Social Protection Technical Officer

Introduction:

Lebanon does not have a comprehensive or coherent national social protection policy and its social protection system remains fragmented with those employed in the formal economy covered by the National Social Security Fund (NSSF) and those in the informal economy reliant on subsidies and hand-outs. Lebanon spends little on Social Assistance for its own population with subsidies crowding out needed expenditure on programmes that could reach the poor.  The protracted refugee crisis and adverse economic and fiscal environment is causing increasing strain on the already fragile social assistance system.

As part of efforts to establish a national social protection floor (SPF) in the country, the ILO supports tripartite stakeholders in their efforts to identify reforms required to close social security gaps, reform the (EOI) into an old-age, disability and survivors’ pension scheme, introduce universal healthcare and an unemplomument insurance scheme and assist in the establishment of a national SPF.

The ILO pursues engagement in these areas through a range of development cooperation projects including:  a) A UN Joint Programme on Transforming national dialogue for the establishment and extension of an inclusive national social protection system for Lebanon, which is implemented in partnership with UNICEF, WFP, UN-WOMEN and UNDP; b) the multi-partner programme on “Improving prospects for host communities and forcibly displaced persons (PROSPECTS)” funded by the Netherlands.

The Social Protection Officer will be based in Beirut and will work under the supervision of the Senior Social Protection Specialist for the ILO office for the Arab States in Beirut, and in coordination with the Social Protection Department in HQ. The incumbent will ensure an effective coordination of ILO support to the ongoing reforms through timely provision of inputs, effective oversight and supervision of external collaborators and implementing partners, timely and efficient delivery of outputs, in conformity with ILO policies, project strategies, programming guidelines and administrative and financial procedures.

Description of Duties:

The incumbent will undertake the following tasks:

1. Ensure effective coordination, planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of Development Cooperation (DC) project activities in the area of social protection in Lebanon, in conformity with ILO policies and project strategies, and in accordance with ILO programming guidelines, and administrative and financial procedures.
2. Ensure effective management and timely delivery of funds/budget assigned to the DC project activities in the area of social protection in Lebanon. Ensure that the results of the project at impact, outcome and output levels are achieved through the activities and interventions of the project, they are deemed sustainable, and the results are regularly documented, monitored, evaluated, reported, communicated and used for learning and adjustment of the project. Evaluate the efficiency and effectiveness of the project activities.
3. Provide technical inputs and policy advisory services and capacity building to the various relevant ministries, social partners, national social security institutions, decentralized authorities, and other relevant institutions and national stakeholders in Lebanon in close collaboration with agencies and development partners, regarding social security and social assistance, in line with international labour standards
4. Support social dialogue and capacity development processes to ensure active engagement and participation of all relevant stakeholders in the design and implementation of social security and social protection reforms. Oversee the development and implementation of the social security communication and awareness raising campaigns
5. Identify needed expertise, knowledge and capacity gaps of national partners and main stakeholders and propose appropriate technical action, providing direct technical assistance where appropriate. Identify training needs and lead training workshops and meetings for the tripartite partners, NGOs, other agencies, target groups and staff in Lebanon as appropriate to reinforce the professional capabilities.
6. Identify pivotal policy issues and contribute to social protection policy developments and the formulation of national plans for the extension of social security to all, in the conceptual framework of Decent Work Programme.
7. Facilitate exchange of good practices in the area of social protection between Lebanon and other neighbouring countries. Develop knowledge base, including the collection, analysis of trends and developments, assessment, documentation and disseminations of major legislation, statistics and relevant data concerning social security and of the various elements of the national social security and protection system and floors in Lebanon.
8. Maintain close liaisons with governments, workers' and employers' organizations, UN organizations, research institutions and non-governmental organizations which are involved in the field of social protection in Lebanon.
9. Represent the Office at meetings, seminars and evaluations and build and enhance strategic partnerships and networks of government policymakers, other UN agencies and development partners, workers’ and employers’ organizations, and civil society organizations in the area of social protection and social security.
10. Undertake such other tasks and responsibilities as may be assigned by the supervisor.

Required qualifications:

Education

Advanced university degree in economics, public law, public administration, social sciences, development studies or a related field.

Experience

Three years of professional experience in the in the field of social protection and social policy. Demonstrated experience in supporting social security and/or social protection reforms would be an advantage.

Languages

Excellent command of English and Arabic. Knowledge of French would be an advantage.

Competencies

In addition to the ILO core competencies, this position requires:

Technical competencies:

• Ability to provide technical advice and to guide and coordinate the work of external collaborators, general service staff and young professionals in the area of specialization.

• Ability to conceptualise and design research techniques and analyse complex cross-national practices and data sets covering a wide range of issues in the specialized technical field.

• Ability to formulate new concepts and methodologies and to synthesise research and reach empirically based conclusions on related subjects by understanding both the qualitative and quantitative approaches in social science research.

• Ability to draft reports and prepare guidelines relating to programme development and implementation.

• Ability to provide technical support to senior specialists, carrying out research, project formulation and implementation.

• Ability to participate effectively in technical missions and to provide technical inputs for the ILO Decent Work Agenda.

• Excellent analytical skills and knowledge of analytical tools and qualitative and quantitative techniques.

• Good computer skills.

• Ability to work in a multicultural environment and gender-sensitive behaviour and attitudes are also required.

• Proven ability to take ownership of all responsibilities, to act with integrity and transparency by maintaining social, ethical and organisational norms, and to meet all commitments within the prescribed time, cost and quality standards.

• Ability to develop training strategies and design training materials.

• Ability to formulate project proposals, policy documents and procedural matters.

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to write accurate reports and to build networks to obtain cooperation with partners.