial misconduct; and committed to promoting the welfare of children, young people, adults and beneficiaries with whom Oxfam GB engages. Oxfam expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment through our code of conduct. We place a high priority on ensuring that only those who share and demonstrate our values are recruited to work for us.

The post holder will undertake the appropriate level of training and is responsible for ensuring that they understand and work within the safeguarding policies of the organisation.

All offers of employment will be subject to satisfactory references and appropriate screening checks, which can include criminal records and terrorism finance checks. Oxfam GB also participates in the Inter Agency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme.  In line with this Scheme, we will request information from job applicants’ previous employers about any findings of sexual exploitation, sexual abuse and/or sexual harassment during employment, or incidents under investigation when the applicant left employment. By submitting an application, the job applicant confirms his/her understanding of these recruitment procedures.

We are committed to ensuring diversity and gender equality within our organisation and encourage applicants from diverse backgrounds to apply.