Location: Mandera Kenya
Position Code: SCI PRO MDR
Grade: 4
Post Type: National (1 year contract with possibility of extension)
Child Safeguarding: Level 3 - the responsibilities of the post may require the post holder to have regular contact with or access to children or young people
Role Purpose: He/She will be responsible for equipping partners and community members with health and nutrition promotive information and influencing adoption of appropriate behaviour change.
Scope of Role:
Reports to: Nutrition Coordinator
Dimensions: Save the Children has been operational in Kenya since the 1950s, providing support to children through developmental and humanitarian relief programmes delivered both directly and through local partners.
Current programming focuses on child protection, child rights governance, education, health, HIV/AIDS, livelihoods, nutrition and WASH.
In 2012, as part of a global reorganization process, Save the Children combined the programmes of SC UK, SC Canada and SC Finland to create a single operation in Kenya.
In February 2014, we completed a second transition, which saw us join forces with the British INGO, Merlin, and merge their health and nutrition programmes with our own.
Save the Children now has an operational presence in Bungoma, Dadaab Refugee Camp, Garissa, Mandera, Nairobi, Turkana and Wajir.
We work through partners in many other parts of the country. We have a staff complement of around 300 staff and an operating annual budget of approximately US$25 million in 2014.
Staff Directly Reporting to this post: None
Key Areas of Accountability:
Key Responsibilities:
In liaison with the Nutrition coordinator organize day-to-day logistics related to health and nutrition promotion activities.
To consistently seek technical guidance, provide feedback and report regularly to the Nutrition coordinator.
Conduct community mobilizations and sensitization for health education.
Carry out an assessment to identify health promotion /behavior change needs in the community.
In liaison with nutrition officers, nutrition coordinator , MOH staff, CHWs and community, members, review the health education strategy and come up with a BCC/IEC strategy for health and nutrition programme
Lead development of health and nutrition promotion messages to pass to the community members and other target groups( mothers, fathers, youth, school going children etc)
Develop Health and Nutrition Information, Education and Communication Work plan and lead in its implementation by Planning and coordinating the programs with community groups
Participate in any other program related activities as directed by the line manager.
Ensuring that school health education and promotion and the community wide health education sessions are to the Save the Children standard
1. Health and Nutrition promotion trainings
Participate in the development of on job training curriculum and tools and take lead in all health and nutrition promotion trainings
Liaise with the line ministry and other partners in ensuring that health and nutrition promotion is done comprehensively following set guidelines
Identify needs for and participate in training sessions especially in the mother to mother support groups and community health volunteers
Identify a number of community leaders who will work closely with the program at the village level to promote health and nutrition promotion activities
Participate the development of the appropriate health messages and in the training of the community health groups and the Mother to Mother breastfeeding support groups
Participate in evaluation of the outcomes of the trainings
2. Monitoring and Evaluation
Help plan and carry out baseline studies and feedback findings to the nutrition coordinator on health and nutrition promotion activities
Use participatory approaches as much as possible throughout the project delivery and monitoring
Follow up with the various community groups, in their communities and assess for behaviour change.
Participate in the design, development and implementation of an M&E framework for all hygiene promotion activities.
Write activity reports to document the process of implementation, lessons learnt and good practice and ensure information is widely disseminated
Collation and analysis of activities and their influence on other public health indicators
Participate in the design and execution of surveys - where the hygiene component will be measured - according to national guidelines
Prepare monthly activity reports as well as donor reports.
3. Supervision
Develop a comprehensive plan for supervision of all the Community Volunteers on promotion activities
Assist the community Volunteers implementing promotional activities to document and plan activities on a monthly basis.
Document and share lessons learnt in a comprehensive and detailed manner to enable track trends on changes on a timely basis
4. Network and coordinate with the relevant sectors and agencies in implementing promotional activities at community level
Identify areas of synergy in the field with the ministry of water, Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of education and other implementing agencies working with communities.
Come up with a comprehensive plan of activities within the identified areas of synergy with the actors named above.
Coordinate with other SCI and MoH field staff to ensure that the various aspects of the hygiene are integrated and well-coordinated
Ensuring that school health education and promotion and the community wide health education sessions are to the Save the Children standard
Skills and Behaviours (our Values in Practice)
Accountability:
Holds self- accountable for making decisions, managing resources efficiently, achieving and role modelling Save the Children values
Holds the team and partners accountable to deliver on their responsibilities - giving them the freedom to deliver in the best way they see fit, providing the necessary development to improve performance and applying appropriate consequences when results are not achieved
Ambition:
Sets ambitious and challenging goals for themselves (and their team), takes responsibility for their own personal development and encourages others to do the same
Widely shares their personal vision for Save the Children, engages and motivates others
Future orientated, thinks strategically
Collaboration:
Builds and maintains effective relationships, with their team, colleagues, members and external partners and supporters
Values diversity, sees it as a source of competitive strength
Approachable, good listener, easy to talk to
Creativity:
Develops and encourages new and innovative solutions
Willing to take disciplined risks
Integrity:
Honest, encourages openness and transparency
Qualifications and Experience
- Degree/Diploma in public health/Nutrition/Health Education and promotion/ Community health/social sciences with at least two years’ experience in health and nutrition promotion activities.
- Good knowledge and experience of working with local partner agencies.
- Experience and understanding of Hygiene Promotion and health education in relation to water and sanitation activities.
- Demonstrated experience in training and facilitation, development of IEC materials and BCC methodologies
- Sensitivity to the needs and priorities of different sectors of a community.
- Familiarity with the Somali/Garre culture, ability to develop respect from a wide range of people and strong ability to communicate effectively on hygiene matters.
- Training/counterpart development skills.
- Ability to work well in a team in difficult circumstances.
- The ability to collect data and present concise reports, sometimes at short notice, reflecting the problems and possible solutions for particular situations.
- Diplomacy, tact and negotiation skills in order to work with people at managerial and on occasions, government staffs. The post holder should also be at ease in working with local people.
- Willingness and capacity to be flexible and accommodating when faced with difficult and frustrating working conditions
- Prepared to live and work in an uncertain security environment
- Ability and willingness to travel and stay in the field
- Well developed interpersonal and team skills and proven ability to be flexible in demanding situations.
- Computer literate and proven ability to operate Microsoft office packages.
- Good written and spoken English
- Fluency in Garre language is essential.
Interested candidates are required to submit a CV and mandatory Cover letter to Kenya.jobapplications@savethechildren.org indicating the Position Code on the subject line by 19th February 2015.
Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.
