PICAR: Empowering Rural Communities in Bolivia

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This month, we reached out to Francisco Obreque, Agricultural Specialist, who works on Bolivia’s PICAR. The Community Investment in Rural Areas Project (PICAR) has an overall goal to fight extreme rural poverty among small landholders, particularly indigenous populations. Starting in late 2011, the project has since transferred responsibility and resources to more than 150,000 rural inhabitants in 656 highly vulnerable communities (30 percent beyond the target of 500 communities), and supported 769 sub-project to improve access to basic and productive infrastructure for rural households. To date, the project has increased road access for more than 15,000 people, and expanded or improved irrigation for more than 17,000 beneficiaries. In 2015, the government received a $60 million additional financing IDA credit to expand and deepen the success of the project to reach an additional 200,000 beneficiaries. Here’s what Francisco shared with us on this innovative CDD operation: Question: What value does the CDD approach add to partnering with Indigenous Peoples in Bolivia? Answer: First, PICAR’s CDD approach helps to incorporate a rational planning and prioritization process into how a community operates, allowing them to identify and address their most important needs and constraints. To the best of my knowledge, PICAR has been a pioneer in testing a demand-driven approach in Bolivia, whereas other projects have been rather supply-driven. Generally, the several IP communities engaged in PICAR have embraced the inclusive planning approach; I am not aware of any case where the participatory approach caused disruption or internal conflicts.  Second, PICAR has allowed the communities to take control instead of being mere recipients of aid. I can testify from my multiple field visits that PICAR beneficiaries truly see themselves as the leaders of the investments. The CDD approach fits within the cultural context in Bolivia and it’s a tool to empower IP communities, helping them exploit their potential and harness opportunities. People feel that the approach serves as a platform to achieve significant improvements in their quality of life. Third, PICAR has ushered in mechanisms that ensure high levels of transparency in the management of financial resources. Other programs and projects have been very controversial because they either manage the funds directly (with little engagement of the communities) or transfer the money to community leaders. So having ensured a comfortable level of transparency in the project using the CDD approach is a major achievement for the Bolivian context.         Q: Tell us about some of the work that PICAR does on gender in these communities. A: PICAR’s model is to provide block grants of up to $40,000 for a subproject determined by the entire community, as well as a separate, smaller grant for a women-led project. Communities have an opportunity to merge these projects into a single one and benefit from a larger pool of funds. What we initially found was that male-dominated community assemblies would create social pressure on female community members to merge the projects, even if the broader community’s priorities didn’t line up with the priorities of women. To fix this problem, we strengthened guidelines for project implementation. Women would meet first, in advance of the monthly community assembly, to create a list of their priorities for funding, such as fences for livestock, improvements to nutrition, rainwater collection, etc. The community and women-led projects were only allowed to merge if the top priority of the women’s group aligned with the top priority of the community assembly. This way, PICAR protects the opportunity for women to take center stage and engage in learning-by-doing. They decide, discuss, and lead the project – tasks that traditionally have been led by men. In fact, approximately 300 out of PICAR’s 769 successful projects are led by women. Women face many challenges in IP communities where we work, which are traditionally male-dominated. These communities are also poor and suffer from lack of access to education, and these problems are often more serious for women. Compared to men, fewer women can speak Spanish fluently, and they can find it challenging to speak out in public. So it’s especially impressive to see a woman taking on a leadership role and presenting in a community assembly on project expenditures and purchases, despite the poverty and cultural constraints. And these women-led, women-owned projects have a real impact on their lives. I visited a community, where a woman with disabilities and her family had to travel 2.5 km from her home to draw clean water from a spring. When PICAR helped her village build a rainwater catchment system, her life changed 180 degrees. She had access to water for several months out of the year, and was proud of her participation and the empowerment that came with the selection of this project. Q: What is your advice for TTLs adapting a CDD approach to meet the unique challenges affecting IPs and ethnic minorities? A: When working with IP communities, the cultural aspect is especially important, and TTLs should use existing social structures as much as possible. In many IP communities, villagers already meet once a month to discuss community matters. So PICAR uses the community’s regular meetings instead of organizing special meetings. The program also integrates traditional authorities at different stages of the intervention instead of bypassing them, and we use the local language in planning and implementing the subprojects. By using these structures, PICAR doesn’t come across as disruptive or artificial — communities adapt more naturally to it. Applying a sound strategy requires the Task Team to assess what works and what doesn’t. For example, PICAR has included an ambitious gender strategy that came to fruition quickly. The extent to which women have engaged in the project is terrific. By empowering women, the project has reached out to some of the most vulnerable population groups in rural areas. However, not everything you find in gender-related literature works. I weigh in on what worked for us in one of my blogs on implementing PICAR.   The project also has informal filters to assess the likelihood of success in a given IP community. From my experience, CDD works well in communities with at least some social fabric. Conversely, using a CDD approach is challenging if a given community has either complicated outstanding conflicts or no experience (or interest) in dealing with problems in a collective matter. So the project tries to assess if communities want to engage via the participatory approach. Some important ways PICAR does this is through having communities leaders identify among a list of communities where the greatest need is and then by gauging the level of engagement with the field personnel when they visit the villages with their plans. The CDD GSG offers support and resources to the community of CDD practitioners. To learn more about the CDD GSG, please contact us at cddgsg@worldbank.org    

