Community-Based MHPSS and Peacebuilding Advisor

Community-Based MHPSS and Peacebuilding Advisor

Support to Transitional Justice – S2TJ (STC)

Contract duration Until 30.11.2027

*Please note that during the recruitment process the position will be changed to Crisis Conflict Disaster Advisor.

The Deutsche Gesellschaft für International Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH is a German public-benefit federal enterprise. GIZ works worldwide in the field of international cooperation for sustainable development and has over 50 years of experience in a wide variety of areas. We work to shape a future worth living in over 120 countries around the world.

The Project “Support to the Transitional Justice Process in Ethiopia” (S2TJ) is accompanying the transitional justice process (TJ), that has been initiated by the Ethiopian Government. This process is an essential element in the national peace process to secure reconciliation and long-lasting and sustainable peace. The project aims at advising and strengthening key government institutions as well as Civil Society Organizations to ensure that the TJ process is conducted in an inclusive, gender responsive, survivor and victim-centered manner and according to international human rights standards.

The Support to Transitional Justice (S2TJ) project will be implemented in selected regions of Ethiopia. The regional implementation will include providing holistic, gender-responsive and community-based mental health and psychosocial support services (MHPSS) to IDPs, marginalized groups and survivors of conflict and grave human rights abuses, such as conflict-related sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV). It will further provide support to the respective regional government bureaus involved in the TJ process to ensure that the above-mentioned target group can be meaningfully engaged in community-led measures on transitional justice and peacebuilding. As a an MHPSS and peacebuilding advisor, you will be responsible for identifying and supporting holistic Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS), and peacebuilding measures to promote a gender-responsive and victim-centered TJ process. This includes advising and collaborating with relevant bureaus of regional governments, local service providers and community-based organizations in the selected areas to implement a holistic programmatic approach for community-based MHPSS, transitional justice and peacebuilding.

• You are responsible for the technical, content-related and organizational implementation and substantive further development of the regional project activities around community-led initiatives on MHPSS, community activities, and peacebuilding for survivors of war, conflict, and conflict-related SGBV (especially women, youth, IDPs) in Tigray, Afar, Amhara and other selected regions of the country. This includes technical support and advisory services to the respective regional governments and its relevant bureaus, such as the Bureaus of Justice and Women and Social Affairs.
• You are responsible for managing a funding mechanism for community-led activities around MHPSS, peacebuilding and dealing with the past in the project regions, which includes managing the selection criteria, steering structure as well as setting up and accompanying financial agreements with local government bureaus, CSOs and community-based organizations.
• You support the identification of suitable medical- and community-based MHPSS providers in the selected regions of the project.
• Prepare financing, local subsidy and consulting contracts and supervise their implementation
• You support the elaboration of a capacity development strategy on how to strengthen community initiatives on peacebuilding and transitional justice, such as local mechanisms of dealing with the past and community healing. This can also include income generating activities for livelihood and economic empowerment.
• Anticipate potential push backs and elaborate strategies to deal with them jointly with partners on the ground
• Monitoring and mitigation of unintended, negative consequences of project activities in the area of MHPSS and peacebuilding in cooperation with S2TJ team and partners
• Monitor and evaluate progress and impact of activities and adapt concepts accordingly in cooperation with the S2TJ M&E expert
• Implement general cross-cutting support activities in the area of MHPSS and project management, e.g. M&E, reporting, knowledge management and documentation, communications and administrative processes if requested.

Qualifications

• University degree in Psychology or Social Work, Public Health, Political Science, Peace and Security/ Conflict Studies or similar with relevant specialization on MHPSS
• Profound understanding of the situation of conflict survivors, especially women, youth and children and other marginalized population, traumatized by grave atrocities and human rights abuses
• Profound expertise of the holistic MHPSS concept and implementation at community level in (post-) conflict settings.
• Knowledge of MHPSS and psychological service providers in Ethiopia, understanding of traditional MHPSS and community healing approaches, as well as knowledge of gaps and opportunities of psychological service provision in Ethiopia.
• Sound understanding of the concept of transitional justice and the role of regional governments in its implementation in the Ethiopian context, Knowledge of GIZ internal structures is an asset.

Professional experience

• A minimum of 5 (five) years of experience in working on subjects related to mental health and psychosocial support, gender (-based violence), conflict prevention or peacebuilding, transitional justice.
• Experience with setting up and managing funding mechanisms such as small grants and local subsidies.
• Work experience in the field of MHPSS at community level, ideally in implementing and planning community initiatives such as implementing dialogues, dealing with the past and healing activities with communities and individuals that have experienced massive violence and/or conflict.
• Proven experience in the field of MHPSS and peacebuilding interventions for and with victims of sexual gender-based violence and other post-traumatic stress disorder related issues.
• Working experience in conflict affected areas in Ethiopia, proven experience in working with a do-no-harm and conflict-sensitive approach.
• Proven experience in monitoring and evaluating MHPSS projects and interventions.
• Working experience in the area of economic empowerment and livelihood creation of survivors of human rights violations, war, conflict and conflict-related SGBV.
• Experience in working with or advising regional governments on the above-mentioned subjects.

Other knowledge, additional competencies

• Very good analytical skills, self-reflective, empathetic, and non-judgmental attitude.
• High gender competence, intercultural competence and resilience, emotional stability to cope with human suffering.
• Strong commitment, team spirit, reliability, conflict sensitivity, gender competence and intercultural competence
• Ability and willingness to travel to conflict affected regions
• Sensitivity to accommodate survivors of human rights violations.
• Excellent training competences
• Excellent written and spoken skills in English and Amharic. Fluency in other Ethiopian languages (Tigrinya, Afar) is an advantage.
• Very good working knowledge of ICT technologies (related software) and computer applications (e.g. MS Office)
• Exhibits conscientiousness, integrity and loyalty