Project Officer

Project Officer – Telethon: Child Not Bride Project

No. of Vacancy: 1
Functional Area:Thrive, Learn, Lead and Decide (WASH, Climate Crisis/Disaster Risk Management. Gender as a cross-cutting)
Reports to: Project Manager – Telethon: Child Not Bride Project
Location: Dhanusha-Regional Office (East)
Travel required: Frequent
Grade: C1
Type: Open to all applicants, Fixed term employment until December 2025; based in Regional Office East – Dhanusha

ABOUT PLAN INTERNATIONAL

Plan International is a development and humanitarian organisation that advances children’s rights and equality for girls. We strive for a just world, working together with children, young people, our supporters and partners in over 75 countries. Our programs are underpinned by a core of defined values, including transparency and accountability, team collaboration, inclusion and integration, as well as the overall ambition to empower girls and young women as legacy.

Plan International has been working in Nepal since 1978 and developed a strong reputation as a respected development and humanitarian actor helping marginalised children, their families and communities to access their rights to health, education, economic security and protection. Through the support of local partners, Plan International works in 24 districts in Nepal.

Plan International strives for a just world that advances children’s rights and equality for girls. Our ambition from now to 2027 is to see All Girls Standing Strong Creating Global Change.

The country strategy is put into action through the implementation of three interrelated program areas defined as follows:

LEARN: the “Education and Skills and Opportunities for Youth Employment and Entrepreneurship (SOYEE)” program aims to assist vulnerable and excluded girls and young women in adapting and thriving in a changing climate;
LEAD AND DECIDE: the “Youth as Active Drivers of Change and Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights (SRHR)” program aims to empower girls and young women in leading change, having control over their bodies and making informed decisions; and
THRIVE: the “Early Childhood Development (ECD), protection from violence” program enhances vulnerable and excluded children, especially girls, to be valued and cared for without discrimination, fear and any forms of violence.

Plan international Nepal seeks candidates who practice feminist leadership, promote diversity, actively seek innovative solutions for problems, courageously and respectfully share their opinions and ideas, break down barriers and engender cross-department collaboration, practice active listening, maintain confidentiality, build trust and are passionate about children’s rights and equality for girls.

ROLE PURPOSE

Overall goal of the Project is to reduce Child, Early and Forced Marriage by ensuring girls at school, providing SRHR knowledge and economic opportunities, challenging Traditional Harmful Practices and strengthen protection systems at federal, province and local level.

The Project Officer will provide overall technical support to implementing partner organization for the Telethon funded “Child, Not Bride-Project,” an integrated component of Thrive (included Care and Protection), Learn, Lead and Decide. Similarly, the project has also the component of WASH, Climate Crisis/Disaster Risk Management and gender as cross cutting. Also, the Project Officer will support Project Manager (PM) for quality leadership in the coordination, delivery, monitoring and reporting of the telethon funded Project in line with the approved project proposal, Detailed Project Implementation Plan (DIP) and funding agreement document (FAD) following the gender transformative approaches as outlined in Plan Nepal Country Strategy.

The Project Officer (PO) will be based in Regional Office – East, Janakpur, Dhanusha. PO will be responsible for ensuring that the Project is implemented in Dhanusha. The PO will require to support PM and represent Plan International Nepal at provincial level and federal level as required. The position holder will also be responsible to assist PM to lead and coordinate Telethon project planning, implementation and monitoring at community, province, national level and regional level. S/he will berequired to prepare quarterly/annual report, progress reports and case stories.

Description

DIMENSIONS OF THE ROLE

The purpose of this position is to support Project Manager to oversee and ensure a high-quality project implementation, in both development and humanitarian settings, and achieve targets towards Plan’s and/or donor’s requirements through overall management of the implementing partners within project in the respective areas and districts, under the direct supervision of Project Manager. The position will represent Plan in various forums in the respective sector/s including in government at Province, Municipal and District level and other stakeholders. The position will also work closely with the S/TA and Program Specialists Learn, Lead and Decide and Thrive of Country Office and Regional Office, East to enhance the capacity and skill of the partner NGO, local government and other key stakeholders and also to ensure the quality of the project delivery at the field level.

• Partner Management: ensure effective project implementation, provide managerial support in the district, and act as liaison between partner organization and Plan International Nepal regional offices on a regular basis.
• Representation: Work with local and Province level government and other agencies, as relevant, to ensure Plan International Nepal is compliant with all requirements. Ensure Plan International Nepal’s voice is heard at relevant forums. Frequently represents Plan International Nepal to external stakeholders.
• MERL: Ensure proper Project Implementation Guideline, M & E plan, data base and Quality Benchmarks are in place, understood and being used.
• Reporting: Ensure all required reports both narratives and database are sent on time with quality standards.
• Coordination and Networking: Liaise and coordinate with stakeholders, implementing partners and the government to maximize the results intended through this project.Direct Line Manager: Project Manager, Telethon: Child, Not Bride- Project

Dotted Line Manager: Regional Manager, Regional Office, East

Budget Accountability: Yes

Number of direct reports: None

External relationships and representation: Yes

KEY RELATIONSHIPS

Frequently represent Plan International Nepal to external stakeholders.

