AMAL Agriculture Project Coordinator- Re Advertise

[Ramadi,Iraq ]

Position:                                            Project Coordinator Agriculture, Activating Market and Agricultural Livelihoods (AMAL)

Reports to:                                       Activating Market and Agricultural Livelihoods (AMAL) Project                                                                            Manager Anbar

Supervision of:                                Project Officers

Duty station:                                    Anbar, Ramadi (with 50% travel to Ana district)

Travel:                                               50%

Project number:                             IQFM2012

Duration and type of contract:    12 months

 

Context

Since the Government of Iraq declared victory over the Islamic State Group (IS) in December 2017, large-scale military operations ended. However, as the country emerges from nearly four years of conflict, the situation remains fragile with extensive recovery needs and high rates of unemployment and poverty. As of 31 December 2020, over 4.84 million internally displaced Iraqis have returned to their areas of origin, while 1.22 million people remain internally displaced and in need of humanitarian assistance. Insecurity, lack of social cohesion, and destroyed or damaged housing hampers people’s ability to return home in safety and dignity. Furthermore, the lack of sustainable employment opportunities in areas of origin presents an ongoing barrier to return as it hinders people’s access to basic services, such as food, health, and education.

 

The 2021 Humanitarian Needs Overview (HNO) for Iraq identified 4.1 million people in need (PiN), of which 2.4 million people have acute humanitarian needs. While the number of people in need remained similar to the previous year, the severity of those needs increased, largely due to the impact of COVID-19 on top of an existing humanitarian crisis, leading to a 35 per cent increase in the number of people in acute need. As outlined in the HNO, the main drivers of this increase were the impact of COVID-19 and the partially related economic crisis, leading to large-scale loss of livelihoods.

Since 2010, NRC Iraq has been assisting internally displaced Iraqis, Syrian refugees, returnees, and host communities in Ninewa, Dohuk, Erbil, Kirkuk, Basra, Salahdeen and Anbar Governorates. We focus on assisting the newly displaced, those experiencing protracted displacement in camps, people moving to new areas of Iraq and resettling, and people returning to and living in hard-to-reach places by improving their chance of obtaining a durable solution. NRC runs integrated programmes across Iraq to respond to people in need through our shelter and settlements, education, camp management, legal assistance, livelihoods, cash activities, and partnerships.

Despite the end of the armed conflict with ISIS in end 2017, large numbers of Iraqi’s impacted by the conflict are trying to rebuild their lives. Many still face danger or are stuck in a protracted displacement situation. A large proportion of the displaced have returned to their area of origin. NRC Iraq works with all the populations in need including IDPs in and out of camps, returnees and host communities. In addition, NRC supports Syrian refugees in Iraq as well as populations impacted by climate-change induced displacement.

All NRC employees are expected to work in accordance with the organization’s core values: dedication, innovation, inclusivity and accountability. These attitudes and believes shall guide our actions and relationships. 

 

1. Role and responsibilities

 

The purpose of the Agriculture Project Coordinator position is to implement delegated aspects of the “Market-based Agricultural Rehabilitation & Employment in Post-Conflict Iraq” project in Anbar – Ramadi and Ana districts, manage and lead designated AMAL project staff, develop workplans, track delegated budget, oversee the market-based approach and delegated responsibilities towards achieving the project target and represent NRC at coordination forums, as delegated by the AMAL Project Manager.

 

The following is a brief description of the role:

 

Generic responsibilities

• Line management of AMAL project field staff (officers) and transfer key technical skills to supervised staff.

• Adherence to NRC policies, guidance and procedures and awareness of NRC global and regional strategies.

• Contribute to the development of Country, Area and Livelihoods strategies, initiate and participate in the development of relevant livelihoods projects, project proposals and provide input on needs and gaps, considering where appropriate the role of cash-based interventions and market based programmes.
• Manage and implement project activities, budget and project documentation as delegated by the PM in line with proposals, strategies and donor requirements and ensure high technical quality.
• Provide regular progress reports to AMAL PM and occasionally to APM, AM, CC Specialist and AMAL Lead.         
• Ensure that projects target beneficiaries within agriculture potential areas and most in need of protection, explore and assess new and better ways to assist.
• Promote and share ideas for improvement and necessary changes in the activities.
• Ensure capacity building of project staff and transfer key skills.
• Liaise and collaborate with relevant local authorities and other key stakeholders.
• Promote the rights of IDPs/returnees in line with the advocacy strategy.
• Promote and share ideas for improvement and necessary changes in the activities.

