Bangladesh: Bangladesh - An Administrative Mission Opening Support

Première Urgence Internationale (PUI) is a non-governmental, non-profit, non-political and non-religious international aid organisation. Our teams are committed to supporting civilians’ victims of marginalization and exclusion, or hit by natural disasters, wars and economic collapses, by answering their fundamental needs. Our aim is to provide emergency relief to uprooted people in order to help them recover their dignity and regain self-sufficiency. The association leads in average 200 projects by year in the following sectors of intervention: food security, health, nutrition, construction and rehabilitation of infrastructures, water, sanitation, hygiene and economic recovery. PUI is providing assistance to around 7 million people in 20 countries – in Africa, Asia, Middle East, Caucasus and Europe.

Humanitarian situation and needs :

Bangladesh has been the second theatre of the Rohingya crisis for more than 30 years. The Muslim minority has faced decades of repression and discrimination in its home country Myanmar/Burma, precisely in the north of Rakhine State, resulting in many of its members seeking refuge in neighboring Bangladesh -> in the southern region of Cox’s Bazar District.

Violence in Rakhine State which began on 25 August 2017 and resulting in widespread violence, mass displacement of civilians and the suspension of most aid activities has driven thousands of Rohingya across the border into Bangladesh. By 31 October, more than 607,000 people were estimated to have crossed into Bangladesh, joining the “from 300,000 to 500,000 that had fled in earlier waves of displacement [1) -> the early 1970s, 2) -> the early 1990s, 3) -> the early 2000s].

Humanitarian consequences :

Those fleeing are concentrated in two sub-districts (Upazilas) of the District (Zila) of Cox’s Bazar: Ukhia and Teknaf, putting an immense strain on infrastructure, services and the host population. Pre-existing settlements and camps have expanded with the new influx, while new spontaneous settlements have also formed and are quickly growing. Significant numbers of new arrivals are also being absorbed into the local host community. Population movements within Cox’s Bazar remain highly fluid, with increasing concentration in Ukhia, where undeveloped forest land for a new camp has been announced by the Government of Bangladesh. On 14 September, Government allocated 2,000 acres for an extension of the camp in Ukhia Upazila.

The more than 600 000 Rohingyas who crossed the border from Myanmar to Bangladesh, making this the world’s fastest developing refugee emergency. As of the beginning of December, there are from 837 000 to 1,100,000 cumulative refugees in the country, as an estimated “from 300,000 to 500,000 Rohingyas were already in Bangladesh following previous waves of displacement. The sudden surge in the number of Rohingyas arrivals has stretched the capacities of humanitarian organizations/agencies operating in Bangladesh. These new arrivals are being hosted in camps for registered refugees, but also overcrowded makeshift settlements, including schools, community centers, religious buildings, and with local families. New clusters of settlements have also been set up and continue to expand. The Rohingya crisis has created immediate needs for cross-sectorial assistance. Concerns for the newly displaced persons include lack of access to food security and nutrition, huge needs for WASH facilities, shelter, health, psychosocial support (PSS), gender and protection issues and the need for Restoring Family Links (RFL) services.

The crisis has further increased coordination demands with a significant number of humanitarian actors providing assistance. The necessity to strengthen the Inter-Sector Coordination Group (ISCG) has been expressed. Experimental structures, in aligned to the standards of a Humanitarian Country Team (HCT), have been set-up in Dhaka and Cox’s Bazar.

Our actions in the Field :

In 2017, PUI led an exploratory mission during several weeks in Cox’s Bazar District in order to assess the needs to address in the emergency phase, in order to provide a rapid improvement of people’s living conditions, as well as to find ways to reduce the refugees’ vulnerability.

