Gender, Equity and Social Inclusion (GESI) Expert

KEY AREAS OF ACCOUNTABILITY:

Technical Advisory to Project Planning and Implementation
• Provide technical support to mainstream gender and social inclusion across climate change adaptation and mitigation interventions.
• Ensure gender integration in all project stages, including planning, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation.
• Ensure that project targeting, outreach and participation strategies proactively identify, remove and address barriers that may prevent vulnerable and marginalised adolescents and youth from accessing project opportunities, services and benefits.
• Support gender-sensitive risk assessments, planning, and budgeting processes.
• Lead the design, operationalization and implementation of the approved Gender Action Plan as the project's gender strategy, developing the supporting guidance, tools and standard operating procedures required for its implementation rather than parallel frameworks.
• Enhance GESI, safeguarding and local engagement capacity, providing guidance to and supporting knowledge exchange and best practices across the Project and team, partners, coordinating closely with Rural District Councils, District Operational Units and government district teams and other stakeholders, designing and delivering tailored training focused on GESI applications and safeguarding.
• Work with the technical team and potential beneficiaries, partners and/or grantees to ensure that all programmatic training and technical assistance provided by the project exemplifies best practice in gender and inclusion.
• Provide technical guidance to ensure training, grants, livelihoods initiatives, climate adaptation interventions and green job opportunities are accessible and responsive to the needs of vulnerable youth, including youth with disabilities and other underrepresented groups.
• Ensure compliance with the GCF Gender Policy, the GCF Revised Environmental and Social Policy, the ESARRMP, and with SCI, national and regional policies related to gender and inclusive development, women, strategy development, project design and implementation, and monitoring and evaluation, as applicable
• Provide oversight and contributions to the activities that will ensure that the process is equitable, accessible, and inclusive to minority and women-owned and operated entities
• Champion GESI, safeguarding and locally led development across all program areas and management systems.
• Foster a culture of inclusion, Do No Harm and ‘leave no one behind’ across the project teams and activities.
• Promote meaningful engagement of vulnerable adolescents and youth in project decision-making structures, consultations, feedback mechanisms and community-level adaptation planning processes

Monitoring and Evaluation
• In close collaboration with the MEAL Managerr, design GESI-sensitive indicators and ensure that all people-related data are disaggregated by sex, age and disability, and that GAP indicators and targets are fully integrated into the project M&E plan, Performance Indicator Reference Sheet and reporting templates.
• Conduct baseline GESI analysis, working with the project team and partners to co-design the annual GAP workplan and support gender integration
• Lead gender analyses, assessments, and reviews to identify key gender issues related to climate change within the project.
• Monitor and evaluate the project’s impact on gender equality, and social inclusion ensuring outcomes positively affect women, girls, and vulnerable groups.
• Work with the MEAL Manager and MEAL Officers to gather and disseminate program learning on GESI by utilizing the MEAL framework for data analysis and decision-making.
• Contribute to periodic project reviews and evaluations with a gender and inclusion lens, and ensure that GESI expertise is specified in the Terms of Reference and included in the evaluation teams for the mid-term and endline evaluations.
• Review and share SCI global and country-specific studies on GESI and locally led development to inform best practices
• Conduct an annual review of the M&E plan to confirm that disaggregated and GESI-sensitive indicators, methodologies, targets and reporting frameworks remain clear, relevant and suitable, and update them as required.

Advocacy and Partnerships
• Develop and implement a gender advocacy strategy, promoting gender-responsive climate policies and practices.
• Collaborate with MLAFWRD, the Ministry of Women Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprise Development, the National Gender and Climate Change Task Force, the Zimbabwe Gender Commission, Rural District Councils and other government agencies, civil society organizations, and community leaders to advance gender-sensitive climate action.
• Represent Save the Children in gender and climate change networks and forums, advocating for gender-responsive climate solutions.
• Provide support on the strengthening GESI mainstreaming through government mechanisms embedded in key ministries partners: the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development (MLAFWRD); the Ministry of Women Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprise Development; the Climate Change Management Department; the Environmental Management Agency; Rural District Councils; and youth and disability institutions including the National Association of Youth Organisations (NAYO) and the National Council of Disabled Persons
• Provide technical input and support to the development of Local Adaptation Plans (LAPs) and their integration into District Development Plans (DDPs), ensuring that GESI needs, interests and priorities identified through inclusive consultation are reflected.

