Senior Specialist, WASH Governance and Infrastructure

PRO-WASH (Practices, Research and Operations in Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) is a five-year project led by Save the Children and funded by the USAID Office of Food for Peace (FFP). PRO-WASH actively works with partners to strengthen the quality, effectiveness and sustainability of WASH practices in FFP-funded development and emergency food security activities. This includes delivering several core activities aimed at strengthening partner capacities including: capacity-strengthening workshops (both in-person and remote), applied research into field-viable solutions to WASH service delivery, high-quality technical guides, learning notes, and opportunities to share implementation experiences with other USAID/FFP partners.

Contingent on additional award funding, PRO-WASH is expanding learning and applied research around drinking water and productive water supply, water system maintenance, and rural water governance in alignment with USAID’s Global Water Strategy and USAID Water and Development Plans. The expanded programming will capture innovative approaches around integrated water resource management (IWRM) which will allow PRO-WASH to better support development and emergency partners often working in settings affected by droughts and other water-related shocks.

What You’ll Be Doing (Essential Duties)

The Senior Specialist for WASH Governance and Infrastructure has a broad range of experience working across relevant water approaches including IWRM, water governance, water service provisioning, watershed management, and infrastructure. This position will provide strategic technical support across a range of activities including in-person trainings, distance learning, mentoring, leading the development of new learning tools, and capturing best practices from partners related to IWRM activities. As the Senior Specialist, you will also support WASH-related research and learning activities and will coordinate closely with FFP, implementing partners, and research institutions.

Technical Leadership and Support (50%)

• Work with the PRO-WASH Director to develop a unified vision for this broad portfolio focusing on IWRM support to partners;
• Lead work on stakeholder mapping to identify areas for additional technical support and capacity-strengthening in IWRM across partners working in development and humanitarian contexts;
• As required, develop the design and implementation of WASH capacity building activities, including designing and implementing Training of Trainers (ToT) curricula to achieve longer-term, sustainable learning capacities at all levels – HQ, field, management and technical – within implementing organizations;
• Create and disseminate capacity strengthening tools, trainings, and practice materials focused on IWRM including USAID WASH infrastructure standards through multiple channels, including in-person trainings, distance learning, low-resource and low bandwidth A/V, and mentoring methodologies;
• Provide follow-up remote mentoring support; guide organizations to develop sustainable capacity strengthening plans focused on IWRM;
• Support the implementation of priority research activities focused on IWRM funded through the award;
• Provide input to the strategic direction and oversight for learning events focused on sharing partners’ experiences around the intersection of IWRM, agriculture and resilience capacities;
• Provide technical assistance to implementing partners, as requested.

Management and Coordination (30%)

• Work with the PRO-WASH Director to develop strategic partnerships with USAID/FFP, implementing partners, governments, and research institutions working across the various areas of IWRM;
• Identify and coordinate global, regional, and national opportunities for capacity strengthening workshops, events, or exchanges;
• Link practitioners to capacity strengthening opportunities conducted by other organizations (e.g., academic institutions, research bodies and other international agencies);
• Support capacity-building efforts of FFP WASH implementing partners, including the development of appropriate WASH resources, materials and capacity building opportunities to share with partner staff at HQ and field level.

Program Learning, Knowledge Management, and Innovation (20%)

• Document all IWRM related capacity building and learning events;
• As required, identify and conduct webinars highlighting new developments or approaches in IWRM for implementing partners;
• Monitor new developments, approaches and evidence within the IWRM sector;
• Identify evidence gaps and priorities for research and documentation related to IWRM and pursue opportunities for research and program learning to fill these gaps;
• Support PRO-WASH Director in program reporting per donor requirements;
• Contribute to Save the Children’s quarterly and annual reporting, strategic and operational planning and other management and documentation mechanisms;
• Develop and coordinate strong documentation, learning documents, toolkits and data collection and management methods for sharing with the larger food security community, including via FSN Network.

Required Qualifications

• Minimum 5-7 years' experience in area of expertise related to integrated water resource management, water governance, water service provisioning, watershed management and infrastructure;
• Bachelor’s degree required;
• Professional level of technical or managerial WASH knowledge, skills, and experience providing technical and management support related to similarly sized programs;
• Experience using integrated approaches to WASH including systems thinking;
• Demonstrated capacity strengthening skills and experience with focus on institutionalizing capacity strengthening systems within partner organizations;

• Practical experience that demonstrates an understanding of the challenges working in development and emergency contexts;

• Strong written and verbal communications skills;
• Collaborative and respectful working style with colleagues from diverse backgrounds and work settings;
• Excellent interpersonal skills and the ability to work both independently and as a team member with diverse headquarters, field office, and partner agency staff;
• Computer literacy in word processing, graphics, and spreadsheet software packages and particularly use of PowerPoint;
• Ability and willingness to travel to developing countries up to 20% of time.

Preferred Qualifications

• M.A., M.S., M.Sc. in Engineering, Public Health, Environmental Health or equivalent are strongly preferred;
• Additional technical expertise in any of following sectors: sustainability of WASH infrastructure, public-private partnerships, water quality monitoring, natural resources management, early warning and response, and governance systems;
• Familiarity with USAID-funded activities, particularly within USAID/FFP, Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA), Bureau for Economic Growth, Education, and Environment (E3) and/or Global Health;
• Experience in qualitative and quantitative research, including those focused on improving drinking water quality, particularly those less reliant on heavy behavior change strategies and household expenditures;
• Experience working in the Sahel region;
• French or other language skills are desirable.

Why you should join the Save the Children Team… 

Save the Children US offers outstanding benefits that include health, dental, vision and life insurances, pet insurance, short-term and long-term disability coverage, an Employee Assistance Program, 403(b), generous vacation, personal sick leave, family leave, parental/adoption leave, commuter benefits, dress for your day, and much more.   

Click here to learn more about how Save the Children US will invest in YOU! 

About Save the Children 

Save the Children believes every child deserves a future. In the United States and around the world, we give children a healthy start in life, the opportunity to learn and protection from harm. We do whatever it takes for children – every day and in times of crisis – transforming their lives and the future we share.  

Save the Children is committed to conducting its programs and operations in a manner that is safe for the children it serves and helping protect the children with whom Save the Children is in contact. All Save the Children representatives are explicitly prohibited from engaging in any activity that may result in any kind of child abuse. In addition, it is Save the Children’s policy to create and proactively maintain an environment that aims to prevent and deter any actions and omissions, whether deliberate or inadvertent, that place children at the risk of any kind of child abuse. All our representatives are expected to conduct themselves in a manner consistent with this commitment and obligation. Any violations of this policy will be treated as a serious issue.  

We provide equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, ancestry, sexual orientation, national origin, age, handicap, disability, marital status, or status as a veteran. Save the Children complies with all applicable laws.