Technical Lead Education – Regional Facility for Teachers in Africa (RFTA) (M/W) Full Time

Mission description

Located at the EF coordination office in Addis Ababa (Ethiopia), with frequent travel within Sub-Sahara Africa and occasional travel to Europe, the Technical Lead Education will continuously provide technical support, backstopping, and ensure quality assurance for key activities delivered by the Facility, particularly under Windows 1 and 2. He/she will ensure the Facility stays consistently aligned with relevant international technical frameworks, standards, and norms related to teacher policy, teacher-related issues, teacher competency frameworks, and teacher education and professional development, incorporating best practices.

Working closely with three other Technical Lead Education, each responsible for providing technical support to the Facility within their respective MS agency, he/she will also maintain regular and frequent information exchange with Technical Committee Members, EU Delegations, beneficiary institutions and other stakeholders of the project (mainly UNESCO and African Union).

Under the supervision of the Facility Team Leader based in Paris, the main tasks entrusted to the Technical Lead Education are:

Responsibility 1 : Technical support and Quality assurance

a) Under Window 1 (Technical assistance) :

• Develop strategies to engage eligible countries in the preparation of action plans and technical assistance requests.
• Implement on-site missions to explore new requests in priority countries eligible to RFTA support.
• Lead fact-finding missions to assess feasibility and prepare actions.
• Collaborate with partner countries, the local education group (LEG), the EUMS liaison office, and the EU Delegation to develop country action plans.
• Proactively search for experts and partner public institutions to contribute to the pool of experts and address identified needs.
• Review Terms of Reference (TORs) for actions implemented, ensuring coherence and quality assurance with the CAP.
• Provide technical support to project officers in charge of mobilizing expertise on a thematic or geographical portfolio of requests and actions (instruction, formulation, implementation, monitoring & evaluation and closure).
• Provide guidance on identifying and planning technical expertise to address specific needs.
• Develop and implement quality assurance processes to make sure that the provided technical assistance responds to the countries’ needs.
• Contribute to the enhancement of standard operating procedures, templates, business processes, and FIT organization aiming at improving the delivery of technical assistance.

b) Window 2 (testing and scaling effective programs) :

• Contribute to the design of the calls for proposals (teachers in crisis contexts).
• Contribute to the selection process of the calls for proposals (teachers in crisis contexts).
• Review and provide feedback on the implementation reports of the projects implemented through the call for proposals.

Responsibility 2 : Coordination and Networking

• Maintain excellent communication with fellow members of the Facility Advisory Team, particularly the other Technical Lead Education, through team coordination mechanisms (regular information sharing, coordination meetings, etc.).
• Develop professional networks at national, European, and international levels to broaden the spectrum of expertise engaged by the Facility in key sectors.
• Assist in identifying potential collaborative institutions and new partners in Europe and Sub-Saharan Africa.
• Engage with external stakeholders, potential collaborators, and partner institutions to address matters concerning the development of RFTA.
• Attend meetings of the Technical Coordination Committee (TCC), Partnership, and the Facility Implementation Team (FIT).
• Attend relevant national and international workshops, seminars, and conferences aligned with the strategic interests of RFTA.
• Represent RFTA whenever needed, following the directives of the Facility Director, including in awareness, communication, and visibility activities.
• Liaise with local authorities, teams from implementing agencies, the European Union, and partner institutions in Addis Ababa.

Responsibility 3: Reporting, Knowledge Management and Evaluation

• Provide technical support on education and teacher policy matters for essential reporting, monitoring, and evaluation activities within the Facility.
• Facilitate the identification and exchange of tools, experiences, and practices developed with RFTA support.
• Collaborate with the Knowledge Management Coordinator to contribute to knowledge management processes focusing on issues related to teacher-related issues.
• Contribute to the sound implementation of the MEAL strategy and activities, in collaboration with the M&E Coordinator

The described tasks involve the necessity to network and interact with a multiplicity of institutions from EU and Sub-Saharan countries and require readiness and ability to travel abroad when necessary.

Project or context description

The Regional Teacher Initiative for Africa (RTIA), a programme funded by the EU/EC via the Education section (G3) of DG INTPA aims to improve learning outcomes and the socio-emotional development of children in Africa, by having a more competent, motivated and inclusive teacher workforce in basic education.

