Senior Host Community Officer

Job Description

Title: Senior Host Community Officer

Company Name: International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.

Vacancy: 1

Job Location: Cox's Bazar

Employment Status: Contractual

Educational Requirements:
∎ Postgraduate degree preferably from a reputable accredited university in Social Science, Disaster Management, Environmental Protection and/or relevant field is required. A Master's Degree is preferred..

Experience Requirements:
∎ At least 4 year(s)

Job Context:
∎ Duration of the contract : (Up to June 2020, Possibility to extend the contract )
∎ Reporting to : Senior Manager - Social Inclusion Coordinator
∎ Job Purpose: The Senior Host Community Officer works as part of the IFRC Population Movement Operation (PMO) team and will coordinate with Bangladesh Red Crescent Society (BDRCS), Partner National Societies (PNS) and RCRC sector leads to ensure the host community. These services include, for instance, Disaster Risk Reduction and Resilience activities, cash and livelihoods support, WASH interventions and Community Engagement & Accountability approaches. The Senior Host Community Officer will work closely with the Social Inclusion Specialist, the Protection Gender and Inclusion team, the Community Engagement and Accountability team and all BDRCS sectors. He/She will be responsible for the strategic oversight and support of operational planning of all PMO sectoral activities for host communities in order to achieve relevant, coherent and integrated support. He/She will also work together closely with Partner National Societies and the BDRCS unit office in Cox`s Bazar to ensure that the PMO interventions for host communities are aligned with the longer-term programs from BDRCS.In this context, it is especially important to strengthen social cohesion between the guest community and the Bangladeshi host community. Recognizing the importance of peaceful coexistence of these communities, the Senior Host Community Officer will support all sectors to design interventions in ways that mitigate potential tensions and promote positive relations.

Job Responsibilities:
∎ Representation and Program Development:
∎ Provide necessary assistance to the Social Inclusion Specialist and the team for coordination and collaboration with the Government departments (such as Union, CDMC, education Department etc.) other UN agencies and INGO/s, and the BDRCS unit office in Cox's Bazar.
∎ Represent and participate in internal and external fora as required.
∎ Provide full support to organize different workshops, and capacity building training for the host communities and project staff, for example related to disaster preparedness, livelihoods and social inclusion.
∎ Support project teams so that they can contribute to the organization's learning agenda, which includes knowledge management, building a learning culture, communication, and advocacy.
∎ Identify opportunities for partnership with external specialist organisations, including the use of technology and innovative approaches to enhance community engagement and social inclusion.
∎ Support the positioning and visibility of Red Cross and Red Crescent achievements in host communities.
∎ Share relevant data from host communities with the wider humanitarian network to inform and influence the overall response.
∎ Planning, implementation, monitoring and reporting of the project activities:
∎ Maintain liaison with the Social Inclusion Specialist for effective project implementation and reporting requirements.
∎ Explore the most effective way for project implementation in the host communities, in collaboration with all BDRCS sectoral teams. Serve as a resource person and mentor BDRCS and IFRC staff on all issues related to assistance for the host community.
∎ Support the BDRCS Community Engagement and Accountability team to implement activities that will promote the active participation of host communities and ensure local ownership of RCRC programs. This can include facilitating community consultations and perception surveys, setting up local radio programs and engaging with local media to promote social cohesion. Assist in building the capacity of BDRCS staff on CRA tools, monitoring and reporting.
∎ Prepare and provide adequate inputs to ensure high quality projects reports.
∎ Work closely with UNO, CDMC and other local government authorities to ensure effective implementation of PMO sectoral activities.
∎ Review project progress against targets and take corrective measures when required, raising issues with the Social Inclusion Specialist as needed.
∎ Support the collection and accurate reporting of impact data related to the project as guided by the PMER Unit.
∎ Assist the Project Manager with needs assessments to design trainings, workshops and proposals.
∎ Organize and conduct workshop, training and orientation at host community and Cox's Bazar level.
∎ Support the preparation and delivery of high-quality monitoring and training to enhance the capacity project staff.
∎ Program monitoring and reporting.
∎ Support BDRCS to develop exit strategies to map out which response activities and approaches can be sustained by target communities when (parts of) the RCRC operation are scaled down or ended.
∎ Staff Management:
∎ Directly works with the Social Inclusion Specialist and supports colleagues as needed; ensure all direct reports are oriented on program strategies, expectation, and own roles and responsibilities.
∎ Supervise and coach staff, including the BDRCS field officers, encourage joint working within the team and promote a learning environment. Mentor and support staff's professional development and foster a positive team spirit to encourage innovative and quality programming.
∎ Be mindful of BDRCS staff wellness and induce a culture of transparency, problem solving, and teamwork.
∎ Identify and select appropriate skills development opportunities that would enhance staff and volunteer capacity.

Additional Requirements:
∎ Experience:
∎ At least 4 years' experience working as a professional in the Development Field particularly community resilience, social inclusion and community-based approaches.
∎ At least 3 years' experience with program design and project management; ability to design and manage all stages of preparedness, recovery and livelihood projects
∎ Demonstrated success in analytical report writing
∎ Experience identifying and establishing institutional capacity building initiatives, particularly for local stakeholders.
∎ Experience collaborating with government agencies, international organizations and working with local implementing partners.
∎ Experience setting up and managing accountability to communities systems. For example, feedback and complaints mechanisms, behaviour change communication or participatory planning.
∎ Excellent skills in budgeting and financial management, problem solving, conflict resolution, advocacy, and stakeholder coordination.
∎ Experience in donor/partners relationship management.
∎ Proven field work experience in disaster response operations or similar contexts.
∎ Knowledge and Skills:
∎ Excellent interpersonal skills and able to work effectively in a team.
∎ Ability to coordinate and engage others and to build good working relationships with internal and external partners.
∎ Good planning skills, with the ability to identify areas for improvements in programs through the integration of Social Inclusion approaches and activities.
∎ High degree of integrity, discretion, and personal conduct.
∎ Commitment to the principles of inclusive approaches to programming that encourages full participation of individuals regardless of sex, disability status, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity or other marginalised status.
∎ Flexible and adaptable to changing working conditions
∎ Willing and able to travel for work purposes, including international travel
∎ Self-motivated and proactive, with good judgment Ability to coordinate and engage others and to build good working relationships with internal and external partners.and initiative.
∎ Able to prioritize and meet deadlines .
∎ Good Analytical thinking skills.
∎ Proven skills in mentoring and coaching of staff.
∎ Good computers skills (Windows, Spreadsheets, Word Processing.
∎ Understanding of and/or experienced with Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement
∎ Languages: Fluency in English and Bangla. Basic understanding of Chittagonian dialect

Compensation & Other Benefits:
∎ Festival Bonus
∎ Life & Medical Insurance
∎ Provident fund & Gratuity
∎ Medical reimbursement for staff and immediate family of up to 70000 BDT per annum.

Application Deadline: July 27, 2019

Company Information:
∎ International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.
∎ Business : The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, (IFRC) is the world`s largest humanitarian organisation. The IFRC Country Office in Bangladesh has worked alongside the Bangladesh Red Crescent Society (BDRCS) for more than 30 years in humanitarian fields including disaster management, with a focus on the cyclone early warning and response programme in the coastal belt, and disaster preparedness and response during natural disasters.

Category: NGO/Development