Project Officer - Resilience

JOB VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT FORM

Title: Project Officer - Resilience

Ref N: ADMIN/KEN/-009/2020**

Sector: Resilience

No. of positions: 1

Location of work: Tana River County (Galole and Tana Delta sub-Counties)

Reports to: Project Manager

Supervises: Community Engagement Officers

Start of work: ASAP (contingent on COVID pandemic)**

Duration: Contract until 31^st December 2020 with possibility of renewal

Background Information:

CISP is an equal employment opportunity employer with its headquarters in Rome. Currently CISP has various field offices, including a Regional office in Nairobi. CISP Kenya carries out projects in areas of development by supporting national and county authorities to provide quality, equitable, transparent and accountable services in the sectors of higher education, child protection, culture, food security and nutrition.

CISP is the lead agency of a consortium of partners implementing a multi-year EU-funded project on resilience building and food security in Tana Delta and Galole sub-Counties of Tana River County. The project is an integrated, multi-sectoral response to food security and sustainable livelihood challenges faced by agro-pastoralist and pastoralist communities, including drought and other effects of climate change. The project aims to enhance resilience of these communities through improving food and nutrition security of vulnerable households, especially for women and children, generating sustainable livelihoods and protecting productive assets.

Job Purpose:

CISP is seeking an experienced Project Officer with technical expertise in Resilience, Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR), Early Warning (EW) systems, and Conflict Resolution in Tana River County. This position will lead the implementation of the resilience-focused activities for the project in Tana River County (Galole and Tana delta sub-counties).

Role and Responsibilities

Project Planning and Implementation

• Responsible for the selection and verification of beneficiaries in coordination with the consortium partners, the community committees, local authorities.
• Plan field missions, supervise project activities and assign staff to ensure activities are carried out as per project work plan.

• Facilitate adoption of best practice/approaches/models in the course of the implementation of the Resilience component of the project.

• Collaborate with relevant National and County government ministries and partners at the Ward, County and community levels to ensure integration and high quality implementation of all Resilience activities.

• Support the training of Community Managed Disaster Reduction (CMDRR) committees and provide refresher trainings on the CMDRR concept.

• Support the CMDRR committees to review and update the former participatory disaster risk assessments, contextualize to their specific ward and capitalize to develop community DRR action plans.

• Work with the project team, NDMA and Community Early Warning Information focal persons to co-design the Climate Service Data system and deliver reliable and easy to understand information to community members for DRR.

• Provide technical support to targeted communities to mitigate climate change Impact and to promote climate change adaptation,

• Facilitate community-led discussions and initiatives on peaceful co-existence and resource-based conflict mitigation utilizing innovative community-based Conflict Management approaches.

• Assist and participate in the planning and implementation of assessments to identify traditional good practices on peace building.

• Plan and oversee community dialogue sessions on peaceful resource (rangeland and water) utilization (reciprocal use of natural resources) between farmers and pastoralists and within pastoralists, and support the drafting of resource sharing agreements (RSAs).

• Within the context of a longer-term strategy of Resilience building and vulnerability reduction, participate in the production of technical support materials and guide the project team on the delivery of mechanisms that will ensure effective implementation of activities as well as early recovery.

• Participate in the preparation of overall workplan and budget planning for Resilience activities, and systemically review the budget and control field expenditures within approved project budget.

• Perform other related duties as per the directives of the supervisor

MEAL and Quality Assurance

• Support MEAL components of Resilience activities in coordination with relevant stakeholders.
• Travel extensively in the County for beneficiary engagement, support, supervision and monitoring of project activities.
• Work closely with relevant authorities to ensure all activities are in alignment with approved guidelines and standards such as Sphere, LEGS and HAP.
• Provide technical inputs in the planning and design of project specific operational researches, including beneficiary mapping, baseline, and midline and end line evaluations related to the livelihoods outcomes and disseminate research publications for learning purposes.
• Participate in regular project review meetings, team meetings and other monitoring mechanisms to assess project progress and resolve implementation bottlenecks.
• Participate in the establishment of a Complaints and Feedback Mechanism and ensure it is effectively disseminated and utilized by project stakeholders and staff.
• Provide technical support and timely feedback to the Project Manager on livelihood activities.
• Track and prepare monthly, quarterly, bi-annual and annual progress reports on the project’s activities and indicators, including documentation of key lessons learnt and successes stories.
• Participate in the project procurement committee to offer technical advice.

