WASH in Emergencies Specialist - Global Emergency Roster

About Plan International

Plan International is a global independent development and humanitarian organization dedicated to promoting children's rights and gender equality, especially focusing on girls. The organization believes in unlocking every child's potential, combating poverty, violence, exclusion, and discrimination that often impede progress. Working alongside children, youth, supporters, and partners, Plan International pursues a just world through addressing root causes of challenges faced by vulnerable children, supporting their rights from birth through adulthood, and enabling them to face crises effectively.

With a legacy spanning over 85 years, Plan International works in over 80 countries and strives for equal opportunities for all children.

Emergency Roster Purpose

The Emergency Roster is a pool of pre-selected, qualified candidates ready to be deployed rapidly to provide emergency preparedness, response, recovery, and transition support. This roster helps Plan International deploy professionals with suitable skills efficiently to respond to sudden or protracted emergencies. Members should be ready to deploy within 72 hours upon confirmation or once visa and travel clearances are secured. Deployments may include remote, in-country, or regional assignments for varying durations depending on operational needs.

Role Context and Scope

The Emergency WASH (Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene) Specialist is urgently deployed to support Plan International's country or regional teams to establish or enhance safe, inclusive, and gender-responsive WASH services during emergencies. This role offers technical leadership and operational support throughout emergency program phases including assessments, planning, implementation, monitoring, capacity-building, and transition.

The specialist ensures WASH services address protection considerations and the needs of diverse groups including girls, young women, boys, persons with disabilities, and older adults. Collaboration with Health, Protection, Education, Shelter, Supply Chain, Finance, Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability, and Safeguarding teams is essential. Representation at cluster meetings, technical working groups, and multi-stakeholder forums is expected.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead or assist rapid WASH needs and technical assessments, service mapping, and market analyses adhering to humanitarian standards and Plan International protocols.
• Evaluate WASH risks, service deficiencies, health hazards, gender and protection issues, access barriers, and prioritize population needs.
• Develop data-driven WASH emergency response strategies, detailed workplans, operational budgets, and proposals aligned with Sphere Standards, Core Humanitarian Standards, national regulations, and public health mandates.
• Integrate WASH programming with Health, Nutrition, Protection, Education, Shelter, and Cash/Voucher Assistance sectors.
• Offer technical oversight on emergency water supply including sourcing, trucking, treatment, chlorination, quality monitoring, storage, distribution, and rehabilitation.
• Provide guidance on sanitation solutions across household, communal, institutional, and school settings including waste management and vector control.
• Support hygiene promotion initiatives focusing on handwashing, safe water handling, menstrual health and hygiene, and community engagement.
• Advise on WASH in healthcare facilities emphasizing infection control and outbreak preparedness for diseases like cholera and Ebola.
• Review technical documents, construction specifications, procurement items, scopes of work, and contractor deliverables to ensure quality and appropriateness.
• Ensure WASH infrastructure is safe, technically sound, accessible, climate-aware, and maintainable by local actors.
• Establish or improve quality assurance systems covering water testing, supervision, monitoring, and post-distribution activities.
• Support establishment of emergency WASH operational systems including workplans, supply plans, monitoring tools, and risk registers.
• Collaborate with Supply Chain and Procurement for technical specifications, supplier coordination, and quality control.
• Assist field teams in stock, distribution, water-quality, facility maintenance, complaint management, and community feedback systems.
• Provide hands-on technical support during initial emergency phases, including mentoring WASH staff and troubleshooting.
• Identify operational challenges and communicate promptly with management and program teams for resolution.
• Represent Plan International in WASH Cluster meetings, inter-agency forums, and coordination platforms at national and sub-national levels.
• Ensure timely data submission related to WASH activities within coordination mechanisms.
• Maintain effective collaboration with government, UN, NGOs, donors, partners, and communities for coordinated responses.
• Promote integrated multisectoral collaboration with Health, Protection, Education, and Shelter sectors.
• Contribute to advocacy, technical discussions, and products that enhance quality, inclusion, and sustainability of emergency WASH interventions.
• Contribute to emergency proposals, concept notes, budgets, logframes, donor reports, and monitoring frameworks.
• Review program progress, challenges, adaptations, risks, and lessons, supporting evaluations and preparedness planning.
• Ensure WASH interventions address the safety and needs of girls, women, persons with disabilities, and marginalized groups, incorporating protection-sensitive and inclusive designs.
• Promote community participation, feedback mechanisms, and uphold safeguarding and child protection policies consistently.

Required Experience and Expertise

• Extensive experience in WASH programming, particularly in humanitarian or emergency settings.
• Proficiency in conducting emergency WASH assessments, program design, monitoring, and evaluation.
• Technical expertise in emergency water supply, treatment, quality monitoring, sanitation, hygiene promotion, and infrastructure.
• Experience responding to public health emergencies including disease outbreaks, displacement, conflict, floods, and droughts.
• Capability to develop technical specifications, Bills of Quantities, procurement documentation, and supervise contractors.
• Background in donor proposal writing, budgeting, and reporting.
• Experience liaising with clusters, government, UN, donors, NGOs, and partners as a representative.
• Skills in staff management, mentoring, and capacity building for WASH personnel and partners.
• Familiarity working in insecure, complex, or resource-limited environments.

Essential Knowledge

• Deep understanding of Sphere Standards, Core Humanitarian Standards, and WASH cluster guidance.
• Knowledge of the Humanitarian Programme Cycle and coordination structures.
• Awareness of gender, child protection, safeguarding, disability inclusion, and accountability in WASH.
• Insight into public health principles, disease prevention, outbreak response in relation to WASH.
• Familiarity with humanitarian procurement, logistics, program quality control, and monitoring practices.

Key Skills

• Advanced technical and analytical skills for emergency WASH scenarios.
• Ability to quickly evaluate complex emergencies and devise practical response solutions.
• Strong proposal and report writing as well as budgeting capabilities.
• Excellent interpersonal, negotiation, representation, and coordination skills.
• Ability to work autonomously, prioritize tasks, and make decisive actions under pressure.
• Leadership and mentoring proficiency for team and partner development.
• Collaborative mindset for cross-team and multi-disciplinary coordination.
• Proficient in Microsoft Office and data management tools.

Languages

• Fluent professional English is mandatory.
• Fluency in Spanish is essential for this roster.
• Working proficiency in French, Arabic, or Portuguese is advantageous.

Availability and Working Requirements

• Must be ready for deployment within 72 hours of confirmation or upon gaining visa and travel approvals.
• Willingness and ability to operate in challenging, insecure, remote, or resource-poor environments.
• Flexibility to work beyond regular hours including evenings, weekends, and public holidays during emergency situations.
• Deployment lengths will differ based on operational needs.

Contact with Children

This role may require periodic interactions with children and youth during various field activities, necessitating strict adherence to safeguarding and child protection policies.

Inclusion and Equal Opportunity

Plan International strives to promote diversity, equity, inclusion, and equal opportunity across all operations and welcomes applications from diverse backgrounds regardless of age, disability, gender identity, race, religion, sexual orientation, or other factors.