Mental Health and Psychosocial Support Specialist

The MHPSS Specialist is a national expert and a member of the Technical Unit for Tdh Multi Country Delegation Jordan and Palestine. The MHPSS Specialist is responsible to provide technical expertise mainstreaming and shaping MHPSS interventions across all programme and projects through contributing to the design, implementation, communication, capacity building and monitoring of all MHPSS activities in the field of child protection. The MHPSS specialist will work mainly with the Jordan team, while occasionally supporting the Palestine Team on focused tasked and initiatives.

The main tasks of this function are:

· Technical expertise: Support the development of programmatic approaches, models of interventions and tools in the field of child protection and lead on the research components related to CP, Youth Programming and family programming, mainstreaming MHPSS Tdh approach.

· Quality assurance and learning: ensure child protection and MHPSS standards are applied throughout the programme and lead on the capacity building efforts on MHPSS of the delegation, partners and governmental stakeholders.

· Advocacy and representation: ensure Tdh Jordan plays an active role in the national and local advocacy efforts as well participating in local forums and coordination events with national and international stakeholders as assigned by the CP Advisor.

Specific Responsibilities / Context (Tasks)

Terre des hommes Lausanne (Tdh) opened its delegations in Palestine in 1973 and in Jordan in 2007. Since end of 2018 both delegations have been gathered under one common entity, a Multi-Countries Delegation (MCD).

The main coordination office of the MDC is located in Amman (Jordan) and there are 2 sub-offices (1 in Jerusalem and 1 Gaza) in addition of several others implementing venues through local partners.

The MCD comprises around 47 employees and 10 volunteers. All volunteers and around 40 employees are in Jordan, and around 10 employees are in Palestine, mainly based in Gaza where most of the activities are implemented.

The MCD is, is having at the beginning of 2020 a total budget around 4 million USD, funded by BMZ, ECHO, UNOCHA, UNICEF, JHF, MEPI, SDC, AECID, BMZ, UNTF and Tdh funds.

In both countries, Tdh implements a resilience-based approach aiming to strength the whole system for the benefit of refugee communities and vulnerable host communities and conflict-affected people in Palestine. Thus, Tdh provides support to children, youth, family/caregiver and communities while working on capacity development of key local formal and informal actors.

Over the decades, Tdh – one of the Child Protection leading agency in Jordan and Palestine has developed specific expertise in Migration, Access to Justice (A2J) and Child Labor (CL) programs via projects implemented through direct implementation (centers and mobile units) and recognized local partners.

Technical Expertise

· Support the Implementation of MHPSS programming with a focus on technical development and quality assurance through close technical supervision and monitoring of field staff, in collaboration with Project Managers and Program managers and under the supervision of the CP Advisor

· Ensure that the MHPSS activities are implemented in accordance with Tdh MHPSS Framework to achieve programmatic deliverables. Proactively support the field team in planning and implementing MHPSS programming

· Develop and/or adapt training packages on MHPSS’s Tdh approaches and lead capacity building of staff, CBOs partners, volunteers and other key stakeholders. Ensure appropriate reporting and documentation of all initiatives

· Develop policy documents, SOPs, program and technical guidelines, tools, fact sheets and other documents in the field of expertise as required by the CP advisor.

· Ensure monitoring of MHPSS activities to identify potential obstacles to programmatic success and implement corrective actions as needed and in coordination with the CP Advisor and PMs

· Contributes to the fundraising activities, including in writing project proposals as requested by the supervisor and the CR

· Support in the development of scope of work and project deliverables and evaluation indicators and targets with support from the program management team, the quality and accountability team and the CP Advisor

· When applicable, facilitate MHPSS-related consultants and consultancies

· Coordinate within the MENA region’s Technical Coordinators and with HQ-based technical advisors on programmatic development, testing and piloting, dissemination of tools and approaches

Quality assurance and learning:

· Proactively participate in field missions, monitoring visits and regular team meetings to ensure that all projects and program implement MHPSS related intervention in line with the expected standards of quality.

· Participate in regular program review meetings and contribute with technical expertise in validating the quality of the implementation of child protection interventions.

· Participate in monitoring and evaluation exercises and workshops to contribute to the field of expertise during the planning, tool development and drafting of reports for the child protection components of the interventions:

· Support the development of Monitoring and evaluation systems for MHPSS interventions in accordance with the MHPSS Framework.

· Provide continuous capacity building to staff members and partners following Tdh MHPSS Framework and on a wide array of programmatic approaches and curriculum (MHPSS, CP, community-based programming, family programming, youth programming, learning support services for children at protection risks among others).

· Engage trained staff and volunteers in on the job mentoring and supervision on the job.

· Provide the CP Advisor with regular weekly and monthly quantitative and qualitative reports on activities for implemented and planned activities.

· Lead on documenting and archiving of developed tools and material.

Advocacy and Representation

• Represent Tdh in the technical meetings in the implementation area.
• Represent Tdh in any CP meeting in the implementation area in consultation with the Project Manager and in alignment with the external relations matrix.
• Conduct regular meetings with relevant service providers and other stakeholders in the area of operation, including NGOs and governmental parties (local directorates of Labour, local directorates of Social Development, Municipality, etc.) to ensure coordination and facilitate collaboration including mutual referrals.
• Work in close collaboration with the Communication and Advocacy specialist to create or assist the creation of relevant communication and advocacy material, case studies, visibility.

Other possible tasks:

· Assist with hiring of national staff as needed

· Support the team in all other tasks as required by his/her manager and the needs of the Delegation.

Competencies

This role requires a mastery of Personal, Social and Leadership Competencies (PSLC), Technical and Methodological Competencies (TMC) and Management and Strategic Competencies (MSC)

• Sound personal organizational skills, including time management, ability to meet deadlines, multi-tasking, prioritization of tasks, and working under pressure

• Communication of professional needs in a clear, concise and responsible manner;

• Cross cultural awareness and sensitivity

• Tolerance and acceptance of diversity

• Flexibility and strong adaptation skills

Requirements for the position

Qualification:

· Education: A Bachelor’s degree psychology, child development, a master degree in related areas is a strong asset. Alternatively, a bachelor/master degree in social science or International relations and human rights, with at least 6 years of relevant experience on technical advising on MHPSS.

· Language: Excellent oral and writing skills in English and Arabic

Previous experience:

· Minimum 5 years’ experience in similar position with an international or national NGOs is preferred or an equivalent position in a government institution in Jordan

Knowledge and skills:

· Sound knowledge in the field of MHPSS, child protection and social care services, including the national and international legal framework, policies and best practices;

· Ability to communicate effectively, present the program to donors and partners, write well and express technical issues in a sensitive manner

· Strong skills in program development, proposal and report writing

· Proven experience in training and coaching teams is an asset

· Ability to travel to the operational areas of the MCD Jordan and Palestine when is required