ACCOUNTABILITIES

Effective Partnership Management

• Support Project Manager-to manage implementing partners to ensure project deliverables are met as per the project design.
• Work closely with Program Specialists and partners to achieve program quality.
• Ensure partner staff receives adequate training and support to deliver projects, including but not limited to, thematic/ technical trainings, PMD Pro tools and guidance on Plan’s project cycle procedures.
• Working together with local authorities to identify key area to strengthen stronger inclusive and gender-sensitive programmes at municipal level.
• Ensure partner/s and their relevant staff understand and abide by Plan’s mandatory corporate policies during implementation of projects/programmes.
• Support to Project Manager to implement and monitor audit actions of the assigned partners and seek necessary support from Partner Support Specialist and Project Manager as required.
• Support Project Manager to identify gaps in partner’s governance and staff capacity and develop areas of improvement and its monitoring mechanism.
• Ensure mutual oversight and regular two-way feedback with partners.

Project Management

• Support Project Manager in planning processes and support to partners to prepare annual detailed implementation plan including realistic phased budget outlining major activities and timeline for the funds allocated in required planning templates provided by the Organization.
• Support to prepare appropriate fund allocation and expenditure on a monthly basis and take corrective measures by revisiting plans and communicating timely with supervisor and partners.
• Reviews the project’s Budget versus Achievement and transaction reports and report on any glitches identified.
• Support Project Manager on the revision of budgets during budget forecast and on exchange rate fluctuations as per organizational procedures. And prepare/revise POs aligning with the revised budget.
• Support to develop a detailed implementation plan and implementing partners complete the project/s according to schedule, within budget and following all mandatory compliances.
• Coordinate with Program Specialists to ensure technical quality of projects.
• Ensure operationalization of Global Policy on Safeguarding Children and Young People in the project.
• Support to Project Manager for administrative and supportive activities to ensure the contracted services and expectations are carried out by the project team within Implementation Partner organisation/s in accordance with executed contracts and the donors’ expectations.
• Support to Project Manager for quality, timely and accurate reporting capturing disaggregated data, outputs, outcomes and impact of the project.
• Monitor project implementation to track progress against plan and per technical benchmarks and recommend corrective measures.
• Identify risks and challenges in project implementation and partnership and develop mitigation measures.
• Act as liaison between partner organization and Plan International Nepal to ensure smooth delivery of project/s.

Influencing, Campaigns and Communications

• Support Project Manager to generate evidences from local level for policy advocacy.
• Represent Plan in different networks and maintain organisation’s professional image.
• Contribute to develop priority of the district/local level on influencing and campaigns ensuring harmonisation with global/national priority campaigns in collaboration with Program Specialist and Project Manager.
• Support Project Manager to lead evidence-based lobby and advocacy within the project scope in planning and delivering campaigning and advocacy work and ensure that Project plan include influencing objectives.
• Be innovative to conduct campaigns at local level and advocacy for disability and social inclusion, ending child, early and forced marriage and other relevant issues affecting children within the project scope.

Review, Document and Learn

• Support sponsored children/families are reached through project.
• Document field lessons acquired through monitoring visits and interaction with targeted communities, especially girls, boys and young women.
• Support to Project Manager to disseminate success and failure stories various departments to inform decision making.
• Support to Project manager to prepare the project’s progress report (quarterly, half yearly and annual).
• Identify best practices, problems and issues around project implementation and works toward finding solutions for improvements, documenting, disseminating them.
• Ensure sponsored children/families are reached through Preventing Child, Early and Forced Marriage Project.

Mainstreaming Plan’s corporate policies in Implementation

• Ensure risks associated with Safeguarding Children and Young People are identified and mitigation measures placed during implementation of project activities.
• Ensure Anti-fraud, Anti-bribery and Corruption policy is clearly articulated to partners and necessary checkpoints are in place to prevent breach.
• Ensure value-based leadership is practiced by partner/s’ staff.
• Ensure all Plan’s mandatory corporate policies are abided by during implementation.

Monitoring and Supervision

• Work closely with MERL Team, Program Specialists and Project Manager to carry out various surveys of the project.
• Support for effective project monitoring by taking necessary corrective actions that are being followed up and reviewed periodically.
• Undertake frequent field monitoring visits and report performance against established schedules and targets with regular update in SAP as per the milestones set in PO.
• Work closely with Monitoring, Evaluation and Research Coordinator at Regional Office and also with the Program Specialist and Project Manager to ensure that implementation of activities is done in line with M&E requirements. This include ensuring that links exist with reporting requirements, data management, documentation of best practices, case studies and learning .
• Provide technical support to Partner NGOs to make best use of data in their project planning process through input, analysis and utilization of data.

