Job Description

CONSULTANCY TO STRENGTHEN LOCAL ORGANISATIONS WITH A FOCUS ON ORGANISATIONAL MANAGEMENT/SYSTEMS/OPERATIONS SUPPORT

B              Specifications of the Assignment

Background 

Concern Worldwide is an International Non-Governmental Humanitarian Organisation committed to alleviating suffering and eradicating extreme poverty in the world's most impoverished countries. The organisation focuses on long-term development, emergency response, and tackling the root causes of poverty through development education and advocacy. Despite the political and social instability and ongoing insecurity, Concern Worldwide has been active in Somalia and Somaliland since 1986

Concern Worldwide is dedicated to partnering with national organizations and promoting localisation, as outlined in its Strategic Plan (2022) and Partnership Strategy (2023). These documents emphasise enhancing the capacities of its partners and helping them attract other international collaborators by delivering high-quality programs, maintaining transparency, and ensuring accountability to all stakeholders. To achieve this, Concern invests in strengthening the systems and technical capabilities of its partners.

Concern recently completed capacity assessments of two partners (SOSTA and YouthLink); identifying priorities for capacity strengthening in several areas: governance and administration, organizational management, financial management, sectoral capacity and technical skills, emergency preparedness and response, and project cycle management. Through this consultancy, Concern aims to enhance partner capacity in organizational management and systems

SOSTA

SOSTA is a local organization founded in 2008 in Borama town, Awdal Region, Somaliland. Its mission is to support the local community and the broader poor population of Somaliland through emergency response interventions and other initiatives. A seven-member Board of Directors, including one female member, provide oversight, leadership, and guidance, governs the organisation. SOSTA became a partner of Concern Worldwide in 2019. Since then, capacity-building efforts focused on governance, financial management, and systems strengthening. 

SOSTA partnered with Concern in 2019-2022 to implement a resilience program funded by FCDO in Awdal region. SOSTA’s current partnership agreement with Concern Worldwide runs through to 2027 to implement a climate resilience program funded by Irish Aid. In addition, is implementing a 2 year-EU funded food systems project focusing on milk value chain.

YouthLink

YouthLink is a humanitarian and non-profit organization founded in 2006. Its mission is to address the needs of street children who lack families and hope. Initially, YouthLink focused on rehabilitating vulnerable street children and those from impoverished households affected by conflict in Mogadishu. The organization also implemented the Sports for Peace Initiative Projects, which aim to promote peace and improve the future opportunities for these children. Additionally, these projects raise community awareness about the rights and protection of children

YouthLink began collaborating with Concern in 2006, and the relationship has evolved over the years through implementation of long-term development initiatives to improve the lives of both internally displaced persons (IDPs) and urban poor communities with funding for FCDO and Irish Aid.

Purpose of the Consultancy

The purpose of this consultancy is to thoroughly review and update existing policies and procedures of SOSTA and YouthLink in the areas of Governance, Human Resources, Safeguarding, Logistics/Procurement, Administration, Financial Management, and Security Management. The goal is to ensure that these policies are not only up-to-date and effective but also tailored to support the organizations' operational needs and enhance overall efficiency and compliance.

Specific Objectives

The consultant will conduct a comprehensive review of available policies, systems and operational procedures for SOSTA and YouthLink. Specifically, the consultant’s focus will be to

• Assess the effectiveness and efficiency of existing policies, systems, procedures and operational guidelines.
• Identify gaps, inconsistencies, and areas for improvement within these documents.
• Update policies and procedures to enhance the clarity, coherence, and applicability of the systems documents, thereby supporting organizational effectiveness and sustainability.
• Orientation-provide orientation to board and senior management on revised organizational policies and systems.

Scope of Work

The consultant will undertake the following tasks:

• Review existing policy documents, including Governance, HR, Safeguarding, Financial Management, Security Management, Logistics/Procurement, and Administrative protocols for both SOSTA and YouthLink.
• Conduct interviews with key stakeholders, including Board Members, Senior Management, staff members to gather insights and feedback on the usability and effectiveness of existing policy documents.
• Analyse the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT analysis) related to the current policy documents.
• Present updated policy for each of the two organisations.
• Conduct mini workshops to present the updated policies

Experiences and Qualifications

Methodology

The consultant will:

• Adopt a participatory approach by actively engaging stakeholders throughout the process to ensure inclusivity and foster ownership.
• Use a blend of methods, including document analysis, stakeholder interviews, and comparative assessments, to evaluate the effectiveness of the policy documents.
• Apply best practices and humanitarian standards in the development and review of the policy documents to ensure they are of high quality and relevant.

Timeline

The consultancy will be conducted from 1st August to 30th August 2024, with an estimated duration of three weeks.

Deliverables/Expected Outputs

By the end of the assignment, the consultant is expected to have:

• Reviewed and modified existing policies and procedures, and developed new ones where they do not currently exist.
• Developed action plan for implementing the revised policies and procedures.

Remuneration/Fee

Remuneration or fee will be based on the consultant's qualifications and experience.

Working Conditions

The consultant will work independently while coordinating with Partnership Advisor and Programme Directors. Concern will facilitate communication and coordination with the various partners to provide necessary support and access.

Lines of Communication

The consultant will report to the Partnership Advisor or Programme Director, or to a designated representative appointed by the Programme Director.

Skills Required

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