• Write impact stories, collect photos, and draft field reports in line with CISP communications guidelines.

• Identify other opportunities in an ongoing manner that will add value to the overarching goal of the project.

• Ensure cross-cutting themes such as gender, disability and environmental protection are integrated into the Livelihood activities and ensure implementation in a child-friendly manner.

Staff Management:

• Directly supervise the work of Community Empowerment Officers under the project.
• Identify training needs, design and implement capacity building of supervised staff at least once every 6 months.
• Build the capacity of field staff, project ToTs and partners on peacebuilding, conflict resolution and CMDRR.
• Liaise with and support field officers from consortium partners on technical aspects of project.

Advocacy and Networking

• Ensure that project participants and partners are kept informed of all changes in Government laws, policies and budgets in respect to the livelihoods aspects being implemented.
• Work with partners and coalitions, including CMDRR groups, to engage in advocacy activities with the government structures at the Ward/County level to address the needs of local communities and inform national level advocacy initiatives.
• Take a leading role in strengthening multi-sector and multi-stakeholder platforms at county and sub-county levels to coordinate, collaborate and synergize all efforts together towards food and nutrition security and gender mainstreaming.
• Ensure effective mobilisation of community groups, youth and children, empowering them to engage duty bearers through use of various advocacy approaches and community-led processes of monitoring public service delivery.
• Travel as required within County and neighbouring Counties to ensure representation of CISP in key stakeholder meetings and working groups related to Resilience at all levels for coordination, information sharing and informing relevant policies and strategies.
• Ensure the correct visibility of CISP in front of beneficiaries and local authorities at the field level.

Minimum Qualifications and Experience

• Minimum of a Bachelor’s Degree in Disaster Management, DRR, Food Security, Agricultural Sciences, Agronomy, or a closely related field from a recognized university.
• Minimum of 3 years’ progressive experience in development or humanitarian programming including implementing livelihoods projects.
• Demonstrable experience in designing and implementing projects focused on DRR, climate, drought resilience, preparedness, response and recovery, and knowledge of climate financing mechanisms.**

• Fluent in both spoken and written English and Kiswahili.

• Strong self-starter, able to take initiative and adapt to changing circumstances and priorities.

• Experience working in the ASAL Counties in Kenya and familiarity with the Tana River context.

• Flexible and willing to work in a remote environment with extensive travel to multiple field locations.

• Ability to conduct community needs assessments, program planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of resilience interventions and commitment to participatory approaches at all stages of the project cycle.

• Excellent communication, facilitation, presentation and representation skills.

• Excellent computer skills, including proficiency in Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, Powerpoint, Outlook).

• Ability to work under pressure, take decisions and multi-task.

• Positive attitude towards community work with emphasis on the ability to learn from communities and support innovative approaches to problem-solving.

• Energetic and connects well with people of all backgrounds, and able to inspire and motivate people.

• Honest, gains trust easily and demonstrates a high level of integrity.

• Commitment to CISP values and Child Protection Policy.

Desirable experience:

• Experience with Community led Communication for Social Change Strategies
• Knowledge on Advocacy, Disaster Management, Peace building, Gender-responsive programming initiatives will be an added advantage

How to apply:

How to Apply:

Please send your application by e-mail to burugu@cisp-nairobi.org and cc njau@cisp-nairobi.org with the e-mail subject as “Application for Project Officer – Resilience” no later than 18^th June, 2020 by 5pm (EAT). Late applications will not be reviewed.

Applications must include ALL of the following in order to be assessed:

1. CV including 3 references (maximum 3 pages)

2. Cover letter clearly demonstrating how you meet the qualifications for this position and your expected remuneration (maximum 1 page)

3. Duly filled Annex 3.3. Job Application Form

Please note only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

For more information about CISP, please visit www.cisp-ngo.org.

CISP is strongly committed to ending Child Abuse, all forms of Sexual Exploitation and Abuse, and to building a work environment that is safe and welcoming for all, where Sexual Harassment does not take place. The desired candidate for any position should share and support this commitment in all aspects of their personal and professional behavior. Any history implicating that the applicant has a history of Child Abuse, Sexual Exploitation and Abuse, or Sexual Harassment, is a reason for excluding him or her from employment with CISP.