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Program / Department Summary

Mercy Corps’ Sudan crisis response seeks to meet the humanitarian needs of vulnerable Sudanese and other conflict-affected people across the country. Mercy Corps Sudan is recognized as a leader in market systems, agricultural, and food security and building on this experience, the MC Sudan humanitarian program will layer in resilience and other program activities where appropriate and feasible to do so. Mercy Corps is scaling up to reach upwards of 300,000 conflict affected people with multi-purpose cash assistance, targeted voucher programs, in-kind and services provision across the country. Our impact will be delivered with a focus on needs, in partnership with local actors and civil society, and embrace the safe, appropriate, and accountable use of digital systems and technologies to support the response.

The Cash Consortium of Sudan (CCS) is a collaborative platform to advance a progressive vision of the potential of cash assistance to transform humanitarian response and recovery in partnership with vulnerable conflict-affected populations. CCS’ initial funding portfolio for 2024 is $50M USD with funds from BHA, ECHO, and FCDO; the partnership sees significant opportunity to grow in 2025, both through increasing funds from its original donor base as well as attracting additional donors. CCS is led by Mercy Corps, building on its global experience and learning on leading cash consortia in multiple country contexts, as well as general expertise in cash coordination and breadth of technical resources. International partners include Acted, CARE, CORE, the International Rescue Committee (IRC), Concern, GOAL and the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), each of which bring strong cash and complementary technical competencies, as well as expansive operational coverage in Sudan. The CCS also includes twelve Sudanese NGOs as partners in alignment with global aid sector commitments to enhance the prominence of local actors in driving humanitarian response and recovery. IMPACT is a non-implementing partner dedicated to Monitoring, Evaluation, Research and Learning strengthening. IMPACT will support quality data systems, and an objective evidence base that will be essential to CCS’ accountability and adaptive management to refine programming approaches to enhance impact as the Sudan crisis context evolves. The CCS will work closely with other consortia and actors in Sudan to deliver an effective CVA response for communities affected by the crisis.

The core pillars of the CCS response include: 1) basic needs through cash assistance both at the community level through Group Cash Transfers (GCTs) delivered to Community-Based Organizations (CBOs), as well as at the household-level through Multi-Purpose Cash Assistance (MPCA); 2) strengthening market systems to ensure resilience of key market actors and supply chains as well as strengthening the availability and affordability of key commodities; 3) strengthening capacity of local partner organizations with an emphasis on accompaniment and mentorship; and 4) generation of learning and evidence to inform broader response efforts.

General Position Summary

The CFRM Advisor will support the establishment of CCS’CFRM standards and procedures across national and international partners. This includes:develop the harmonized CFRM Standard Operating Procedures for all programmatic activities across the national and international partners, develop standard databases for CFRM documentation and management, establish a common approach for feedback grading and reporting at the consortium level, and conduct training and consultation activities to ensure that the CCS CFRM system is contextualized, adopted and reflects the best practices of each partner. Through this process, the CFRM Advisor will work under the supervision of the MEL Manager and closely with theCCS Grants Manager, CCS Protection Manager and CCS Deputy Chief of Party, to ensure that documents and procedures are aligned with relevant programmatic and technical areas of the consortium.

The CFRM Advisor is responsible for the design, implementation and roll out of the CFRM System for the CCS, in compliance with Mercy Corps’ CFRM Policy and the partners existing systems and standards. They should aim for harmonization across different locations and programmatic components in Sudan, prioritizing security mitigation measures, capacity strengthening and alignment with program’s learning objectives.

• Lead the CCS’ Community Feedback and Response Mechanisms (CFRM) harmonization process across national and international partners, including mapping of current practices, design, implementation, monitoring and adaptation.

• Define and steer the strategic approach for CFRM implementation across the consortium, ensuring alignment with Mercy Corps’ standards and partner policies, and guiding partners toward a unified accountability framework. This includes feedback collection, grading, reporting, and Community Feedback and Reporting Mechanisms indicator measurement.

• Lead discussions with consortium and partner leaders to establish shared CFRM standards and priorities, ensuring consistent and aligned accountability practices across all organizations.

• In partnership with the CCS Protection Managerestablish minimum harmonized safeguarding procedures within the CCS CFRM framework, ensuring secure feedback channels that protect participants’ identities and maintain confidentiality across all consortium partners.

• Conduct Training on Safeguarding Standardsfor staff and partners, building awareness of protection standards and ensuring that CFRM interactions uphold participants’ dignity and safety.

• Develop a coordinated and harmonized framework to monitorSafeguarding Compliance in CFRM Implementation and regularly auditing processes to ensure they meet consortium and Partners’ ethical standards.

• Work closely with the CCS Protection Manager and other leaders to align CFRM safeguarding practices with broader security protocols, ensuring comprehensive participant and staff safety.

• Create comprehensive, harmonized Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for CFRM activities that integrate best practices from all consortium partners, ensuring consistency across programs.

• Lead the collaborative design of CFRM tools and resources that reflect the collective input and expertise of all partners, fostering ownership and consistency in application.

• Actively involve consortium partners and stakeholders in the development of the CFRM harmonization strategy, ensuring it addresses diverse needs and local contexts.

• Ensure that the CFRM system is aligned with the overarching goals and strategic objectives of the consortium, enhancing coherence and effectiveness in program delivery.

• Develop consultation processes to gather insights from all consortium partners to identifybest practices, barriers, challenges, and opportunities for enhancing CFRM systems, communication channels, and feedback mechanisms.

• Work closely with protection and CFRM leaders from national and international partners, along with the CCS Communications Manager, to create minimum standards and context-sensitive strategies that enhance community communication throughout the program implementation cycle.

