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Position description
The International Association for Relief and Development (ONSUR) is a non-governmental organization established in early 2012 and registered in Syria. ONSUR is dedicated to implementing relief and development projects that empower local communities and promote a dignified life for vulnerable populations. , the organization operates through a network of execution offices in Syria, Lebanon, Iraq,Turkey, and Yemen. ONSUR delivers humanitarian assistance and sustainable development initiatives in conflict-affected regions, with a focus on transparency, community engagement, and long-term impact.
Location: Damascus
Contract Duration: Five (5) months, with the possibility of extension
POSITION SUMMARY:
The WASH, Shelter and NFI Program Coordinator is responsible for the strategic design, coordination, and quality assurance of ONSUR’s water, sanitation and hygiene, shelter, and non-food item interventions. The role ensures that all activities align with organizational priorities, donor requirements, national frameworks, and recognized humanitarian standards while responding to urgent needs and supporting resilient, sustainable services for affected communities.
The coordinator provides technical guidance and operational oversight to engineering and field program teams, ensuring sound assessments, appropriate technical designs, accurate bills of quantities, safe implementation, and effective handover. The position promotes protection, gender, disability inclusion, accountability to affected populations, environmental responsibility, and disaster-risk reduction across the portfolio, while strengthening coordination with relevant authorities, sectors, donors, and partners.
Duties and Responsibilities
Key Responsibilities
1. Program Design and Planning
• Develop and oversee WASH, Shelter and NFI program strategies in line with ONSUR’s objectives, humanitarian priorities, and donor frameworks.
• Lead the preparation and technical review of concept notes, project proposals, budgets, logical frameworks, implementation plans, and sector-specific indicators.
• Conduct and supervise needs assessments, infrastructure assessments, feasibility studies, market analyses, and vulnerability analyses to inform evidence-based prioritization.
• Ensure program designs integrate protection, housing-land-and-property considerations, gender and disability inclusion, environmental safeguards, climate resilience, and disaster-risk reduction.
2. Technical Support and Quality Assurance
• Provide continuous technical support to engineers, project teams, and field staff to ensure compliance with SPHERE standards, WASH and Shelter/NFI Sector guidance, national requirements, and ONSUR procedures.
• Review and approve technical assessments, designs, drawings, bills of quantities, technical specifications, tender documents, and Standard Operating Procedures before implementation.
• Establish quality assurance systems covering water systems, sanitation facilities, hygiene activities, shelter repair and rehabilitation, emergency shelter, and NFI distributions.
• Ensure engineering quality throughout the project cycle, including technical bid evaluation, site supervision, occupational health and safety, testing, as-built documentation, and formal handover.
3. Project Implementation Support
• Ensure timely and quality implementation of all planned WASH, Shelter and NFI activities in accordance with approved objectives, workplans, budgets, and contractual commitments.
• Coordinate with logistics, procurement, finance, security, and field teams to ensure timely availability of construction materials, equipment, NFI kits, and technical services.
• Conduct regular field visits and provide technical troubleshooting to address implementation constraints, design changes, contractor performance, and community concerns.
• Ensure all construction, rehabilitation, service-delivery, and distribution activities apply safe programming, quality control, environmental mitigation, and appropriate operation-and-maintenance arrangements.
4. Monitoring, Evaluation, and Reporting
• Work closely with the MEAL team to establish monitoring tools, technical checklists, output and outcome indicators, beneficiary feedback mechanisms, and data-quality controls.
• Contribute to monthly, quarterly, and donor reports, ensuring timely, accurate, and technically sound reporting on progress, results, challenges, expenditure, and corrective actions.
• Review project evidence, lessons learned, post-distribution monitoring, technical inspections, and evaluation findings to improve program quality and future design.
• Support assessments and evaluations that measure service functionality, shelter safety, beneficiary satisfaction, sustainability, and accountability to affected populations.
5. Capacity Building and Staff Support
• Identify capacity gaps and organize technical training for engineers, project staff, contractors, and partners on sector standards, assessment methods, design review, BOQ preparation, quality control, OHS, and reporting.
• Provide on-the-job coaching, technical supervision, and performance feedback to field teams while promoting consistent documentation and decision-making.
