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Purpose for the job: The purpose of the post is to get a dedicated officer close to the project sites and support implementation of UNICEF Education programme in SWS State, to closely facilitate program implementation, monitoring and coordination with MoE. The position will directly report to UNICEF Central South Regions (CSR) Office Education Head of Section and will provide support to UNICEF staff based in Baidoa in coordination with the programs in Bay region. Additionally, the Education Officer will be responsible for monitoring, coordinating, and providing technical support to the implementing partners active in SWS and Jubaland. Furthermore, the officer will support and coordinate with the Education Cluster in the region and actively participate in all education meetings and report on these to the UNICEF Central South Zonal Office Head of Education and formulation of the Education Programme within the Central South Regions Programmes.

Summary of key functions/accountabilities:

Education program design, planning, monitoring, data analysis, and progress reporting in SWS:

• Contribute to the development and tracking of the SWS State Education Program Rolling Work Plan (RWP)
• Contribute to the development of an Education Program Emergency Response Plan for the South & and Central regions, with a particular focus on SWS.
• Engage in results monitoring, including data analysis and tracking the performance of the Education Program within the SWS State RWP.
• Conduct effective and regular monitoring of the education projects implemented by UNICEF partners in SWS and provide regular weekly updates and monthly progress reports to the UNICEF CSR (Central South Region) Head of Education Section.
• The Education Officer will provide technical support to partners in SWS and build their capacity to ensure the quality and timely implementation of all projects in the region.
• Support the preparation and implementation of Mid-year and End-year reviews with the State Ministry of Education (MoE) and CSO partners in SWS

Programme management, monitoring and delivery of results

• Facilitation of joint Education Programmes as well as all projects that are emergency-related
• Facilitate all activities related to the implementation of education programmes delivered in SWS.
• Contribute to strengthening cross-sectoral convergence and integration with other sections internally and externally with other UN Agencies (i.e., WFP).
• S/he will pay attention to visibility of the UNICEF.
• Work closely and collaboratively with internal colleagues and partners to collect, analyze and share information on implementation issues.
• Participate in monitoring and evaluation exercises, programme reviews and annual sectoral reviews with government and other counterparts and prepare minutes/reports on results for follow-up action by higher management and other stakeholders.
• Prepare draft inputs for programme/donor reporting.

Technical and operational support to programme implementation

• Undertake field visits and surveys and share information with stakeholders to assess progress and refer to relevant officials for resolution. Report on critical issues, bottlenecks and potential problems for timely action to achieve results.
• Support the functioning of Education Sub-Cluster/sector coordination activities.
• Contribute to development of the Education Program Emergency Response Plan for the FMS.
• The TA will provide support to all emergency projects and their implementation.
• Provide technical and operational support to government counterparts, NGO partners, UN system partners and other country office partners/donors on the application and understanding of UNICEF policies, strategies, processes, and best practices on education in emergencies related support for programme implementation, operations and delivery of results.
• Collect and verify weekly and monthly data from UNICEF implementing partners for reporting on Education in Emergency Programming and other UNICEF education projects.
• Conduct education needs assessments and education situation analyses as may be required to start a new programme or project in Bay region

Networking and partnership-building

• Actively participate in various meetings of partners in SWS State such as Education Cluster Meetings, Education Sector Coordination meetings, and other relevant meetings.
• Build and sustain effective close working partnerships with government counterparts and national stakeholders through active sharing of information and knowledge to facilitate programme implementation and build the capacity of stakeholders to achieve and sustain results on education programmes.
• Support the Ministry of Education Regional Education Officer Bay region to coordinate education partners working in the region.
• Be UNICEF focal point for humanitarian education, education cluster, and education component of the Resilience Initiative in the Bay region

Innovation, knowledge management, and capacity building

• Provide support in identifying, capturing, synthesizing, and sharing lessons learned for knowledge development and capacity development of stakeholders.
• Apply innovative approaches and promote good practices to support the implementation and delivery of concrete and sustainable programme results.
• Research, benchmark, and report on best and cutting-edge practices for development planning of knowledge products and systems.
• Participate as a resource person in capacity-building initiatives to enhance the competencies of clients and stakeholders.