Regional Cash and Voucher Assistance (CVA) Technical Adviser at Save the Children

ROLE PURPOSE:

An experienced Cash and Voucher Assistance (CVA) Technical Advisor to provide remote and in-country expertise to support design and implementation of CVA programmes so they are appropriate, timely, accountable to beneficiaries, donor-compliant and cost-effective, across the region. The Regional CVA advisor will use their in-depth contextual understanding, technical and operational expertise, and relationship building skills to provide a critical link between Save the Children’s global and country level technical work while supporting response planning, quality program implementation, preparedness, and advocacy. The role will contribute to building CVA capacity and fostering networks across country office staff.  The role supports regional CVA advocacy and influencing, and contributes to strategic partnerships and relationships (with donors at Regional level) for new business development. It provides input into the design and implementation of monitoring and evaluation systems to demonstrate impact, while sharing learning across country offices, and ensuring quality of our programmes. The position will work closely with both internal and external Cash and Markets Technical Working Groups to ensure global and country office experts are collaborating and sharing learning, best practices, and working towards a comprehensive and unified strategic approach to CVA for child outcomes.

This position will be part of the East and Southern Africa Regional Office team, with extensive travel throughout the region (up to 50% of time), but can be based in any of our country offices.

In the event of a major humanitarian emergency, the role holder will be expected to work outside the normal role profile and be able to vary working hours accordingly, either through remote support or in-country deployments.

SCOPE OF ROLE:

Reports to: Regional Child Poverty Senior Advisor, under the leadership of the Regional Program Development, Quality & Impact Director

Staff reporting to this post: None

Budget Responsibilities: None

Role Dimensions:

The role is expected to foster relationships with a wide range of internal and external stakeholders including Food Security and CVA TAs in Save the Children Members, the SCI central Programme Quality & Impact team, the Head of Regional Supply Chain, advocacy colleagues, Regional Advisors in other sectors, technical counterparts in other organisations, regional based donors CVA Technical Experts, Regional Cash Working Groups (for both East and Southern Africa) etc. In particular it is expected to be an active member of the SCI one CVA Team. Should also work closely with the Regional Child Poverty Community of Practice to foster the Regional CVA ambitions and strategic aspirations while enhancing Regional cross learning on CVA best practices, through the Regional Child Poverty Community of Practice. 

Context: Humanitarian and Development

Scope:

• This is a regional role supporting our 12 Country Offices in East & Southern Africa, but will have increased focus on countries with large CVA portfolios (Ethiopia, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Mozambique, Kenya)

Primary Technical area: Cash & Voucher Assistance (CVA)

Primary Sub technical area: 

Secondary Technical area:  

Secondary Sub technical area: 

Award funded: 50% 

KEY AREAS OF ACCOUNTABILITY :

Strategy & Technical Leadership:

• Develop and monitor the implementation of a regional CVA strategy and action plan in consultation with TAs in Child Poverty and other thematic areas (for a range of “Cash Plus” opportunities to support child outcomes across our breakthroughs), and country offices. 
• Support recruitment, onboarding and capacity building of Country Office (CO) CVA experts in the region; identify top talents and facilitate opportunities for learning.
• Influence and support CO PDQ TEs on objective modality selection as part of the wider adoption of a cash plus approach across all SCI programming in the Region. 
• Facilitate cross-country learning between CVA experts in the region, and participate in cross-country learning with other regions; identify creative ways to share learning, best practices and collectively address challenges, feeding back to the SCI Global Cash Team;
• Support regional technical experts in other sectors to understand and contextualise global cash & market guidance for their thematic area, learning and evidence and ensure that learning from the region informs our global evidence, technical standards, and strategic direction in CVA for child outcomes, as well as in Child Sensitive Social Protection.
• Support CO preparedness for cash programming, and compliance with CTP Operations Manual and SCI Policies and Procedures. Ensure that all country programmes have completed cash transfer feasibility and risk assessments (and support in the completion of these assessments).
• Working closely with the SCI Global CVA Team and SCI Humanitarian Preparedness teams, support the identification and implementation of CVA preparedness activities in prioritised countries (e.g. standard operating procedures, framework agreements, feasibility & risk analysis), regularly tracking their preparedness rating and proactively engaging with new COs. When needed, support the design and review of country Emergency Preparedness Plans and Contingency plans on CVA aspects.

