Job Opportunities at Mercy Corps - 12 Positions

1. Peace and Conflict Management;
2. Livelihood / Market Systems;
3. Governance (particularly at the county level); and
4. Youth Employment/Employability (including the social and economic development of adolescents).

• S/he will ensures all project initiatives are implemented to achieve maximum impact as per project objectives while remaining on schedule and budget.
• The Project Coordinator directly manages the county-level staff on the project and has an informal reporting line to our partner’s Regional Program Manager.
• Strong day-to-day coordination with the Regional Program Manager is required to ensure that office operations are running effectively and are compliant with all internal and external regulations.
• S/he will be the primary liaison with county government officials.

Essential Job Functions:
 

• Provide overall managerial leadership for the project at the county level, ensuring teams follow work plans so activities are on time, target and within the approved budget, and project deliverables achieve desired impact;
• Lead effective coordination, collaboration and integration among all technical, support and project units including with our lead partner – ACDI/VOCA and implementing partner – the  BOMA Project;
• Partner with county-level government and communities in areas of operation;
• Ensure effective and timely monitoring, documenting and reporting on all project activities as per the policies and practices of the consortium lead, Mercy Corps, USAID and the government;
• Provide timely updates to supervisor on progress and issues, identifying risks and proposing solutions for action and early resolution;
• Attend all quarterly project meetings in Nairobi as well as facilitate planning meetings and workshops with government, NGOs, private sector and community partners to revise plans and promote partner acceptance/buy-in;
• Regularly visit field sites to assess progress of activities and provide formal and informal feedback;
• Coordinate with procurement, logistics, security, administration and human resources teams to ensure operational systems support field activities.

• Assist team members with information, tools and resources to improve performance and achieve objectives;
• Promote accountability, communicate expectations and provide constructive feedback informally and formally via regular one on ones and performance reviews;
• Create and sustain a work environment of mutual respect where team members strive to achieve excellence;
• Work closely with the HR department to recruit, orient and lead team members as necessary.

• Represent Mercy Corps at government, donor, NGO and other relevant events, in close coordination with the Chief of Party, Deputy Chief of Party and country leadership;
• Coordinate activities with consortium partners, sub grantees, local government and other implementers, as well as with other Mercy Corps programs.

• Work closely with the county team’s security focal points to develop and maintain systems that promote the safety and security of all team members.  Coordinate closely with our partner, ACDI/VOCA on security issues at the county level;
• Ensure that programs are designed and implemented with a clear analysis and understanding of security.

• Conduct himself/herself both professionally and personally in such a manner as to bring credit to Mercy Corps and to not jeopardize its humanitarian mission;
• Other duties as assigned.

• Masters Degree or equivalent in development studies, business, planning, social sciences or other relevant field is preferred;
• A minimum of 5 years of relevant professional experience in multi-sectoral programs, managing teams, strategic planning and implementing programs;
• Strong managerial skills, including effective personnel management, adaptive management, coordination and decision-making;
• Strong facilitation and consensus-building skills;
• Competent in building networks, strong problem-solving skills, and ability to influence with effective listening, persuasion, negotiation and other techniques;
• Strong understanding of USAID compliance issues;
• Internationally recognized qualification in project or program management or a commitment to obtain the qualification in the early months of work;
• Excellent and persuasive oral and written communication skills, including report writing, in English and other language(s), as required;
• Spoken fluency is Swahili is required and primary local dialects in the respective County is strongly preferred;
• Previous working experience in northern Kenya is desirable;
• Demonstrated attention to detail, ability to follow procedures, meet deadlines and work independently and cooperatively with team members;
• Ability to work comfortably in a sometimes tense and changing security environment is required.

• S/he will combine exceptional management skills and capacity to manage relationships with different stakeholders. A heavy emphasis will be placed on coordination with other actors implementing in the areas of intervention.
• S/he will be committed to long-term program sustainability and the delivery of high-impact activities at the community level.
• Multi-tasking, prioritizing, problem solving and simultaneous attention to detail and strategic vision are essential.
• The most successful Mercy Corps staff members have a strong commitment to teamwork and accountability, thrive in evolving and changing environments and make effective written and verbal communication a priority.
•  S/he will be committed to working closely and collaboratively with the County Government structures and our lead partner, ACDI/VOCA.

go to method of application »

1. Peace and Conflict Management;
2. Livelihood / Market Systems;
3. Governance (particularly at the county level); and
4. Youth Employment / Employability (including the social and economic development of adolescents).

• Contribute to team work plans and guide successful implementation of conflict management and natural resources management activities, ensuring teams follow work plans so activities are on time, target and within the approved budget, and program deliverables achieve desired impact;
• Provide technical guidance on conflict management/natural resource management 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;
• Conduct, participate in and/or update conflict and/or NRM assessments, involving a variety of stakeholders;
• In collaboration with National Drought Management Authority (NDMA), facilitate discussions within communities aimed at promoting Disaster Risk Reduction approaches including for drought cycle management as important components of NRM;
• Plan and work in partnership with the Rangeland Specialist and consultants to be in sync in approaches and plans;
• 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;
• Facilitate planning meetings and workshops with government, NGO, private sector, and community partners to revise plans and promote partner acceptance/buy-in;
• In coordination with the MEL team, monitor the implementation of activities through regular field visits and assessments to ensure program quality and impact. Document approaches, successes and lessons learned;
• Coordinate with procurement, logistics, security, administration and human resources teams to ensure operational systems support field activities.

