Recent Vacancies at Voluntary Service Overseas (VSO), 25th April, 2019

Voluntary Service Overseas (VSO) is the world’s leading international development organization whose vision is “A World without poverty”. Our approach to fighting poverty is through the lasting power of volunteering. VSO currently works in 24 countries across Africa, Asia and The Pacific.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

 

Job Title: Technical Expert – Rural Livelihoods

Location: VSO Office Abuja, Nigeria or Phnom Penh, Cambodia – Based within the Knowledge for Impact Team as well as the Resilient Livelihoods Core Programme Area Team
Responsible to: Global Head of Knowledge for Impact with matrix to Global sponsor, Livelihoods.
Contract type: Permanent
Full Time: 35 hours per week

Role Purpose

  • You will provide technical leadership in resilient livelihoods to a globally dispersed team of staff and volunteers to identify, test, and document new and promising practices across VSO’s Rural Livelihoods programmes, specifically in Nigeria, but also in Cambodia and other countries in Africa and Asia that have Resilient Rural Livelihoods programme activities.
  • The overall aim of the position is to support improvement in the quality and impact of VSO’s Resilient Rural Livelihoods programmes globally to enable VSO to document, replicate and expand effective approaches, with the aim of helping more of the world’s poor and marginalized people to achieve their livelihood aspirations.

Responsibilities
Leadership:

  • Lead the implementation of the resilient livelihoods strategy and theory of action, with its assets and capabilities core, around which VSO is seeking to build a unique identity in its livelihoods programming.
  • Review progress made with programme implementation and documentation of promising approaches against the theory of action and identify where additional or modified approaches are required.
  • Track areas where the assets and capabilities approach can be developed further in resilient rural livelihoods programming.

Promote good practice:

  • Ensure completion of the learning and guidance documentation work around the promising approaches identified in the resilient livelihoods theory of action.
  • Support the conduct of vulnerability context analyses in Nigeria and Cambodia, especially with regard to the analysis of social differentiation and power relations.
  • Lead work in identifying value chains and the associated market actors that are most
  • Suitable for VSO’s primary actors (poorer households, women, youth and Persons with Disabilities).
  • Support the development of work around sustainable agricultural practices and the development of more balanced and resilient rural household food security and livelihood strategies.
  • Ensure that the implications and lessons learned from analyses are used to influence new project and signature programme designs, including with respect to who VSO targets, where, how, and with which other actors we should be collaborating

Improve Programme Quality:

  • Provide support and advice to programmes to improve programme design and the quality of our interventions, through signature package development in particular.
  • Explore the perceptions of VSO Nigeria and Cambodia staff, volunteers, partners and key stakeholders about VSO capacity, value adds, niche, strengths and weaknesses in Rural Livelihoods programming and their views about future programming.
  • Support all country offices with rural livelihoods activities in the replication and adapting of the promising approaches identified and documented, and in the continuous learning of how to improve these approaches.

Knowledge management and dissemination:

  • Promote the generation and or use of quality internal and external evidence, practice and learning within VSO.
  • Contribute to the improvement of the Resilient Livelihoods evidence building and impact assessment practices, particularly at outcome and impact level, and in the use of digital technologies.
  • Work with the Evaluation and Research Specialists to identify gaps and areas for improvement in monitoring and evaluation and documentation of learning and assess key tools and use of innovative methods for this purpose.
  • Identify and recommend key lessons that can inform VSO’s work within Rural Livelihoods Programme.

External communication and influencing:

  • Support the building of VSO’s external identity and reputation.
  • Represent VSO at conferences, workshops and task forces and or support programme actors to participate as appropriate.
  • Contribute to the development of communications for internal and external VSO audiences.
  • Play a leading role in supporting Country Offices to raise more programmatic funding, including through donor liaison where appropriate, and in developing high quality project proposals and donor communications.

Team working and sustainable development approaches:

  • Work as a member of the Resilient Livelihoods Core Programme Area Team (CPAT) and with other thematic leads and core approach advisors, as well as Country Office programme managers and livelihoods coordinators.
  • Work as part of the Resilient Livelihoods CPAT to implement the Resilient Livelihoods “Volunteering for Development” investment strategy and to continue the implementation of the Resilient Livelihoods strategy and improvement of programme quality and funding.
  • Support the implementation of an overall Volunteering for Development framework for VSO and the development of a clearer programme identity for the organisation.

Skills Required
Essential:

  • Master’s in Development studies, Agriculture or other relevant qualification, or equivalent experience.
  • Extensive experience and knowledge of innovations in assets and capabilities enhancement in rural livelihoods programming, especially on-farm and off-farm; enterprise development; market-led approaches.
  • Proven experience of securing external funding and grants, including proposal development. Evidence of understanding the challenges of donor and contract management and the implications for programme management.
  • Proven experience in financial management, including building a budget, monitoring and managing expenditure. Experience of having compiled financial reports.
  • Excellent understanding and demonstrated experience of project cycle management, organisational assessment, planning and M&E tools and processes.
  • Experience of compiling donor reports.
  • Leadership and people management skills; including handling complex
  • Situations to an effective conclusion; experience of developing, coaching and managing high performing teams.
  • Self-motivated, ability to use own initiative, flexibility.
  • Strong representation and negotiation skills; ability to negotiate and maintain relations with external stakeholders.
  • Oral and written fluency in English, with ability to communicate effectively with a wide range of audiences.
  • Able to travel, including work away from the home base for up to 30% of time, both within the country and occasionally internationally with some weekend and evening work.
  • Excellent coordination and planning skills with experience of working under pressure. Time management skills.

