Access & Liaison Officer (ALO)

CARE Palestine (West Bank/Gaza) is looking for a committed professional to the values of Transformation, Integrity, Diversity, Equality, and Excellence to fill the following vacancy:

Access & Liaison Officer (ALO)

The Access & Liaison Officer will ensure the ongoing safety, security, and access liaison for all of CARE’s staff and programs in their assigned area of responsibility (AoR) to enable them to provide humanitarian assistance within the camps and host community.

Job responsibility #1: Safety and security of staff, program, and property

1. Ensure the Safety and Liaison Assistant (SLA) in your AoR conducts daily supervisory checks of guards and access control sites in your AoR. Ensure a supervisor logbook is at each access control site and is signed after each visit.
2. Conduct daily safety and security briefs to field teams deploying from your base location. This must be delivered before teams depart, and the Team Leader must sign the pre-deployment brief register. Conduct pre-departure spot checks of vehicles and equipment.
3. Continue to develop your safety and security network and ensure the timely sharing of security information with the security Department for further processing and analysis.
4. Review and update the security risk assessments in your AoR as directed by the SSM.
5. Lead with security risk assessments for new areas or facilities, as the SSM directs.
6. Always be contactable in emergencies, critical incidents, or crises.
7. Ongoing monitoring of the political, social, economic, and military situation, identifying trends relevant to the security situation.
8. Attend weekly INGO security management meeting, and backbrief the Security department & response team accordingly, whilst providing input from CARE’s perspective.
9. Attend the weekly response team meeting and cover key developments and analysis for your AoR and wider Gaza (optional). Enter your input into the department minutes before the session begins.
10. Schedule weekly field calls to program sites in your AoR to support and advise field teams on safety and security measures and conduct safety and security reviews. Submit field visit summary to SSM.
11. Take a proactive approach and champion positive communication and relations between the Security Department and program staff to enable trust, timely and reliable reporting, and the continued growth of a safety and security culture amongst all staff.
12. Work with staff to ensure appropriate steps are taken to safeguard office premises, equipment, and residential property.
13. Advise on site selection for office buildings/distribution sites, mobilization activities, travel and logistics, and other program activities in your AoR.
14. Ensure that all individuals understand personal responsibilities for their own safety, and capacity build accordingly.
15. Set clear standards for security and develop an individual and collective sense of security and safety awareness, and responsibility.
16. Create a positive security profile and ensure that security planning becomes an integral part of day-to-day operations.
17. Monitor that all staff follow appropriate security and safety precautions and procedures and never risk their lives to protect CARE property. Clearly articulate the consequences of not doing so.
18. Organize regular security meetings and provide an opportunity for team members to voice security-related concerns, context changes and perspectives.
19. Advise the SSM of decisions concerning hibernations & relocations, and other actions in emergencies.
20. Know and respect the Safety & Security protocols related to vehicle movements, specifically those related to customs, checkpoints, roadblocks, HNS protocol. Ensure all passengers know and respect the security rules.
21. Deputize for the SSM during vacation cycles.
22. Other duties as assigned by the SSM.

Job responsibility #2: Relationship building, access liaison, engagement, and stakeholder mapping

1. Submit all journey management requests for CARE operations using the official Humanitarian Notifications System (HNS).
2. Monitor all CARE Gaza journey & incident management platforms and provide guidance on route selection, risk mitigation and guidance accordingly.
3. Ensure compliance with all general requirements of the local authority’s regulations, including submission of requested reports/permissions and responding to special requests.
4. Inform program teams on specific regulations implemented by authorities that impact the ability to implement activities or impact the speed of implementation.
5. Professionally represent CARE when performing access liaison tasks. Attend liaison meetings as directed by the SSM. Establish positive relations with UN missions and community and tribal representatives, emergency services, and other key stakeholders within your AoR.
6. Build and maintain positive collaborative relationships with INGO/NGO counterpart staff from project/partner organizations.
7. Build and maintain positive collaborative relationships with COGAT to facilitate CARE journey management protocols.
8. Build and maintain positive collaborative relationships with staff from project/partner organizations, whilst building their capacity from a safety & security perspective.
9. Proactively ensure that the reputation of CARE is promoted in your AoR and report and address any potential reputational challenges.
10. As directed by the SSM, attend local community forums if requested by program teams and ensure all liaison and engagement is conducted professionally, positively, politely, and non-discriminatory wa.y
11. With Gaza staff, develop a detailed stakeholder mapping and database featuring NGOs, key stakeholders, emergency services, tribal and clan leaders, safe havens, medical facilities, etc. Ensure it is updated quarterly.
12. Deputize/represent for the SSM during vacation cycles.

