occupied Palestinian territory: International Education Expert for JFA II - PALESTINE

In view of the further development of its activities BTC is currently looking for a (m/f):

International Education Expert for JFA II - PALESTINE

Ref.: PZA/15/035-2B

Location: Jerusalem, Palestine
Duration of the contract: 34 months
Probable starting date: as soon as possible
Monthly salary package: between 5.852,91 euro and 8.427,54 euro (this includes the gross monthly salary and the expat benefits: hardship allowance and expat allowance). The salary is calculated, depending on the composition of the family and the number of years of relevant experience.

Function:

The Education Expert will monitor the education sector, follow the Joint Financing Arrangement (JFA) operations and provide technical expertise on education issues to the Belgian Cooperation, the Development Partners and the Palestinian Authority, in particular the MOEHE.
The Education Expert will work at the BTC representation in Jerusalem under the administrative supervision of the BTC resident representative (RESREP) and the functional guidance of the Belgian Consulate-General. The Education Expert will work in collaboration with the PFM expert, as well as with other Technical Assistants supporting Belgian interventions in the education sector.
Tasks:
Support to the Belgian Development Cooperation
• Provide technical / policy advice to the Consulate-General with regards to the Belgian position on policy issues related to the education sector;
• Report to the Consulate-General and the Budget Support Working Group with regards to programme implementation and policy dialogue, as provided for in the Vademecum for Budget Support, in close collaboration with the PFM expert;
• Report about the opportunity of disbursement of the different Belgian instalments. The Education Expert will systematically check together with the PFM expert whether the conditions for disbursement as defined in the Specific Agreement are met. Both experts will then jointly formulate a clear advice to the Consulate-General in this respect;
• Support capitalisation in order to feed into current and future Belgian interventions in education through documenting the implementation process and exchanging experience; exchange expertise and programme results with other Belgian actors involved in the education sector and / or in budget support modalities;
• Relate and coordinate with the running Belgian bilateral education projects to formulate advice based on the lessons learned within the projects, to ensure a common position in policy dialogue, to monitor progress of the EDSP and of the Belgian education portfolio.
Support to the education SWAP coordination and policy dialogue
• Actively support donor coordination towards an active partnership approach to program follow-up and policy dialogue with the Palestinian authorities;
• Ensure good relations and continuous dialogue with the main stakeholders in education, and in particular:
 The Palestinian Authority: mainly the Ministry of Education and Higher Education, the Ministry of Planning, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Labour
 The Joint Financing Partners (JFPs) of the JFA
 The Development Partners, in particular with those participating in the Education Sector Working Group (ESWG) and the Technical Thematic Groups
• Ensure common understanding and contribute to common positions with the JFPs of the JFA.
• Ensure follow-up and analysis of EDSP and JFA implementation and reporting;
• Actively participate in the technical workgroups responsible for the program follow-up in which the expert can provide positive contributions;
• Actively participate in the meetings of the Education Sector Working Group (ESWG), the Core Group, the JFP and JFA meetings and other relevant policy dialogue fora in education. This includes participation in high-level fora of the policy dialogue related to the education sector (like EU ROF dialogue) – upon request of the Consulate-General.
• Support the Consulate-General in their function of co-lead of the ESWG;
• Participate in the organization of Annual Sector Reviews and joint field visit.
Support to the JFA program, and the overall functioning of the Palestinian education system
• Upon request of the partners, play a facilitating role with regards to inter and intra-ministerial coordination for the overall Education Sector dialogue;
• Monitor identified risk factors, and constructively collaborate with the partner authorities and JFPs within the program dialogue and implementation of programs to mitigate risks, in particular:
 Pay attention that JFA and EDSP program implementation shifts towards quality improvement and the expansion of TVET in Palestine;
 Facilitate the improvement of the Monitoring and Evaluation system in education;
 Contribute to institutional capacity development at both central and decentralized levels.
 Ensure exchange and coordination with the management team of the MOEHE
• Facilitate the resolution of bottlenecks, where needed;
• Support coherence and linkage of the JFA with the other Belgian ongoing education projects and other relevant programs and projects;
• Where possible, take initiative for research and empirical studies in the education sector.

Profile:

• Master of Arts / Master of Science degree in social sciences, preferably in education sciences and / or economics, public administration;
• 10 years of relevant experience, of which at least 5 in supporting the Education Sector of developing and / or transition countries.
• Knowledge and experience in Education Sector planning is a distinctive asset.
• Extensive experience in quality improvement projects in education, such as teacher training strategies, curriculum reforms, decentralization, etc.
• Experience with a specific Education Sector Budget Support program or a basket fund and a Sector-Wide Approach in Education is desirable;
• Experience in Monitoring and Evaluation methodologies, including EMIS;
• Experience in institutional assessment and capacity building;
• Experience in Public Finance Management and/or education finance is an asset;
• Experience with working in Palestine or the Middle –east or North Africa region is an asset.
• Demonstrated interpersonal, coordination, negotiation and diplomatic skills;
• Perfect command of English. Knowledge of French, Dutch and/or Arabic is an asset.

For security and logistics reasons, BTC is obligated to recruit a Belgian national for this position.

For security and logistics reasons, BTC is obligated to recruit a Belgian national for this position.

Interested?

Please apply no later than April 4th 2016, through our website BTC CTB.
If you have any additional questions, don’t hesitate to contact us at +32 (0)2/505 37 90.