Research Consultant (Prevention of Violent Extremism), Home Based

Context and Reporting line:

Preventing violent extremism remains a major challenge across Iraq. Despite the military defeat of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in Iraq in December 2017, the group remains active in many pockets of the country, including in rural parts of Kirkuk, Salah Al-Din, Diyala, and Anbar governorates. ISIL and other violent extremist groups continue to attract membership and support, exploiting grievances in the communities having to do with (real and perceived) discrimination in political representation, services, or human rights, among others. Almost 1.2 million people remain in displacement, including thousands of families who are living in situations where conductions could exacerbate the vulnerabilities which are associated with increased risk of recruitment or mobilization into armed groups.

In this context, IOM’s Peacebuilding and Stabilization Division is supporting the Government of Iraq (GoI) in its overall capacity development to the roll out its “National Strategy to Combat Violent Extremism”, adopted in 2019 by the National Security Council and Endorsed by Prime Minister in 2021. More specifically, IOM is supporting the GoI’s Implementation Committee to pilot the National Strategy in key locations, working closely with local authorities, civil society organizations (CSOs), communities and other stakeholders to develop and roll out Plans of Action based on priority components of the overarching Strategy. This approach recognizes challenges related to both vertical and horizontal intra-governmental coordination in the Iraq context, and the importance of targeted measures to bridge the policy-implementation gap.

IOM is seeking a consultant to support drafting two Plans of action in preselected locations. The consultant will be the lead author of two local Plans of Action (POAs) using data provided by IOM, including key informant interviews, conflict analysis, and community consultation sessions with government and civil society organizations. The consultant will collate data and analysis to produce key recommendations and areas of interventions aimed to reduce the risk of violent extremism in the targeted areas. The consultant is expected to work with IOM PVE team to develop the plans of action using IOM current approach through following previous and current plans of action templates.

Under the overall supervision of the Head, Peacebuilding and Stabilization Division, the overall supervision of the Programme Manager (Prevention of Violent Extremism (PVE)) and the direct supervision of the Technical Coordinator – PVE Programme.



Core Functions / Responsibilities

1. Lead-author context analysis pertaining to violent extremism in the selected locations, including developing recommendations derived from consultation sessions and research conducted by IOM.

2. Review and analyses qualitative data in two locations selected by IOM, including reviewing key informant interview, community consultation reports, and open-source materials.

3. In coordination with PVE Technical Coordinator, conduct interviews with relevant actors to feed into the POA.

4. Working with IOM PVE and M&E team, develop Theory of Change with clear and achievable objectives, outcomes, and outputs.

5. Present key findings and recommendations key stakeholders and incorporate feedback in the POA.

6. Under the PVE Program Technical Coordinator, provide copy edit tasks to the Arabic translation of the final report, ensuring high quality final translation.

7. Working with IOM and its partners, develop a strong risk analysis and assessment, providing concrete guidance on how these risks will be mitigated.

Timeline of deliverables

1. Review and analyze qualitative data 12 working days

2. Draft report 10 working days

3. Develop, design, and draft TOC 2 Working days

4. Review and incorporate feedback from partners and IOM 5 working days

5. Review and copy edit translation 3 working days

6. Present key findings to local government 2 working days

7. Total Days: 33-40 days over 4 Months

Required Qualifications

Education:

• Masters or bachelor’s degree in Social Science (Economics, Statistics, International Relations, Political Sciences) or a related field from an accredited academic university or institute.

Experience and Skills:

• At least 5 years’ experience in research and analysis, project management, and/or monitoring and evaluation.

• Strong and progressive background research on violent extremism and/or counter terrorism.

• Experience on Iraq is required

Languages:

• Fluency in English and Arabic is required.

• Working knowledge of Kurdish language is an advantage.