Inclusive Education Specialist NGO Jobs – Humanity & Inclusion (Handicap International)

Job Title: Inclusive Education Specialist

Organisation: Humanity & Inclusion (Handicap International)

Project Name: INnovative and inCLUsive accelerated eDucation programmE for refugee and host community children (INCLUDE) project

Duty Station: Kampala, Uganda

Reports to: Regional Technical Head of Program

Gross Salary: UGX 6,633,631 – 7,441,565

Length of Contract: Until 30/09/2024

Start Date: As soon as possible

About US:

Co-recipient of the 1997 Nobel Peace Prize, Humanity & Inclusion (the new name of Handicap International) is a 40-year-old independent and impartial organization working in situations of poverty and exclusion, conflict and disaster. We work alongside people with disabilities and individuals experiencing extreme hardship, taking action and bearing witness to respond to their essential needs, improve their living conditions and promote respect for their dignity and fundamental rights.

HI in Uganda is currently implementing development and humanitarian interventions in six sectors/thematic areas: Livelihood, Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS), Physical and Functional Rehabilitation, Inclusive Education, Inclusive Health, and Inclusive Humanitarian Action (IHA) to improve access and quality of services to the most vulnerable people including persons with disabilities promoting a more inclusive and harmonious society.

About INCLUDE Project Background:

Uganda hosts 1,521,424 refugees (UNCHR February 2023). Gross enrolment of children in pre-primary, primary and secondary education remains low at 53%, ranging from 43% for pre-primary, 91% for primary and only 10% for secondary (UNHCR, Education Dashboard Term 3 2022). Among the total enrolment of 507,957 (refugees and nationals), children with disabilities are 17,139, representing 3.37%. This figure is low considering that in Uganda, 13.6% of persons aged 5 years and above have functional difficulties1 and globally, at least 10% of children have disabilities.2 The Education Response Plan for Refugees and Host-Communities (ERP) II and the Multi-Year Resilience Programme linked to the ERP II emphasize the importance of improved access and retention to inclusive learning and training opportunities for all, including children with disabilities.

Humanity & Inclusion joins the Uganda Education Consortium led by Save the Children (SCI) under the INnovative and inCLUsive accelerated eDucation programmE for refugee and host community children (INCLUDE) project funded by the European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO) to contribute to the above.

The consortium will enable conflict-affected children (refugees/host communities, boys/girls, children with disabilities and out-of-school children) to access safe and inclusive formal and non-formal learning opportunities and supports them to attend and remain in school (Result 1). Learners enrolled in formal and non-formal education (including AEP) will be supported by teachers with improved competencies and demonstrate improved learning outcomes (Result 2). District Local Government and School Leadership and Management capacities in the target communities will be strengthened to support better and supervise safe and inclusive learning environments that generate improved learning outcomes (Result 3).

Job Summary: The Inclusive Education Advisor (IEA) is to be seconded to the Consortium Management Unit (CMU) of the U-EC, housed in SCI. With technical guidance from HI Regional Inclusive Education Specialist, IEA will provide disability inclusion and inclusive education technical support to CMU and all U-EC partner organizations, including SCI (lead), Finn Church Aid (FCA), Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), War Child Holland (WCH) and Planning for Tomorrow (P4T). The position is responsible for ensuring that INCLUDE III will be implemented and its objectives will be achieved in an inclusive manner, reaching and providing learners with disabilities with inclusive and targeted support as required. The IEA will also closely collaborate with HI’s project staff including the Project Manager, IEO, PTs, OTs, and CBFs in the targeted settlements (Nakivale, Kyangwali and Rwamwanja) with support from HI regional and country staff (e.g. Regional Rehabilitation Specialist, country MEAL manager, country MHPSS Specialist).

Key Duties and Responsibilities:

Expertise.

Ensures technical support to U-EC led projects in line with the global technical frameworks and standards in inclusive education
Provides adequate technical guidance and support to U-EC (including CMU) and HI Project Manager (adapt approaches, materials and tools, contribute to reporting, provide training) in line with strategies, standards and mandatory transversal approaches. This will include but not limited for U-EC to;
Identify, analyse and respond to school-based barriers for vulnerable children and children with disabilities and identify existing services and resources
understand teachers, head teachers’ and education authorities’ knowledge and use of inclusive practices
review and adapt teachers’ continuous professional development, remedial and catch-up program for learners including Accelerated Education Program, classroom observation tools, coaching and mentoring activities, social behavioural change activities, and any other relevant approaches and tools, to ensure they are inclusive, accessible, and relevant
Mainstream disability inclusion into the construction of classrooms and latrines, and procurement (e.g. teaching and learning materials and menstrual hygiene management materials)
Coordinate and align with national policies and local initiatives focused on disability inclusion and inclusive education.
Ensure disability inclusive MEAL.
The position will also;
- Identify learning needs and build capacity of HI project team (PM, IEOs, PTs, OTs and CBFs on inclusive education and multi-sectoral comprehensive support for children with disabilities)
- Ensures adequate support to multi-sector responses within projects, in line with the U- EC partners and other HI specialists i.e. Integrated Rehabilitation and MHPSS Approach (IRMA)
- Ensures a local sectorial watch, best practices to adopt
- Contributes to recruitment and briefing when relevant
Ensures technical learning from projects
Contribute to projects’ capitalization and ensure technical learning from projects
Ensures the control and monitoring of the technical quality and the relevance of HI’s activities within U-EC
Ensure regular technical quality control of projects and issue warnings and recommendations
Monitor the implementation of audit recommendations, if applicable
Ensures compliance of the technical proposition with nexus stakes
Influence: Contribute to the local external prestige and influence of HI’s expertise
Represent the technical expertise of HI in U-EC throughout the local relevant networks
Contribute to advocacy on specific themes in line with the global advocacy priorities
Contribute to communication messages locally in line with the global communication priorities

Networking.

