GiZ Poultry Project Community Animal Health Workers (CAHW) at Catholic Relief Services (CRS)

Locations: MMC & Jere -Borno and Mubi & Maiha - Adamawa

Background
With donor support from the European Union (EU) and German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) through Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, Catholic Relief Services (CRS/Nigeria), a prime recipient is implementing the Borno and Adamawa Women Poultry Project. The 18 months Activity was awarded by GIZ Nigeria to CRS and its partner on 1st March 2020 as part of GIZ’s contribution to the support of Internally Displaced Persons and the Resilience of Host Communities in North and North-East Nigeria seeks to support vulnerable populations to contribute to creation of livestock employment opportunities in Borno and Adamawa states to improve participants’ living conditions, and increase their income by producing and selling poultry and poultry products.

The Activity will work with a coalition of partners to provide agricultural extension and health services (including treatment and vaccination), to serve vulnerable populations, strengthen the institutions that form the market system and the networks that serve smallholder poultry producers who have been disenfranchised by conflict, and facilitate the engagement of vulnerable women in poultry agribusiness activities.

The project seeks to engage the services of community animal health workers (CAHWs) who will provide basic services and give poultry farmers training and advice on poultry production and management in Maiduguri Metropolitan Council (MMC) and Jere LGAs of Borno and Maiha and Mubi North of Adamawa state.

Specific Deliverables

• Agricultural extension support including vaccination services and hands-on training to hatcheries and vaccination program of poultry birds against poultry diseases (Newcastle disease, infectious bursal disease, and fowl pox, etc.)
• Carrying out disease outbreak surveillance and reporting and coordinating response with the state and local department of animal health and technical teams.
• Provision of animal health and veterinary services (drugs, vaccination, equipment’s, and feeds) to poultry producer groups (PPGs) and Community poultry farmers as an entrepreneur.
• CAHW as a member of Project Steering Committee (PSC) and ensure regular information sharing on a quarterly basis among key-stakeholders.
• CAHW will ensure better management of poultry health, prevention, and control of disease outbreak.
• CAHWs will provide update on any outbreak of zoonotic disease to the technical team
• CAHWs will provide community awareness to 9 PPGs and community poultry farmers on hygiene and sanitation to reduce the prevalence of zoonotic infections.

Residency:

• Living in targeted community as a permanent resident—this is critical and must be confirmed independently; beware of candidates who claim they have “just moved back” and might be commuters
• Well-known and respected by community members and leaders in the assigned area
• Reputation for integrity
• No criminal record or instances of disreputable behavior

Qualifications and Skills

• Strategic thinking, planning, strong writing, and communication skills
• Minimum of Diploma in animal production or its equivalent
• Previous experience as CAHWs and animal health service provision
• Fluent in English and Hausa; other local language is an added advantage
• Interpersonal skills- able to work with diverse stakeholders and partners effectively
• Basic computer literacy and good capacity to work in a team
• Experience in Poultry Production and Vaccination Services
• Basic arithmetic skills (including percentage calculations)
• Ability to read and understand the national language (used in guides and forms)
• Ability to communicate in local language(s) of assigned area
• Good community mobiliser and facilitator, with strong interpersonal and communication skills
• Register or license by the LGA or State Ministry of Livestock is an advantage
• Must have practical poultry experience and vaccination services (at least 3 years).