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2029

When: 8th -10th December 2021
Where: Murree, Punjab
Language: English & Urdu.
Interested Applicants: Register here
Last Date to Apply: 8th November 2021

Background

Safeguarding is the responsibility that an organisation has to ensure its representatives and the activities it conducts promotes the welfare of the people (especially children and vulnerable adults) it serves and the communities it works with. Safeguarding ensures that the organisation does not expose the communities it works with to the risk of any sort of harm or abuse, including sexual exploitation and abuse. Safeguarding measures seek to prevent situations where individuals can use their position of power, to abuse or exploit another person. Safeguarding vulnerable adults and children is the process of protecting them from abuse or neglect, enabling them to maintain control over their lives and make informed choices.

Objectives

The objective of this training is to enhance the capacity of participant organisations in ensuring the safety and well-being of all of their employees and the community members that they work with.

This workshop will support participating organisations and their staff in exploring key concepts and strengthen their understanding on:

  • Quality and Accountability in Humanitarian and Development.
  • Core Commitments of Safeguarding
  • Safeguarding Basics – Milestones and Development
  • Protecting most vulnerable groups – support for survivors and whistle-blowers
  • Accountability and Transparency around safeguarding and PSEA.
  • Contextualization of Key Safeguarding Messages and How to communicate them
  • Experience sharing / best practices / lesson learning around Safeguarding
  • Overview of Complaint Response Mechanism.

Participation

This training will target members of complaints committees, human resource and MEAL staff, program teams and leadership of NGOs. The training will support participants to understand the key barriers, challenges related to safeguarding at organisational and programmatic level while dealing with communities and stakeholders. It will serve as a platform for participating organisations to discuss and review their relevant policies and procedures to ensure that they are effective in all situations. It will also offer the complaint committee members’ opportunities to develop peer support groups so that they can learn from and support each other. Post-training technical support will be provided to participant organisations to develop and implement policies and systems related to safeguarding.

Number of Participants

A maximum of 20 participants will be selected for this training. Women and differently-abled staff and staff from ethnic/religious minorities are encouraged to apply. Preference will be given to participants from organisations based in underserved areas.

Selection Criteria

  • Primary responsibility for Safeguarding at the organisational level
  • Participants from women led organisations, differently-abled persons, religious/ethnic minorities will be prioritised
  • Mid or senior level management in a civil society organizations, preferably CSOs with main office in small towns and cities
  • Willingness to contribute PKR 15,000/- for the training. Exemptions may be applied for CSOs with limited funding and those from marginalised groups. An early-bird discount of 15% will be awarded to applicants who register by the 5th October 2021 and a 30% discount will be awarded to women participants
  • Commitment to apply learning in their work, including dissemination of learning within their organization

Methodology

The approach applied in this training is the ‘Blended Learning’ approach developed by Community World Service Asia in its previous phases of the Civil Society Empowerment Project (CEP). The approach is participatory and needs-based in nature. It consists of selection of participants from diverse organisations at different levels, content and methodology designed with and based on the needs of the training participants, use of experienced and knowledgeable trainers, flexible content and methodology during the training, development of action plans and follow up refreshers and coaching and mentoring support.

Methodology of this training includes practical exercises based on real life projects/programs (but considering social distancing). These will be interspersed with lectures by the external trainer and experience sharing by prominent leaders from the development and humanitarian fields. Presentations would be in English, discussion to be followed in both English and Urdu. Coaching and mentoring support will be provided to 30% of participant organisations to help them apply their learning.
Facilitation Team:

Palwashay Arbab – Head of Communications and Gender Justice Focal Person- CWSA. A journalism and humanitarian practitioner associated with the aid sector in the Asia Pacific region since the last ten years. Has a diverse experience based on humanitarian work, journalistic writing, humanitarian and development communication, social media management, advocacy, training management, fundraising, branding and public relations, program development, gender justice and coordination. Training and presentation development experience for youth and staff on social media campaigns, hashtag activism, diversity and safeguarding. Representational and networking experience with the international donor community, I/NGOs, and communities. Currently co-chairing the global Gender Justice Reference group of ACT alliance and governing board member of the Communicating with Disaster Affected Communities (CDAC) Network.

Asma Shehzad –Head of Support Functions- Safeguarding Focal Person-CWSA with more than 15 years of experience in Management including Organizational Policy development, conflict management, investigations, policies implementation, Asma has been now working with Community World Service Asia as Head of Support Functions. She is currently based in Islamabad, Pakistan. Asma is not only involved actively in the implementation of Safeguarding Policy at the organizational level with all stakeholders, she also acts as a Safeguarding Focal Person for CWSA. Being head of Support Functions Department, she is fulfilling her responsibilities in the development and implementation of policies to the best of her abilities. To her credit is the honor to be part of the team that has implemented Safeguarding Policy across CWSA. She also feels privileged to be part of Act as Co-Chair for Act Community of Practice- Safeguarding.

Ayesha Hassan – Associate Regional Director Head – CWSA Ayesha Hassan is the Associate Director at the Community World Service Asia with a diverse experience of campaigning and project implementation on Quality and Accountability (including Safeguarding, PSEAH, Complaints Response Mechanism), Gender, Livelihood (including food security with focus on DRR), Education, and Participation. She is a trainer, advisor and voice for Quality and Accountability standards including Core Humanitarian Standards, Do No Harm Approach, and Sphere Standards.

Ayesha is hands on in fundraising and program growth, overseeing the development of proposals and donor compliance. She develops program strategies for various programs under implementation while she has also facilitated the process of developing a 10-year strategy for DRR, livelihood and democratization.

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When: 23rd– 25th November 2021
Where: Islamabad
Language: Urdu and English
Interested Applicants: CLICK HERE TO REGISTER!
Last Date to Apply: 5th November 2021

Objectives

Through this training, participants will be able to

  • Identify essentials of project proposal writing
  • Explore logical sequence and steps in the process
  • Analyze the problem and address it systematically using problem and objective analysis
  • Apply Theory of Change approach to projects and programs
  • Develop project/program implementation plan and
  • Define key aspect for developing project budgets

Background

A project proposal defines your approach and methodology to address key thematic focus or problem. The project proposal document consists of overall goal/impact statement, objectives, activities, project implementation and management methodology, key results/outcomes and associated budget to address any given problem. It fosters a relationship between an organization and potential donors about a particular project. It tells stakeholders about the situation, key issues to be addressed, proposed methodology and proposed outcome under the given budget and timelines.

Learning how to write a project proposal helps to better communicate with potential donors and partner organizations. This skill is essential for getting to know key elements of writing good proposal to increase chances of success. Proposals establish a formal framework about a project that enable clear understanding for all stakeholders.

Proposal writing can be a daunting task especially for smaller and medium-sized NGOs. This training will provide you an in-depth understanding about the key elements of good proposal writing. You will learn to communicate effectively with the donors. This training will also help you to understand the requirements of different donors, explore their formats and identify ways to innovatively address the key section in any given format. In an environment of increased competitiveness in the non-profit sector, it is crucial for all NGOs to learn essential skills in proposal writing. This training will provide you an opportunity to enhance your understanding and enhance your capacity to write effective proposals which can in turn benefit your organization to achieve its desired goals.

Number of Participants

  • A maximum of 20 participants will be selected for the training. Women, differently abled persons and staff belonging to ethnic/religious minorities are encouraged to apply. Preference will be given to participants representing organizations working in remote and under-served areas.

Selection Criteria

  • Participant’s organization should be registered with its respective provincial social welfare department
  • Primary responsibility for proposal writing
  • Mid or senior level manager in a civil society organization, preferably staff from small scale CSOs working directly with communities in small towns and cities
  • Participants from women led organisations, different abled persons, religious/ethnic minorities will be given priority
  • This 3-day training session is suitable for CSO and NGO workers of all levels particularly from locally-based organizations with a small staff size
  • Willing to pay fee PKR 10,000 for the training. Exemptions may be applied to CSOs with limited funding and those belonging to marginalised groups.
  • Commitment to apply learning in their work, including dissemination of learning within their organisation

Trainers’ Profiles

Ms. Sofia Noreen is an ambitious professional with over 28 years’ eventful career studded with brilliance predominantly in the area of research, program/ project designing and execution, monitoring, international development, and liaison & coordination. Her areas of focus include Gender and Women Empowerment, Climate Change/ Food Security within rural communities, and Governance issues both at policy and implementation levels.

She is a dependable professional with a comprehensive understanding of Pakistani politics, the parliamentary setup, and electoral reform agenda and familiar with election management systems both for general and local bodies elections.

Ms. Sofia has delivered multi-day training programs on train-the-trainer, team building, and other related topics. She is an articulate communicator who is highly well versed in Log Frame Analysis, Risk Analysis, and management for Result Based Management, budgeting, staff recruitment, capacity development, NGO management, stakeholder engagement, evaluation of program and projects, report writing, proposal writing and manuals. Throughout her career, she has been committed to following the principles set forth with the UDHR, ICCPR, CEDAW, and other international conventions and standards. Mr. Khurram Saeed is working with Community World Service Asia and leading the Quality and Accountability program. He has over 10 years of experience in capacity enhancement support, project management, coordination & networking. He holds hands on experience in promoting Quality and Accountability and applying project cycle including assessing, designing, implementing, reviewing and evaluating projects in humanitarian and development context. He remained extensively involved in the designing and carrying out humanitarian/development capacity enhancement interventions in participatory manner including development of strategies, training manuals and training events.

Mr. Khurram Saeed is working with Community World Service Asia and leading the Quality and Accountability program. He has over 10 years of experience in capacity enhancement support, project management, coordination & networking. He holds hands on experience in promoting Quality and Accountability and applying project cycle including assessing, designing, implementing, reviewing and evaluating projects in humanitarian and development context. He remained extensively involved in designing and carrying out humanitarian/development capacity enhancement interventions in participatory manner including development of strategies, training manuals and training events.

 

 

Scholarship/Discount Details: Special Scholarships are available for those organization that send two or more females to attend the training.

Additional Details: The final deadline for applications is November 5th, 2021. Please be assured that incomplete applications will not be entertained. Community World Service Asia (CWSA) is a humanitarian and development organization, registered in Pakistan, head-quartered in Karachi and implementing initiatives throughout Asia. CWSA is a member of the Core Humanitarian Standard (CHS) Alliance, a member of Sphere and their regional partner in Asia and also manages the ADRRN Quality & Accountability Hub in Asia.

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An informal consultative meeting hosted by Community World Service Asia was held online amongst the Sphere Country Focal Points in Asia on 3rd September 2021. It focused on the contextualized challenges in different countries, including the new challenges amid the pandemic, and how to overcome them.

Sphere, established in 1997, is well known for its contribution and commitment towards strengthening the quality of humanitarian assistance to affected communities across the globe. Its flagship publication, the Sphere Handbook, outlines the fundamental tenets of quality and accountability in humanitarian assistance. It is based on the core philosophy that organisations and individuals that support and assist different, vulnerable communities around the world also bear the responsibility of ensuring that the assistance they provide is of acceptable quality and that appointed resources reach affected communities in the most accountable manner.

Role of the Sphere Focal Points

The implementation of Sphere standards is promoted at country-level by experienced staff representing humanitarian and development organisations, networks, working groups as well as independent practitioners, known as Sphere Country Focal Points. The role of these focal points is to disseminate knowledge and promote the application of Sphere principles and standards around the world and more specifically in the regions that they work in. A Virtual Meet-up was held amongst the Sphere Country Focal Points in Asia on 3rd September, 2021. This informal consultative meeting had a few set discussion points and was hosted by Community World Service Asia which is the regional partner to Sphere in Asia as well as Sphere Country Focal Point in Pakistan. Participants were free to actively engage in discussion, share their experiences or just listen and learn.

Consent on most effective practices

Through this meeting, Focal Points were given an opportunity to promote open communication and learning in addition to sharing the work that focal point organisations or practitioners are doing on Sphere standards in their respective countries. The insightful discussion mainly focused on the contextualized challenges in different countries, including the new challenges amid the pandemic, and how to overcome them. All participants agreed that practices which accommodate multiple stakeholders and take into account the country’s specific contexts are the most effective. A few of the key discussions and action points deliberated in the meeting are shared here:

  • Sphere focal points will develop a context and different stakeholder driven best practices/lessons learned document on quality and accountability to be shared within the region
  • Language barriers for global and regional level events/virtual events need to be addressed
  • Innovative and effective approaches for conducting impactful online/virtual trainings must be identified
  • Experience sharing on approaches being used by Focal Points to promote Q&A

Second Meet up on November 24

Interested participants are creating a practical implementation plan based around the discussion points. This will help solidify the work and impact of quality and accountability advocacy including Sphere standards and Core Humanitarian Standard for local governments and civil society in focal point countries. The second Virtual Meet up of Sphere Country Focal Points is scheduled to be held on 24th November 2021. It is hoped that these meetups will be conducted regularly to improve quality and accountability frameworks for humanitarian agencies within the region.

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When: 22-24th November  2021
Where: Murree, Punjab
Language: Urdu, English
Interested Applicants: Register here
Last Date to Apply: October 25, 2021

Training Purpose:

The impact of humanitarian work on communities depends greatly upon the quality of services and accountability of actions both during emergency and non-emergency times. With millions of people affected by disasters and conflicts, the importance of Quality & Accountability (Q&A) is undeniable.

Community World Service Asia (CWSA) aims to ensure that all relevant agencies including NGOs, INGOs, UN, donors, universities and government agencies, playing an active role in the disaster response & rehabilitation are given the opportunity to implement Quality and Accountability approaches and tools in their work. As part of CWSA’s response to the demand for increased support on awareness raising and capacity enhancement, CWSA is delighted to announce the upcoming course on Q&A for PCM. This course is a unique opportunity for all agencies, as it is focusing comprehensively on Standards that can support you during the project cycle.

Training Objectives:

By the end of the course, you will be able to:

  • Identify the key Q&A initiatives and their tools to support Project Cycle Management
  • Select and adapt existing Q&A tools and resources to overcome challenges throughout the Project Cycle
  • Outline the opportunities and challenges faced by humanitarian workers in implementing Q&A approaches and tools throughout the project cycle
  • Identify means by which you and your colleagues can collaborate and coordinate with other agencies to improve the quality and accountability of a humanitarian response

Participation:

This training will be directed at project/programme managers/coordinators and technical staff responsible for quality and accountability. It will focus on building knowledge and skills on Q&A and the use of tools and approaches for ensuring quality and accountability in all stages of the project cycle. This will help the participants in strengthening their programmes and enhancing aid effectiveness. Technical assistance will be provided to training participants to ensure quality and accountability in different aspects of project cycle.

Number of Participants

18-20 participants will be selected for the training. Female staff and those with disabilities and from ethnic/religious minorities are encouraged to apply. Preference will be given to participants from organizations based in underserved areas. Applicants will be informed by, October 30, 2021 about their confirmation status.