The organization has established a permanent country mission and is deploying a 1st phase of response oriented to the improvement of the living conditions of the Refugees, as well as the coordination mechanisms from the 1st of December 2017 (Site Management Support). The next milestones of this process will be to consolidate the administrative presence, to improve the collaboration with the authorities and the other stakeholders, and to refine the potential humanitarian response the organisation could deploy (towards the refugees and the host communities). Structure Presently, the mission is composed by the different key position: a Head of Mission (HoM), an Emergency Coordinator, a Logistics Coordinator, and Fin. & Adm Coordinator, 2 Project Managers, a program and support national team. The HoM will be responsible for the smooth functioning and development of the mission. S/He will be in charge of developing networks and promoting PUI’s strategy. This approach is also relevant in order to take into account the specific characteristics of the crisis throughout its daily evolution (internal displacements, new arrivals) and the necessity to keep a permanent watch on how to intervene.

Click here for more information about our responses to the crisis.

As part of our activities in Bangladesh, we are looking for an Administrative Mission Opening Support.

Under the supervision of the Head of Mission, and through delegation of his/her authority, the Admin support has the responsibility to support the mission in setting the administrative, finance and HR procedures, means and tools as described here under. It is expected a great capacity of autonomy to be able to handle these tasks without daily escort of the HoM and/or Finance & Admin Coordinator.

Tasks and Responsibilities:

Administration:

• Formalize the visa allocation options / procedures
• Set up clear SOPs for camp access passes
• Getting a Tax Identification Number from the local administration
• Contracting with a Tax Specialist for tax consultancy services
• Setting up a formal contract and arrangement with a law firm

Finance:

• Open a bank account in Dhaka
• Open a sub account in Cox Bazar
• Assess cash transfer options (HQ>dhaka > Cox)
• Clarify tax rules (VAT, other taxes) and produce SOPs to comply with legal regulation.

Human resources administration:

• Set up of an internal salary grid, in link with the FAC
• Set up of Remuneration & Benefits scheme (Salary + Function Grids, Appraisals, Carreer Management, …) in coordination with FAC
• Draft Internal Staff Regulations and check its compliance with Labor Laws (possibly in link with lawyer)
• Draft a detachment policy
• Set up a national HR documents database (contracts, leave policy, daily worker formats, hiring/dismissing policy…)
• Enquire options for health coverage, define and draft health Insurance policy
• Define and draft staff representation mechanisms

Training and Experience:

Training:

Administration
Financial Management
HR administration
Administration of logistics

Experience: Minimum 1 year in the humanitarian field, general administration including HR

Required Personal Characteristics (fitting into the team, suitability for the job and assignment):

Ability to work independently while taking initiatives and showing a sense of responsibility

Ability to withstand pressure

Sense of diplomacy

Analytical skills Capacity to adapt and showing organizational flexibility

Organization, rigor and ability to meet deadlines

Ability to work and manage affairs professionally and with maturity

Ability to represent the activities and the mandate of PUI before local authorities

Ability to integrate the local environment into operations, in its political, economic and historical dimensions

Ability to work with various partners, in a spirit of openness, and with adaptable communications strategies

Strong listening and negotiation skills

Good people and communication skills

Ability to remain calm and level-headed

General ability to resist stress and particularly in unstable circumstances

Languages:

English Mandatory

Proposed-terms:

Fixed-term contract: 4 weeks (with possibility of extension depending on the mission development)

Starting Date: July 2018Salaire / Indemnité

Monthly Gross Income: from 2 200 up to 2 530 Euros depending on the experience in International Solidarity + 50 Euros per semester seniority with PUI

Cost Covered: Round-trip transportation to and from home / mission, visas, vaccines…

Insurance: including medical coverage and complementary healthcare, 24/24 assistance and repatriation

Housing in collective accommodation

Daily Living Expenses (« Per diem »)

Break Policy : 5 working days at 3 and 9 months + break allowance

Paid Leaves Policy : 5 weeks of paid leaves per year + return ticket every 6 months

For more information about our offer, please look at the complete job description on our website!

Please send your application (Resume and Cover Letter) to Camille Attias, Human Resources Officer for Expatriates, at recrutement@premiere-urgence.org