Gender & Safeguards Specialist

Conservation International protects nature for the benefit of humanity. Through science, policy, fieldwork, and finance, we spotlight and secure the most important places in nature for the climate, biodiversity, and for people. With offices in 30 countries and projects in more than 100 countries, Conservation International partners with governments, companies, civil society, Indigenous peoples, and local communities to help people and nature thrive together.

POSITION SUMMARY - This position is based in Gaborone, Botswana

The “Ecosystem-Based Adaptation and Mitigation in Botswana’s Communal Rangelands” Project funded by Green Climate Fund (GCF) aims to utilize collective management of livestock and ecosystems to restore Botswana’s communal rangelands, increasing the climate resilience of vulnerable populations and reducing GHG emissions. Over 8 years, the project will undertake activities in 104 villages in the Project Areas: Northwest and Kgalagadi Districts, and Bobirwa Sub District geographic areas of Botswana to improve management of 4.6 million hectares of rangelands. As such, implementing the project in an intersectional gender-responsive manner is critical for project success.

The Gender & Safeguards Specialist will be proactively overseeing, coordinating, and providing valuable technical support for the implementation of the project's Gender Action Plan and Environmental and Social Management Plan (ESMP), along with multiple safeguards plans falling under the ESMP, including:

• Local Communities Plan
• Grievance Redress Mechanism
• Labor and Working Conditions Risk Management Plan
• Environmental Management Plan
• Involuntary Resettlement and Restriction of Access to Natural Resources Plan
• Community Health, Safety, and Security Management Plan
• Conflict Mitigation Plan

This critical role within the project team focuses on identifying solutions, guiding adaptive changes, and actively contributing to monitoring efforts. The Gender & Safeguards Specialist will work closely with the Deputy chief of party, science team, project management, field staff, and key partners, including relevant government ministries and stakeholders.

RESPONSIBILITIES

Take responsibility for leading, coordinating, and providing technical assistance for the project’s Gender Action Plan (GAP) and Environmental and Social Management Plan (ESMP). This includes the following:

Training and Capacity Development:

• Develop and deliver tailored, practical training programs for project staff and project partners, ensuring they are project context-specific and culturally aligned.
• Lead gender-focused and safeguard-related training sessions, outreach, and consultations, tailored to each project cluster (district), with ongoing community engagement.
• Create and nurture a network of women leaders from across the project sites, offering leadership training to develop local champions.
• Engage male community members and leaders in discussions around gender roles, empowering women, and addressing underlying causes of gender-based violence (GBV).
• Contribute to the design and negotiation of gender-inclusive Stewardship Agreements, ensuring an equitable and inclusive approach.
• Provide mentorship to female restoration team members and team leaders, focusing on leadership development and gender equity issues.
• Organize workshops with private sector partners in the livestock industry to highlight best practices for collaborating with women producers.

Gender Mainstreaming and Safeguards Integration:

• Review and update GAP & ESS plans to align with project resumption timelines.
• Work with the project team to ensure gender equity and safeguard measures are embedded in all project activities and initiatives, achieving the intended outcomes.
• Within the Ipelegeng Rangeland Stewardship Programme, promote gender-sensitive recruitment, training, and employment practices, including access to childcare through partnerships with local nursery schools.
• Oversee the implementation and management of the project’s Grievance and Redress Mechanism (GRM).
• Incorporate gender and safeguard considerations into the Professional Herding and Rangeland Rehabilitation Training Program.
• Identify and support equal participation of women and men in Farmer Learning Exchanges, aiming for 50/50 gender representation.
• Collaborate with partners to strengthen gender and safeguard provisions in their operational strategies, such as those of Village Development Committees.
• Work with COP and DCoP to ensure that the Ipelegeng Rangeland Stewardship Programme reflects gender inclusivity and upholds labor rights and other safeguards.

Collaboration and Partnership Development:

• Communicate project results, materials, and lessons learned to both internal and external stakeholders.
• Foster a formal collaboration with the Department of Gender Affairs, including defining areas of technical collaboration including Child Care Services Programs (e.g Play Groups).
• Collaborate with the Ministry of Agriculture to support mainstreaming of gender into their climate change programming.
• Build relationships with Gender-Based Violence (GBV) response actors and compile localized referral lists of GBV response service providers across the project areas.
• Work closely with the Policy Manager to contribute to the National Gender and Development Policy.
• Maintain close coordination with CI’s Global Safeguards Team and gender working group.

Monitoring, Reporting and Evaluation:

• Conduct baseline and/or ongoing assessments through focus groups, interviews, and other appropriate methodologies and compile and analyze assessment data and provide actionable responses.
• Monitor and evaluate gender and safeguard-related project outcomes, using project-specific indicators and qualitative data collection through tools like Monday.com and ActivityInfo.
• Lead GCF reporting on the GAP and ESMP process and outcomes.
• Monitor the Accountability and Grievance Mechanism and ensure it is gender-sensitive and responsive, particularly regarding GBV-related grievances.
• Work to integrate gender and safeguard principles into the new Rangeland Stewardship Information Portal.

WORKING CONDITIONS

• The role is largely office-based but may require extended and irregular working hours.
• Flexibility is essential to accommodate different time zones.

QUALIFICATIONS

Required

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience in a relevant field such as gender studies, social science, development, or international relations, with 4 to 6 years of experience implementing gender and social analyses, as well as gender action plans within International development, conservation, climate change, or natural resource management (NRM) projects that involve rural communities.
  
• Up to 2 years of supervisory experience.
• Strong analytical and facilitation skills.
• Proven experience in developing and managing Grievance Redress Mechanisms (GRM).
• Understanding of gender/social norms and GBV in rural Botswana and the ability to implement risk mitigation strategies and direct survivors to support.
• Experience in designing and conducting community-based surveys, focus groups, and other data collection methods.
• Willingness and ability to spend significant time in rural field locations.
• Proficiency in both English and Setswana.
• Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal.
• Strong capacity for managing multiple tasks in a dynamic environment, with an ability to work independently and take initiative.

Preferred

• Familiarity with environmental and social safeguards.
• Postgraduate qualifications in relevant fields.
• Experience working with local governments, NGOs, or community development organizations at the district level.

To apply for this position please submit a resume and cover letter.

Application Deadline: November 10, 2024 (11:49 PM EST)

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