Program Officer-Marsabit at Mercy Corps

General Position Summary

The Program Officer will be responsible for technical oversight and management of the livelihoods, Natural Resource Management and Resilience activities, peace and social reconciliation activities, and capacity building of consortium members on Mercy Corps proven assessment modes and program methods. S/he will define implementation strategies in coordination with the Program Coordinator and consortium team. The Program Officer will train staff, partners, and community groups, providing them with technical assistance; and ensuring that common strategies and approaches are applied consistently in all communities. S/he will coordinate closely with the PaQ team to ensure that systems are in place to track, analyze, and report results. The Program Officer will keep abreast of changing contexts and integrate new ideas and approaches as appropriate, seek additional technical assistance as needed, and ensure effective working relationships with collaborating agencies.  S/he will work closely with our partners LPI, ALCHA, and PC and look for opportunities to link programming and clients with their programming and programming across the LMS.

Essential Responsibilities

PROGRAM MANAGEMENT

• Contribute to teamwork plans and guide successful implementation of proven assessment and models and Learning activities, ensuring teams follow work plans so activities are on time, on target, and within the approved budget, and program deliverables achieve the desired impact.
• Provide technical guidance on safe space, and community models and ensure that interventions are responsive to stakeholders and consistent with Mercy Corps’ relevant program guidelines, principles, values, quality standards, and strategic plan. Ensure that interventions are evidence-based and adhere to adaptive management principles.
• Assist in the development of technical curricula, entrepreneurship, business, and life skills.
• Engage community members (community representatives, teachers, religious leaders, government officials, and gatekeepers) to support and inform program activities.
• Contribute to teamwork plans and guide successful implementation of conflict management and natural resources management activities, and income generating activities including linkages for cross-border trade initiatives, access to finance and working capital, and climate-smart agriculture initiatives ensuring activities are on time, target, and within the approved budget, and program deliverables achieve the desired impact.
• Integrate community approaches, gender sensitivity, and capacity building into all activities as appropriate. Certify all interventions adhere to Mercy Corps’ Gender Policy, Do No Harm principles, and beneficiary accountability standards.

COMMUNITY AND COUNTY GOVERNMENT ENGAGEMENT

• Conduct community mobilization and sensitization meetings.
• Identify and engage community leaders to sensitize and establish buy-in
• Link with relevant county government departments such as Gender and Social Services for group registrations, and financial and material support.
• Conduct community mobilization and sensitization for cross border-conflict, climate resilient, income generation.
• Facilitate planning meetings and workshops with government, NGO, private sector, and community partners to revise plans and promote partner acceptance/buy-in.
• Support local government initiatives to develop appropriate policies related to NRM Conflict management and climate change.

PARTNERSHIP

• Link women to other traders, markets, financial institutions, public and private institutions.
• Facilitate planning meetings and workshops with government, NGO, private sector, and community partners to revise plans and promote partner acceptance/buy-in.
• Link-local committees, organized groups, and businesses, and or traders to relevant local government departments, cross-border traders, financial institutions, and other development partners.
• Establish collaborative partnerships with other development partners working on rangelands, NRM, and conflict.

PROGRAM MONITORING

• Monitor and track the progress of safe space groups.
• Support the development of customized monitoring and evaluation tools.
• Collect monitoring data from partners and organized groups and submit it to management.
• Support assessments, evaluations, and monitoring surveys including support in the development of Scopes of Work, survey tools, training and management of data collectors, report writing, and facilitating results discussion.
• Support the PaQ team in developing appropriate monitoring tools for the income-generating activity process, NRM, and conflict management.
• Support participatory community-based monitoring with the government where initiatives are taking place - organize and coordinate capacity building about community-based monitoring, including experience sharing.
• In coordination with the PaQ team, monitor the implementation of activities through regular field visits and assessments to ensure program quality and impact.
• Support the Project Coordinator in the preparation of the weekly, monthly, and quarterly reports.
• Document approaches, successes and lessons learned.

COORDINATION

• Coordinate with procurement, logistics, security, finance, administration, and human resources teams to ensure operational systems support field activities.
• Support operations team to facilitate procurement of goods and services related to program activities.

TEAM MANAGEMENT

• Participate in recruitment and training of program facilitators.
• Promote accountability, communicate expectations, and provide constructive feedback informally and formally via regular one-on-one and performance reviews.
• Support the orientation of Community Facilitators at the field level
• Conduct himself/herself both professionally and personally in such a manner as to bring credit to Mercy Corps and not jeopardize its humanitarian mission.
• Other duties as assigned.

Accountability

Reports Directly To: Program Coordinator

Works Directly With: Director of Programs, PAQ team, finance and operations teams, Partner Organizations, and broader MM-CBRM team

Accountability to Participants and Stakeholders

Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our program participants, community partners, other stakeholders, and to international standards guiding international relief and development work. We are committed to actively engaging communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring, and evaluation of our field projects.

Minimum Qualification & Transferable Skills

• Minimum of 5 years’ experience working with NGOs/CBO’s in civic engagement, livelihoods, and education;
• Degree in Community Development, Economic Development, Business, Agriculture, Rangeland management, NRM or Livestock or related field
• Should have knowledge of quantitative and qualitative data collection, and reporting techniques and should understand and be able to apply basic measures of central tendency and spread.
• Commitment to working with Women, Girls, youth, and vulnerable groups in need, regardless of race, tribe, religion, or gender.
• Competent in building networks, strong problem-solving skills, and ability to influence with effective listening, persuasion, negotiation and other techniques.
• Understanding of working with local partners and commitment to working with the greater LMS team
• Good problem-solving, written, and oral communication skills.
• Strong written and spoken English and Swahili.
• Local language skills required;
• Demonstrated attention to detail, ability to follow procedures, meet deadlines, and work independently and cooperatively with team members.