Job Description
Concern Worldwide is a nongovernmental, international, humanitarian organisation dedicated to the reduction of suffering and working towards the ultimate elimination of extreme poverty in the world’s poorest countries. Concern Worldwide’s integrated programming approach aims to tackle all dimensions of poverty, focusing on the overlapping areas of health, education and livelihoods while maintaining our response to emergencies. Concern fully integrates equality in all its work, with emphasis on a gender transformative approach. Concern Worldwide has been operational in Sierra Leone since 1996. . Concern currently operates in the Districts of Western Area Urban (Freetown), Western Area Rural, Tonkolili and Port Loko – as well as remotely in Kambia, Koinadugu, Falaba, Bombali and Karene.
On this note, Concern would like to invite well experienced and professional applicants for the under mentioned role:
Job Title |
Agriculture Officer |
Project |
Food security through Equitable and Climate Smart Food Systems (Yoti Yoti) |
Reports to: |
Agriculture Team leader |
Direct reports: |
Nil |
Liaises with: |
- All project team members and partners in district, but especially the Nutrition and Gender Officers and Market Access Officers including all their team leaders, District Delivery Manager, other project teams in District, relevant counterparts in LANN-NSC project in Port Loko.
- Local partner NRM and VSLA project staff
- Base Manager/Area Coordinator; District & Freetown finance, system and HR staff; Freetown PDQ Coordinator, MEAL Coordinator, Equality and Gender Advisor, Advocacy and Communications Manager, Accountability Supervisor and Partnership Manager; Yoti Yoti Project Coordinator, Livelihoods Programme Coordinator, District Delivery Managers and Team Leaders.
Relevant Community, Chiefdom and District stakeholders from Ministries and District Council as well as Private sector actors. |
Job Location: |
Port Loko |
Contract Details: |
5 Months ( August – December 2024) |
Job Purpose: |
The Agriculture Officer will lead all field activities relating to ‘Adoption of inclusive climate smart food production practices’ including: Farmer Field School approach with Lead farmers and Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, support project farmers to increase and diversify climate smart (organic) production; Coaching and mentoring of project farmers; Delivery of session one of Agriculture and NRM to women’s groups.
S/He will support in the: Market assessment; Testing and piloting of ideas for engaging young people in production and along the value chain; Community Conversations sessions related to local solutions to labour, and equitable and sustainable land access. S/he will coordinate his/her activities with local partner staff leading on natural resource management (NRM) and VSLA activities.
S/he will support where appropriate the Market Access Officers activities relating to: access to and understanding of market information; quality inputs; value addition.
S/He will ensure that agreed targets are on track, collect monitoring and case stories, and provide quality reports. |
Main duties &
Responsibilities: |
Programme planning and implementation
Under supervision Agriculture Team leader:
- Contribute to the development of monthly and weekly work plans with the team based on the overall project work plan and timeframe;
- Participate as active participant in relevant project training of trainers;
- Preparation of documentation (ToR, SRs, training curriculum, budget, float request, transport request…) for a programmatic and logistical preparation to implement agreed field activities – trainings, workshops, coaching and monitoring visits;
- Facilitate trainings and workshops in areas of responsibility ensuring all paperwork are properly filled and procedures followed (such as attendance list, payment receipt etc.);
- Support the establishment of Farmer Field Schools (FFS) and strengthen the capacity of Lead farmers to cascade sustainable, climate smart production practices through the FFS;
- Support other project officers in Market Access and Utilization activities where needed/appropriate
- Coordinate with local partner on NRM activities.
- Coordinate with local partner to train/coach beneficiaries on Module 4 – Agriculture and NRM.
Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning
- Participate in community entry meetings and identification of project participants;
- Participate in Market and value chain assessments;
- Ensure that all agreed Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning requirements are captured on time through standardized data collection tools; are accurately and submitted to the Team Leader and the MEL Officer;
- Participate in project planning, review meetings with staff and stakeholders, and ensure that key recommendations and learning are incorporated into day-to-day project implementation;
- Participate as active participant in relevant review meetings with beneficiaries;
- Participate in baseline, end line and monitoring surveys as required.
