The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA) is the lead federal agency coordinating international disaster assistance. BHA provides and oversees U.S. Government (USG) humanitarian aid abroad, aiming to save lives, alleviate human suffering, and mitigate the physical, social, and economic impacts of both rapid- and slow-onset disasters. BHA achieves this by supporting at-risk populations in building stable foundations to better withstand humanitarian shocks and stresses.
Through the Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance Support Contract (BHASC), Team Credence provides operational and administrative support to BHA, ensuring the agency’s capacity for humanitarian assistance and 24/7 disaster response. The BHASC comprises five tasks, with Task 3—Field Program Support—ensuring BHA's evolving field support needs are effectively met.
Global Emergency Group, Inc. (GEG) serves as the Task 3 Field Program Support lead for Team Credence and BHASC. Established in 2007, GEG provides readiness and operational response support services to the Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA), aiding in crisis response efforts globally. This includes the provision of monitoring, logistics, administrative and other services. While GEG's headquarters is located near Winchester, Virginia, our team operates worldwide, ensuring a truly global presence and impact.
POSITION OVERVIEW:
Global Emergency Group (GEG) is seeking a Safety and Security Specialist (SSS) to provide security and operations coordination services in Chad. The SSS will be responsible for ensuring the safety of the GEG staff, enumerators, and visitors as well as the operational efficiency of field missions in areas where GEG partners are. This position will dually function as an acting Field Monitoring Coordinator (FMC) and will hold many of the relationships with humanitarian access actors and operational management activities that allow the Field Monitoring Staff to conduct their work.
POSITION REPORTING/COMMUNICATION LINES:
The Safety and Security Specialist (SSS) is under the responsibility and supervision of the GEG Field Programs Director. For functional and technical management related to the standards and procedures that apply to this role, both an HQ Security team designee and HQ Operations team designee will have dotted line supervision over this role.
POSITION DESCRIPTION:
The Safety and Security Specialist (SSS) will be responsible for overseeing and managing the safety and security aspects of all GEG’s operations within Chad, ensuring the secure and efficient execution of field missions in areas where GEG partners are delivering humanitarian assistance as well as for transiting team members using Chad to access other country programs (Sudan, Cameroon, CAR, etc.). This role will require a proactive and strategic approach to risk management with a focus on identifying, assessing, and mitigating both security and logistical risks to safeguard personnel, assets, and operations.
The SSS will lead coordination efforts with Implementing Partners (IPs) and their designated Security Focal Points as well as relevant authorities at all levels to facilitate safe humanitarian access, providing expert guidance in the planning, execution, and monitoring of site visits and GEG activities. This includes conducting comprehensive risk assessments for each mission and adjusting operational plans as necessary to address evolving threats. The SSS will also be responsible for monitoring partner activities in the field, ensuring compliance with GEG standards and assessing humanitarian needs in targeted locations.
Based in N’Djamena, the SSS will manage the technical and logistical components of site visit planning, working closely with programmatic staff to ensure seamless execution of daily operations. This role may require flexibility, as the SSS will adapt to shifting priorities and support other activities as directed by GEG’s leadership.
POSITION RESPONSIBILITIES:
The SSS will be responsible for the following:
1. Develop and maintain a contextual baseline of the humanitarian security situation and operational environment in Chad**:** To facilitate the above, the SSS will develop and maintain a comprehensive understanding of both the security landscape and operational challenges within Chad, ensuring the GEG team is informed about potential risks, logistical constraints, and local conditions. The SSS will work closely with the GEG Field Programs Director and team to facilitate both security and operational requirements for key deliverables to the client. This will include a leading role in supporting critical incident response for GEG staff or visitors affected along.
2. Ensure the smooth operational functioning of the Global Emergency Group Team and country operations: The SSS will be responsible for procurement, supply management, technical logistics, fleet, air operations, vendor management, and others as required. It is expected to use creativity to accomplish team objectives in hard-to-reach locations. This will require a constant pursuit of excellence and building a culture of safety and security to broaden our operational possibilities and capabilities.
3. ***Negotiate humanitarian access with the relevant government, and nonstate parties to facilitate GEG access into insecure areas:***This will require working in collaboration with the Response Focal Point, security team, neighboring country office staff, and multidisciplinary GEG staff. This will include gathering the necessary travel authorizations and pre-conditions required for operations in insecure and/or volatile areas by both armed conflict and natural hazards.
