Oxfam GB is looking for a WASH Quality Co-ordinator in DRCongo
Job Profile
Closes: 6 February 2013 (UK time)
Interviews: Week 14 February 2013
Salary: £29,171 – £40,795 net per annum (net = take home pay. Oxfam will meet the tax and social security liabilities of the post-holder in addition to net salary).
plus
HTW Allowance: £4000 net per annum
Contract type: 1 fixed term, 1 year position.
NB: This is an unaccompanied post.
Please submit CVs in English.
OXFAM PURPOSE: To work with others to overcome poverty and suffering
TEAM PURPOSE: To act with poor people as a force for change in addressing the causes of poverty, suffering and injustice and alleviating their symptoms
JOB PURPOSE: To demonstrably improve the quality of current WASH programmes and support the establishment of high quality programmes in future.
REPORTING LINES:
Post holder reports to: Country WASH Coordinator and Matrix managed by a WASH adviser in the Humanitarian Department in Oxford
Staff reporting to post holder: Matrix or direct management of selected staff in agreement with the country WASH Coordinator and Provincial WASH Coordinators.
BACKGROUND:
Long Term Programme Context
Oxfam GB has been present in DRC for more than 30 years. The current programme is active in the provinces of Kinshasa, Equateur Province, North Kivu, South Kivu and Province Orientale (PO) with a budget of about US$15m per year. A key part of the DRC country strategy is to provide support to the delivery of basic WASH services.
Oxfam implements WASH programmes in conjunction with local partners e.g REGIDESO and BCZ. Activities include prevention, preparedness and response to cholera outbreaks, supporting the local production of chlorine, constructing springs, gravity fed water systems and hand dug wells, supporting community outreach initiatives through the village/ ecole assani programme and the training of community health workers and pump mechanics.
Emergency Programme Context
Since April 2012, the situation in DRC has further deteriorated when former fighters from rebel CNDP (National Congress for the Defence of the People) who had been integrated into the Congolese army (FARDC) mutinied, and took control of areas close to the border with Rwanda. In response, the FARDC deployed troops from across the east to fight the "M23" rebellion and protect major towns. Fighting broke out in the two Kivu provinces which was initially largely kept under control in most zones except the Masisi and Rutshuru territories, with direct and indirect impact on others North Kivu territories. Thereafter, the tension has escalated back and fore between "M23" and the FARDC through Goma itself.
Since April 2012 there has been large scale displacement, where people have fled their homes, with some staying with host communities whilst others are staying in camps (makeshift and formal) and some have moved across the border to Rwanda and Uganda.
In response to this latest displacement Oxfam has launched an emergency programme to the increased needs in Goma and Masisi. The key intervention areas are WaSH, protection and EFSL[1] targeting up to 150,000 people. This scale up is in addition to Oxfam's ongoing programmes in eastern DRC.
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[1] Emergency food security and livelihoods
Key Responsibilities
The key purpose of this role is to provide technical support to enable the delivery of good quality WASH programmes in DRC (with 60% time in the field, and 40% in Kinshasa or Bukavu). The post holder will facilitate access to technical support for all WASH teams, with a particular focus on Public Health Promotion. Some tasks will be shared with the Kinshasa based country WASH Coordinator and working closely with her/him and the Provincial WASH Coordinators, the post holder will:
Strategy and coordination
1 Contribute to the development and implementation of a country WASH strategy to support the delivery of Oxfam's long term and humanitarian WASH interventions in DRC. The strategy will incorporate effective ways of working with other OI affiliates in country and will reflect the recently developed Humanitarian Investment Plan.
2 Contribute to WASH coordination with external actors through playing an active role in interagency WASH fora, supporting the development of technical strategies and standards and facilitating the provision of training for the interagency group .
3 Liaise with OI affiliates and provide technical support where appropriate
The post holder will lead the development and delivery of planned activities to improve the quality of WASH programmes by providing :
Technical support to WASH programmes
1 Identify key technical support needs for the WASH programme and develop a work plan to address them.
2 Work with staff and partners to ensure effective cholera preparedness and response in all vulnerable localities
3 Assist with programme assessment, design and donor proposal writing for long term and humanitarian WASH interventions.
4 Promote the inclusion of cross cutting issues within programming, including HIV/AIDS, malaria, gender, protection and community participation.
5 Contribute to initiatives aimed at increasing communities' resilience to conflict e.g WASH preparedness in vulnerable locations.
6 Lead process on appropriateness and feasibility of programmes, and Oxfam's capacity to implement
7 In collaboration with the MEAL Advisor support WASH teams with the collection, analysis and review of gender disaggregated monitoring data and ensure that this is used regularly to review and adapt the programme activities.
8 Ensure the equal inclusion of women in all stages of the programme cycle and facilitate their role in decision making.
9 Ensure that community accountability mechanisms are in place and programme plans are adjusted in response to feedback.
10 Ensure that all WASH work conforms to appropriate Oxfam, government and international standards.
Human Resources management and Capacity Building
11 Identify the capacity building needs of Oxfam and partner staff and facilitate the development, implementation and monitoring of a plan to address those needs. The post holder will be required to provide detailed support and field based accompaniment for community mobilisation and hygiene promotion interventions.
12 Ensure that staff and partners have access to essential technical documents translated in relevant languages (French, Swahili, Lingala) and develop new context specific technical guidance materials based on field based learning as appropriate.
13 Assist in the recruitment of WASH staff as appropriate and matrix manage selected staff in agreement with the country WASH Coordinator and Provincial WASH Coordinators.
Establish and maintain effective communications between WASH staff and partners across projects e.g via learning events , e- mail groups, to facilitate learning through sharing experience
Skills and Competence
• A suitable qualification in any discipline relating to Public Health Engineering or Public health promotion is the necessary educational background. Experience could substitute for a formal qualification, but not vice versa. Given the context in DRC, and the existing team structure, preference will be given to candidates with a strong background in public health promotion.
• Proven experience of coordinating large water sanitation programmes.
• Experience in responding to cholera outbreaks – preparedness, response and prevention.
• Most importantly, substantial experience in developing countries in appropriate water supplies, sanitation and hygiene promotion. It is desirable that some of this should have been in emergency relief programmes. The post holder should have a good understanding of the public health needs of poor rural and urban communities and of appropriate ways of tackling them. The post holder must be aware of and sensitive to the particular needs of women in this context.
• Proven ability to plan and implement training and capacity building of staff.
• The ability to present concise reports, sometimes at short notice, reflecting the problems and possible solutions for particular situations.
• The ability to contribute to donor proposals and reports with accurate technical detail.
• Diplomacy and tact in order to work with people at managerial and, on occasions, senior government levels. The post holder should also be at ease in working with local people.
• Well developed interpersonal and team skills and proven ability to be flexible in demanding situations.
• Ability and willingness to work in a remote location with limited social life or even lack of food diversity.
• Good written and spoken French and English is essential
• Sympathy with the aims and objectives of Oxfam.
• Commitment to humanitarian principles and action and to Oxfam's equal opportunity and gender policies. Demonstratedexperience of integrating gender and diversity issues into water and sanitation programmes.Ability to lead on technical issues and representation WASH issues both externally and internally