Reporting and documentation
- Participate in the writing of monthly activity reports through the timely submission of activities up-date to your line manager;
- Actively participate in the documentation of good practices and case stories working with PDQ team;
- Participate in correct and accurate filling of documentation (soft & hard copies)
Other responsibilities:
- Promote full accountability and compliance with Concern’s Code of Conduct & Associated Policies, including promotion of Concern’s Complaints & Response Mechanism (CRM), to ensure maximum protection of programme participants and the efficient and transparent use of Concern’s resources;
- Ensure that cross cutting themes: Gender & Equality, DRR and Environment are mainstreamed in all activities;
- Build and maintain effective professional relationships with community leaders and animators to aid successful programming;
- Participate in relevant coordination meetings at District level;
- Complete any reasonable task requested by the Supervisor.
|
Person specification: |
Education, Qualifications & Experience Required
Essential
- Must have a diploma or University degree in Agriculture, Economics, Development, Sociology or other Social Sciences;
- Minimum of 4 years’ relevant experience and demonstrated knowledge and understanding of livelihoods and climate smart agriculture (experience in NRM, gender and equality, markets and nutrition an advantage);
- Good capacity in community mobilization and knowledge of participatory approaches.
Special Skills, Aptitude or Personality Requirements:
Essential:
- Minimum 3 years working with INGOs;
- Excellent, proven training skills and competence in group facilitation;
- Ability to work on own initiative;
- Excellent interpersonal and communication skills;
- Good observation skills;
- Enthusiastic, energetic and motivated;
- Ability to influence others;
- Ability to work as part of a team for shared results and learning;
- Strong spoken skills in Temne and Krio;
- Experience of working in coordination with local partners (advantage)
- Valid motorbike license and ability to ride (desirable);
|
Emergency response |
Concern is committed to responding to emergencies efficiently and effectively in order to help affected people meet their basic needs, alleviate suffering and maintain their dignity. To this end, when emergencies strike and Sierra Leone Programme is to respond, all staff are required to actively participate in the response, regardless of location and contribute to the efforts aimed at achieving the humanitarian objective of the organization |
Gender Equality |
Concern Worldwide in Sierra Leone recognizes that the establishment of equality of opportunity between men and women is fundamental to both the achievement of fairness and to poverty elimination.
Therefore, each staff member of Concern is expected to be sensitive to equality issues in their relationships with colleagues and in their work and to participate in implementation of gender mainstreaming plans, both at the workplace and in programmes. |
Safeguarding at Concern: Code of Conduct and its Associated Policies
Concern has an organisational Code of Conduct (CCoC) with three Associated Policies; the Programme Participant Protection Policy (P4), the Child Safeguarding Policy and the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Policy. These have been developed to ensure the maximum protection of programme participants from exploitation, and to clarify the responsibilities of Concern staff, consultants, visitors to the programme and partner organisation, and the standards of behaviour expected of them. In this context, staff have a responsibility to the organisation to strive for, and maintain, the highest standards in the day-to-day conduct in their workplace in accordance with Concern’s core values and mission. Any candidate offered a job with Concern Worldwide will be expected to sign the Concern Staff Code of Conduct and Associated Policies as an appendix to their contract of employment. By signing the Concern Code of Conduct, candidates acknowledge that they have understood the content of both the Concern Code of Conduct and the Associated Policies and agree to conduct themselves in accordance with the provisions of these policies. Additionally, Concern is committed to the safeguarding and protection of vulnerable adults and children in our work. We will do everything possible to ensure that only those who are suitable to work or volunteer with vulnerable adults and children are recruited by us for such roles. Subsequently, working or volunteering with Concern is subject to a range of vetting checks, including criminal background checking. |
HOW TO APPLY
Interested candidates should apply with:
- An application letter clearly justifying how you meet the selection criteria
- Recent Curriculum Vitae including names and full contact addresses of three (3) referees, one of whom must be their current or most recent employer.
- Candidates must state the position of each referee and his/her relationship to the candidate.
- A copy of a valid labour card must be attached to ALL applications (written or electronic)
- Police Clearance will be required from the successful candidate
Applications should be sent either through email or by hard copy to the following addresses.
You can send through email to info.sl@concern.net OR deliver in Hard copy to the below locations
HR Department, Concern Worldwide, 20 Old Railway Line – Signal Hill, Freetown
HR Department, Concern Worldwide, 156A Freetown Highway, Mile 91, Tonkolili.
HR Department, 24 Upper Kamara Lane, Back of EDSA Substation, Port Loko
Please mark your application as per the references stated in position above
(by email please put the reference in the SUBJECT heading).
Closing date for receipt of applications for the above vacancy is 17.00 on Tuesday 30th July 2024
Only short listed candidates will be contacted.
PLEASE NOTE THAT A COPY OF THE APPLICATION LETTER (written or typed) MUST BE SENT TO THE NGO DESK OFFICER, MINISTRY OF LABOUR & SOCIAL, NEW ENGLAND OR EMAILED TO Email: employmentdesk71@gmail.com
“FEMALE CANDIDATES ARE STRONGLY ENCOURAGED TO APPLY”