Position: community development officer
AED is a nonprofit organization working globally to improve education, health, civil society and economic development--the foundation of thriving societies. AED’s Speak for the Child Program (SFC) seeks to recruit for a Community Development Officer. The program serves orphans and vulnerable children (OVC) in Western and Nyanza Provinces of Kenya.
Position Summary: The Community Development Officer is responsible for providing grassroots level technical support and guidance to the caregiver support groups, through their respective CBOs, to ensure the continuation of “care giver group-lead” and sustainable OVC service delivery. S/he will support the CBOs to facilitate, promote and ensure that the activities of the caregiver support groups are linked to other locally available resources and services within the government and civil society organizations. In collaboration with SFC Program Coordinator and Data Management Team, s/he will provide close supportive supervision and spot-checks to OVC households through the respective CBOs. This position will report to the SFC Program Manager and be based in Kisumu, Nyanza Province. This position is initially funded through August 2011.
Duties & Responsibilities:
1) Conduct organizational capacity assessment for the caregiver support groups to determine training needs on organizational management.
2) Conduct caregivers knowledge and skills gap on care and support for OVC, determine training needs and plan for training based on identified needs.
3) Promote linkages between government ministries (e.g. Health and Children’s department), other stakeholders and civil society organizations.
4) Facilitate, guide and direct the caregiver support groups in a proactive approach to planning and addressing identified OVC and caregiver needs.
5) Facilitate the formation of children’s clubs at caregiver support group level and provide technical oversight into their functions and linkages with relevant institutions.
6) Document services provided to OVC and caregivers including lessons learnt, best practices and human success stories.
7) Contribute to quality assessment, improvement, and integration of the family-centered and community-based model of OVC care.
8) Participate in routine supervision and follow up on OVC and caregiver service delivery by SFC trained mentors.
9) Participate, on behalf of the Program Manager and Coordinator, in locational and sub-locational Area Advisory Councils.
10) Coordinate with the Organizational Development and Economic Strengthening Officer.
11) Collaborate with the M&E Advisor and Data Management team to ensure quality and timely data collection at the caregiver group level.
Qualifications:
· At least five years of experience in community development work, preferably in the field of community health with vulnerable and marginalized populations.
· Bachelors’ degree level education.
· Knowledge and experience with NGO operations and community-based programming.
· Strong written and verbal communication skills, especially with community-based groups.
· Use of computer (MS Word, Excel, internet).
· Ability to work with minimal supervision and as part of a team is essential.
Please send cover letter and resume: ecaregionaloffice@aed.org by 13th August, 2010. Only short-listed candidates will be contacted. AED is an equal opportunities employer.
