Job Details

Job Description

Position: Regional Technical Lead

Location: East or Southern Africa

Job type: Fulltime

Contract: 1 year with option to renew up to 5 years

Start date: March 2025

Salary: TBC

Reports to: AACF Chief of Party

Direct Reports: Regional MEL Coordinator

1 Background to Program

The USAID’s funded program APCCA’s strategy seeks to deliver better outcomes for children around the world who face significant deprivation and danger and provides a shared basis for continued evidence-based, and collaborative action. The APCCA strategy is made up of three strategic priorities: 1) ‘Build Strong Beginnings’; 2) ‘Put Family First’; and 3) ‘Protect Children from Violence’. The AACF objectives are further specified as strengthening systems for family-based care, transition RCFs to Family based care, and inclusive services and participation of priority populations. This includes supporting those most vulnerable children who are, or are at risk of, living outside of family care by promoting, funding, and supporting nurturing, loving, protective, and permanent family care. The program is a five-year USAID $10 million funded program.

2 Background to ACE

Alliance for Children Everywhere is the Primary applicant for a consortium of partners working together to advance family systems of care in Africa. The geographic scope covers three countries: Zambia, Malawi, Uganda. The consortium brings together the leading local organizations in each country as Implementing Partners: Alliance for Children Everywhere in Zambia and Malawi and Childs I foundation in Uganda. Each partner is linked to national coalition, government ministries, universities, and national level institutions. The Technical Exchange and Assistance will be provided through Maestral international.

3 Summary of Role

The role of the Regional Technical Lead to oversee and support the country teams in all aspects of social work practices relating to performing the activities of the grant which are formulated as the three priority objectives: 1. Implementation of a family-based system of care, 2. RCF transition and child reintegration, and 3. Inclusive services and inclusion of priority populations in care reform.The role extends to support for policy initiatives, handbooks for operationalizing rules and regulations, and review of training curriculums for staff, RCFs, and government employees. The Regional Technical Lead works closely with the Country Lead, Senior Social Workers, and MEL teams to ensure that social work practices, training activities and reporting are integrated and conducive to improved capacity of stakeholders. The Regional Technical Lead also serves as a backstop for ensuring that child safeguarding policies and beneficiary feedback processes are operationalized; that inclusion is ongoing and integrated into program design and implementation; and that anonymous reporting methods are in place. The Regional Technical Lead also plays a primary role in supporting the continuous learning across partners and countries, and listens and incorporates field generated innovation, positive deviance among stakeholders, and shares evolving global best practices across organizations and stakeholders. The quality of social work practices across all three countries, including direct staff and key stakeholders is under the purview of the Regional Technical Lead.

4 Primary Duties and Responsibilities:

The primary duties and responsibilities are as follows:

●Support the country social work teams in core social work activities including thedevelopment of tools for processes such as

○Household assessments

○Individual childcare planning, implementation and case closure

○Family pre- and post- placement assessments and case closure

○Child safeguarding policies and practices

○Child assessments

○Gatekeeping practices/mechanisms

○Emergency Family Based Foster Care/Foster and Adoption procedures

●Support workforce development of credential and informal social workers, includingclose-to-community child protection and child reintegration staff.

●Review training curriculum, training devices, and pre-and post-training knowledge teststo measure improved understanding of trainees.

●Collaborate with the MEL country and regional teams in preparing reports, reviewingdocumentation, and providing feedback on grant activities and outputs.

●Support the development, review, and utilization of handbooks and Standard OperatingProcedures for government social workers and Residential care Facility social workers, inconjunction with national social worker professional associations.

●Review engagement with children with disabilities, parents of children with disabilities,and care leavers, especially in regard to situations where trauma, abandonment, orabuse are possible.

●Review SOPs for country teams in regard to reintegration of adolescent girls and boysregarding ASRH.

●Review SOPs for county teams in regards to community stigma, including abandonment,‘orphan’ status, HIV, accusations of witch-craft, and intra-family conflict over resourcesand/or inheritance.

●Integrate evidence-based mental health, adverse childhood event, and locus of controldiagnostics into assessments of child wellbeing within the RCF, prior to reintegration,and in follow up post-placement procedures.

●Focal point for child safeguarding and feedback from beneficiaries, as well asanonymous reporting.

●Close collaboration with government line ministries/district social welfare offices onfamily-based care activities/policy direction

5 Key Competencies and Desired Qualifications:

Desired Experience:

●5 years of experience providing direct social work services within an African Country.

●5 years of additional experience in a management or leadership role

●Documented experience engaging with government agencies on policy and socialservice delivery.

●A strong track record of collaboration with key stakeholders, including communitystructures, UN Agencies, INGOs, RCFs, and civil society organizations.

●Experience successfully delivering time bound and quantifiable grant objectives.

Social Work Skills

●Case management experience

●Child placements into alternative family settings

●Family strengthening programming

●Experience with families of and/or children with disabilities

●Reduction of GBV, corporal punishment, or positive parenting

Desired Qualifications

●A master’s degree in social work or related field, or undergraduate degree withcommensurate experience;

●Additional qualifications, certifications, or short courses in management or publicadministration

Welcome additions:

Certifications or training in Trauma Informed Care or InclusiveProgramming.

●Welcome Additions: Qualifications in policy and public administration, internationaldevelopment, project cycle management, or MEAL.

Desired personal attributes:

●Unwavering belief in family-based care

●Strong work ethic

●Strong personal accountability

●Clear communication and setting expectations in a team environment

●Critical thinking and problem solving

●Pro-active decision making

●Empathy and Emotional Intelligence

●Willing to listen to divergent opinions and new ideas.

Instructions: Please send an updated CV to ACE Global’s Director of Operations (Christa Woodward) at [email protected]