The CRS Egypt country program began in 1956 at the invitation of the Egyptian president Nasser by providing relief assistance to the victims of the Suez War. Over the following few decades, CRS Egypt moved from large-scale food relief to long-term poverty alleviation and development programs. CRS Egypt works in a wide variety of areas within the development field.
Currently, CRS Egypt has three main programs: the livelihoods program, interfaith peacebuilding program and the education assistance program for refugees. Projects under these programs range from the provision of technical assistance and capacity building to partners, and promoting peace and tolerance, to educational grants for refugees, and the protection of children who are victims of trafficking. Additional programming includes Emergency Preparedness and Response projects that arise as need be. A regional Management Quality unit assists the country program support department in developing and maintaining the highest level of operations standards.
CRS Egypt currently holds a main office in Cairo, and a sub-office in Maadi.
As part of the education program, DAFI Scholarship Program aims at supporting the enrolment of refugees’ students in Egyptian universities through four-year scholarship opportunities. Accordingly, the program provides cash grant paid monthly upon enrolment and regular attendance. This grant is dedicated to cover the tuition fees, clothes allowance, and books and also to cover travelling expenses from the student’s town of normal residency to the university allowing them to study and contributing in maximizing their protection space. CRS, got awarded by the UNHCR to run the DAFI project and to be the main link between all partners and beneficiaries participating in the project (i.e. universities of concern, UNHCR, The German Embassy, the students and their parents) assuring all components of the project are being taken care of and assuring the communication between all the parties.
Job Summary:
As a member of the Education Program project team, you will monitor and report on all project activities in support of Catholic Relief Services’ (CRS) work serving refugees and asylum seekers in Egypt. Your analytical skills, problem-solving and thorough and service-oriented approach will ensure that the project consistently applies best practices and constantly works towards improving the impact of its benefits to those we serve.
In the same way, the Higher Education Project Officer will lead all the higher education project activities as community awareness meetings, scholars’ selection process, monthly students’ meetings, cash disbursement process, data verification for cash disbursement, language programs, capacity building activities for students, and others.
Job Responsibilities:
· Support the coordination and implementation of all assigned project activities as outlined in the detailed implementation plan in line with CRS program quality principles and standards, donor requirements, and good practices.
· Monitor and report any challenges and/or gaps identified to inform adjustments to plans and implementation schedules. Lead project teams, partners (if applicable) and other stakeholders, such as Ministry of Education (MoE) and donor in efforts to reflect on project experiences.
· Support accountability through coordinating project evaluation activities and assisting project team members, partners (if applicable) and MoE in efforts to collect and analyze project data per specified mechanisms and tools. Collaborate with project team and local partner(s) (if applicable) to prepare reports per established reporting schedule.
· Collect information on staff capacity needs and technical assistance needs of partners (if applicable) and MoE, and monitor capacity building and technical support activities to ensure effective impact.
· Complete project documentation for assigned activities. Assist with identifying information for case studies and reports on promising practices.
· Effectively manage talent and supervise. Manage team dynamics and staff well-being. Provide coaching, strategically tailor individual development plans, contribute to the recruitment process of project staff, and complete performance management for direct reports.
Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning Support:
· Supports compliance with agency and donor MEAL requirements
· Provides input to MEAL system design and review discussions
· Contributes to simple analyses and reflective discussions on ongoing monitoring data
· Contributes initial findings and implementation-based insights to project discussions
Typical Background, Experience & Requirements:
Education and Experience
- Graduate degree in a directly related field.
· Minimum of 4 years of work experience in education project. Experience in the field of Higher Education and for an NGO would be a plus.
· Additional education may substitute for some experience.
· Experience in participatory action planning, community/stakeholder engagement and project implementation.
· Staff supervision experience.
· Experience using MS Windows and MS Office packages (Excel, Word, PowerPoint).
Personal Skills
· Observation, active listening and analysis skills with ability to make sound judgment
· Good relationship management skills and the ability to work closely with local partners and community members
· Attention to details, accuracy and timeliness in executing assigned responsibilities
· Proactive, results-oriented and service-oriented
Required/Desired Foreign Language: Excellent command in English and Arabic.
Travel Required: Job requires travel to field (defined as outside of Cairo metropolitan area), Upper and Lower Egypt, to implement and assist partners and follow up projects (approximately 20%). More frequent travel required to sites within Cairo metropolitan area.
Key Working Relationships:
Supervisory: Case Workers – Higher Education and Field Officer – Higher Education
Internal: All education team members, Education Program Administration Team, and CRS support functions (finance, procurement, IT, HR and Admin).
External: Community Members, Ministry of Education in Egypt, donor representatives and donor Implementing Partners.
Agency-wide Competencies (for all CRS Staff):
These are rooted in the mission, values, and guiding principles of CRS and used by each staff member to fulfill his or her responsibilities and achieve the desired results.
· Trusting Relationships
· Professional Growth
· Partnership
· Accountability
Catholic Relief Services
Europe/Middle East and Central Asia Region
JOB DESCRIPTION
Position Title: Project Officer –Higher Education
Department: Higher Education Project
Compensation Band: Band: 7
Reports to: Education Program Manager
Country/Location: Egypt – Maadi Office
Disclaimer: This job description is not an exhaustive list of the skill, effort, duties, and responsibilities associated with the position.
CRS’ talent acquisition procedures reflect our commitment to protecting children and vulnerable adults from abuse and exploitation.
Equal Opportunity Employer
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