Desirable:

  • Practical experience gained within a volunteering NGO context and of managing a volunteer programme.
  • Evidence of ability to provide effective support to international and national volunteers.
  • Experience and knowledge of the country and region.
  • Experience of working in a matrix organization with multiple reporting lines across different locations.

Salary
N20,400,000/annum


How to Apply

Interested and qualified candidates should:
Click here to apply online

Click here for more information (MS Word)

 

Job Title: Community Volunteer – Education Program Support

Locations: Enugu and Kaduna
Start date: 15 June 2019
Duration: 1 year

Job Purpose

  • The role holder will serve as a mentor for children in line with the Peer to Peer Project.
  • She will also contribute in ensuring the establishment of the Inclusive Neighborhood Learning Space as well as supporting in knowledge product creation in line with VSO values and objectives.

Responsibilities

  • Support in mentoring school children and out of school children.
  • Support peer to peer learning among children
  • Keep and report weekly records of use of activities and pupil’s learning progress in line with aims and objectives of project
  • Maintain and document records, case studies and success stories in- line with the project.
  • Notify appropriate line manager on any relevant information such as requisition, progress and challenges.
  • Ensure that all work in community reflects the distinctive ethos of VSO.
  • Act as a positive role model and promote the aims, values and ethos of VSO and uphold all rules and policies.
  • Carry out a share of supervisory duties in accordance with VSO schedules.
  • Participate in appropriate meetings with community members.
  • Collaborate with VSON to initiate and implement interventions that will contribute to improved relevant and quality of learning of students.
  • Carry out any other duties which may be reasonably required by VSON
  • Due to the nature of our volunteer placements, it is possible that the responsibilities of this role may differ in reality and therefore the post holder will need to be prepared to be flexible and adapt to their environment as necessary.

Key Performance Indicators:

  • Records of Peer to Peer learning in schools in line with project objectives.
  • Record of Inclusive Neighborhood learning spaces established and supported
  • Record of Successful delivery of project in line with VSO project methodology, Project delivered on time with expected benefits realised.
  • Stakeholders’ satisfaction with standard and frequency of project activity, progress, outcome, communications, and reports.
  • High quality and timely reports to internal and external stakeholders.
  • All reports, evaluations and references are completed within deadlines.
  • Data and reporting is conducted inline with the project plan.
  • Knowledge product creation in line with project outcome.

Requirements, Skills & Experience
Essential:

  • Minimum of School Leaving Certificate.
  • Good knowledge of tutoring English and Maths to schools pupils
  • Ability to take initiatives, team player who is able to work with minimum supervision
  • Excellent oral and written communication skills with ability to vary communication content and style to suit audiences to inform, motivate and inspire
  • Thinking clearly, deeply and broadly. Practicing innovation & change. Practicing gender & cultural diversity.
  • Strong skills for relating and working with men and women, boys and girls.
  • Relationship Building – Ability to build effective working relationships, inspiring confidence and credibility with employees at all levels. Strong influencer of others. Ability to work effectively across a globally dispersed organisation.
  • People Management – Experience of management of project team members
  • Organisation and planning – Excellent coordination and planning skills with experience of working under pressure. Time management skills.
  • Analysis and creative problem – solving Ability to analyse and quickly grasp the fundamentals of a need or issue. Able to find innovative ways of solving or pre-empting problems.
  • Flexibility – Ability to manage a project in a climate of change, recognising and being open to ambiguity, uncertainty and opportunities.

Desirable:

  • Strong skills for relating and with children
  • Monitoring and Evaluation – Experience of designing a project monitoring and evaluation framework, conducting project monitoring activities and writing reports.
  • Commitment to VSO’s work and values.

Competencies
Ability to work with children:

  • Understanding of Child protection and how to work with children.

Building and sustaining working relationships:

  • The social skills to build and actively maintain working relationships that foster teamwork and collaboration with others for the benefit of a common goal.

Open Minded and Respectful:

  • A non-judgemental approach that values other people and culture.

Seeking and Sharing Knowledge:

  • Recognition that learning is a two-way and continuous process.

Facilitating Positive Change:

  • The ability to analyse problems and develop lasting solutions inline with VSO approaches.

Adaptability:

  • A flexible approach and the ability to adapt behaviour to different situations.

Resilience:

  • The self-confidence to work with a variety of situations, diverse people and ambiguity


Interview Date

30th May, 2019.

