CONTEXT
The principle, on which humanitarian action is based, is to preserve the lives and dignity of populations in distress. This action cannot be achieved without safeguarding our human and material resources.
Due to MSF’s explicit choice to intervene in conflict areas and often resource poor environments with significant financial and material assets, combined with our commitment to the most vulnerable populations often contravenes the interests of those who perpetrate the violence, the provision of humanitarian aid often entails physical and mental risks to our staff. These factors, among others, define MSF as a risk-taking organization.
Historically, the environment in which MSF works has always been dangerous and we have regularly been confronted with violence against our patients, staff and assets.
The responsibility for operational risk management lies first and foremost with the individual members of staff within an operational risk management vision under the responsibility of the operational line/hierarchy (FieldCo-HoM-CO-DO). The role of the Operational Risk Advice Unit, is to support operations in managing this operational risk management vision with field support/visit, training, tools and systems that are updated with the latest findings in the humanitarian risk management expertise world. This requires notably a permanent lesson-learnt feedback loop from live experiences in the operations to the Unit and from the Unit to the operations. Another key responsibility, it is to maintain with the support of the director committee, a crisis management capacity.
This Unit is inside the Operations Department under the directors of operations.
JOB PROFILE
Direct field support
- Her/his team gives a mirror effect to the field and supports them with technical tools, training and advice when requested by fields, Cells or director of operation
- Ad hoc context follow-up in high-risk environments where significant threats exist against MSF staff such as abduction and targeted killing
Documents
- Develops and maintains Crisis Management handbooks
- Maintains the Abduction Guideline
- Develops and maintains necessary documents on how to manage operational risk and shares them on the appropriate platforms
Training
- Maintain, review, and give part of the two weeks security training existing for field workers (LRMC, BRMC, IRMC, ARMC) in full collaboration with other departments
- Reviews regularly the Operational Risks Modules given during other MSF training together with the Learning Unit, the Analysis Department and the Operations Department
- Encourages and formalizes Operational Risks training at the field level
- Gives when possible these Operational Risks Modules during trainings
- Maintains fully trained HQ teams to be CMT/IMT members
- Organizes periodical training (with or without external facilitators/expert) for the already identified potential IMT and CMT members of OCB.
Compilation of Operational Incidents, reports and audit documents
- In agreement with other Security representative of other sections: Responsible, for OCB, for the revision and the implementation of the OCB Incident Data Base
- Retroactively integrates the past significant security, safety and legal incidents in the database
- Compiles the existing documents related to Operational Risks within the MSF movement and in the humanitarian world and understand where the common points and overlaps are
- Liaises and works with the Finance Compliance and Control Unit (focus mainly on how MSF uses resources and the risk attached to it), the Staff Health Unit and the Legal Department, to assure that there are a shared vision and strategy on how to manage risk globally
Analysis of Security Incidents
- When requested by directors, cells or field or if felt a direct need to do so, performs review of the relevant security incidents and extracts the potential lessons learned from them
- Works together with the Stockholm Evaluation Unit to write Terms Of Reference for evaluations after a crisis
- Develops an analyzes the evolution of the operational risks MSF is facing on the field across the contexts to identify main trends
- Carries out security audits either upon request of a mission/cell or if felt like a direct need to do so
- Make sure that Lessons Learnt from critical incidents managed by other OCs are shared and included in our vision
Working Group
- Liaises and works together with his colleagues of other MSF sections and International Office
- Be part of different Operational Risk working groups outside MSF (European Interagency Security Forum, etc)
Briefings
- When requested, for specific contexts, briefing and debriefing of staff can take place
Direct Support to Ops
- During a crisis:
- Plays a mirror effect to the CMT leader on the functioning of the team (maintain of crisis principal) and use of tools and frameworks.
- Observes dynamics between entities (CMT, IMT, PSCT...) and advice accordingly
- Advises on strategy when needed
- When we are two or more sections in the same geographic field of intervention, helps the CO to design the best security management agreement
- Diffusion of the lessons learned from past incidents to the relevant missions
- Takes part in CoPro’s when projects are developed in a high insecurity context
- Can advise and alert the Operations Department on operational risks in a field/mission
- Provides support on the context analysis at the request of the CO/HoM
- Encourages and participate in discussions and debates on operational risks at HQ level