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  • Colombia: Deputy Director for Programs

    Organization: International Rescue Committee
    Country: Colombia
    Closing date: 01 Apr 2019

    BACKGROUND:

    The International Rescue Committee (IRC) responds to the world’s worst humanitarian crises and helps people whose lives and livelihoods are shattered by conflict and disaster to survive, recover, and gain control of their future. Founded in 1933 at the request of Albert Einstein, the IRC works with people forced to flee from war, conflict and disaster and the host communities which support them, as well as those who remain within their homes and communities. At work today in over 40 countries and 22 U.S. cities, we restore safety, dignity and hope to millions who are uprooted and struggling to endure. The IRC leads the way from harm to home.

    IRC COLOMBIA

    A combined two decades of economic mismanagement, a drop in oil prices, and the deterioration of democratic institutions has resulted in a humanitarian crisis inside Venezuela. Insecurity has manifested following protests in April 2017 against the president and his government, particularly for failing to address the growing inflation rate which lead to large-scale food insecurity. The demonstrations were initially peaceful but grew in severity of violence as time passed. Venezuela’s economic devastation worsened in the last half of 2017. This caused a massive migration of Venezuelans into neighboring Colombia in search of affordable food, medicine and work. The number of Venezuelans living in Colombia has increased to more than one million people.

    In response, the IRC has launched emergency programming in Colombia, focusing on an integrated response involving child protection, women’s protection and empowerment activities, primary and reproductive healthcare, and cash transfer programming. The IRC is in the process of delivering these and future activities directly in Colombia, and in partnership with local civil society organizations in Venezuela. In Colombia, IRC currently has operations in Cucuta, and Medellin, and is soon to expand to Bogota and Barranquilla.

    Length of Assignment: 2 years

    PLEASE SUBMIT AN ENGLISH CV.

    JOB OVERVIEW/SUMMARY:

    The position of Deputy Director of Programs (DDP) is a member of the Senior Management Team and is integral to the successful implementation of IRC’s programs in Colombia. Working under the direction of the Country Director (CD), the DDP is responsible for overall program direction and implementation within the program framework, government policies and strategies, and in compliance with donor regulations, specifically in the areas of a) grant management b) program development, quality and implementation c) day-to-day representation with donor agencies and local and international stakeholders, and d) Monitoring, evaluation, accountability, and learning.

    The DDP will spearhead the development and execution of the Country Strategic Plan and also be responsible for supervising the Health, Child Protection, Women’s Protection and Empowerment, Economic Recovery and Development and Grants Coordinator. This position will work closely and collaboratively with the different departments within the country program, the IRC technical advisors and the IRC Emergency Unit.

    The DDP will be based in Bogota, Colombia, with frequent travel to Cucuta, Medellin, Barranquilla, and any other national sites in Colombia where IRC designs and develops programming.

