Job Description

Category Humanitarian and Development Sector

Reports to Protection Specialist; works closely and collaboratively with the ERO- PSS and ERO GBV Prevention, Mitigation and Response 

Job Description

About the Organization  

Finnish Refugee Council (FRC) (www.refugeecouncil.fi) is an international non-governmental organisation with Head Office in Helsinki. 

FRC advocates for the rights of displacement affected populations including refugees, Internally Displaced Populations (IDPs), migrants and returnees and supports their new beginnings. By reinforcing equality and creating opportunities for everyone to lead a good life, FRC promotes the establishment of stable and peaceful societies.

In Ethiopia, FRC’s operation commenced since 2019 following its legal licencing with Registry Number 4184.   

FRC’s strategic interventions focus on strengthening coping, resilience and self-reliance of refugees, IDPs and hosting communities in different parts of Ethiopia through facilitating access to inclusive education and livelihoods opportunities and providing protective life saving post conflict emergency response services. FRC’s interventions encompass the Functional adult education and livelihoods program for South Sudanese refugees and host communities in Gambella Regional State, vocational skill building activities focusing on creating and enhancing economic self-reliance for refugees and host communities in Addis Ababa and the emergency response operations in Northern Ethiopia. 

At the core of FRC’s work is ensuring the inclusion of Persons with Disabilities (PWD) and other members of communities that may be at risk of marginalization and promoting their rights and active participation at all levels.

Purpose of the Role: 

The Disability and Inclusion Officer will lead the implementation and integration of Disability and Inclusion in the current FRC and partners work. S/he will lead assessments on disability and inclusion leading to designing of a strategy for strengthening inclusion of persons with disabilities to actively participate and effectively benefit from the educational, livelihoods and emergency response interventions under FRC and partners projects. 

The Officer closely works with the FRC Country Office and Dessie and Gambella Field Office teams and community-based workers as well as government and non-government actors in planning and executing strategies to enhance the participation and benefit of PWD from all the project activities. 

Specific Duties and Responsibilities

Ensuring disability mainstreaming in FRC’s organizational and program processes 

• Conduct and compile national and regional contextual assessment and analysis on issues affecting PWD and vulnerable groups that form background document for the design of FRC’s disability and inclusion strategy and interventions in the various program locations. 

• Conduct assessment and develop the profile of PWD among refugees, IDPs and host communities in the project operational sites. 

• Conduct organizational assessment on FRC’s existing practices and design mechanisms to strengthen disability mainstreaming within organizational and programming processes. 

• Closely work with field teams in supporting disability inclusive targeting criteria and ensure its application at all project interventions through engagement with community representatives and relevant government actors at all levels and to different sectors within the development and humanitarian emergency interventions. 

• Working with appropriate technical teams and coordination mechanisms, ensure that all infrastructure are disability inclusive as per the design and set minimum guiding standards 

• Closely work with Education, Livelihoods, Cash, GBV, WASH and other FRC and partners thematic colleagues in ensuring the active participation and benefit of PWD and vulnerable groups from the development and humanitarian emergency support services 

• Provide guidance and support to technical teams on effective mechanisms to promote social model of disability inclusive education with necessary information and support resource development, planning and implementation. 

• Provide continuous technical support for Field Office staff and community-based incentive workers on disability inclusion. 

• Compile and consolidate FRC’s target reach and profile of beneficiaries disaggregated by age gender and PWD, etc.

• Consolidate reports on Disability and inclusion intervention of the existing projects and suggest the department to enhance disability and inclusion in current project implementation and potential funding opportunities

Community Mobilization 

• Actively support the awareness raising and mobilization of community stakeholders in all operational sites towards influencing positive behavioural change on disability issues. 

• Develop, review and share disability friendly information, education and communication materials across the project implementation sites. 

• Work with community based, government and non-government actors on joint organization of awareness raising and campaigning events on disability and inclusion. 

• Ensure inclusion of disability issues in community-based protection group activities. 

Capacity Building 

• Conduct training needs assessments among FRC, its partners and government stakeholders and community workers and design capacity building plan on disability and inclusion. 

