GESI and Safeguarding Advisor

Professional Alliance for Development (PADet) is an indigenous, not-for-profit; a nongovernmental humanitarian organization established in 1998. It has been serving disadvantaged and marginalized segments of the community especially youth, women children in the areas of Reproductive Health HIV/AIDs Prevention and Care, Child Protection, Women Development and Livelihood &Food Securities for the last 25 years.

Project Background

PADet, as a consortium partner in a program led by SNV and funded by Mastercard Foundation will be implementing an anticipated flagship program focused on enabling 112,000 Rural young women (RYW) to access dignified and fulfilling jobs in Eastern Amhara regions. The program will target high-potential agricultural value chains (e.g., horticulture, poultry, dairy), using a market systems development approach. So PADet needs to recruit qualified and competent candidates in the following job opportunities.

Job title: GESI and Safeguarding Advisor

Grade level: IX

Location: Field office/Dessie

Report to: Cluster Coordinator

Number of staff required: 1

Summary of the Position

The position holder is responsible for providing technical leadership at the cluster level to coordinate and oversee the implementation of inclusive, gender-responsive, and safe programming for rural young women (RYW). The role focuses on translating the national GESI and Young Women Empowerment strategy into practical field-level actions by working closely with woreda facilitators, service providers, and community stakeholders. The Advisor supports the rollout of tailored interventions, promotes community engagement, and strengthens the capacity of local actors to identify and address young women barriers and safeguarding risks. The role ensures safeguarding mechanisms are functional and youth-friendly, and that activities across the program are designed and delivered in ways that enhance participation, safety, and empowerment for RYW. The position also contributes to learning, reporting, and coordination efforts at the cluster level, ensuring that gender and safeguarding priorities are reflected in planning and implementation. The role reports to the Cluster Coordinator and receives technical guidance from the national GESI and Safeguarding Advisors.

Key Responsibilities:

• Coordinate the implementation of the Young Women Empowerment component within the cluster in alignment with annual, quarter work plan and national program strategy.
• Take active role in gender analysis and safeguarding assessments in the context of the cluster to generate more in-depth insights.
• Together with cluster-level advisors, identify intervention areas for each component of the project to ensure young women’s engagement and benefit
• Support and provide Coordinate capacity building to cluster advisors, woreda facilitators and partners to integrate GESI and safeguarding considerations into daily activities.
• Facilitate the rollout of customized interventions such as childcare services, flexible training schedules, mentoring for young women, safe spaces, and leadership platforms to enhance participation and empowerment of RYW and young mothers
• Support the identification, assessment, and capacity strengthening of local skill service providers to ensure that training programs are gender-responsive, inclusive, and delivered in safe, accessible, youth-friendly environments that meet the needs of RYW
• Provide inputs on the implementation of program strategies to reduce barriers for RYW to access training, skills, market and financial services.
• Support the establishment and functionality of community-based safeguarding mechanisms, in coordination with the National Safeguarding Advisor.
• Monitor safeguarding risks in service delivery and coach woreda teams and service providers to create safe environments for RYW.
• Promote youth-friendly, confidential reporting and response mechanisms, and ensure field-level follow-up of reported cases as per guidelines.
• Facilitate community dialogues and youth-led sessions to address harmful norms and promote RYW inclusion and empowerment.
• Support peer mentorship, role model initiatives and youth networks to build RYW confidence, voice and economic participation.
• Collaborate with the MEAL and Woreda teams to track participation, empowerment and Agency of RYW.
• Conduct regular field visits and coaching sessions with woreda facilitators and service providers to monitor service delivery is safe, inclusive, and meet the needs of RYW and provide timely feedback
• Participate in planning meetings to ensure GESI-related activities are integrated into quarterly and annual work plans at the cluster and woreda level.
• Capture lessons learned, document success stories, and contribute technical input to cluster-level progress reports, learning briefs, and annual work plans,
• Serve as the GESI and safeguarding focal person in the cluster, liaising with regional, woreda offices, and community actors.
• Participate in local coordination platforms and networks to share experiences, build synergies, and advocate for RYW empowerment.
• Take other responsibilities within the project that will help the team to achieve the desired results.

Qualifications and Experience:

• Master’s degree in Gender Studies, Social Work, Development Studies, Sociology, or a related field.
• At least 4 years of work experience in field-level implementation of gender and/or youth empowerment programs.
• Solid understanding of gender barriers, rural young women’s empowerment, safeguarding, and social norms in the Ethiopian context.
• Proven experience in capacity building, facilitation, and coaching of government and community actors.
• Excellent communication, coordination, and report writing skills.
• Willingness and ability to travel regularly to woredas and kebeles for follow-up and coaching.
• Fluency in English and local language is required

Personal Competency:

• Willingness to work extra working hours and weekends with staff.
• Highly motivated, self-managed and Strategic oriented.
• High level commitment to achieve project goal and Objectives.
• Able to work with minimum supervision.
• Ability to prepare and submit quality reports timely