4. Establish safe and secure best practices within the Global Emergency Group Team in Chad**:** The SSS will develop and maintain currency of a Safety and Security Plan for the Team in Chad, conducting safety and security trainings for the team as needed. The SSS will develop security information sources to inform team operations, including but not limited to Implementing Partner Security Focal Points. Maintaining currency on the Humanitarian and Security context in Chad, the SSS will establish mitigating procedures within the Team to reduce vulnerability to risk for the GEG Team and their mission.
5. Journey Management for Movement-Specific Operations: The SSS will provide the necessary levels of planning for each movement to, from, and within the field locations as required by the GEG Safety and Security Department. Requirements may include trip-specific information, provision of relevant security contacts, risk mitigation methodology, pre-departure submission deadlines, and GEG movement authorizations by local authorities and internal leadership.
6. Field Security Assessments: The SSS will create informed risk assessments for operations throughout Chad, coordinating with regional and HQ teams as required. Risk assessments and risk mitigation processes will be developed for every monitoring and evaluation mission, which may or may not require travel to field locations in advance of other team members’ arrival.
7. Support field visits required for Humanitarian Programs: To facilitate in-country movement of the SSS team, the SSS will assist with coordination of in-country site visit planning. Informed by the Monitoring and Evaluation Planning, the SSS will accompany Monitoring and Evaluation missions to ensure compliance with risk mitigation protocols and will oversee real-time logistics management, including transportation, accommodation, and personnel accountability. This may require additional strategic planning when concurrent or conflicting missions are required to maintain staff duty of care responsibilities. The SSS will ensure that accountability and location of the SSS is always maintained accurately. The SSS will coordinate with Implementing Partners and local sources to ensure that GEG personnel are billeted in safe accommodations on field missions.
8. Assist the SSS with security administrative responsibilities: The SSS will ensure the timely reception of Monitoring & Evaluation trip agendas from IPs to facilitate the SSS’s detailed risk mitigation planning and execution of the SSS mission.
9. Participate in and/or facilitate training on Humanitarian Security Practices: The SSS will participate in and/or facilitate training and workshops on the best Humanitarian Security practices, which may be subcontracted to vendors to provide the training.
10. Replication of Best Practices in Security Management: The SSS will endeavor to learn and share new ideas and best practices that can be leveraged to deliver services to GEG clients. The SSS will also identify and document effective practices for both security and operations, ensuring these practices are replicated and adapted to improve GEG’s mission delivery. This will include generating necessary security contacts and security procedures.
11. Operational Start-Up: The SSS will perform duties to operationally start in-country, particularly until the full team is in place. These duties may include facilitating office space set-up, asset procurement, evaluating vendors, and providing/facilitating security training to in-country team.
12. Total professionalism, courtesy, and accountability in accordance with the GEG Way throughout all proceedings involved in services provided by Global Emergency Group Inc.
Required
• Bachelor’s degree or higher in a relevant field such as development studies or international relations
• At least five years of experience monitoring humanitarian and/or development programs
• Experience working in Chad, specialized in safety, security, and operations management
• Chadian national citizenship
• Fluency in written and spoken French and English
• Travel 50 – 75% of the time within Chad
Desired
• Familiarity with GEG monitoring practices and standards
• Ordinarily resident in N’Djamena
• Local language skills
REQUIRED POSITION COMPETENCIES:
• Engagement with stakeholders: Handles stakeholder, beneficiary and GEG questions and complaints, excellent communication, handles service problems politely and efficiently, always available for stakeholders, beneficiaries and GEG, follows procedure to solve problems, understands company services, maintains pleasant and professional image
• Accountability: Takes ownership of work responsibilities and holds high standards. Keeps commitments and takes appropriate actions to ensure obligations are met. Pursues efficiency and effectiveness and adheres to GEG policies and procedures
• Interpersonal Skills: Demonstrates ability to work in cooperation with others and communicate effectively with co-workers, supervisors, colleagues, clients, and other outside contacts
• Continual Learning: Assesses and recognizes own strengths and weaknesses; pursues professional development that is aligned with organizational role, contribution, and goals. Proactively shares knowledge with others to foster learning across the organization
• Innovation: Takes initiative to propose new ideas/approaches and demonstrates ability to find new and better ways to accomplish work
DURATION:
The consultancy will be full-time from the contract’s start date, with the possibility of an extension depending on performance and funding.
Please send your motivation letter and CV in English no later than 18 December 2024, Safety & Security Specialist - Chad as the subject title of your email.
Please note that only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. References will be contacted after interview.
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