Gender and Youth Lead Job Vacancy at Pathfinder International

Pathfinder International is driven by the conviction that all people, regardless of where they live, have the right to decide whether and when to have children, to exist free from fear and stigma, and to lead the lives they choose. Since 1957, we have partnered with local governments, communities, and health systems in developing countries to remove barriers to critical sexual and reproductive health services. Together, we expand access to contraception, promote healthy pregnancies, save women’s lives, and stop the spread of new HIV infections, wherever the need is most urgent. Our work ensures millions of women, men, and young people are able to choose their own paths forward.

Position: Gender and Youth Lead

Reports: Deputy Technical Director, FP/RH Lead

Location: Preferably Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cote D’Ivoire, DRC, Egypt, Ethiopia,  Kenya, Mozambique, Nigeria, Niger, Pakistan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, or the US.

Summary of Role:  

Pathfinder is currently seeking highly motivated applicants to serve as the Gender and Youth Senior Technical Advisor/Lead for the USAID-funded MOMENTUM (Moving Integrated, Quality Maternal, Newborn, and Child Health and Family Planning and Reproductive Health) Integrated Health Resilience (MIHR) project. MIHR is led by IMA World Health, with Pathfinder International, African Christian Health Associations Platform (ACHAP), Cooperative for Assistance and Relief Everywhere (CARE), GOAL USA FUND, and JSI Research and Training Institute. The project seeks to reduce maternal, newborn, and child mortality and morbidity and increase the health resilience of families, communities, and nation states. It also advances global knowledge on strengthening MNCH/FP/RH service delivery and building resilience in fragile settings. MIHR currently works to implement gender and youth projects in Burkina Faso, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mali, Niger, South Sudan, Sudan, and Tanzania.

The Gender and Youth Lead will have an appropriate balance of relevant technical, leadership, project management, advocacy, and knowledge generation experience. The position’s primary focus will be to provide conceptual leadership in the development of technical approaches to adolescent and youth reproductive health (AYSRH), gender-transformative approaches, and meaningful youth engagement, and their implementation across MNCH/FP/RH interventions. In addition, they must have extensive experience with, and understanding of, evidence based MNCH/FP/RH interventions and strengthening MNCH/FP/RH interventions within the Gender/Youth field.

Key Responsibilities:

Gender-transformative programming: 

• Advocate, lead and provide strategic direction, program, and technical guidance in the integration of gender-transformative programming in MNCH/FP/RH interventions, including women’s empowerment, men’s engagement, and couple-focused interventions.
• Ensure that all MOMENTUM gender approaches and activities are in alignment with USAID’s 2023 Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment Policy.
• Design and facilitate trainings on gender for project staff, USAID, stakeholders, counterparts, health providers (clinic and community level), and others as needed.
• Coordinate efforts with field-based Gender Specialists.
• Stay up-to date on global best practices, new developments and emerging issues in gender that affect MOMENTUM priorities.
• Travel to monitor and provide technical assistance for gender aspects of field activities

Adolescent programming:

• Advocate, lead and provide strategic direction, program, and technical guidance in the integration of quality adolescent programming, including a systematic adolescent/youth-responsive health systems approach, meaningful youth engagement, and special populations including first-time parents.
• Ensure that all MOMENTUM youth approaches and activities are in alignment with USAID’s Youth in Development Policy
• Design and facilitate trainings on youth for project staff, USAID, stakeholders, counterparts, health providers (clinic and community level), and others as needed.
• Coordinate efforts with field-based Youth Specialists.
• Stay up-to date on global best practices, new developments, and emerging issues in AYRH that affect MOMENTUM priorities.
• Contribute to and coordinate youth focused research including but not limited to conducting key informant interviews, focus group discussions, and participatory action research, reviewing research protocols and ensuring shared understanding among country-based staff
• Travel to monitor and provide technical assistance for youth aspects of field activities

Stakeholder engagement:

• Explore coordination with other technical leads in providing strategic direction and positioning MIHR in adapting and learning
• Building partnerships, networking with other organizations, and building the Cross-MOMENTUM relationships

• Represent MIHR’s gender and youth work on Technical Working Groups and contribute to global body of knowledge on the relationship between gender, AYRH, and health resilience.

Gender and Youth Lead Job Vacancy at Pathfinder International

Program implementation monitoring and reporting:

• In collaboration with MEL team, strengthen service data/monitoring to ensure that youth and gender inequities are tracked, and appropriate response strategies are implemented; analyze and report on program and project progress.
• Contribute to annual work planning, training plans, quarterly reports, and other required technical reports.

• Other related work to support implementation – budgeting, managing/overseeing consultants, supporting recruitment etc.

Required Education and Work Experience:

• Advanced Degree in public health, international development, social sciences, gender/women’s studies, adolescent health, anthropology, or related field.
• Ten (10) years’ experience working in international development, preferably in designing and implementing programs with a focus on youth development, increasing gender-equality, empowering women and girls, men’s engagement, couple-focused interventions, integrated cross-sectoral efforts, gender training and capacity building, and strengthening MNCH/FP/RH interventions in developing countries and in fragile settings.
• Languages: Proven writing and speaking skills using English language required.
• Demonstrated experience conducting gender assessments and developing gender strategy frameworks.
• Experienced technical assistance provider.
• Extensive experience conducting gender, youth, and social inclusion analysis, developing integration tools and methodologies, planning, and implementing youth studies, interpreting qualitative and quantitative data, and knowledge of internationally recognized evidence-based interventions to promote gender-equity in FP/RH.
• Experience collaborating with government agencies, host-country governments and counterparts, and international donor agencies.
• Demonstrated management, leadership, decision making, and interpersonal skills

Preferred Competence and Work Experience:

• Full professional proficiency in French highly preferred. Professional fluency includes the ability to lead and facilitate meetings with native speakers, conduct interviews, and prepare and interpret correspondence and documents.
• Software Applications: Advanced knowledge of MS Excel, PowerPoint, Word and Outlook.
• Project Planning and Management: Advanced knowledge and skills in project management and planning to fulfill performance objectives.
• Communication and Influencing Skills: Proven ability to influence others, including donor agencies and local partners, through diplomacy and proven oral and written communication skills.
• Presentation Skills: Proven ability to make presentations from prepared materials to small and large groups.

Community Relations: Advanced skills in facilitating working relationships with key constituents.

Other Information: 

Technology to be Used:

• Uses cellular and office phone, laptop, or desktop computer.

Travel Requirements:

• Travel required (25 % or less)

Application procedure / How to apply:

• Interested applicants are requested to include the contact details for at least 3 references in their resume.
• Please submit your application via this website no later than April 30^th, 2023

Equal Opportunity Employer/Protected Veterans/Individuals with Disabilities

Pathfinder International provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local laws.

This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation, and training.

Safeguarding and Protection

Pathfinder is committed to the safeguarding and protection of the people we serve and our staff. We have zero tolerance for any type of behavior that inflicts harm on children, young people, adults, our staff, and partners including sexual abuse, harassment, bullying, and exploitation. We do everything possible to ensure that we recruit only those who are suitable to work with for us and expect that everyone we hire will abide by our safeguarding and related policies and will report any suspected or known violations. This job is subject to a range of vetting checks as legally permitted in the country where they are being hired. By applying, the job applicant acknowledges they understand our intent to verify suitability to work with us