Programme Quality

• Support to Project Manager and provides guidance to the focal persons at partners in the planning, implementation and monitoring of project plan as per the given guidelines.
• Support to ensure that the programs have quality benchmarks in place and is exclusively followed at all levels.
• Support for the M&E plan and PMD pro tools as part of project Management of the project is well familiar and understood by partner’s staff, is exclusively used and reported.
• Support on all action plans developed after project reviews, evaluations and assessments are followed up and completed by respective partners on time.
• Support to Project Manager to Identify strengths and improvement areas of partners for quality delivery of the project and comes up with plans to improve such gaps.
• Ensures that data is well optimized for the project at all levels by partners, and regular update is done.
• Ensures incorporation of feminism and gender transformative approach in project’s interventions.

Any other tasks as assigned by line manager in accordance to organizational mandate and priority.

Ensures that Plan International’s global policies for Safeguarding Children and Program Participants and Gender Equality and Inclusion (DEI) are fully embedded in accordance with the principles and requirements of the policy including relevant Implementation Standards and Guidelines as applicable to their area of responsibility. This includes, but is not limited to, ensuring staff and associates are aware of and understand their responsibilities under these policies and Plan International’s Code of Conduct (CoC), their relevance to their area of work, and that concerns are reported and managed in accordance with the appropriate procedures.

TECHNICAL EXPERTISE, SKILLS AND KNOWLEDGE

Educational Qualifications and Work Experience

• Bachelor Degree in development-related field, preferably Human Rights, Management, Social Sciences, Development Studies, Gender & Development, Political Science, and Public Policy Administration, with 1-2 years of experience in an Officer role including grants management.
• Experience in rights-based approaches to development. Experience engaging with government private sectors, CSOs and/or multilateral institutions.
• Prior experience in an integrated project with the component related to education, SRHR, economic empowerment, norms change, WASH, DRM, protection system strengthening and CSO mobilization would be an asset.
• Experience in networking/engaging with key actors.
• Experience in capacity development of partner staff.
• Good knowledge of written and spoken English.
• Ability to establish and maintain effective relationships with colleagues, a variety of team members and external contacts, through good written and spoken communication skills.

Knowledge

• Understanding of the structures, processes and trends in the Nepal political system.
• Ability to plan work and meet deadlines when working under pressure on a number of projects.
• Commitment to Plan’s values including the rights and needs of children.
• Experience of working for an international organisation.

Skills

• Operational planning & execution.
• Analysis & reasoning.
• Communicating, one to one, in groups both in writing, verbally, presentations and reports, in English, Nepali and relevant local languages.
• Preparation and management of budgets and assessment of financial implication in work situations.
• Facilitation, negotiation and networking.
• Ability to use basic office electronic equipment & computer applications.

Behaviours

• Ensures that Plan International’s global policies for Child Protection (CPP) and Gender Equality and Inclusion (GEI) are fully embedded in accordance with the principles and requirements of the policy including relevant Implementation Standards and Guidelines as applicable to their area of responsibility. This includes, but is not limited to, ensuring staff and associates are aware of and understand their responsibilities under these policies and Plan International’s Code of Conduct (CoC), their relevance to their area of work, and that concerns are reported and managed in accordance with the appropriate procedures.

PLAN INTERNATIONAL’S VALUES IN PRACTICE

We are open and accountable

We create a climate of trust inside and outside the organization by being open, honest and transparent. We hold ourselves and others to account for the decisions we make and for our impact on others, while doing what we say we will do.

We strive for lasting impact

We strive to achieve significant and lasting impact on the lives of children and young people, and to secure equality for girls. We challenge ourselves to be bold, courageous, responsive, focused and innovative.

We work well together

We succeed by working effectively with others, inside and outside the organization, including our sponsors and donors. We actively support our colleagues, helping them to achieve their goals. We come together to create and implement solutions in our teams, across Plan International, with children, girls, young people, communities and our partners.

We are inclusive and empowering

We respect all people, appreciate differences and challenge inequality in our programmes and our workplace. We support children, girls and young people to increase their confidence and to change their own lives. We empower our staff to give their best and develop their potential.

PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT

This position is based in Regional Office-East, Janakpur, Dhanusha with frequent travel to field as necessary.
Able to work in difficult circumstances.
Work with multi-culture and multi-lingual staff/team members.

LEVEL OF CONTACT WITH CHILDREN

High level: Frequent interaction with children.

“Say Yes ! To Keeping Children and Young people safe and Protected”

Application Deadline: 11 December, 2024

Source: Kantipur Dainik, 28 November, 2024