• Facilitate continuous training and capacity building opportunities for FRC, its partners,  community-based incentive workers, community-based institutions and government stakeholders to equip them with the necessary knowledge and skills on disability and inclusion. 

• Build and enhance the capacity of PWD and their institutions to actively promote disability and inclusion. 

Coordination and Collaboration 

• Closely work with community based, government and non-government stakeholders on promoting disability and inclusion especially on access to services for PWD 

• Actively represent FRC on relevant coordination platforms at national, regional, zonal and other relevant levels.  

•  Ensure the representation of PWD and their institutions on advocacy platforms at relevant levels. 

• Develop collaborative linkages and liaise with other actors for access to support services for PWD target groups (including medical, assistive devices and services) 

Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning 

• In collaboration with the MEAL Officer, assess the progress in the participation and benefit of PWD from FRC’s interventions and closely follow up emerging issues with relevant actors. 

• Compile and share periodic progress reports on the project progress in line with disability and inclusion targets.  

• Participate in the development disability sensitive tools for baseline, endline, and post-distribution monitoring. 

• Conduct review and reflection meetings to assess the progress of disability inclusion in the different thematic sectors. 

• Record, document and report the lessons learnt and best practices on disability and inclusion. 

• Periodically develop and share case stories of PWD targets.

Accountability 

• Design information-sharing mechanisms using appropriate channels for members of communities with disabilities. 

• Support PWD and vulnerable groups to be actively represented and participate in community-based accountability structures.

• Develop and share appropriate communication materials in formats accessible to PWD and vulnerable groups to raise awareness on accountability issues including Prevention of Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (PSEA).

• Continually monitor and support the accessibility and effectiveness of Community-Based Feedback and Complaints Response Mechanisms for PWD and suggest necessary improvements. 

• Ensure that timely response is provided to members of communities PWD on any emerging requests, feedback, and complaints. 

Other 

• Regularly update FRC on any emerging developments on disability inclusion discourse, policy and practices 

• Support FRC team members in other operational contexts on disability inclusion activities.

• Perform other duties given by the immediate supervisor.

Duration One year contract with the possibility of extension

Job Requirements

Professional Standards: FRC staff must adhere to the values and principles outlined in the FRC Code of Conduct. 

Required Educational and Technical Competencies  

Education & Qualifications: 

• University degree Social Work, Sociology, Psychology, Inclusive Education or other relevant social science fields 

Experience: 

• At least 5 years of professional experience managing disability inclusion interventions in emergencies. 

• Demonstrated experience in working in development programs, preferably education and livelihoods interventions that actively mainstream disability inclusion. 

• Practical work experience in managing multisectoral emergency response interventions with strong gender and social inclusion background. 

• Practical experience in working with grassroots communities preferably in humanitarian emergency settings.  

• Working knowledge of gender and accountability to affected populations (AAP)

• Experience in working with trauma affected populations in post conflict and forced displacement contexts as an added advantage. 

Essential Skills:

• Practical skills in facilitating participatory training and capacity building workshops. 

• Practical experience in managing public awareness raising events.  

• Demonstrated skills in conducting participatory data collection, analysis, and report compilation, 

• Demonstrated skills in working with people with disabilities, preferably in humanitarian settings.

• Demonstrated skills in working with multisectoral stakeholders at different levels. 

• Report writing and strong presentation skills.

Desirable Qualities and Interpersonal Skills: 

• Strong teamwork and interpersonal skills; qualities of keeping confidentiality and strong analytical and problem-solving skills 

How to Apply

Submit your Applications (filled FRC Application Form, CV and cover letter only) shall be sent via email: recruitment.ethiopia@refugeecouncil.fi

 (Double click in the icon to access the form)

Please refer in the subject line of your email to the following code: FRC/AA/ERODI/05/23

Important Note: - Strictly follow the instructions. Applications that do not follow the instructions of the application process will not be considered.

Qualified females and Persons with Disabilities (PWD) applicants are highly encouraged to apply.