• Represent Mercy Corps at government, donor, NGO and other relevant events, in close coordination with the Chief of Party, Deputy Chief of Party and country leadership.
• Coordinate activities with consortium partners, sub grantees, local government and other implementers, as well as with other Mercy Corps programs.

• Work closely with the country team’s security focal point to develop and maintain systems that promote the safety and security of all team members.
• Ensure that programs are designed and implemented with a clear analysis and understanding of security.

• Conduct himself/herself both professionally and personally in such a manner as to bring credit to Mercy Corps and to not jeopardize its humanitarian mission;
• Other duties as assigned.

• BA/S or equivalent in development studies, Disaster Risk Reduction, Range management, conflict mitigation, social sciences or other relevant field;
• A minimum of three years of relevant professional experience in NRM where there is Natural Resource based conflicts with hands on experience in peace building initiatives;
• Experience drafting contingency plans with communities in ASAL areas is required;
• Strong management skills, including effective personnel management, adaptive management coordination and decision-making Strong facilitation and consensus-building skills;
• Competent in building networks, strong problem-solving skills, and ability to influence with effective listening, persuasion, negotiation and other techniques;
• Strong understanding of USAID compliance issues;
• Internationally recognized qualification in project or program management or a commitment to obtain the qualification in the early months of work;
• Excellent and persuasive oral and written communication skills, including report writing, in English and other language(s), and fluency in Kiswahili.  Local dialects spoken in Northern Kenya are also a plus;
• Previous work experience in northern Kenya desirable;
• Demonstrated attention to detail, ability to follow procedures, meet deadlines and work independently and cooperatively with team members.

go to method of application »

1. Peace and Conflict Management;
2. Livelihood/Market Systems;
3. Governance (particularly at the county level); and
4. Youth Employment / Employability (including the social and economic development of adolescents).

• Contribute to team work plans and guide successful implementation of GIRL and Learning activities, ensuring teams follow work plans so activities are on time, target and within the approved budget, and program deliverables achieve desired impact;
• Provide technical guidance on a 9-month adolescent girls personal agency empowerment safe space model 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;
• Engage community members (community representatives, teachers, religious leaders, government officials and gatekeepers) to form an Advisory Committee to support and inform program activities;
• Organize community events to sensitize communities on human capital development for resilient communities;
• Assist in the creation of technical curricula, basic education (numeracy & literacy), basic nutrition literacy, WASH awareness and campaign, financial literacy and reproductive health;
• Participate in recruitment and train Community Facilitators and Girl mentors to deliver technical curricula to girls;
• Identify and recruit girls in the community to participate in safe space groups;
• Identify and engage local animal and human health workers to provide training and technical assistance to safe space groups;
• Monitor and track the success and failures of safe space groups;
• Link women to other traders, markets, financial institutions, public and private institutions;
• Generate and implement monitoring and evaluation tools;
• Play a key role in the development of intervention designs, sector strategies and M&E frameworks;
• Coordinate assessments, evaluations and monitoring surveys in area of operation. This will entail development of Scopes of Work, development of survey tools, trainings and management of data collectors, report write and facilitating results discussion;
• 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;
• Facilitate planning meetings and workshops with government, NGO, private sector, and community partners to revise plans and promote partner acceptance/buy-in;
• In coordination with the MEL team, monitor the implementation of activities through regular field visits and assessments to ensure program quality and impact. Document approaches, successes and lessons learned;
• Coordinate with procurement, logistics, security, administration and human resources teams to ensure operational systems support field activities;
• Assist team members with information, tools and resources to improve performance and reach objectives;
• Promote accountability, communicate expectations and provide constructive feedback informally and formally via regular one-on-one and performance reviews;
• Orient and lead team Community Facilitators.
• Conduct himself/herself both professionally and personally in such a manner as to bring credit to Mercy Corps and to not jeopardize its humanitarian mission;
• Other duties as assigned.

• Minimum of 3 years’ experience working with NGOs/CBO’s in civic engagement, livelihoods and education;
• Degree in Community Development, Economic Development, Business, Agriculture, Livestock or related field or diploma with over 3 years’ experience;
• Should have knowledge of quantitative and qualitative data collection, 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;
• Understanding of working with local partners and commitment to working with the greater BOMA Project and LMS team;
• Good problem solving, written and oral communication skills;
• Strong written and spoken English and Swahili;
• Local language skills required;
• Ability to work without constant supervision and as part of a mixed team;
• Good knowledge of MS Office software such as Excel, Word, and Access.