Programme Quality in Design & Implementation: 

• Provide in-country surge support and remote backstopping as needed for all prioritised emergency responses in the region.
• Support COs with the design, proposal development and donor engagement for key strategic programmes and opportunities.
• Support CO in their implementation and monitoring of key strategic programmes, to ensure high quality delivery, monitoring and evaluation. Work with SC member staff to meet donor compliance and quality standards. Ensure that gender, disability and resilience considerations are reflected in our programme design and implementation.
• Promote a Market Systems Strengthening approach as the overarching framework, that supports working in collaboration and partnership with governments and regional bodies, working towards impact, scale and sustainability.
• Oversee the design, implementation and monitoring of regional Cash & Market-based programmes; ensure that sectoral and internal technical best practice (including Save the Children’s Common Approaches) is applied in collaboration with relevant Country Office technical colleagues. 
• Explore innovative opportunities and trends which could be applied in CVA-based programming in the region and support country offices to pilot, and document, new or updated tools and guidance, especially with a focus on gender, disability, and resilience. 
• Work with Child Rights Governance colleagues to ensure that a rights based approach is reflected in our programme design and implementation (in line with our child rights programming approach), with a strong focus on child participation
• Respond to requests for technical expertise from Country Offices in the region where possible/appropriate through Save the Children’s flexible Technical Expertise systems (e.g. Global Humanitarian Surge Platform; TE Request platform), and identify support from others for key regional technical needs.
• Support Emergency preparedness, recovery, and where appropriate response, including country office capability building for humanitarian response, emergency preparedness planning.
• Provide oversight of regional CVA projects to ensure their quality and compliance (e.g. ensuring appropriate design and risk management processes, performing spot checks etc)

External Engagement: 

• In collaboration with the Regional Resource Mobilisation team, contribute to regional strategic partnerships; identify partners and donors to strengthen our CVA portfolio in the region and maintain an overview of CVA best practices and coordination mechanisms
• In collaboration with Advocacy colleagues, influence key regional stakeholders and policy-makers to ensure they reflect the needs of children in the countries where we work, such as the Regional Cash Working Group; Regional CaLP Office; Regional Clusters, especially the Nutrition Cluster, the Education Cluster, the Food Security Cluster and others; Collaborative Cash Delivery platforms that may exist in the region. 
• Represent Save the Children at regional and national-level coordination bodies that exist, such as CaLP, Cash Working Groups, or others as relevant.

BEHAVIOURS (Values in Practice)

Accountability:

• holds self accountable for making decisions, managing resources efficiently, achieving and role modelling Save the Children values
• holds colleagues and partners engaged in CVA programming in the region accountable to deliver on their responsibilities - giving them the freedom to deliver in accordance with the context,  providing the necessary professional development to improve performance and applying appropriate consequences when results are not achieved.

Ambition:

• sets ambitious and challenging goals for themselves and for CVA programming in the region, takes responsibility for their own professional development and encourages Technical Experts in the region to do the same
• widely shares their personal vision for Save the Children, engages and motivates others
• future orientated, thinks strategically and on a global scale.

Collaboration:

• builds and maintains effective relationships, with their team, colleagues, technical advisors and working groups, Members and external partners and supporters
• values diversity, 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; demonstrates highest levels of integrity

The post holder must commit to work in an international agency that respects racial diversity and fights racism in all forms; and to model positive behaviours and respect to all colleagues, partners and communities. 

