Sudan INGO Forum: Consultancy Term of Reference
Job Title:
Governance Consultant
Location:
Remote with possible travel if necessary
Type of Contract:
International
Anticipated Start Date:
May 1, 2025
Length of Contract:
2 months
Reports to:
INGO Forum Steering Committee
Direct Reports:
N/A
Background:
Sudan is facing one of the most severe humanitarian crises globally, marked by widespread displacement, disease outbreaks, and confirmations of famine in several ‘hunger hotspots.’ In an effort to coordinate INGO efforts and establish a common voice for INGOs operating in Sudan, the INGO forum was established in 2009 as a key representation platform. To date, the forum is made up of 51 members and 17 observers operating across the country, including in some of the most difficult to reach parts of Sudan.
The INGO Forum is a permanent member of the Humanitarian Country Team (HCT) and the Inter-Cluster Coordination Group (ICCG). It co-leads the Humanitarian Access Working Group (HAWG), alongside OCHA and spearheads collective engagement with Government and other Authorities as well as with donors. The forum also leads collective advocacy nationally, regionally and internationally through its Advocacy Working Group (AWG) and in close coordination with the regional Inter-Agency Working Group (IAWG) and Member liaison offices in key donor/diplomatic capitals around the world.
Since 2023, the situation in Sudan has dramtically shifted as state and non-state actors wage a brutal war. The situation in non-Sudanese Armed Forces – controlled areas is particularly dire, with humanitarian access severely restricted and the absence of United Nations (UN) presence exacerbating the challenges. As humanitarian needs continue to escalate, there is an urgent need for an interim solution to address critical gaps in coordination, common services and aid delivery.
To this end, the three core tenants of the INGO Forum’s work include:
- Coordinated aid delivery – Enhancing operational alignment across organizations to maximize humanitarian impact.
- This includesestablishing an NGO-led coordination mechanism under the Sudan INGO Forum to provide immediate, effective, and well-managed humanitarian responses in these areas to ensure that urgent needs are met and operations are not disrupted.
- Common service provision – Offering essential support, analysis, and shared resources to facilitate NGO operations.
- This includes common negotiation support i.e. for access or against BAI, collective advocacy efforts, information sharing, donor and stakeholder engagement, security and admin SOPs and collective position papers, etc.
- Stakeholder coordination and representation – Engaging with donors, UN agencies, authorities, and the broader humanitarian system to advocate for improved response conditions.
- There is of course a convening and facilitation role included in this representation function
Summary:
The INGO Forum in Sudan is faced with a range of complexities that require strong governance documents to make clear how decisions are taken, how members are represented, how the Forum is held accountable, and how the Forum is able to operate and represent members across the whole of Sudan. Funding for the Forum was primarily coming through BHA until the beginning of 2025. To ensure the Forum’s continuity, ECHO stepped in to ensure core functions were covered during the 2025-2026 project cycle. Other donors are also expressing interest in funding Forum activities, and as the secretariat expands, hosting arrangements that are rooted in an empowered steering committee and ensure harmonized approaches to salaries, benefits, performance review and delivery must be established. Furthermore, given the regular turnover of leadership roles in Sudan, Member representation and participation across all critical bodies (steering committee, HCT, HAWG, ICCG, etc.) must be reviewed and formalized, with clear processes for participation and clear accountabilities. Decision making protocols should be established, and membership due structures should be considered. Given the complexities of Membership with some operating across the whole country and others specializing in areas under control of one of the Parties to the conflict, guidance on internal protocols within the secretariat is also required to ensure that collective positioning is responsive to needs and priorities of all actors across Sudan.
The consultant will report to the INGO Forum Steering Committee, currently comprised of six Members: ACF, DRC, RI, Plan, Save the Children and Alight, and will work closely with Member CDs and the current Forum Secretariat. The position will be funded through Mercy Corps.
Responsibilities:
- Revise the Forum ToR for the Forum Steering Committee that includes election (based on individuals rather than organizations), replacement processes in case of absence/staff turnover, decision making and performance management, and that explicitly outlines the roles and responsibilities of the Steering Committee vis-à-vis the contract holding agencies
- Revise the Forum ToR to clarify host-agency participation within the Steering Committee and other coordination bodies
- Revise the Forum ToR to look at membership roles and responsibilities including mechanisms for ‘sanctioning’ non-participation in working groups and task teams
- Revise the Forum ToR to look at instituting Membership fees
- Revise the Forum ToR to nuance decision making protocols by type of decision and geographic area
- Revise the Forum ToR to establish ‘sanctions’ for non-respect of confidentiality agreements
- Revise the Forum ToR to establish voting and scoring mechanisms for representation in key coordination bodies including the HCT, HAWG, ICCG etc.
- Establish a sensitization process to ensure all members clearly understand the new governance documents
- Review internal structure of the Forum and provide recommendations to the secretariat in terms of structure, hierarchy and accountability
Required Skills & Experience:
Essential requirements:
- A graduate degree in international relations, political science, management, law or a relevant field/equivalent experience
- At least 10 years of relevant experience with NGOs, the UN system or other humanitarian/development actors with at least 4 years of leadership and management experience
- Experience living and working in complex humanitarian or fragile contexts with strong understanding of humanitarian principles, international humanitarian law (IHL) operations and coordination mechanisms
- Experience representing organizations in humanitarian coordination platforms (inter-agency platforms, NGO forums, etc.)
- Proven network and relationship building skills
- Demonstrable experience in high-level representation and negations
- A demonstrable ability to manage a diverse workload and prioritize tasks in a complex and fluid environment
- Fluency in English (written and spoken)
Desirable requirements:
- Previous humanitarian experience in Sudan, Chad or South Sudan
- Existing relationships with relevant stakeholders including NGOs, UN agencies, donors, national authorities and stakeholders and relevant advocacy and media stakeholders
- Working knowledge of Arabic a plus
How to Apply:
