Job Advertisement for Senior Program Officer

MERCY CORPS IS LOOKING FOR NATIONAL CANDIDATES FOR THE FOLLOWING 1 POSITIONS. Interested applicant can send CV and Cover Letter no later than 11 August 2017 to email [email protected] or send it directly to Mercy Corps office at Rua deTravesa  (next to NCBA/CCT Clinic), Bidau – Lecidere Dili, Timor-Leste.We strongly encourage women to apply.

Duty Station: Bobonaro

PROGRAM/DEPARTMENT SUMMARY:

In more than 40 countries globally, Mercy Corps works with a diverse range of local and international partners to put bold solutions into action, helping people triumph over adversity and grow stronger from within. Since establishing operations in Timor-Leste in 2007, we have earned a reputation for innovative and high quality programming. We promote a community-led, market-based approach to addressing the key challenges for the people of Timor-Leste.  Mercy Corps empowers people to survive through crisis, build better lives and transform their communities for good.

Mercy Corps received funding from various donors (including the Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA) of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and Adam Smith International improve food, nutrition and economic security and resilience of poor and vulnerable farming households across rural Timor-Leste.  Mercy Corps will achieve this through parallel and linked interventions that aim to; establish a foundation of food security and good nutrition for rural households; and build their capacity to confidently and ably engage in profitable agricultural markets. In Bobonaro, Mercy Corps will tackle the challenges facing subsistence farmers’ access to and effective use of appropriate, consumer-designed (1) grain and (2) rainwater storage technologies, (3) climate-smart, intensive vegetable production systems, and (4) savings and internal lending communities (SILC). By better understanding the barriers to uptake of certain promoted behaviors or practices (e.g. post-harvest techniques or behaviors related to house-hold dietary practices), Program will utilize the Designing for Behavior Change (DBC) framework and information communication and technology (ICT) where it adds value to program implementation and quality (i.e. e-vouchers and paperless M&E).

GENERAL POSITION SUMMARY:

The Senior Program Officer is responsible for field implementation of Mercy Corps’ CROPS and TOMAK Programs in Bobonaro, in a partnership with local partner organization namely Organisazaun Haburas Moris (OHM). Mercy Corps have been developing a Field Agent Plus (FA) concept, an off-grid private service provider to fill the critical gaps around capacity building to SILC groups and other relevant services, for example aggregation service, market intelligence, etc. The Senior Program Officer are working very closely with FA+, business partners, and the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries (MAF) suco extension officers, Ministry of Health (MoH) as well as target communities under supervision of the Deputy Program Manager (DPM), working to achieve program objectives and targets. The main responsibilities include capacity building and coach FA+ for any activity related to the Program in the field, conduct community mobilization and support field program activity doing by FA+ and others communities. The Senior program officer will working together with Technical Specialists to strengthen capacity of FA+. Responsibilities will include also work closely with relevant stakeholders, local authority and Extension workers, to ensure that activities are implemented in a well-coordinated manner.

ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS:

The Senior Program Officer:

• With the guidance from Deputy Program Manager, carry out coordination with municipal level government, especially MAF extension officers and other stakeholders on the program implementation.
• As a frontline program staff, liaise with local authorities to select and mobilize community, select target beneficiaries, and represent Mercy Corps on the overall field program implementation at municipality level.
• Assist the Business Partnership Officer (BPO) and SILC Specialist to identify potential local businesses to partners (particularly FA+) and to provide inputs on selection process of these partners.
• In close coordination with the BPO and SILC Specialist, provide supervision and coaching to FA+ and other business partners to ensure high quality performance of program delivery focused on planned results to achieve program objectives.
• Responsible for field activity and ensure data collection tracking by the MNE system and reported regulars to Deputy Program Manager.
• Assist BPO in the human-centered design process to design and produce prototypes of promoted solutions, test them out with farmers, and refine them to come up with effective and marketable products. The human-centered process will be done by partnering with local manufacturers and other business partners and target households.
• Assist BPO to bring the promoted solutions to scale especially by making sure that solutions are accessible by target communities. The position will work very closely with BPO, to help create market demands and assist vulnerable families at remote areas, by applying smart subsidy.
• Identify gaps and provide needed program related capacity building to local partner NGO.
• Ensure that gender is integrated across field level program activities.
• Ensure that Protections and Code of Conduct requirements are implemented across program activities.
• Work very closely with the Operations and Finance teams, who are represented at municipality level by the Program Supports Officer, ensuring that needed procurements and payments to be done effectively and efficiently.
• Ensure delivered activities are within program scopes and budget and in compliance with relevant USAID and Mercy Corps rules and regulations.
• Sets objectives and priorities of the activity plans, assigns and reviews tasks.
• Develops, updates monthly and implements work plan based on the program design and implementation in accordance with program budget and timeframe. This work plan has to be updated monthly to reflect changes and dynamics in its executions.
• Troubleshoots implementation challenges in coordination with DPM and PM.
• Under supervision of DPM, ensure that MERL activities are as an integral part of program implementation, including leading monitoring and evaluation tools – conduct regular monitoring and other field data gathering and reporting as required.
• Coordinate closely with other projects/programs of Mercy Corps Timor-Leste to seek and enhance interlink between different projects and activities in the field

KEY PERFORMANCE MEASURES (KPIs):

The Senior Program Officer performance is measured against the following indicators and targets:

▪       Programs activity deliverables, tested and implemented

▪       Accuracy and relevance of learning activity results from the field;

▪       Ensure instruction and direction provided from DPM;

▪       Timely and appropriate responsiveness to DPM and PM;

▪       Impacts of the overall FA+ strategic system;

▪       Professionalism.

SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITY: not applicable, ACCOUNTABILITY REPORTS DIRECTLY TO: DPM, WORKS DIRECTLY WITH: DPM, NSA & SBCC Specialist, MERL Officer, Technical Specialists, Operation Officer, Finance Officer.

KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:

▪       Degree in Agriculture or Economics or Business Management;

▪       Minimum 3 years’ experience with community-based and community development program;

▪       Experience working with community, government officials, extension workers and stakeholders;

▪       Experience building capacity of diverse team;

▪       Strong writing, reporting, organization and communication skills;

▪       English language skills required – knowledge of Portuguese a plus;

▪       Fluency in written and verbal English;

▪       Willingness to travel frequently to remote areas.

▪       Have motorbike licenses.

Merli Sofia Alves, Mercy Corps