Background

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) is the world’s largest humanitarian organization with 192 member National Societies. Its mission is to support National Societies in preventing and alleviating human suffering, preserving human dignity, and promoting peace. Headquartered in Geneva, the IFRC has three main divisions and five regional offices.

Africa faces a severe food insecurity crisis, with over 800 million people experiencing hunger and 115 million needing immediate aid. The IFRC and National Societies have mobilized to address this crisis through the Hunger Crisis Regional Emergency Appeal launched in October 2022, aiming to assist 7.6 million people in 14 African countries with a funding request of 205 million CHF.

Purpose

The Food Security and Resilience Planning Coordinator (consultant) will be responsible for developing comprehensive country plans and project proposals. Their primary objective will be to transform Emergency Country Plans of Action into sustainable Food Security and Resilience Country Plans. To achieve this, the Planning Coordinator will collaborate with partners and donors, preparing proposals for submission as required.

The ideal Planning Coordinator will have an in-depth knowledge of the regional context, expertise in food security and resilience programming, and strong project proposal writing skills. Familiarity with the Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is also essential.

Two Planning Coordinators (both consultants) will be hired for this role and they will be required to travel to the countries for the consultancy. Each coordinator will oversee four countries within the consultancy period, with assignments determined based on language proficiency and logistical/travel considerations. The countries for this consultancy include South Sudan, Ethiopia, Somalia, Zimbabwe, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, and Nigeria.

Specific tasks

• Develop Food Security and Resilience Country Plans based on existing Country Plans of Actions.
• Assess and review ToRs for Call for Proposals and propose a preliminary outline of proposal content for consideration.
• Research funding opportunities for delegations and the Regional Office.
• Lead proposal development and submission process.

Deliverables

• Four completed Food Security and Resilience Country Plans.
• Completed proposals on an ad-hoc basis that meet donors’ criteria.

Duration

The consultancy will last from May 2023 to July 2023 (3 months), with 22 working days per month and 100% in the field.

Essential/Core competencies

• Exceptional writing and editing skills with a proven track record of successful proposals.
• Food Security and Livelihoods background and/or working experience.
• Fluency in English and/or French.
• Previous professional experience with IFRC.
• Demonstrated understanding of donors and success in proposal submissions.

Reporting lines

• The consultant will report directly to the Regional Operations Manager for the Hunger Crisis, with technical reporting to the Regional Head of PMER for country planning and the Regional Head of Strategic Engagement and Partnerships for proposal development.
• The consultant may have contacts with relevant technical departments in Geneva and the Regional Office for operational purposes, in consultation and agreement with line management.

Security

• IFRC Africa Regional Office Safety and Security Department will manage all technical security-related matters.
• All IFRC staff and consultants must complete the IFRC Stay Safe e-learning courses.
• The consultant will receive a security briefing upon arrival and should carry photo identification.

Duty of Care

• Travel approval process: The Regional Operations Manager for the Hunger Crisis must be informed of all travel requests.

Budget

• All costs related to consultancy fee and deployment costs upon return are to be covered by IFRC or the appeal.

Additional considerations

• The consultant must complete various online courses on the IFRC e-learning platform before deployment.
• All consultants must be familiar with and comply with the “Code of Conduct for Staff and Consultants working in an operation managed or coordinated by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies

Mission/Consultancy Health Vaccines

• The consultant should undergo a medical checkup and have the minimum required vaccinations completed before deployment.
• For more information, visit SoS International (www.internationalsos.com- username 22AMMS000091).

Other information

• All consultants should obtain the most up-to-date information about the disaster from sources such as ReliefWeb.com, WHO, and other sources.
• All consultants should wear signage provided by their National Society or Federation office.

Debriefing/End of consultancy

• A briefing and debriefing by the consultant will be conducted in each country for the national society and movement partners upon arrival and departure.
• Consultancy debrief: The consultant will complete a debrief, including a Handover Document and feedback from the Regional Operations Manager.
• Consultancy report: The consultant will provide an end-of-consultancy report with outputs reported to the Regional Operations Manager of the Hunger Crisis.