    MAJOR RESPONSIBILITIES:

    Program Strategy, Design and Fundraising

    • Lead the operationalization of the current IRC Colombia response strategy and actively engage in strategic planning processes for the longer term.
    • Ensure, with Coordinators, and HQ-based Technical Unit staff, that project design reflects IRC program quality standards and industry best practices.
    • Lead efforts for sustainable program growth, proactively identifying opportunities for new programming initiatives and emphasizing multi-year funding to support them.
    • Provide leadership support to the program and grants teams to develop competitive, evidence-based and cost-effective funding applications.
    • Provide guidance, strategies and tools to ensure that program choices are based on needs assessment findings (primary & secondary data) and analysis, input from communities, a thorough understanding of context, technical best practices, and operational viability.
    • Formulate integrated program initiatives so that technical sectors complement each other and promote mainstreaming of protection principles and gender-responsive approaches.

    Program Management – Implementation, Monitoring and Evaluation

    • Provide overall leadership and management of IRC Colombia program portfolio, ensuring strategically coherent program direction, well-managed growth, and compliance with IRC and donor regulations.
    • Continually seek out ways to build the capacities of the program team members, individually and collectively.
    • Ensure that detailed, realistic and feasible project implementation plans are developed, and modified as needed, in collaboration with the Program Coordinators and Operations team.
    • Coordinate with other members of the Senior Management Team on appropriate management, compliance and performance standards, as well as effective systems for budget management, knowledge management and risk management.
    • Support programming staff to collect, document and disseminate lessons learned and best practices, incorporating these into new project designs.
    • With program staff, develop effective and appropriate M&E plans, including methodologies and tools to strengthen the quality of data collection, analysis and reporting.
    • Review M&E and accountability data with program staff to identify and address areas for operational improvement.

    Grants Management

    • Provide strategic direction in terms of development of a funding strategy, widening and strengthening donor base, ensuring quality grants management, ensuring compliance with donor requirements, ensuring quality information management related to programs/ grants, and supporting directly in all aspects of the proposal development and reporting processes.
    • Supervise all internal, external and reporting with programs and finance, ensuring high-quality, well-written and timely reports meeting donor and IRC and partner requirements; conduct thorough reviews and/or revisions of all external reports compiled by the Grants Coordinator.
    • Ensure that Program Coordinators and Grants Senior Manager conduct routine monitoring visits to implementation sites to ensure donor compliance and quality program implementation.
    • Coordinate with the Program Coordinators and Grants and Finance teams to ensure sound budget management, expense control and timely contractual documentation.
    • Support the Grants Senior Manager to lead Grant Opening and Grant Closing Meetings with all relevant department and units and to ensure they take place on time. Also ensure that programming staff are well trained to properly manage project budgets.
    • Ensure that the program coordinators review BvAs on a regular basis; provide leadership and management support to ensure effective monthly grant review meetings.
    • Mitigate any potential risk by collaborating with the Finance Department to ensure that programming staff fully understand financial and administrative processes involved in project budget cycles.

    External Representation and Advocacy

    • Develop a sound understanding of the IRC’s programs to be able to professionally represent the IRC to implementing partners, the government and donors;
    • Assist the Country Director developing strong relationships with donors, assisting with visits and in the development of appropriate advocacy actions;
    • Forge and maintain solid cooperation with partner organizations through regular communication, cooperation and, where appropriate, joint decision-making.
    • Act as the focal point for program-related communication between IRC country programs in the region and worldwide offices.
    • Identify funding opportunities and track them in collaboration with the technical teams.
    • Oversee programmatic inputs to advocacy efforts both in-country and globally.

    Staff Management and Development

    • Provide guidance and supervision to the technical coordinators, M&E Manager, the grants senior manager, information officers; to discuss job expectations, set objectives and provide appropriate and timely feedback on performance of direct reports, including timely implementation of performance management system.
    • Create a supervisory environment focused on the achievement of team and individual results that emphasizes the importance of learning, productivity, accountability and openness
    • Adhere to IRC’s performance management system, providing regular, timely and thoughtful coaching, feedback, performance assessment, and professional development for all direct reports, while making sure that they do the same for their direct reports.
    • Build capacities of programming staff in key project management principles, tools and approaches and ensure that these new skills are utilized on the job.
    • Manage recruitment, hiring and development of high-performing national staff to assume greater levels of responsibility.
    • Provide leadership support for the successful implementation of and adherence to the IRC Global HR Operating Policies and Procedures.

    PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS

    The IRC and IRC staff must adhere to the values and principles outlined in IRC Way – Standards for Professional Conduct. These are Integrity, Service, and Accountability. In accordance with these values, the IRC operates and enforces policies on Beneficiary Protection from Exploitation and Abuse, Child Safeguarding, Anti Workplace Harassment, Fiscal Integrity, and Anti-Retaliation.

    As a leader you will be placed in a position of trust. To maintain that trust, you are expected to always:

    • Lead by example and be a positive role model to others.
    • Promote awareness of the IRC’s standards and make sure those you supervise are equipped with the knowledge and resources they need to comply with them.
    • Monitor conduct of those you supervise and take responsibility for activities that occur under your supervision.
    • Be responsive to anyone who raises an ethics or compliance concern and make sure matters are resolved in a fair and appropriate manner.

    KEY WORKING RELATIONSHIPS

    • Country Director, Colombia and Venezuela
    • Other Colombia-based staff, including operations, finance, and grants
    • Technical Advisors (based globally) and any roster staff required to support program staff inside Venezuela
    • Awards Management Unit to support all compliance and reporting for partners, as well as proposals
    • Global Supply Chain to procure goods and support partners to procure
    • Communications and Advocacy units to support any key messages at external meetings
    • Global Security to support any risk analysis and mitigation
    • Emergency Unit

    REQUIREMENTS

    Master’s degree in Development Studies, International Relations, Social Sciences or a similar field;

    Minimum eight years of management experience working in a humanitarian or development setting with a minimum of five years of INGO program management experience.

    Experience in managing protection, ERD and/or health, and experience working in partnership with local organizations, is strongly desired.

    Proven ability to develop winning proposals to public and private-sector donors;

    Familiarity and experience with US and European, donors;

    Previous experience managing programs financed by US government agencies, DFID, EU, foundations and private donors a must, with previous experience in competitive environments a plus.

    Proven ability to manage projects to completion on time, within budget, and with the anticipated results.

    Ability to respond to multiple priorities in a timely manner, producing high-quality outcomes.

    Demonstrated successful leadership experience with a multi-disciplinary team in a cross-cultural setting, including active mentoring and coaching. Strong leadership, motivational and team-building skills;

    Proven fluency in English and Spanish a must

    How to apply:

    https://rescue.csod.com/ats/careersite/jobdetails.aspx?site=1&c=rescue&id=3988

  • Colombia: Oficial Grants

    Organization: Save the Children
    Country: Colombia
    Closing date: 10 Mar 2019
    TITULO DEL PUESTO: Oficial Grants

    EQUIPO/PROGRAMA: Desarrollo de programas y Calidad

    UBICACION: Bogotá

    GRADO: 4 – oficiales

    Tipo de Contrato: Término Definido a 31 de dic…

  • Brazil: Corporate Alliances Acquisition Associate, GS-6, Brasília, Brazil post# 109567

    Organization: UN Children’s Fund
    Country: Brazil
    Closing date: 07 Mar 2019

    UNICEF works in some of the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. To save their lives. To defend their rights. To help them fulfill their potential.

    Across 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, every day, to build a better world for everyone.

    And we never give up.

    For every child, make a difference

    The Corporate Partnerships team has ambitious fundraising targets and outcomes to be reached based on market potential and building on successful results of 2018. Our aim and vision are to develop, manage and enhance the fundraising potential of working with businesses in Brazil and a core part of achieving this vision is the Corporate Alliances (CA) acquisition team (new business).

    After review, additional resource is being created to support the Acquisition (new business team) to embrace the new fundraising challenges and to reach the extra income success. The Corporate Alliances Acquisition Associate will support the CA Acquisition (new business) team with a strategic focus on customer engagement and cause related marketing (CRM) alliance models. The role will have the objective to support the leverage of the flexible or non-fixed income fundraising potential to support both, the local and global UNICEF Programme.

    For further information, please visit www.unicef.org.br

    How can you make a difference?