Reporting Knowledge management and Learning
• Provide regular updates on GESI activities, progress and outcomes to project management, and draft the GAP progress content of the six-monthly and annual project reports submitted through the Executing Entity to the Accredited Entity for onward reporting to the GCF, in line with the GCF requirement that annual performance reports include progress on the project-level gender action plan.
• Document best practices and lessons learned in gender integration and social inclusion within climate resilience projects.
• Track achievements in implementing the GAP against its indicators and targets, and draft GESI sections for monthly, quarterly and annual reports to the GCF Project Director, highlighting progress, challenges and corrective actions.
• Lead on the sharing of gender and social inclusion impacts of the project.
• Work collaboratively with the GCF Team to develop project briefs and other relevant publications to promote and advocate for GESI policy and strategy implementation

Safeguarding:
• Inform all beneficiaries ongoing, age-appropriate verbal or written information in relevant languages about the conduct they can expect of Save the Children staff/representatives in relation to the Child Safeguarding Policy and Code of Conduct
• Mainstream safeguarding, PSEA, child protection and inclusion principles into all GESI assessments, action plans, training materials and programme interventions, ensuring 100% compliance with Save the Children safeguarding standards.
• Conduct at least four capacity-building and awareness sessions annually for staff, partners and stakeholders on safeguarding, inclusion, GBV risk mitigation and safe programming.
• Support implementation and monitoring of safeguarding and inclusion risk mitigation measures, ensuring quarterly review and reporting of safeguarding risks, actions and lessons learned within the project.
Representation:
• Ensure that SCI's work is coordinated with efforts of other agencies and Government, and take a leadership role within Civil Society Networks, ensuring the specific needs of children are being addressed
• Identify opportunities and materials to contribute to communications and media work, for this project
• Participate in relevant national, regional and district Technical Working Groups and Networks with Government, partners and other stakeholders to foster collaboration/partnership and exchange of learning

QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE
• A bachelor’s degree in gender studies, development studies, sociology, political science, anthropology, or related fields. A post-graduate in a related field is desirable.
• Minimum of seven years of progressively responsible experience in gender equality, and social inclusion programs including conducting GESI analysis, developing, implementing, monitoring and reporting against GESI strategies. Demonstrated experience leading the implementation of a donor-approved gender action plan, including workplanning, indicator tracking and donor reporting, is required.
• Demonstrated experience in participatory research methods is highly desirable.
• Has practical and technical understanding of gender equality and social inclusion, demonstrated by experience implementing activities with gender, and social inclusion considerations in Zimbabwe or a comparable southern African context.
• Demonstrated experience designing or implementing programmes that promote the inclusion and empowerment of vulnerable, marginalised or underrepresented youth populations, including youth with disabilities, is highly desirable.
• Experience in managing children safeguard risks, implementing safeguards policies, undertaking risk assessments and designing risk mitigation strategies, especially for preventing sexual exploitation, abuse and harassment and child protection.
• Proven ability in using qualitative, while adhering to ethical standards for safeguarding at-risk respondents.

• Ability to work collaboratively in a team environment and experience building, team playing, delivering quality outputs within deadlines.
• Established networks and experience working with local groups and constituency-led CSOs and networks across Zimbabwe including diverse organisations of vulnerable people
• Strong engagement skills with a wide range of government, non-government, and donor organisations; and a demonstrated ability to effectively communicate in a cross-cultural context.
• Excellent communication skills with the ability to engage diverse stakeholders including strong skills in training, mentoring, and capacity-building approaches related to GESI and safeguarding topics.
• Demonstrated strong analytical and writing skills and experience preparing high-level communication products for stakeholders, clients, and officials.
• Proficiency in English and Shona and/or Ndebele languages, both written and oral. Working knowledge of Tonga is an advantage given operations in Binga District.
• Working knowledge of the GCF Gender Policy, the GCF Revised Environmental and Social Policy and project-level gender action plan reporting requirements, or of equivalent climate finance social and gender requirements, is highly desirable.

The Organization
We employ approximately 25,000 people across the globe and work on the ground in over 100 countries to help children affected by crises, or those that need better healthcare, education and child protection. We also campaign and advocate at the highest levels to realise the right of children and to ensure their voices are heard. We are working towards three breakthroughs in how the world treats children by 2030:

· No child dies from preventable causes before their 5th birthday
· All children learn from a quality basic education and that,
· Violence against children is no longer tolerated

We know that great people make a great organization, and that our employees play a crucial role in helping us achieve our ambitions for children.We value our people and offer a meaningful and rewarding career, along with a collaborative and inclusive workplace where ambition, creativity, and integrity are highly valued.

Application Information:
Please apply using a cover letter and up-to-date CV as a single document. Please also include details of your current remuneration and salary expectations. A copy of the full role profile can be found at www.savethechildren.net/jobs We need to keep children safe so our selection process reflects our commitment to the protection of children from abuse.