Selection Criteria

We strive to have a diversified group of participants balancing gender, organisational and geographical representation. Some points to consider could be:

  • You have experience in managing projects or programmes
  • You have some basic knowledge about the Q&A initiatives and are implementing Q&A   approaches and tools at a minimum level
  • You are a leader in promoting Q&A
  • You have a ‘good enough’ command of English
  • Willing to pay fee PKR 15,000/- for the training. Exemptions may be applied to CSOs with limited funding and those belonging to marginalized groups. Discount of 10% on early registration by October 15, 2021 and 20% discount will be awarded to women participants

Facilitator/Lead Trainer

Rizwan Iqbal, has over twelve years of professional experience while working with non-government organizations and businesses in Asia & Europe. He specializes in Organizational Development (OD); Coordination and Support in development of Monitoring and Evaluation, Accountability and Learning (MEAL) mechanisms at agency-wide level. He remained directly involved in capacity building of partners and humanitarian organizations across the globe for assuring the elements of quality programming. He is a certified trainer by the secretariats of humanitarian quality standards like Sphere, Core Humanitarian Standard (CHS) & MERS and has been providing technical assistance/services to organizations on monitoring and evaluating operational quality by using the quality frameworks, standards, guidelines and tools. He worked with a variety of cultures in more than 25 countries around the world. In the past he completed his mission to Nepal (Aug-Sep 2015) after earthquake and a six-month deployment (Nov 2013 – May 2014) in the Philippines as Quality & Accountability Advisor – after typhoon Haiyaan (Category-1 emergency responses), where he provided support to design, train, monitor and complete (with an exit plan) a Quality and Accountability (Q&A) mission. He had been leading the Quality and Accountability Program team at Community World Service Asia and performing the role of Q&A promotion within Asia-Pacific region. Currently he’s serving as Global Quality & Accountability officer at ACT Alliance based in Thailand.

Additional Details: The final deadline for applications is October 25, 2021. Please be assured those with incomplete application will not be entertained. All participants needs to arrive to the venue by 21st of November 2021 before 5:00 PMScholarship/Discount Details: Special Scholarships are available for those organization that sends two or more females to attend the training. Early Registration discount of 10% will be given to applications received by 15th October. Women participants will be awarded 20% discount.   Exemptions may be applied for by CSOs with limited funding and those from marginalized groups.

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Community World Service Asia is committed to facilitating NGOs with quality and accountability mechanisms as well as overcoming mistrust between the government and NGOs. The Economic Affairs Division (EAD) has launched an e-portal this year to simplify the NGO registration This step is very cost and time effective. CWSA organized a webinar for local and national NGOs in Pakistan to enhance their understanding about the e-portal of the EAD on 30th September, 2021. The webinar lasted for about 90 minutes and was attended by 16 individuals of different organizations working in the development and humanitarian sectors.

The speakers explained the entire process of populating an NGO’s data on the portal diligently. There are a total of 13 steps each of which was extensively discussed. Special emphasis was given to common errors made by NGOs and how to avoid them as well as some technical aspects such as ensuring that file size remains less than 7 MBs and the option of auto-filling draft MoUs. Speakers accentuated the fact that NGOs ought to exercise great caution and attention to detail while filling all the components because a single error could result in the MoU not being issued.

Participants actively asked questions, some of which were general while others were specific to their organization. Participants thanked CWSA for organizing the webinar. It is hoped that the webinar has enhanced the understanding of participants about the portal and will go a long way in helping NGOs in their registrations on the portal. CWSA will organize such informative sessions in the form of webinars and seminars in the future as well. Moreover, we are also committed to helping NGOs throughout the process and these services (some of which are pro bono) are available through the NGO help facility.

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Under NGO Help Facility, CWSA is working closely with Social Welfare Departments in KPK, Punjab, and Sindh as well as the Economic Affairs Division. Through regular meetings and conversations, the need for a joint consultative forum was identified to explore the opportunities and discuss challenges faced by these government officials of these departments and other stakeholders. For this purpose, we held the first Round Table Discussion with Social Welfare Department representatives from Punjab and KPK in Murree from 10th to 12th September 2021.

The officials were given a platform to express their apprehensions about NGOs and share progress in their respective provinces as well as the current scenario, challenges, and changes being made internally to improve the application process for NGOs. SWD laws and their compliances were discussed in detail and the work being done in this context.

In its presentation, EAD discussed the geographical and sectoral spread of NGOs as well as their spread on the basis of registration by law and donor funding. Representatives of SWDs Punjab and KPK shed light on the work they are doing to streamline the process of NGO governance and registration. Digitizing the process of NGO registration at all levels was given due priority by all participants. EAD also shared a roadmap for a revised policy with SWD officials.

