Program Officer, Gender Inclusivity & Safeguarding job at Regional Universities Forum for Capacity Building in Agriculture (RUFORUM)

About the Organization

The RIMS platform is used to manage RUFORUM core activities such as scholarship and grants management, projects, alumni, etc .

Job Description

The Senior Program Officer Community Engagement and Operations (SPO-CEO) will be based at the RUFORUM Secretariat. He/she will lead RUFORUM’s community engagement and outreach activities for action oriented/translational research to enhance agricultural production and productivity in the agri-food systems for jobs and wealth creation. The SPO-CEO will also be responsible for coordinated efforts on re-imagining the extension and advisory services and the role of TVETs and universities in the delivery of complimentary extension services to agrifood system stakeholders. As part of engagement, the SPO-CEO will also support the Program Manager in operations to ensure effectively coordinated program activities within and across units for enhanced efficiency and effectiveness of programming.

Duties and Responsibilities

Provide technical guidance to the Systems Strengthening Officer in developing and executing gender mainstreaming, inclusion and safeguard plans at RUFORUM and member universities
Support institution based Safeguarding Officers to produce risk assessments and safeguarding plans and share these as appropriate with the relevant agencies/persons with consent, adhering to privacy principles
Support staff and consortium partners through training and other avenues to ensure gender, inclusion and safeguards integration into program development; design, baselines, assessments and evaluations.
Facilitate formulation of strategies for gender, inclusion and safeguarding under RUFORUM programs, and develop a mechanism to track effective and timely implementation and within budget.
Provide a checklist to support institution-based Gender Inclusion and Safeguarding officers in developing and conforming to institutional safeguards and policies in compliance to national safeguarding policies.

Activities

Strengthening the capacity of Implementing Universities & RUFORUM on safeguarding standards
Ensure that the RUFORUM
Secretariat and member universities develop an effective, efficient, inclusive and safe student support system
Ensure that Universities and TVET institutions have an inclusive and safe systems to recruit, train and skill Africa’s new age of development practitioners and cadres on RUFORUM programs

Deliverables

Gender, safeguards and inclusion strategy Periodic reporting monthly, quarterly and yearly reports e.g.; wellness, gender and inclusion services gender inclusivity in teaching and learning/curricular gender inclusivity in research
Safeguarding issues arising and how they have been addressed
Gender, wellness, inclusion and safeguards publications, manuals and policy briefs
Number of trainings conducted
Number of institutions supported in strengthening Gender Inclusion and Safeguarding processes

Qualification, Experiences and Competencies

Master’s degree in development studies, gender, education, law, social administration, psychology and related fields
At least 7 years working experience in a multi-generation, multi-cultural institutional environment.
Experience working with vulnerable young women and men (including refugees and those with disabilities) and with institutions of higher learning in Africa.

Strong knowledge of and experience with safeguarding standards and safe programming considerations for vulnerable young women and men (including refugees and those with disabilities) in Africa
Flexibility in working schedules and willingness to travel at short notice