• Promote staff well-being, professional conduct, and compliance with PSEA, safeguarding, anti-fraud, and conflict-of-interest requirements in all work environments.
6. Partnership, Coordination, and Representation
• Maintain strong coordination with the WASH and Shelter/NFI Sectors, relevant ministries and directorates, water establishments, municipalities, local councils, and humanitarian actors.
• Represent ONSUR in sector meetings, technical working groups, strategic advisory discussions, inter-sector forums, and donor coordination meetings as assigned.
• Strengthen collaboration with local authorities, community-based organizations, suppliers, contractors, and technical partners to improve coverage, referrals, service continuity, and sustainability.
• Ensure regular information sharing and technical coordination to avoid duplication, address gaps, harmonize approaches, and support joint planning and advocacy.
7. Safeguarding and Compliance
• Ensure all interventions are designed and implemented with due consideration of protection, gender, age, disability inclusion, housing-land-and-property rights, conflict sensitivity, and the do-no-harm principle.
• Promote safe, accessible, and accountable programming and ensure staff, contractors, and communities understand feedback and reporting mechanisms for misconduct or abuse.
• Ensure compliance with ONSUR’s Code of Conduct, Child Safeguarding Policy, PSEA standards, procurement rules, technical approvals, and donor requirements.
• Report safeguarding, fraud, safety, environmental, or compliance concerns through established organizational procedures and support timely corrective action.
Note:
The above responsibilities are illustrative and not exhaustive. Additional tasks may be assigned based on organizational needs and evolving program requirements.
Qualifications
Education:
- • Bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering, Environmental Engineering, Water Engineering, Architecture, Construction Management, or a closely related technical discipline.
• A postgraduate degree or professional certification in humanitarian programming, water resources, shelter, project management, or a related field is highly desirable.
Experience:
- Minimum of 3 years of proven experience coordinating WASH, Shelter, NFI, engineering, or infrastructure programs within humanitarian or development settings.
• Demonstrated experience in water and sanitation infrastructure, shelter repair or rehabilitation, NFI programming, technical assessments, procurement support, and construction supervision.
• Experience in sector coordination, proposal development, donor reporting, budget oversight, and technical team supervision in complex emergency contexts.
Technical Skills
- • Strong knowledge of SPHERE standards, WASH and Shelter/NFI technical guidance, national codes, humanitarian principles, and accountability standards.
• Proficiency in technical assessment, engineering design review, BOQ development, cost estimation, tender evaluation, quality assurance, and contractor management.
• Working knowledge of AutoCAD or similar design tools, GIS, Microsoft Excel, Power BI, and project information-management systems.
• Understanding of OHS, environmental safeguards, climate resilience, disaster-risk reduction, HLP, protection mainstreaming, and inclusive programming.
Core Competencies
- • Strong coordination, communication, negotiation, leadership, and decision-making skills.
• Ability and willingness to travel within Syria and to ONSUR’s project locations as required.
• Commitment to upholding the highest standards of safeguarding, accountability, technical integrity, impartiality, and professional ethics
Languages:
- Excellent verbal and written communication skills in Arabic and English.
Child Protection Policy
ONSUR maintains a strict zero-tolerance policy toward all forms of child abuse and exploitation. The organization is fully committed to creating and maintaining a child-safe environment across all areas of its work. All employees are expected to uphold the highest standards of behavior to ensure the safety and well-being of children, and any breach of this policy will result in immediate disciplinary action.
Anti-Discrimination, Harassment, and Abuse Policy
ONSUR is an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to fostering a safe, inclusive, and respectful workplace for all. Discrimination, harassment, or abuse of any kind — whether based on race, ethnicity, religion, gender, age, disability, marital status, citizenship, or military status — is strictly prohibited and will not be tolerated.
All staff are expected to promote a culture of respect and integrity. Participation in any form of abuse, harassment (verbal, physical, or sexual), intimidation, or exploitation — whether inside or outside the workplace — is a violation of ONSUR’s core values and policies.
Diversity & Inclusion
ONSUR is strongly committed to gender equality and encourages qualified female candidates to apply for this position.
Application instructions
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