Contributes to the context analysis
Contributes to the design and writing of new projects in Uganda
Identify and develop local partnerships and/or consortium with NGOs, Institutions, companies on technical priorities or important topics

Project planning, coordination, review, and MEAL activities.

Participates and contributes to project inception, implementation, review, and reporting.
Participates in technical meetings, case reviews, and regular project reviews (ISPR, BSS, Lessons Learned, etc.)
Coordinate and plan activities with the Project Manager/Head of Programme, the Technical Unit, and the project team, ensuring coordinated activity implementation within the project’s scope and HI procedures and standards.
Review and ensure technical quality of “human interest” stories and other testimonies and submit them to Project Manager/Head of Programme for approval and submission to Hinside, and the social media platform.
Participates in capacity building and mandatory HI training allocated to staff in-country.

Respect for HI identity, rules and policies; In coordination with the Human Resources Manager and the Project Manager:

Know, understand, apply and respect the HI code of conduct and ethics, HI mandate and values, HI rules and operating procedure, HI policies (child protection policy, policy and mechanism for the prevention of and fight against bribery, the protection of beneficiaries from sexual exploitation and abuse policy) and make sure they are known, understood, applied and respected by its team
Know, understand, apply and respect HI security rules and make sure they are known, understood and used by their team

Emergency preparedness and response

Contributes to the program’s emergency preparedness actions and, during an emergency, adapts his/her work modality to contribute to HI’s effective humanitarian response.

Qualifications, Skills and Experience:

Mandatory

A Bachelor degree in Education (inclusive education a plus)
Master Degree in Inclusive Education or Adult Teaching and Learning, or Curriculum Development or Education Policy Analysis or Child Development is desirable
Knowledge in different schools of thought and explanatory models of disability and the application of certain tools
Knowledge in international human rights frameworks
Knowledge frameworks and mechanisms of international development cooperation and humanitarian assistance
Knowledge in strategies for fighting exclusion and discrimination.

Mandatory

Five years of proven experience in education in Uganda (both development and/ or in emergency) in designing technical tools and materials and providing capacity building in education projects.
Experience in working with persons with disabilities, especially children with disabilities for their education, and Organizations of Persons with Disabilities

Desirable

Working with an NGO (local/international)
Disability inclusion technical support for other organizations
Working in public or private schools, and in the community
Working with education authorities (e.g. MOES, DEO)
Experienced working in humanitarian and emergency settings
Personal Skills & Technical Competencies required
Producing clear, concise and responsible communication suited to the audience (adult or child, internal or external); adapting communication and messages to an intercultural environment, and remotely
Negotiating and managing problems and conflicts
Establishing clear frameworks, rules and limits
Supporting and motivating a person or group
Adapting leadership to the group to lead it towards a shared objective
Planning activities by setting clear, specific and measurable objectives
Meeting deadlines
Developing new resources or adapting existing resources in order to improve them and/or adapt them to the context, if necessary (able to identify and respond to Nexus Emergency/Development issues)
Critically assessing the impact/effects of the activities implemented
Promoting participation and cooperation in the activities in inclusive education and in multi- disciplinary/sector-based work
Using capacity-building techniques with adults (training of adults)
Using different pedagogical models
Professionalism by respecting professional and organizational ethics in working with children, families, colleagues and partners
Good communication skills in spoken and written English. Knowledge of Sign Language is an advantage.
Taking initiatives and being autonomous
Working as part of a team/network, cooperating
Analytical and problem-solving
Respect for the opinion and enhancement of the skills of others with a view to shared action
Showing interest in what each person is experiencing and feeling, putting oneself in the other person’s shoes, listening to his/her needs, being accepting rather than judgemental
Ability to give and receive constructive feedback
Resilience to stress and uncertainty
Computer literate – Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Teams, SharePoint, Internet Browsing

Application Process

Humanity and Inclusion is an Equal Opportunity Employer, we encourage females and persons with disabilities to apply to become a part of our organization. HI provides the reasonable accommodation to facilitate work processes for Persons with Disability
HI staff must adhere to the values and principles outlined in the Code of Conduct. In accordance with these values, HI operates and enforces policies on Beneficiary Protection from Sexual Exploitation and Abuse, Child Safeguarding, Anti-fraud, bribery, and corruption.
HI does not solicit funds in exchange for employment opportunities.

How to Apply:

If you feel you meet the requirements, please send an updated CV (3 pages max, including three professional referees current and/or past line managers) with a cover letter to HR department at recruitment@uganda.hi.org indicating the position applied for in the subject line

NB: Any efforts to influence the recruitment process will lead to automatic disqualification. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

Deadline: 30^th April 2023 by 11:59pm