It is hoped that the outcomes of this round table discussion will materialize in the form of provincial policy formulation and implementation.

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Twenty-three year old Diya lives in Ramchand Khatri village of Umerkot which is located at a five kilometres distance from Community World Service Asia’s Maternal, Neonatal and Child Health (MNCH) centre in the same district. Diya first visited the MNCH centre with complains of nausea, vomiting, and weakness in October last year.

After thoroughly examining Diya, the lady health visitor at the centre advised her to take a pregnancy test, which came out to be positive. Diya was expecting her first child. “My haemoglobin was low at 9.0 when I first visited the MNCH. The medical officer advised for antenatal care (ANC) and prescribed multivitamins to me to address the weakness and normalise my haemoglobin levels. My ANC card was created, and I was scheduled for a follow-up appointment in one week.”

The following week Diya went for her follow-up examination at the MNCH where the doctor further prescribed Monofer Injections for her increasing weakness and low haemoglobin levels. “My mother-in-law was concerned about my well-being. But her anxiety was reduced when she accompanied me to the MNCH to observe how effectively the medical personnel attended to my needs and treated me.”

Ramchand Khatri is a remote village in Umerkot, with limited livelihoods opportunities and no immediate access to education, electricity, safe drinking water, health facilities or fully constructed roads. “My husband works as a farmer. During the harvest season, my husband receives his share of the crop after cultivation,” shared Diya. “Other days, we survive on the loan we take from the landowner my husband works for. Sometimes when he is able to find other labour work, he is able to earn a small income. Our total monthly income barely adds up to PKR 8000 (Approx. USD 51). Therefore, we have not been able to set aside any funds for healthcare.”

Diya has been going to the health centre for her antenatal care on a regular basis. She is in her last month of pregnancy now. “We are unable to afford good healthcare services offered at the city hospital so this is a blessing for us,” Diya’s husband said, expressing his satisfaction with her treatment at the MNCH. “We were concerned about how we would be able to afford and provide good healthcare to Diya as we found out about our pregnancy. Our concerns, however, dissolved soon after we visited the MNCH. Diya’s haemoglobin level improved and normalised as a result of her regular antenatal care appointments. The medical team at the centre have treated Diya proactively and the baby and her appear to be in good health.”

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At Community World Service Asia, we strongly believe in forming partnerships and collaborating with key stakeholders, including national governments to reach a common humanitarian and development goal. To further strengthen this mandate, Community World Service Asia and the Social Welfare Department (SWD) of Khyber Pakhtunkwa province have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate on building mechanisms for institutional strengthening and work jointly in areas of capacity enhancement of their staff and the NGOs registered under SWD. The partnership aims to raise awareness on compliances and challenges that are faced under SWD’s ambit, to jointly organise relevant activities and to mobilise sufficient resources to conduct and implement shared assignments and campaigns.

Zulfiqar Ali Shah, Secretary Social Welfare Department – KPK and Farrukh Marvin Parvez, Regional Director – CWSA, signed the MoU that marks the beginning of many collaborations on organising thematic training workshop, sessions and short courses for young professionals that the SWD and associated NGOs have been agreed upon.

The Social Welfare Department of KPK plays a pivotal role in the field of development, particularly in favour of the most marginalised communities in Pakistan. CWSA’s technical expertise in project management and capacity building will effectively contribute towards SWD’s goals of eradicating poverty, rehabilitating people with disabilities, and developing schemes and programmes to meet the most urgent social needs.

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COVID-19 has had a profound impact on the functioning of all businesses, entrepreneurs and industries the world over. Leaders and managers, whether from the business sector, the education system, or the development sector, had to modify their leadership styles to meet the demands and sustain their businesses in these unprecedented times.

