Call for Syrian Experts: Social Protection, Cash & Economic Inclusion (Syria)

Contract Type: Individual Consultancy; Project-Based
Eligibility: Syrian nationals or non-Syrian consultants currently residing in Syria only

Trust Consultancy & Development (TCD) is seeking experienced consultants to join its roster of experts in social protection, cash and voucher assistance (CVA), economic inclusion and social assistance to support upcoming evaluations, assessments, research, Third-Party Monitoring (TPM), programme design and advisory assignments in Syria.

Selected consultants will be included in TCD's consultant roster and may be considered for future short-term consultancy opportunities based on their technical expertise, geographical experience, availability and the requirements of specific assignments.

Primary geographic scope: Syria

About the Call

Trust is expanding its roster of experts with strong knowledge and practical experience related to social protection systems, social assistance, cash-based programming, targeting, economic inclusion and shock-responsive approaches.

We are particularly interested in experts with recent, first-hand knowledge of Syria's socioeconomic context, vulnerability patterns, social-protection mechanisms, humanitarian cash programming and livelihoods/economic inclusion environment.

Areas of Expertise

Applicants should have strong experience in one or more of the following:

1. Social protection systems and policies, including social assistance, social insurance, safety nets and social-protection system strengthening;
2. Cash and Voucher Assistance (CVA), including multipurpose cash, sectoral cash, vouchers and cash-plus approaches;
3. Targeting and vulnerability assessment, including eligibility criteria, socioeconomic vulnerability, household profiling, proxy means testing and targeting methodologies;
4. Economic inclusion and graduation approaches, combining social assistance with livelihoods, skills, employment, enterprise support and financial inclusion;
5. Shock-responsive and adaptive social protection, including humanitarian–social protection linkages and responses to economic, climate and other shocks;
6. Programme monitoring and evaluation, including process, outcome and impact evaluations of social protection, cash and economic-inclusion programmes;
7. Cash feasibility and market assessments, including market functionality, transfer values, expenditure patterns, inflation and purchasing power;
8. Social registries and information systems, including beneficiary identification, registration, referral systems, data management and interoperability;
9. Financial inclusion and payment mechanisms, including digital payments, financial services, microfinance, savings and access to finance;
10. Inclusive social protection, including programmes addressing the needs and barriers of women, children, older people, persons with disabilities, IDPs, returnees and other vulnerable groups;
11. Accountability and protection in cash/social assistance, including feedback mechanisms, safeguarding, data protection, protection risks and inclusion;
12. Social protection and livelihoods linkages, including pathways from humanitarian assistance toward resilience, employment, self-employment and sustainable income generation.

Qualifications & Experience

Applicants should have:

• Syrian nationality and current residence in Syria, or be a non-Syrian consultant currently based in Syria;
• A relevant university degree in economics, social policy, development studies, public policy, sociology, statistics, social sciences or another relevant field;
• At least 5 years of relevant professional experience; senior/lead experts should preferably have 10+ years;
• Recent professional experience related to social protection, CVA, social assistance, economic inclusion or vulnerability analysis in Syria, preferably within the last three years;
• Demonstrated experience conducting or contributing to social protection assessments, cash studies, evaluations, targeting exercises, vulnerability assessments or economic-inclusion programmes;
• Strong understanding of Syria's socioeconomic conditions, vulnerability patterns, markets and humanitarian/development context;
• Strong quantitative and/or qualitative research, analytical and report-writing skills;
• Experience engaging with government institutions, UN agencies, NGOs, communities and other relevant stakeholders;
• Arabic fluency; professional English is strongly preferred.

International Organization & Donor Experience

Previous experience with WFP, UNICEF, UNHCR, ILO, World Bank, UNDP, international NGOs, EU-funded programmes, GIZ or other organizations working on social protection, cash assistance, livelihoods and economic inclusion is a strong advantage.

Experience with recognized approaches and frameworks related to CVA, social protection, targeting, graduation/economic inclusion, vulnerability assessment and shock-responsive social protection should be clearly highlighted.

Applicants should indicate relevant assignments, including the client, assignment, year, role and main responsibilities.