Social Accountability-National Volunteer at Voluntary Service Overseas (VSO) (Deadline:18 Oct 2021)

Volunteer role: Social Accountability-National Volunteer

VSO is the world’s leading international development charity that works through volunteers to create a fair world for everyone. At VSO we pride ourselves on doing development differently. We fight poverty not by sending aid, but by working through volunteers and partners to create long-lasting change in some of the world’s poorest regions. We bring key stakeholders together to coordinate collective action, from local organisations to national governments. Our programmes in Africa and Asia focus on health, education and livelihoods, with an increasing emphasis on resilience, peacebuilding, social accountability, gender and social inclusion. We’re not about delivering quick fixes, but instead, we focus on long-lasting, sustainable change that will improve the lives of generations to come.

Role overview

Working at project location – In this role, you will provide on-site support in the project location and/or VSO office, (full-time unless otherwise specified) for a set period of time.

The volunteer will provide support and capacity building at the country level and consortium partners, Civil Society Organisations, especially youth-focussed/led organizations to enable them to: 1. gain skills and knowledge in social accountability relevant to the needs of the Intersectionality Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights programme; 2. Have the necessary tools for undertaking social accountability activities within the programme; 3. Raise awareness and promote dialogue among different stakeholders to respond to the needs and priorities of vulnerable youth with compounded vulnerabilities across the programme; and, 4. To engage and mobilise vulnerable youth groups to lead their own advocacy agendas.

Skills, qualifications and experience

Essential criteria (must have to be able to carry out the role successfully)

Qualifications:

•  At least a bachelor’s degree in a related subject preferably Policy, Political Science, Law, Gender or Development studies.

Experience:

•  At least three years experience in advocacy and policy space as well as developing responses to SRHR issues in a development context.
•  Demonstrated ability to effectively convene, coordinate and communicate with a diverse range of stakeholders and identifying their needs and using their own voice to express their priorities.
• Strong background in participatory community consultation.
•  Experienced in designing and delivering community consultation programmes.
•  Excellent organisational skills.
• Ability to work with minimal supervision.
•  Excellent written and communication skills especially when explaining complex concepts to audiences of different levels.
• Proven ability to train, coach and supervise others.

Skills/Abilities:

• Building and sustaining working relationships: foster teamwork and collaboration with others for the benefit of a common goal.
• Open-minded and respectful: a non-judgmental approach that values other people and culture.
• Seeking and sharing knowledge: recognition that learning is a two-way and continuous process.
• Demonstrated organizational, analytical and interpersonal skills.
• Facilitating positive change: the ability to analyse problems and develop lasting solutions in line with VSO approaches.
• Adaptability: a flexible approach and the ability to adapt behaviour to different situations.
•  Resilience: the self-confidence to work with a variety of situations, diverse people and ambiguity

People with a lived experience of marginalization based on their identities (gender, race, ability, sexual orientation, religion, ethnicity, etc) are encouraged to apply.

Equal Opportunities:

VSO promotes equal opportunities and values a diverse workforce.

Allowance

As a VSO volunteer, you will be sharing your skills with local communities on a full-time basis. VSO will cover your travel, vaccinations, accommodation, and medical insurance costs, along with a local living allowance which will be paid in local currency. This allowance meets reasonable living expenses in the country, but will not be enough to send money home. You will also receive some financial support to contribute to your on-going expenses at home.

Accommodation

VSO works with some of the poorest communities in the world which means accommodation varies and will be basic.

Some background about VSO

Much has changed since VSO started 60 years ago. We’ve gone from being a UK charity to a truly global development organisation. In 2016/2017 alone, we worked with over 7,000 volunteers from all over the world and from all backgrounds to deliver services that had an impact on the lives of almost 2.6 million people in the 24 countries where we work. Our programmes focus on the areas of health, education and livelihoods, with an increasing emphasis on resilience building, social accountability, gender and social inclusion. We believe progress is only possible when we work together and that strong partnerships are crucial to delivering positive change. That’s why we work with over 500 partner organisations, from local and national governments, to businesses, NGOs, funders, charities and community groups. Currently, over 30% of our people are recruited from within the country in which they work, and we continue to grow the share of community and national volunteers involved in our programmes. We also send increasing numbers of volunteers from one developing country to another. However, our vision has remained the same; to build a world without poverty.

VSO reserves the right to close this job early if we receive a sufficient number of applications.

Your application and COVID-19

We are continually reviewing our ability to safely programme and implement projects during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many local restrictions are being implemented in several VSO locations, which impacts VSO’s existing programme delivery.

We will continue to follow the advice of the World Health Organisation (WHO) and national governments to protect the wellbeing and safety of all communities, employees and volunteers.

We’re continuing to build a talent pool of prospective professional volunteers so we can get back to supporting communities as soon as we’re able to.

If your application is shortlisted, a VSO hiring manager will be in touch to discuss the next steps and any changes to your placement and role.

You can read VSO’s COVID-19 statement and frequently asked questions about volunteering during the COVID-19 pandemic here.

If you’re interested in applying for this role, please download the job description for more information.

Once you’re ready to apply, click on ‘make an application’ below to complete the online form.

Make an application

VSO has zero tolerance of abuse and exploitation of vulnerable people. We expect all our employees/volunteers to ensure we protect children, young people and vulnerable adults from harm and abide by our safeguarding policy (PDF).

Click here to read more and Apply