Community Development Officer

Full Job Description

Action Against Hunger leadsthe global movement to end hunger. We innovate solutions, advocate for change,and reach 24 million people every year with proven hunger prevention andtreatment programs. As a nonprofit that works across 50 countries, our 8,300dedicated staff members partner with communities to address the root causes ofhunger, including climate change, conflict, inequity, and emergencies. Westrive to create a world free from hunger, for everyone, for good.

Action Against Hunger - USA ispart of the Action Against Hunger International network. As an independent NGO,Action Against Hunger USA currently manages operations in 8 countries: Kenya,South Sudan, Somalia, Tanzania, Uganda, Ethiopia, Zambia and Haiti with over$100 million in programs, and approximately 1,800 permanent staff based in NewYork City, Washington D.C, Nairobi, and country offices. Additional growth isanticipated.

I.             Summary of position

Under the overall supervision of the program manager, theCommunity Development Officer will provide the technical expertise onapproaches and methods for organizing broad scale community engagement. Throughhis/her work the Community Development Officer will seek to increase community(local authorities and beneficiaries) involvement through working with allinstitutional organs agreed upon in the project. The officer will work closelywith community members to mobilize and facilitate the implementation of variousdevelopment projects and activities. The officer will play a pivotal role inbuilding community capacity, monitoring community component project progress,coordinating mobilization efforts, supporting program staff, and maintainingeffective communication with county program personnel. In addition, the officerwill provide inputs to the development of training materials relevant tocommunity level activities.

Purpose:

The purpose of this role is to effectively andefficiently facilitate implementation of Action Against Hunger activities atthe community level and ensure communities are empowered to participate inproject design, planning, implementation, evaluation and exit. The CommunityDevelopment Officer will work towards increased community (local authoritiesand beneficiaries) involvement.

Engagement:  

·       Liaise with and facilitaterelevant communication and exchange with the Local Community, local Authoritieswithin county and sub county in the area.

·  Represent Action Against Hunger in variouscounty level external meetings on community interventions planning and programming.

·       Workclosely with the sector level focal persons to plan and implement interventionsat community and household level, ensuring active linkage for greater impact.

·       Liaisewith the relevant other actors to document project interventions and outcomesat community level.

• Ensure close and effective collaboration with key community stakeholders and ensure their active participation in all community level projects activities and committees; 
  

Delivery:

The CommunityDevelopment Officer will work under the guidance of the project manager toperform the following;

• Analyze collected information from the community structures and prepare summaries, briefing notes, implementation plans, roadmaps and reports;
  
• Support in designing, adoption and promotion of community level knowledge products proven to promote recommended practices.
  

II.           Essential job duties

1.      Coordination of Community Level CapacityBuilding:  25%

·       Identify the training andcapacity-building needs of community level health workforce and members.

·       Develop training plans andworkshops to address these needs, focusing on skill enhancement and knowledgetransfer.

·       Collaborate with relevantsubject matter experts to support capacity-building sessions.

·       Monitor and evaluate theimpact of capacity-building initiatives on community members for continuousimprovement.

2.     Lead inCommunity Level Activities’ Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning:15%

·       Design and implementmonitoring and evaluation systems for community level activities.

·       Regularly collect data onproject progress, outcomes, and impact at the community level.

· In liaison with the MEALofficer, analyze community level data to identify trends, challenges, andopportunities for improvement.

·       Prepare and present reports onmonitoring findings to the line manager and other relevant stakeholders.

·  Coordinate documentation of communitylevel learning (success stories, best practices, challenges, among others) andensure they are shared with project team for input and sharing internally andexternally.

3.     Coordinate Community Level Mobilization:   25%

·       Develop and execute effective strategiesto mobilize community members for participation in project/developmentinitiatives.

·       Organize and facilitate communitymeetings, workshops, and awareness campaigns.

·       Collaborate with communityleaders and influencers to ensure active engagement and participation.

·       Foster a sense of ownershipand responsibility among community members for project success.

4.     Support Program Staff in Implementation of Community LevelActivities:        15%

·       Collaborate with program teamsto ensure alignment of community-level activities with broader project goals.

·       Provide technical guidance andsupport to program staff in the execution of community-based projects.

·       Ensure that all the plans andindicators of the community mobilization team are realistically set and overseetheir achievement;

·       Address any challenges orissues that arise during implementation and propose solutions.

·       Contributeeffectively to articulate community level component in the regular programreports including internal and donor reports.

5.     Building Partnerships with ProjectStakeholders and Partners:       10%

·       Work with the FC, DFC andtechnical program staff to expand cooperation between communities and thelocal authorities during project implementation ensuring local needs,priorities and initiatives are integrated into the local authorities’ plans

·       Act as a liaison between thecommunity and base program personnel.

·       In liaison with the linemanager, communicate project updates, challenges, and successes to relevantstakeholders at the county level.

·       Participate in coordinationmeetings to ensure seamless integration of community initiatives into larger county/baseprograms.

·       Collaborate with base programpersonnel to leverage resources and opportunities for community levelactivities.

·       Ensure awareness about projectpriorities, strategies and approaches

·       Analyzeongoing experience for lessons learnt, best practices, and share with project teamfor use in knowledge sharing and planning.

·       Liaisewith the project team to ensure anticipation of stories and begin theirdocumentation at early stages.

·       Proactivelycontribute to knowledge networks and communities of practice.

6.    Branding, Communication and Visibility    5%

·       Ensure all project activitiesat community level are well branded with Action Against Hunger and donorvisibility as per the project visibility and communication guidelines.

·       Ensure capturing of quality images/photosand videos for activities in the community and share with the project team andcommunications officer

7.    Any Other duty            5%

· Performany other duties as may be assigned by the line manager. 

III.          Supervisoryroles

·       None

IV.          FiscalResponsibility

·       Preparecash forecast for community engagement and development activities

·       Ensureexpenditure is as stipulated in the budget lines with strict adherence to thebudget limits

·       Proposeanticipated budget re-alignment on time discussing with Deputy FieldCoordinator

·       Inliaison with the Deputy Field Coordinator, monitor budget spending against thespending plans

·       Ensurediligence in grants utilization including timely spending and value for money.

V.           PhysicalDemands

·      

·       This position entails a lot of travel to the field to supportcommunity level activities. The employee must attest to a level of physicalfitness capable of enduring physically difficult, highly stressful situations,which may include the necessity to walk long distances, to eat a limited dietand/or to reside in potentially uncomfortable housing.

·       The physical demands described here are representative ofthose that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essentialfunctions of this job. Reasonable accommodation may be made to enableindividuals with disability to perform the essential functions.

VI.          WorkingConditions, Travel and Environment

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VII.         GenderEquality Commitments & Zero Tolerance to Abuse

At alltimes, Action against Hunger commits to;

·       Fosteran environment that reinforces the values of people of all genders equal access toinformation.

·       Providea work environment where people of all genders must be evaluated and promotedbased on their skills and performance.

·       Promotea safe, secure, and respectful environment for all stakeholders, particularlyfor children, beneficiaries, and members of staff.

·       Helpto prevent any type of abuse including workplace harassment and sexual abuseand exploitation.

·       Respectbeneficiaries’ women, men, children (boys and girls) regardless of gender, sexorientation, disability, religion, race, color, ancestry, national origin, age,or marital status.

·       Valueand respect all cultures.

VIII.      

·       Bachelor'sdegree in Community Development, Social Sciences, International Development, ora related field or

·       Diploma in Community Development,Community Studies or related social sciences course from a recognizedinstitution

·       Minimum of 4 years work experience in asimilar position with similar setting and responsibility. Datacollection, analysis, and reporting skills for monitoring and evaluationpurposes.

·       Proficiencyin relevant software applications and systems for data management andreporting.

·       Stronginterpersonal and communication skills to engage effectively with diversecommunity members and stakeholders.

·       Provenexperience in community mobilization, capacity building, and development work.

·       Abilityto work independently and as part of a team, demonstrating leadership andinitiative.

·       Adaptabilityand accommodative to local culture, customs, and social dynamics.

·       Goodlistening, communication, interpersonal and problem solving skills.

·       Abilityto mobilize/influence people to participate in a desired activity.

·       Advocacyand networking skills.

·       Abilityto interpret, analyze and present information/data.

·       Abilityto write good quality reports.

          Preferred but notmandatory ;

·       Previousexperience in Arid and Semi-Arid lands of Kenya

·       Knowledgeand Experience working with Community Health Strategy and or Community Healthand Development teams within county Governments

·       Experiencein community mobilization for Health, Nutrition, WASH, Food Security and Genderprogramming