    Under the supervision of the Corporate Fundraising Officer (Acquisition), the Acquisition Associate will undertake supporting tasks for new business such as:

  • Assist in specifying the pipeline and building corporate alliances focused on customer engagement and cause related marketing (CRM) models, but not exclusively in those formats.
  • Support in the initial preparation of proposals with the new business team.
  • Assist on the implementation of the alliances and on reaching planned results.

    • Join our team to be responsible for:

    1) Implementation of corporate alliances focused on customer engagement and cause related marketing (CRM) models and other acquisition campaigns:

  • Continuously map new corporate partnership opportunities, initiate contact with the companies’ focal points, and participate in the alliances’ prospecting processes;
  • Proceed with the Geneva clearance process on potential and current donor companies on a weekly basis;
  • Prepare and internally/externally approve the partnership contract; and keep corporate prospection planning documents update;
  • Follow up the delivering of annual reports to the partners and support in the negotiation of renewal focusing on the best results for UNICEF;
  • Support the planning and implementation processes of the corporate alliances campaigns by following up the milestones and results of it in collaboration with Market Services team;
  • Approach partners during emergency campaigns to explore additional fundraising opportunities;
  • Continuously research and test new and innovative ways of work to improve quality in results and to simplify procedures of processing the donations;
  • Monthly searching about competitors’ corporate alliances mechanisms and good practices, evaluating replicability;
  • Fortnightly, support plan and project pitches and campaigns with Marketing Services support and other related areas, including outsourced agencies.

    • 2) Suppliers relationship:

  • Assist and support in developing, drafting and maintaining contract information, monitoring reports and relationships with current and new providers involved in the corporate alliances through UNICEF;
  • Assist the development of new providers and follow up biding processes with Operations Sector / RM&P Associate as required;

  • Ensure that the providers’ payments are due and delivered on time.

    • 3) Monitoring and Evaluation:

  • Monitor and support the implementation of the corporate alliances campaigns to target audiences and participate in the evaluation of their impact. Monitor and evaluate the use and effectiveness of each campaign materials/channels;
  • Support and monitor the level of fulfilment and success in donations processing, by analyzing and studying the best way to improve it;
  • Conduct the target and results analysis and control. Continuously monitoring campaign goals and marketing metrics related to customer engagement;

  • Compile lessons learned and support the review of successful and unsuccessful campaigns.

    • 4) Assignments of additional administrative duties and responsibilities:

  • Map potential companies from different segments and support on organizing the list of priority companies to be reached and prospected on a monthly basis;
  • Research about the prospected companies and support the evaluation of fundraising opportunities;
  • Assist the preparation of periodical corporate alliances fundraising reports, monitor and maintain control of records and results;

  • Develop, organize and maintain up-to-date data, information, record documents and control plans for the monitoring of project implementation; maintains library of corporate alliances reference materials.

    • To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…

  • Completion of secondary education preferably supplemented by technical or university courses related to the work of the organization. A University degree is desirable (Business Administration, International Relations, Economics or Marketing);
  • At least six years of professional experience related to corporate fundraising, clients’ engagement, partnership development, or marketing;
  • Experience in retail sales is an asset
  • Fluency in Portuguese and English. Knowledge of Spanish will be considered as an asset

    • For every Child, you demonstrate

    UNICEF’s core values of Commitment, Diversity and Integrity and core competencies in Communication, Working with People and Drive for Results.

    The technical competencies required for this post are Relating and networking (I), Persuading and influencing (II), Planning and organizing (I) and Following Instructions and Procedures (II)

    View our competency framework at

    http://www.unicef.org/about/employ/files/UNICEF_Competencies.pdf

    UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages all candidates, irrespective of gender, nationality, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply to become a part of the organization.

    UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. UNICEF also adheres to strict child safeguarding principles. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles.

    Remarks:

    Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.

    Candidates must be Brazilian citizens or have a valid work permit.

    All candidates who wish to apply to this Vacancy Announcement are requested to prepare and submit their application in English.

    How to apply:

    UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages qualified female and male candidates from all national, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply to become a part of our organization. To apply, click on the following link http://www.unicef.org/about/employ/?job=520028

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