The RTIA will especially seek to achieve the following outcomes over the next 6 years:

1. Improve the governance, management, attractiveness, and gender balance of the teaching profession, with a strong focus on increased digitalisation and innovation.
2. Enhance the quality, relevance, and effectiveness of initial and continuous teacher professional development, notably through digital education, peer-to-peer learning approaches and regional collaboration.

Within RTIA, the Regional Facility for Teachers in Africa (RFTA) will support teacher policy and improve teacher education and professional development systems by i) providing capacity building at country level through technical assistance, ii) promoting innovation and scaling of effective teaching solutions; iii) increasing the production and use of data and evidence, and iv) promoting the use of regional frameworks, evidence-based practices, and joint learning at regional level.

The Regional Facility for Teachers in Africa (RFTA) will reach the above-mentioned objectives through 3 types of instruments or “windows”:

• one window to deliver technical assistance on teacher governance and teacher education and professional development based on the demand from eligible partner countries,
• one window on testing and scaling effective programs for teacher education and professional development in the thematic areas of digital skills, gender, green skills, and pedagogical skills, including in the context of refugees and displaced populations,
• a research window to create new evidence and support the integration of evidence in the policy making process and in the design of teacher education and professional development programs.

In addition to these windows the Facility’s knowledge management and communication activities will further contribute to the sharing of knowledge, evidence, and best practices related to the overall Initiative outcomes.

The Facility will be funded by the European Union and be co-implemented by the Partnership formed by 3 Member state agencies: Expertise France for France, Enabel for Belgium, EDUFI for Finland. Expertise France has been designated the Coordinating Agency for this Partnership. With the Facility governance scheme serving as the Initiative’s governance scheme, it is expected that the Partnership will work closely with UNESCO and UAC, in charge of the other 2 components of the EU Initiative.

The duration of the action is scheduled from 01.02.2024 to 31.01.2027 (36 months) with a budget of 46.000.000 EUR.

Required profile

Required Skills :

• Minimum Master diploma in Educational Sciences, Educational Policy and Planning, Economics of Education, Teacher Education, or equivalent by experience. A postgraduate degree in education related issues would be an asset.
• Profound understanding of teacher policy, teacher questions, teacher competency framework, and teacher education and professional development (including good practices).
• Working knowledge of education and teacher education systems and stakeholders in Sub-Sahara Africa.
• Deep understanding of the specific challenges faced by children and teachers in crisis contexts (conflicts, displacements, economic shocks, climate-related disasters, etc.) with the ability to strategize and address these issues effectively.
• Good knowledge of the policies and institutional actors of education in an EU Member State and if possible, at European level
• Solid understanding of European and international frameworks and institutions concerning issues related to teachers.
• Capable of guiding result-oriented strategic and activity planning processes, including the formulation of country action plans.
• Proficient in project management tools and processes. Familiarity with EU administrative, project management, and financial procedures is advantageous.
• Excellent planning, organisational, interpersonal and communication skills.
• Strong analytical skills, excellent leadership competences, strong interpersonal and communication skills.
• Proven ability to cooperate and negotiate with local and institutional partners as well as government representatives. Politically and culturally sensitive with qualities of patience, tact, and diplomacy.
• Full command of standard computer applications (Microsoft Office)
• Fluent French and English spoken and written skills are essential. Other languages desired: Spanish, Portuguese, Arabic

Required Experience :

• Minimum of 10 years’ professional experience on an education advisor position, preferably with focus on teacher-related issues.
• Working experience in the field of education in Sub-Sahara Africa (through long term assignments or short-term missions), preferably in large complex projects (> 10M€) and/or in crisis context.
• Experience in the creation, maintenance, coordination and animation of networks of expertise.
• Experience in working and coordinating with international and national partners, government and donor agencies.
• Working experience with the promotion of inclusivity of vulnerable groups, in the broad sense of the word.
• Work experience in a multi-lingual/international environment and ability to accommodate cultural differences to interact effectively with people of different cultures.
• Ability to communicate, to exchange ideas, to listen to, and to network with various partners and stakeholders.
• Demonstrated experience in designing theories of change and facilitating discussions/activities/workshops on the articulation of activities-outputs-outcomes and impact

Tagged as: Ethiopia, Expertise France