How to Apply

Interested and qualified candidates should:
Click here to apply online

Click here for more information (MS Word)

Job Title: Volunteer, Disaster Risk Reduction & Resilence Specialist

Reference number: JOB0117479
Location: Abuja with frequent travel to other states in Nigeria
Duration: 12 months (possibly starting June 2019)

Job purpose

  • This national volunteer role will contribute to the Rural Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) strategy, analysis, documentation/ knowledge management, coordination, reporting, liaison and networking.
  • The NV-DRR/RS will work closely with VSO projects and ensure that all VSO projects are integrating resilience concept.
  • S/he is also responsible for providing technical support on DRR, coordination, networking, and liaison with VSO projects and partners, government, and other stakeholders.
  • S/he will support Vulnerability Capacity Assessment (VCA), Disaster Risk Management Plan (MDRMP) and contingency plan of Emergency Preparedness and Response (EPR) formulation process especially on the EUAV project.

Responsibilities
Technical Support:

  • Support stakeholder mapping of humanitarian and resilience stakeholders.
  • Conduct risk assessments and community disaster risk preparedness and management plans
  • Support the country office to prepare a disaster preparedness and management plans
  • Assist in developing a training module on resilience and humanitarian aid disaster preparedness for the country team
  • Oversee and provide technical input to the design Resilience /DRR systems, procedures, framework, tools and guidelines as needed for the Project
  • Provide technical support to VSO projects on integration of resilience in alignment to VSO core approaches, strategies and guidelines and in compatible with the context analysis

Knowledge management:

  • Support resilience teams including the VSO Project in collection and or publication of good practices, success stories, project outcome documents, etc. in resilience work with Communication, Learning to develop knowledge products, communication materials and other IEC materials to promote awareness raising about Resilience and DRR

Capacity Building:

  • Support in building the capacity of VSO team, partners and external stakeholders on resilience frameworks and toolkits including on Core Humanitarian Standards (CHS)
  • Disseminate information to resilience Programme on national policies, plans, instruments and standards related to DRR, resilience and humanitarian response including; Sendai Framework of Action, DRR Policies and strategy  in Cambodia
  • Provide training, support and coaching to partner staff on development of Disaster Risk Management Plan and Community Disaster Risk Management Plan and tools such as Participatory Vulnerability and Capacity Assessments (PVCA) to develop risk management plans

Monitoring and reporting:

  • Set agreed indicators and milestones based on the result framework developed
  • Provide feedback to the programme team based on the field monitoring visits
  • Support the project team in developing high quality project/ programme reports regarding resilience perspective
  • Liaise with VSO colleagues and some project partners to ensure timely submission of contributions.

Networking and Project Logistics Support:

  • Coordinate and build relationship with EUAV global team, VSO project/program, government, CSOs, partners and private sectors.
  • Support in arranging venue, resources, and stationery for projects workshops and trainings
  • Facilitate the organization partner meetings and field risk assessment processes.

Key Performance Indicators

  • Most vulnerable areas and causes of vulnerability identified
  • Disaster risk preparedness and management plans developed.
  • Training module on resilience and humanitarian aid and disaster preparedness developed
  • Workshops/ training / coaching on disaster risk preparedness and management conducted

Note: The final objectives will be confirmed in a three way discussion between the volunteer, employer and VSO in the first three months of the placement.

Skill, knowledge & experience
Professional skills and qualifications needed for the position:

  • Bachelor or Master’s degree in Resilience/ DRR or any relevant field, with relevant work experience in the design and implementation of disaster risk reduction or other related areas in the Rural/Urban context.
  • Practical experience and knowledge on global and national DRR related policies and practices, core humanitarian standard, rights based approach, gender and social inclusion
  • Experience in conducting study on shocks and stresses assessment in the field level
  • Knowledge on resilience interventions, especially in Nigeria
  • Experience in developing training module and disaster risk preparedness and management plans
  • Experience working in livelihood programs targeting marginalised communities
  • Excellent communication skills in both English and Hausa language
  • Excellent coordination, networking and facilitation skills
  • Good knowledge in project cycle management
  • Excellent attention to detail for providing accurate DRR capacity gap analysis, documentation and data.

Personal qualifications needed for the position:

  • Committed to rights based and gender sensitivity work, pro-poor policy, committed and strong civil society organizations and social mobilization.
  •  Able, willing and committed to work with people from different backgrounds
  • Contribute constructively to a working environment based on mutual respect, trust and commitment
  • Able to cope with stress and work under any challenging circumstances.

Competencies
Building and Sustaining working relationships:

  • The social skills to build and actively maintain working relationships that foster teamwork and collaboration with others for the benefit of a common goal.

Open Minded and Respectful:

  • A non-judgemental approach that values other people and culture.

Seeking and Sharing Knowledge:

  • Recognition that learning is a two-way and continuous process.

Facilitating Positive Change:

  • The ability to analyse problems and develop lasting solutions in line with VSO approaches.

Adaptability:

  • A flexible approach and the ability to adapt behaviour to different situations.

Resilience:

  • The self-confidence to work with a variety of situations, diverse people and ambiguity.

Deadline: 8th May, 2019.

Interview Date

15th May, 2019.

How to Apply

Interested and qualified candidates should:
Click here to apply online

Click here for more information (MS Word)


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