QUALIFICATIONS 

• Master’s degree in economics, international development, public administration, agriculture and food security, or equivalent experience.

EXPERIENCE AND SKILLS

• At least 5 years’ experience of working internationally in Cash & Voucher Assistance in emergency and/or development settings, for a broad range of institutional donors and sectors 
• Understanding of Cash & Voucher Assistance in East and Southern Africa, especially in humanitarian crises
• Experience with various cash and voucher assistance modalities, such as multi-purpose cash assistance (MPCA), sector specific cash, labelled cash, and the Cash Plus concept
• Experience in working with and providing technical guidance on different cash delivery mechanisms in various contexts, including very remote areas and fragile contexts
• Experience in procurement and negotiation with Financial Service providers for cash delivery mechanism, to ensure value for money for cash programming.
• Management experience of operational aspects of cash and voucher interventions
• Experience in the introduction of internal controls systems to support cash and vouchers delivery in the areas of financial management, logistics, security and programme delivery
• Demonstrable understanding of CVA MEAL Tools, digital beneficiary data management systems, accountability, and learning
• Familiar with the CaLP program quality toolbox, Sphere Standards, market tools such as RAM, MSMA, MARKit, and other industry market assessment and analysis tools, standards and best practices 
• Significant experience in CVA training, capacity building, and mentoring
• Experience of context, capacity and policy analysis, and influencing and advocacy at regional/international level in order to hold duty bearers to account to realise children’s rights.
• Skilled at networking, representation and partnership development in order promote learning, strengthen civil society and mobilise resources. 
• Able to generate and use data and evidence to innovate, deliver, learn and share what works and what doesn’t work for children
• Experience of promoting quality and impact through at least one cross-cutting area: gender equality and inclusion, adaptive and safer programming; child rights; disability; migration and displacement. 
• Demonstrated program design, monitoring and evaluation skills, including designing pathways to sustainable impact at scale.   
• Experience of supporting humanitarian preparedness, response and recovery
• Track record in successful business development/fundraising, donor engagement, and understanding if key donor policies and guidelines on CVA, especially with ECHO, FCDO(DFID), USAID/BHA (OFDA/FFP previously), UN (WFP, UNICEF, OCHA)
• Experience of strategy development and planning 
• Fluent in English with high level of English writing skills. 
• Experience of the regulatory environment, audit and particularly Risk Management.

KEY COMPETENCIES 

• Champions increased investment in, and development and improvement of policy and practice in Cash & Voucher Assistance
• Champions the adoption of the Cash Plus approach for all child outcomes across all thematic areas in all COs
• Champions objective modality selection for all programmes and interventions in SCI COs and use of CVA where ever feasible and appropriate in all contexts. 
• Advises on the design, operational set-up, and scale-up of emergency Cash & Voucher Assistance strategies and programmes, and on the design of child-sensitive schemes and demonstrative pilots in development contexts
• Champions preparedness and capacity building for cash & voucher assistance
• Promotes the creation and use of appropriate MEAL frameworks that help demonstrate impact on desired child outcomes of Cash & Voucher Assistance in humanitarian and development contexts
• Influences government adoption of a shock-responsive Child-Sensitive Social Protection mechanism based on evidence and learning 
• Champions the use of market-based programming approach in line with the 2018 Sphere Standards  

Generic Competencies

• Being the Voice of Children: Utilises being part of a global movement to promote change in the policy and public sphere on child related issues
• Advancing Equality & Inclusion: Drives an enabling environment for gender equality and inclusion, and prioritising the most deprived and marginalised children
• Builds & Strengthens Partnerships: Inspires others to embrace the values and principles that underpin partnerships and the localisation agenda
• Child Rights: Promotes the rights of children in own work and in work with colleagues and peers

Additional job responsibilities

• The duties and responsibilities as set out above are not exhaustive and the role holder may be required to carry out additional duties within reasonableness of their level of skills and experience.