Job responsibility #3: Documentation & Reporting

1. Submit a weekly bullet point security summary specific to your assigned area to the SSM, outlining security incidents, access challenges, route security, and other significant information.
2. Ensure all KPI documentation under your responsibility is validated by the SSM and filed accordingly in the CARE Safety & Security folder.
3. Ensure authority permissions/approvals are archived in the Safety & Security folder.
4. Hard copies of logbooks, such as access control, briefings, supervisor checks, etc., should be scanned and electronically archived and the end of each week.
5. Report any health, safety, or security concerns to the SSM immediately.
6. Report any health, safety, or security incidents in your AoR to the SSM immediately.
7. Prepare draft Flash reports for shifts in contexts or incidents in your AOR, or as directed by the SSM.
8. Distribute Initial Security Alerts, Security Alerts, and Flash Reports promptly.
9. Systematic sharing of any document (circular, press release, law, etc.) outlining significant security or administrative change in the region with the SSM.

Job responsibility #4: Training and capacity building

1. Deliver quarterly SOP and technical training to all guards in your AoR. Before training lessons, liaise with the SSM to outline your lesson plan. Submit a training attendance sheet to the SSM once the training is complete.
2. Support the SSM in arranging and conducting routine fire safety drills, including fire safety toolbox talks.
3. Exercises must be documented on a training attendance sheet and submitted to the SSM on completion.
4. Support the SSM to schedule and deliver safety and security SOP training and first aid training to staff in your base location
5. Attend internal training, mentoring sessions, and workshops that the SSM schedules.
6. Meet with the SSM to agree on your annual goal and objective. Revisit and review with the SSM each quarter
7. Attend UNDSS/OCHA & INSO meetings or training as directed by the SSM.
8. Deputize/represent for the SSM during vacation cycles.

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Job Profile Requirements

Required

• Bachelor’s degree in social sciences, Public Relations/Administration, or any related field.
• Good practical experience in security assessment, planning, and implementation of procedures in the context of UN or NGO humanitarian operations.
• Experience working with refugees or displaced communities or camps a plus
• Ability to advise and support field staff in a consultative manner.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills and the capacity to remain calm under pressure and not lose sight of strategic priorities.
• Must be organized and efficient.
• Ability to receive feedback and adapt behavior accordingly.
• A sound understanding of the importance of gender in humanitarian work.
• Sensitivity to cultural differences and the ability to work in various cultural contexts.
• Sympathy with the aim and objectives of CARE.
• Committed to humanitarian principles and emergency response work.
• Flexibility and good team player.
• Good knowledge of written and spoken Arabic, plus a working knowledge of English, would represent a distinct advantage.

Desired

• Degree in Media, law, political science, or any related field
• Six months of experience in Safety and security.
• Available any time upon emergencies.

Interested applicants are encouraged to send their CV and Cover letter by e- mail to [email protected], to the attention of the HR Department no later than Saturday 07/09/2024, indicating the job title the subject line and cover letter. Applications received after this date or that do not meet the qualifications above will not be considered. Only short-listed candidates will be contacted for an interview.

Applications from female candidates are strongly encouraged.

CARE International promotes the principle of Equal Opportunity for all.

*** Due to the urgency to fill this role, applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. Kindly note that the position will be filled before the vacancy announcement is closed; therefore, early applications are encouraged. ***