REACH Junior Assessment Officer for oPt

Country: occupied Palestinian territory

Organization: IMPACT Initiatives

Closing date: 31 Dec 2020

BACKGROUND ON IMPACT AND REACH

IMPACT Initiatives is a humanitarian NGO, based in Geneva, Switzerland. The organisation manages several initiatives, including the REACH Initiative. The IMPACT team comprises specialists in data collection, management and analysis and GIS. IMPACT was launched at the initiative of ACTED, an international NGO whose headquarter is based in Paris and is present in thirty countries. The two organizations have a strong complementarity formalized in a global partnership, enabling IMPACT to benefit from ACTED’s operational support on its fields of intervention.

REACH was born in 2010 as a joint initiative of two International NGOs (IMPACT Initiatives and ACTED) and the United Nations Operational Satellite Applications Programme (UNOSAT). REACH’s purpose is to promote and facilitate the development of information products that enhance the humanitarian community’s decision making and planning capacity for emergency, reconstruction and development contexts. REACH facilitates information management for aid actors through three complementary services: (a) need and situation assessments facilitated by REACH teams; (b) situation analysis using satellite imagery; (c) provision of related database and (web)-mapping facilities and expertise.

We are currently looking for a REACH Junior Assessment Officer to support REACH activities in oPt.

Department: REACH

Position: Junior Assessment Officer

Contract duration: 6 months

Location: East Jerusalem

Starting Date: January 2021 (pending funding confirmation)

COUNTRY PROFILE

The situation in occupied Palestine territory (oPt) is characterized as a protracted protection crisis. According to the 2020 Humanitarian Needs Overview (HNO), 2.2 million Palestinians out of a total population of 5.2 million were estimated to be in need of humanitarian assistance, 43% of whom were classified as being in severe need. The population faces multi-faceted and compounding humanitarian and protection challenges, putting vulnerable households at continual risk of conflict and violence, displacement, food insecurity, and poverty. In addition to the humanitarian context, Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza are also facing a number of socioeconomic and environmental challenges. The Government of Palestine, Palestinian civil society, and international organisations are thus working towards achieving sustainable development targets in the midst of ongoing insecurity and occupation.

The global COVID-19 pandemic has further exacerbated humanitarian needs and pre-existing vulnerabilities among the Palestinian population and poses an additional risk to sustainable development. Following the declaration of a state of emergency in oPt on 5 March 2020, the humanitarian community has mobilized to support necessary interventions outlined in the COVID-19 Response Plan.

REACH has been present oPt in on a project basis since 2016, including an evaluation of shelter assistance to conflict-affected populations in Gaza and monitoring the impact of cash assistance. REACH has coordinated activities through the humanitarian Cluster system to define locations for assessment and mapping activities, and has worked in both the West Bank and Gaza.

In 2021, REACH aims to support both humanitarian and development actors in oPt through conducting a Multisector Needs Assessment (MSNA), designed to inform joint humanitarian-development response planning based on the nexus approach that the UN Country Team has adopted for next year.

POSITION PROFILE

REACH is seeking a Junior Assessment Officer (JAO) to support implementation of the 2021 MSNA in oPt. In this role, the JAO will be responsible for supporting the MSNA Senior Assessment Officer (SAO) and Data Officer (DO) across the MSNA research cycle, from research design through data collection, cleaning, analysis, and drafting information products. Please note, the final offer for this position is contingent upon confirmation of funding.

FUNCTIONS

1) Implementation of the MSNA – Under the supervision of the REACH Senior Assessment Officer and Country Coordinator and in collaboration with the IMPACT HQ Research and Global Initiatives Departments, as well as all relevant MSNA partners and stakeholders, the JAO will be responsible for:

Objective 1.1: Research Design Ensuring that the MSNA research design is rigorous, methodologically sound, and follows best practices as defined by the global standards of REACH and IMPACT. To achieve this objective, the AO will support the SAO in drafting the research TORs and other related research design tasks.

Objective 1.3: Implementation Supporting the SAO and DO in implementing all operational stages of the relevant data collection exercise(s), including household survey tool design and testing, monitoring data collection progress and targets, conducing daily data cleaning checks, and supporting with data analysis.

Objective 1.4: Output Production Supporting the SAO with producing several key MSNA output, in particular the final clean dataset, PowerPoint presentations, and factsheet products.

CONFIDENTIALITY

The REACH Junior Assessment Officer will maintain the strictest confidentiality on all data collected and related processes. He/she will actively take measures to prevent the unauthorized sharing of any information and data belonging to IMPACT and its partners, or collected during his/her assignment with IMPACT.

REQUIREMENTS

Excellent academic qualifications, including a master’s degree in relevant discipline (international studies, development, humanitarian response, monitoring and evaluation, etc;
At least 1 year of experience working in humanitarian and/or development settings;
At least 1 year of experience in the areas of humanitarian research, primary data collection, needs assessments, and/or monitoring & evaluation (either academic or professional);
Direct experience with implementing least one of the following stages of the research cycle: research design, data collection, data cleaning, data analysis, or data reporting;
Knowledge of the Humanitarian Programme Cycle, humanitarian coordination structure, and the humanitarian-development nexus;
Strong communication skills in English for effective reporting and coordination;
Experience with Microsoft Office Suite, to include Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Knowledge and experience in R or other statistical analysis software and Adobe InDesign desired;
Proven organization skills;
Ability to operate in a cross-cultural environment requiring flexibility;
Ability to work independently;
Written and spoken fluency in English required; Arabic language skills desired.

CONDITIONS

Salary defined by the IMPACT salary grid; educational level, expertise, hardship, security, and performance are considered for pay bonus.
Additional monthly living allowance provided in country by IMPACT’s partner ACTED.
Food and lodging provided at the organisation’s guesthouse/or housing allowance (depending on contract length and country of assignment).
Transportation costs covered, including additional return ticket + luggage allowance.
Provision of medical, life, and repatriation insurance + retirement package.