 

Specific responsibilities  

• Budget management: ensure budget management in cooperation with AMAL PM (APM if no PM) and submit regular spending plans; develop workplans for the field teams and follow up with progress on a daily basis; budget holding when delegated this responsibility; develop procurement plan and ensure all procurements are done in time; contribute to provide monthly activity reports and donor reports; contribute to proposal and budget development.
• Donor compliance: ensure donor rules and regulations are followed and all necessary documentation is uploaded in the SSD drive and responsible for preparation of RODs for livelihoods projects.
• Responsible for the quality of the program: quality of data collection and distributions are according to SoPs with correct accountability measures in place.
• M&E: With support from the AMAL PM and M&E, ensure that the following activities are implemented according to the workplan: market assessments; beneficiary assessments and verification; PDM surveys; and endline surveys. Ensures reporting tools are in place for daily tracking of activities/trainings/distributions.
• Overall coordination of beneficiary selection process; ensures there is a communication strategy with beneficiaries in place; ensures there is a functioning complaints mechanism.
• Support in identification and procurement of training service providers, while putting in place systems to ensure quality.
• Oversee the use of different aid modalities including market based approaches. Take informed decisions over the implementation modality based on market assessments and price monitoring, according to technical direction and on protection mainstreaming as determined by the CCS and line manager (PM or APM), and to ensure high technical quality of delegated project portfolio.
• Coordinate with the Logistics, Finance and Security departments to organize activities.
• Represent NRC in external meetings as needed, primarily with DOA, MoLSA, and any governorate level coordination mechanisms for Livelihoods.
• Cooperate closely with counterparts from other NRC core competencies to identify opportunities for integration/synergy of NRC services alongside livelihoods.
• Manage project budget (in cooperation with AMAL Project Manager) and coordinate across other Core Competencies.
• Apply NRC Community Engagement Approach and hold staff to account.
• Support identification of financial service provider(s) for cash grants distribution.
• Contribute to design and implementation of business-focused and community-based soft-skills training programmes.
• Oversee market assessments, mapping, and contribute to analysis.
• Adhere to NRC policies, guidance, and procedures.

 

Critical interfaces

By interfaces, NRC means processes and projects that are interlinked with other departments/units or persons. Relevant interfaces for this position are:

• Project planning: AMAL PM and Livelihoods Specialist; AM and APM; CC teams and AMAL project staff.
• Area operations: Support Coordinators (field office coordinators); CC Coordinators.
• Staff capacity building: AMAL PM, Officers.
• Implementation: AMAL PM.

 

Scale and scope of the position

• Staff –7 x Project Officers and 4 x Assistants
• Stakeholders – NGO’s, UN Agencies, Government Directorates
• Budgets – Only when delegated by AMAL PM. Approximately EUR 6.7 million (Annual budget of approx. EUR 2.5 million)
• Information – NRC online tools, GORS, Agresso, Sharefile, Onedrive
• Legal/Compliance – Must adhere to NRC internal and donor compliance requirements

1. Competencies

 

Competencies are important in order for the employee and the organization to deliver desired results. They are relevant for all staff and are divided into the following two categories:

 

1. Professional competencies

These skills, knowledge and experience are important for effective performance.

 

Generic professional competencies for this position:

• University degree or higher education relevant to the assignment (agriculture/Agronomy, Agriculture Economics, Agriculture engineering). Proven work experience will be considered as a substitute for formal education.

• Minimum 2-3 years of experience working on Agriculture and/or Livelihoods project implementation position in a humanitarian/recovery context.

• Documented results related to the position’s responsibilities.
• Knowledge about own leadership skills/profile.
• Experience in market assessments and market based approaches
• Previous experience working in complex and volatile environments.
• Familiar with the line management of staff and work plan coordination.
• IT competencies including MS Office.
• Fluency in English and Arabic both verbal and written.

 

Context related skills; knowledge and experience

• Experience with market assessment approaches.
• Experience with small-scale income-generation activities.
• Experience with community-based projects/activities.
• Experience working with vulnerable groups; able to demonstrate conflict-sensitivity, compassion, discretion.
• Skills in monitoring and evaluation would be beneficial.
• Experience with multi-sectoral and integrated Cash and Livelihoods programming.
• Professional knowledge of cash transfer modalities/systems.
• Experience with early recovery /reconstruction projects is an asset.
• Familiarity with the UN Cluster system and response coordination mechanisms.

 

2. Behavioural competencies

 

These are personal qualities that influence how successful people are in their job. NRC’s Competency Framework states 12 behavioural competencies and the following are essential for this position:

• Planning and delivering results
• Communicating with Impact and Respect
• Initiating Action and Change
• Empowering and building trust
• Managing performance and development
• Handling insecure environments

 

2. Performance Management

 

The employee will be accountable for the responsibilities and the competencies, in accordance with the NRC Performance Management Manual. The following documents will be used for performance reviews:

• The Job Description
• The individual Work and Professional Development Plan
• The Competency Framework

Interested candidates can apply through the below link:

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