About Rare

Rare inspires change so people and nature thrive. For 50 years, across 60 countries, we have inspired and empowered millions of people and their communities to shift their behaviors and practices to protect our shared planet. We are a global leader in driving social change for people and nature and believe that the cumulative power of individual and community action is a vital pathway to safeguarding and restoring our shared waters, lands, and climate. Rare's organizational culture is results-oriented, and entrepreneurial, and our global programs cover the thematic areas of climate change, fisheries and marine conservation, sustainable agriculture food security, and Green Recovery.

About the Position

Rare has an immediate need for a Program Implementation Associate to support our Fish Forever program in the Leyte Gulf region of the Philippines. The Associate will provide key support in leading the program implementation for the Fish Forever Program as well as in upcoming projects in the Leyte Gulf cluster. They will participate, along with the other Program Implementation Team (PIT) members, in the overall planning, implementation, and review of all projects within the cluster. They will proactively coordinate and work hand in hand with the Shared Services Group (SSG) - Philippines. They will also support technical matters such as Managed Access Area and Reserve (MA +R) management, fisheries policy development and law enforcement, and program monitoring, evaluation and learning. The Associate will be required to travel to project sites to conduct project planning and related activities based on agreed timelines and scope, mainly in the provinces included in the Leyte Gulf project and other parts of the Philippines if strategic and needed. They will also lead in ensuring partnership, promoting, and linking program undertakings with the regional field units of relevant government agencies and other development organizations working in the cluster.

Key Responsibilities

The Associate, Program Implementation, will exercise independent judgment regarding the following areas of significance:

Program Implementation

Support Fish Forever in achieving the basic principles of rights-based fisheries and community-based fisheries management through its core strategy of establishing managed access + reserves (MA +R)
Work on program management in assigned sites, including integrated planning, budget leveraging, site-level oversight in implementation, monitoring and evaluation, and contribute to cluster-wide reporting
Responsible in determining and coordinating the sharing of resources within the assigned sites to the overall benefit of the program
Support the development of site-level roadmaps, which should integrate the optimal mix of interventions and program approaches that can deliver functional MA +R supported by behavior change and economic resilience strategies
Is accountable for ensuring alignment with Fish Forever standards and technical approaches

Technical Support for Program Implementation

Lead as facilitator or resource person on marine protected areas and governance and fisheries management topics and modules during capacity building activities at the sites to capacitate MA+R Management Boards and other site implementation partners
Act as coach to co-delivery partners such as provincial/regional collaborators to improve their partners capacities to support program implementation
Work closely with the Site Implementing Partners in the smooth execution of the program strategies particularly on governance, enforcement and monitoring aspects in each of the sites, including:
Continuing landscape analysis of the fisheries and updating of profiles
Organizing and strengthening of MA+R Management Boards and Management Committees for the Managed Access areas and MPAs respectively in partner sites
Formulation or updating of Coastal and Fisheries Resources Management (CFRM) Plans incorporating gender and climate resilience strategies with provisions for sustainable financing
Capacity building of alliances in coastal law enforcement
Rolling out of MPA MEAT, FishMARK, the Fish Forever Savings Clubs digital ledger, other tools and toolkits, and other monitoring, evaluation and learning (MEL) tools for use of data for adaptive fisheries management
Formation and capacity building of financial inclusion and resilience groups, i.e., savings clubs in Fish Forever sites including managing financial behavior campaigns
Strengthening of a streamlined Municipal Fisheries Registration and Licensing (MFRL) and a fisheries management database system
Support in implementation and adoption of OurFish and other strategies and tools for catch monitoring in each of the implementation sites
Co-development/adaptation and rollout of cluster behavior change strategies
Co-development and co-facilitation of capacity building modules anchored on adult learning principles for LGU and co-delivery partners as well as management bodies, fisher leaders, and people's organizations

Partnership Management

Actively support the engagement of mayors in understanding, championing and supporting sustainable fisheries in their LGUs and alliances through the Coastal 500 network, Memorandums of Agreement (MOAs), Municipal Fisheries Ordinances (MFOs), and allocation of budget and personnel support to Fish Forever events and activities
Continuously scan for opportunities and prospects for partnership with other stakeholders to support sites and cluster-wide program implementation
Explore/Tap and manage co-delivery partnerships at the provincial/regional level for their continued support of site implementation
Support inter-municipal opportunities such as alliance building and be co-cognizant of the potential risks of such strategies
Manage and coordinate with other assisting organizations including leveraging of resources for each of the implementation sites

Reporting

Participate in Program Implementation Team and other team meetings and communicate activities and progress and final outcomes of each program
Regularly input implementation progress data and other relevant information on the designated program tracker or data portal
Represent the Program Implementation Team and/or Rare in community and LGU meetings, external partners meetings and staff meetings
Assist the Program Implementation Team and other teams in crafting presentations, reports, and other related materials about the program implementation, on marine governance and other activities
Capture experiences, insights, best practices and success stories from the field for sharing with other Fish Forever implementers and a wider circle of sustainable fisheries advocates, practitioners and decision-makers
Document lessons and project accomplishments and contribute to periodic reports to donors, knowledge management, and development of toolkits
Perform other tasks as may be assigned and defined by the Director for Program Implementation

Project Finance and Administration

In coordination with the Program Implementation Manager and the Shared Services Group, and with guidance from the Finance Team, provide inputs to annual work plans and budgets for their assigned cluster/s
Prepare event plans and estimate costs for activities following the annual work plan and budget, and coordinate with the Site Implementation Officers (SIOs) on logistical arrangements for the events onsite
Comply with cash management, procurement, and acquittal of project expenses, in accordance with Rare financial management guidelines, processes and systems
Review and monitor the utilization of program budget in accordance with Rare financial management guidelines, processes and systems
Assist implementing partners in preparing work and financial plans
Participate and contribute to project reporting and overall program level reporting, both financial and programmatic

Qualifications

Required

Bachelor's degree in fisheries, biology, marine biology, environmental science, social science, community development or relevant field
At least 2 years experience in a team-based environment assisting local governments and building the organizational capacities of environmental/fisheries management organizations, community-based people's organizations, and/or NGOs
Fluency in Filipino, Waray, and English required
Demonstrated project management skills in a development setting; preferably with training in gender-responsive project management
Experience in biodiversity conservation, marine protected areas, fisheries governance and/or financially sustainable coastal resource management or with related experience in other community engagement initiatives or community development programs
Must be adept in computer programs such as MS Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, with strong knowledge or experience in using mobile apps for productivity or business application and social media
Experience in event organizing and facilitation, training management and delivery for various stakeholders including LGU partners and community-based organizations
Good interpersonal skills; ability to build good working relationships both internally and externally
Willing and able to travel within the country

Desirable

Experience in applying social marketing and/or behavior change interventions
Knowledge in integrating/mainstreaming gender and climate change in local development plans and programs
Experience in writing development/conservation/management plans such as MPA management plans, coastal and fisheries resources management plans, eco-tourism development plans, and related plan documents
Skills in GIS mapping, graphic design and editing, and audio-visual production

Rare is an equal-opportunity employer that is committed to diversity and inclusion in the workplace. We prohibit discrimination and harassment of any kind based on race, color, gender, religion, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, genetic information, pregnancy, or any other protected characteristic.

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