Under its Capacity Enhancement Programme, Community World Service Asia (CWSA) developed a strategy to equip Pakistan’s current and future humanitarian leaders with the leadership skills necessary to run their organisations in turbulent times such as COVID-19. CWSA has conducted virtual trainings in the first quarter of the year on quality and accountability, but with decline in COVID-19 in April and introduction of vaccines, the organization resumed in-person trainings, following strict SOPs with COVID 19 guidelines in place. The guidelines wereshared along with the invitation, and reiterated every day of the training in addition to placing santizers and masks in all common areas.  

As part of implementing the strategy, CWSA organised an open-call training on Leading in Complexity and Uncertainty in which 17 participants representing 14 NGOs and INGOs participated and exchanged new experiences and learnings. 

  • Strict SOPs were followed during the training

Arif Jabbar[1], a renowned leadership coach with two decades of experience in the local and global humanitarian and development sector lead the training and applied the ‘Authentic Leader’ approach in most of the sessions, providing equal opportunities to participants to reflect on their leadership style and its relevance and effectiveness in the context of Covid-19. This enabled the participants to learn about new and existing leadership competencies based on research with contemporary leaders. During the training participants also practiced and sharpened their personal leadership skills and competencies through practical exercises.

Adopting a participatory approach through most of the training, Arif engaged participants in group exercises to promote peer learning. In one exercise, participants were divided in four groups, namely Norms Committee, Feedback Committee, Games Committee, and the Complaints Committee. Tasks were assigned to each group with the purpose of completing the tasks with giving the least instructions in twenty minutes. After performing the tasks successfully, the participants shared that they panicked for a while due to the time constraint and absence of detailed instructions but they were ultimately able to reach the goal. In response, Arif Jabbar shared that “the real-world does not give us parameters or instructions and that the real leaders and successful organisations are the ones who can survive in situations like these.”

Rabel Sadozai, National Marketing Manager at Fatima Fertilizers, was invited as a guest speaker through a virtual online session. As the National Marketing Manager, Rabel leads the brands, channel and exports businesses at Fatima Fertilizers and has a rich corporate sector experience. In her discussion with participants, Rabel shared the need of exceedingly focused individuals in the development sector with the ability to consistently accomplish humanitarian objectives through attention to detail and being able to thrive in high-pressure, deadline-driven environments. “The challenges faced amid COVID-19, especially during remote management, built a gap between the managers and their teams. It was essential for regular communication in these times as physical contact was minimal. We prompt up our online communication and encouraged teams to provide updates as frequently as possible. This allowed us to overcome the communication gap that arose due to remote working. it was also important to keep teams motivated and let them know that we as managers are here for them even in times of difficulties. We also held casual meetings to maintain staff well-being and be supporting models, as everyone was going through tough times.”

A video of Martin Luther king was screened during the trianing to show participants his vision and communication style. The session on Vision and Communication shared various visions of companies including Tesla and Google to give participants a clear understanding on the conceot of vision. Participants learned the essential steps that need to be taken in developing a clear vision for themselves and their organisation. “It is key to know the right communication medium to inspire people thorugh your vision. Storytelling is one of the most effective tools used to impact audiences,” said Arif. Participants then worked on developing a personal and organisational vision in an exercise.

Participant Takeaways:

  • “Effective and continuous communication in key in creating a sustainable working environment during unprecedented times.”Javaid Ahmad, Aga Khan Agency for Habitat
  • “Conveying the organisational vision is key to build trust with communities we work with. It is important that the organisation’s vision is understood and enforced in its true meaning.” Saima Noreen, Sojhla Welfare Foundation
  • “Staff at any position can implement interactive activities to promote efficient communication while working remotely. These interactive exercises help staff to overcome challenges and work towards solutions as a team.” Nabia Farrah, Secours Islamique France

[1] He was the Chief of Party of USAID Ambassador’s Fund Grant Programme and has served in Oxfam International as the Global Head of Humanitarian Campaigns, Regional Humanitarian Coordinator for Southern Africa and East Asia and Country Director in Pakistan and South Africa.

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