• Lead the development of a comprehensive case management framework that standardizes the recording, grading, and follow-up processes for CFRM cases across all partners, ensuring a cohesive approach to accountability.

• Develop a minimum indicator frameworkfor the systematic analysis of feedback and data collected through the CFRM system, identifying trends, challenges, and areas for improvement that inform program adjustments and enhance responsiveness.

• Create standardized reporting templates and procedures for CFRM activities and case management across all partner organizations.

• Implement assessments to identify the specific protection needs of CCS beneficiaries in Sudan context, using CFRMfindings to inform program design and improve alignment with local context.

• Produce a detailed report summarizing the findings from monitoring activities, highlighting successes and challenges in the CFRM system harmonization, and providing recommendations for future enhancements.

• Collaborate with the CCS MEL Manager to add CFRM-related questions to all monitoring and evaluation tools, ensuring that the program’s MEL Plan includes necessary CFRM indicators.

• Collaborate with the MEL Manager and MEL Secretariat to organize data review meetings, fostering joint reflection on standardized reports and promoting continuous improvement in CFRM processes and case management practices.

• Work with the MEL team to develop and implement strategic learning frameworks that incorporate CFRM data, ensuring lessons learned inform program design and institutionalize adaptive practices.

• Provide targeted recommendations to the MEL Secretariat for integrating CFRM findings into program adaptations, enhancing CCS responsiveness to evolving contexts and ensuring participant safety concerns are systematically addressed.

• Partner with the MEL Manager to ensure the integration of minimum standards for case management, communication with communities, reporting, and other related processes of the assignment into core MEL activities, facilitating their handover, adoption, and adaptation within the consortium’s regular MEL framework.

• Coordinate inter-agency collaboration to streamline CFRM practices and implement joint protocols that prioritize participant protection, fostering accountability in humanitarian efforts.

• Support the consolidation of working groups and coordination strategies with internal teams and external stakeholders to align CFRM practices with the Accountability to Affected Populations (AAP) framework.

• Engage with external organizations and clusters to exchange best practices related to CFRM and protection, fostering collaboration that enhances overall program effectiveness.

• Organize and facilitate regular internal meetings with relevant teams to discuss CFRM implementation, share updates on feedback mechanisms, and align strategies across the consortium.

• Establish and maintain effective communication channels between different departments to ensure that all staff members are informed of CFRM processes and protection strategies.

• Ensure compliance with security procedures and policies as determined by country leadership.

• Proactively ensure that team members operate in a secure environment and are aware of policies.

Language skills: Fluency in written and oral English.Proficiency in Arabic is desirable.

Success Factors

A successful candidate must have a creative mindset that enables them to devise innovative solutions for enhancing the CFRM system. They should be adept at developing engaging training materials and feedback mechanisms tailored to diverse community needs, fostering trust and participation among affected populations.The candidate will demonstrate a commitment to inclusivity, engaging stakeholders from diverse backgrounds, and effectively addressing their concerns within the CFRM framework.

A successful candidate must have robust technical expertise in data management and analysis, enabling them to create and implement standardized databases for CFRM documentation. They should demonstrate a commitment to data quality and accountability processes, ensuring that insights from feedback are systematically integrated into program improvements.

They must have strong collaboration skills to effectively engage with various stakeholders, including consortium partners, local communities, and protection specialists. They should be skilled in building relationships that promote inclusivity and ensure that the CFRM system is collectively shaped and accepted.

Living Conditions / Environmental Conditions

The position is based in Nairobi, Kenya, with housing provided in individual accommodations. Remote-based arrangements may be considered, with periodic travel to Nairobi for essential coordination, including the position’s kick-off.

Mercy Corps team members represent the agency both during and outside work hours when deployed in operational countries or on a visit to a program site. Team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner and respect local laws, customs and MC’s policies, procedures, and values at all times and in all in-country venues.

Fostering a diverse and open workplace is an important part of Mercy Corps’ vision. Mercy Corps is an Equal Opportunity Employer regardless of background. We are committed to creating an inclusive environment.

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

Achieving our mission begins with how we build our team and work together. Through our commitment to enriching our organization with people of different origins, beliefs, backgrounds, and ways of thinking, we are better able to leverage the collective power of our teams and solve the world’s most complex challenges. We strive for a culture of trust and respect, where everyone contributes their perspectives and authentic selves, reaches their potential as individuals and teams, and collaborates to do the best work of their lives.

We recognize that diversity and inclusion is a journey, and we are committed to learning, listening, and evolving to become more diverse, equitable and inclusive than we are today.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Mercy Corps is an equal opportunity employer that does not tolerate discrimination on any basis. We actively seek out diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be collectively stronger and have sustained global impact.

We are committed to providing an environment of respect and psychological safety where equal employment opportunities are available to all. We do not engage in or tolerate discrimination on the basis of race, color, gender identity, gender expression, religion, age, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin, disability (including HIV/AIDS status), marital status, military veteran status or any other protected group in the locations where we work.

Safeguarding & Ethics

Mercy Corps is committed to ensuring that all individuals we come into contact with through our work, whether team members, community members, program participants or others, are treated with respect and dignity. We are committed to the core principles regarding prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse laid out by the UN Secretary General and IASC. We will not tolerate child abuse, sexual exploitation, abuse, or harassment by or of our team members. As part of our commitment to a safe and inclusive work environment, team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner, respect local laws and customs, and to adhere to Mercy Corps Code of Conduct Policies and values at all times. Team members are required to complete mandatory Code of Conduct e-learning courses upon hire and on an annual basis.