Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) Director

SCOPE OF WORK

USAID Karnali Water Activity

PROJECT BACKGROUND:

The  USAID Karnali Water Activity will create healthy, resilient, and water secure  communities  at  the  watershed  level  through  strengthened  water  and  sanitation governance that improves water resource management (including water for more resilient and biodiverse ecosystems), enhances sustainable access to drinking water, improves agriculture water management, and reduces the fecal pathogen burden in the environment from poorly managed non-sewered sanitation through fecal sludge management. The program team will methodically integrate Water Resource Management (WRM), watershed biodiversity conservation, and water and sanitation service delivery by mapping and strengthening the roles, connections, and capacities of key actors and stakeholders systemwide. 

POSITION DESCRIPTION:

The Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) Director implements the project’s GESI strategy and integrates gender, youth, and vulnerable populations into activities. The GESI Director is responsible for coordinating the GESI strategy development and implementation across the project. Moreover, the GESI Director supports the monitoring, evaluation and learning (MEL) team’s data collection efforts, analyzes GESI indicators, and provides technical expertise to assure the GESI activities are measured and evaluated for continuous learning and improvement. The GESI Director ensures that field-level activities are implemented with a GESI-sensitive lens. The position will have consistent engagement with the Ministry of Water Supply and Department of Water Supply and Sewerage Management to ensure that water and sanitation-related policies, guidelines, and standards ensure equitable access to water and sanitation services.

KEY DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES: 

• Lead the implementation of the project’s GESI Action Plan and integration of gender and vulnerable populations into activities, ensuring that USAID and Government of Nepal gender policies are upheld.
• Ensure the integration of GESI activities and GESI-specific tools in work planning to promote gender balance and social inclusion in the project implementation.
• Periodically review and update the GESI Action Plan to consider priority activities in annual work plans, rolling political economic analyses, expansion of USAID Karnali Water Activity sites, and learnings from past gender mainstreaming activities 
• Oversee relevant streams of work as we carry out capacity analysis of specific USAID Karnali Water Activity target groups, municipalities, and communities and recommend measures to address critical needs of men and women and remove barriers to achieving gender equality and women empowerment in project-supported and other activities. Ensure uptake of recommendations into programming and project interventions 
• Provide training or guidance to senior management and field teams in mainstreaming gender and engaging women in biodiversity conservation and WSS provision. Develop appropriate tools and protocols in the development, implementation, and documentation of mainstreaming actions in USAID Karnali Water Activity technical assistance activities, e.g., training, resource management planning and management, policy formulation, enforcement, livelihoods, behavior change campaigns.  
• As needed, review activity designs and outputs, or observe processes where mainstreaming interventions are to be implemented.
• Strengthen GESI integration by proposing required adaptations based on analysis of the disaggregated MEL data (qualitative and quantitative), recommendations and inputs gathered from Activity’s GESI team, other team members and key stakeholders.
• Design and deliver GESI related trainings to build capacity of USAID Karnali Water Activity staff, municipal staff, and Activity’s partners. 
• Identify opportunities to integrate GESI considerations and principles in local government structures, performance measurement processes, policies, plans, enforcement and oversight mechanisms, and budget allocations.
• Design interventions that address GESI disparities and create opportunities for women and other excluded groups’ meaningful leadership and participation in WASH and WRM sectors. 
• Work with field staff to track GESI performance in participating municipalities and with grantee GESI focal persons to track GESI performance in grants implementation.
• Develop and maintain effective working relationships with donor agencies, local implementing partners (including grant recipients), and other stakeholders.
• Contribute to good, frequent, and direct communications between the project’s Kathmandu office and the regional office in Surkhet/watershed-based offices. 
• Coordinate closely with USAID Karnali Water Activity communication team to make sure GESI initiatives are promoted and highlighted.
• Supervise, guide and mentor the GESI Advisor and Social Behavior Change & Outreach Manager
• Integrate GESI considerations in SoW and contracts of staff, resource partners and grantees.
• Prepare monthly quarterly and annual plans and reports on GESI integration.
• Other duties assigned by the Deputy Chief of Party and/or Chief of Party.

Qualifications

• A master’s degree in a development-related field with a minimum of 12 years of full-time employment as a gender or social inclusion advisor working in international development agencies or implementing partners, preferably in the WASH, NRM or WRM sectors (11 years of experience for excluded groups) OR a bachelor’s degree in a development-related field with a minimum of 14 years of international development agencies or implementing partners, preferably in the WASH, NRM or WRM sectors (13 years of experience for excluded groups).
• At least 3 years of supervisory management experience is preferred.
• Demonstrated experience conducting gender integration programming. 
• Experience conducting and synthesizing information from key informant interviews and focus discussion groups to enhance GESI performance in donor-funded programs. 
• Experience developing and delivering GESI training and capacity development packages, preferred. 
• Ability to write coherent and analytical reports. 
• Excellent interpersonal and demonstrated success making connections with key stakeholders to enhance the adoption of GESI principles.
• An energetic, forward-thinking, and creative individual with high ethical standards and appropriate professional image
• An extremely well-organized and self-directed individual with sound technical skills, analytical ability, good judgment, and strong operational focus
• Strong ethics and experience dealing with sensitive community dynamics and conflict 
• Commitment to values: integrity, responsibility, excellence, and global citizenship
• Professional verbal and written fluency in English, as well as strong writing skills

Level of Effort/Timeline

The level of effort is 260 days per year. The GESI Director will be based in Kathmandu, with frequent travel to the Regional Office in Surkhet and other field sites in the Karnali River Basin. 

Supervision

The GESI Director will work under the direct technical supervision of the Chief of Party. 

Application link: https://fs23.formsite.com/OLJTgx/lh5jm7gsfv/index

Application instructions:

Please fill out the required information and upload CV. Applicants are encouraged to apply as soon as possible as interviews will be conducted soon. Please note, due to the volume of applications that we receive and the urgency to fill-up positions only shortlisted applicants will receive notifications on next steps. 

Interested candidates should submit their application no later than October 31, 2024

DAI promotes workforce diversity and considers excluded groups to include women, Dalits, indigenous ethnic groups, Madhesi, Muslim, persons with disabilities, people living in remote areas, and sexual and gender minorities. 

About DAI

DAI is a global development company with corporate offices in the United States, the United Kingdom, EU, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Palestine and project operations worldwide. We tackle fundamental social and economic development problems caused by inefficient markets, ineffective governance, and instability. DAI works on the frontlines of global development. Transforming ideas into action—action into impact. We are committed to shaping a more livable world.

DAI and its employees are committed to confronting racism and holding ourselves accountable for positive change within the company and in the communities, cultures, and countries in which we live and work.  DAI is committed to attracting and retaining the best employees from all races and backgrounds in our continued effort to become a better development partner.

DAI upholds the highest ethical standards. We are committed to the prevention of sexual exploitation, abuse, and harassment as well as other ethical breaches. All of our positions are therefore subject to stringent vetting and reference checks.

This SOW is only a summary of the typical functions of the job, and not an exhaustive or comprehensive list of all responsibilities, tasks, and duties.