Peace Building and Community Engagement Officer at COOPI - Cooperazione Internazionale

Scope of the Position

• COOPI seeks to recruit a Peacebuilding and Community Engagement Officer to contribute to the implementation of peacebuilding and community engagement activities in North Central (Benue and Plateau) and North West (Kaduna and Katsina) Nigeria under the FCDO-funded project “Strengthening Peace and Resilience in Nigeria (SPRiNG).”
• The project is implemented in consortium with Tetra Tech and in collaboration with relevant government ministries, departments, and agencies.
• The Peacebuilding and Community Engagement Officer will play a key role in supporting and implementing initiatives that promote peace, reconciliation, and conflict resolution within targeted communities.
• The position will require close collaboration with local stakeholders, community leaders, civil society actors, and project partners to facilitate dialogue, strengthen relationships, and develop sustainable peacebuilding strategies.
• Key responsibilities will include organizing community-based peacebuilding activities, supporting stakeholder engagement processes, monitoring and documenting project outcomes and impact to contribute to positive and sustainable social change.

Main Responsibilities and Tasks

Under the general supervision and guidance of the Area Coordinator or another designated staff, the Peace Building and Community Engagement Officer will be responsible for the following key duties:

Project Implementation:

• Collaborate with project stakeholders to develop and implement peace-building initiatives and activities in line with project objectives.
• Facilitate community dialogues, workshops, and training on conflict resolution, peacebuilding, and reconciliation.
• Support the development and implementation of local peace-building strategies, considering the cultural and social context of the target communities.
• Provide guidance and support to local community leaders, civil society organizations, and volunteers engaged in peace-building activities.
• Monitor project progress, identify challenges, and propose adaptive measures to ensure effective implementation.

Community Engagement:

• Establish and maintain strong relationships with key community members, local leaders, and other relevant stakeholders.
• Conduct regular field visits to project sites and engage directly with community members to understand their needs, perspectives, and concerns.
• Foster a sense of ownership and participation among community members by promoting inclusive decision-making processes.
• Organize and facilitate community meetings and forums to encourage open dialogue, conflict resolution, and mutual understanding.

Monitoring, Evaluation, and Reporting:

• Implement monitoring and evaluation activities to track the progress and impact of peace-building activities.
• Collect data to assess the effectiveness of interventions and identify areas for improvement.
• Prepare timely and accurate reports on project activities, outputs, and outcomes for internal and external stakeholders.
• Document success stories, lessons learned, and best practices to contribute to knowledge sharing and organizational learning.
• Lead the reporting of community engagement and peacebuilding activities.
• Promote a culture of learning within the team by actively sharing challenges and lessons learned.

Networking and Partnerships:

• Collaborate with external stakeholders to leverage resources, expertise, and support for project activities.
• Represent the organization in relevant meetings, conferences, and events related to peace-building and conflict resolution.
• Foster collaborative relationships with other peace-building practitioners and organizations to promote knowledge exchange and collective impact.

Technical Support and Capacity Building:

• Ensure understanding and adoption of conflict sensitivity concepts and approaches across all COOPI interventions in North Central Nigeria.
• Support the COOPI team in North Central Nigeria on conflict sensitivity analysis and decision-making processes.
• Develop tools, facilitate training/workshops, and provide technical support on programming decisions.

Context and Conflict Analysis:

• Collect relevant data on drivers/triggers of conflict and community tensions in the area of operation.
• Participate in impact assessments of community engagements and peacebuilding initiatives.
• Provide guidance and recommendations on conflict sensitivity programming to COOPI partners.
• Support the COOPI program teams in carrying out conflict assessments in newly accessible areas.
• Ensure that conflict assessments are updated and shared with relevant COOPI staff and partners.

Code of conduct and associated policies:

• Treat beneficiaries with dignity and apply COOPI’s Code of Ethics and Conduct, the UN Convention for the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) in the field, including sensitizing Field Monitors and vendors/agents on such principles.
• Promote the zero-tolerance policy regarding corruption and ensure adherence to COOPI Code of Conduct and Anti-Fraud policy.

Requirements
Education:

• Bachelor’s degree in Peace and Conflict Studies, Sociology, Political Science, Development Studies, Social Work, or related field.

Experience:

• Minimum 3–5 years of experience in peacebuilding and community engagement, conflict resolution, community development, or social cohesion programs.
• Experience working with community-based structures such as youth groups, women groups, traditional leaders, or community committees.
• Knowledge of conflict dynamics (particularly natural resource based) in North Central Nigeria, mediation techniques, and community dialogue facilitation.
• Experience working in fragile or conflict-affected environments.
• Strong understanding of livelihood programs such as VSLA and natural resource management is an added advantage.
• Experience working with NGOs or development programs is desirable.

Knowledge, Skills and Languages:

• Strong and highly developed technical skills in disaster risk management international practices
• Self-supporting in computers (word processing, spreadsheets, internet and web-based searching etc.)
• Solid and tested analytical skills
• Operational management and reporting skills
• Excellent communication, interpersonal and networking skills
• Fluently spoken and written in English is required
• Have a knowledge of a local language preferably Hausa.

Competencies and values:

• Accountability
• National Society Relations
• Teamwork-interpersonal skills
• Integrity and personal conduct
• Professionalism
• Communication Managerial effectiveness
• Initiative and direction
• Flexibility, Patience and adaptability-sensitivity to diversity
• Adhere to COOPI values and abide by the code of conduct and other policies.
• Ability to maintain confidentiality and handle sensitive information.