Program Officer (COVID-19) at Mercy Corps

Requisition Number: PROGR003025
Location: Damaturu, Yobe
Employment Type: Full-time
Job Category: Programming
Reports Directly To: SBC Program Manager
Works Directly With: SBC Program Manager, Communication Specialist, COVID-19 Program MEL Officer, Finance, and Operations

Program Summary

• Mercy Corps has been present in Nigeria since 2012, focusing its interventions on adolescent girls’ empowerment, economic and market development and conflict mitigation.
• With the insurgency spilling over from the Northeast of Nigeria and causing the displacement of millions of individuals, Mercy Corps started its humanitarian response in 2014 to address the rising humanitarian needs.
• With funding from institutional donors, foundations and private corporations, Mercy Corps continues to provide assistance to meet the basic needs of vulnerable populations in the areas of food security, shelter, water and sanitation, protection, and livelihoods.
• As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to take a tremendous toll on the health, economic security and well-being of families and communities around the world, the need for an expanded and well-coordinated response by international and national non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and other civil society stakeholders working in partnership with governments is critical.
• The task of rolling out vaccines in low- and middle-income countries could not be more challenging, as COVID-19 cases continue to rise in countries and communities, threatening lives and challenging weak health systems.
• Compounding the demands of planning, vaccine supply, transport, cold chain, logistics and human resources, are the socio-behavioural obstacles of limited information, vaccine hesitancy, misinformation, rumour and misunderstanding that limit acceptance and uptake of the vaccine when it becomes available.
• As members of the INGO COVID-19 Collaborative, Mercy Corps and Care in Nigeria is implementing a 1-year program in Yobe State to support and accelerate efficient and equitable COVID-19 vaccine delivery.
• The same program will be implemented by Save the Children and World Vision in Zambia.

General Position Summary

• The Program Officer will support the Program Manager to oversee the efficient implementation of activities, working closely with key stakeholders in government, health, media and communities.
• He/She must have a good understanding of deploying social behaviour change communications (SBC) for the implementation of effective risk communication and community engagement.
• He/She will work with the Program Manager to identify new opportunities for mainstreaming SBC for the acceptance and uptake of the COVID-19 Vaccine uptake in the targeted communities.
• The officer is to ensure close interactions with the community members and local governance structures to promote awareness and facilitate sustained involvement of these stakeholders in Mercy Corps activities.
• He/she will report directly to the Program Manager.

Essential Job Responsibilities

• Support the Program Manager to increase COVID-19 vaccine uptake and trust between community members, leaders and health workers in collaboration with CARE and key stakeholders including the State Ministry of Health and community committees.
• Work with the MEL Officer to conduct relevant assessments and monitoring of implementation to ensure interventions meet the program goals.
• Engage and conduct community stakeholders’ sensitization on the program activities and approaches.
• Mobilize targeted beneficiaries /participants to fully engage in the program to realize the intended objectives.
• Lead on logistics and training plans for community leaders and community health workers to provide clarity on vaccine product safety, efficacy and dosing regimens, and access points/requirements for vaccination.
• Coordinate and track the activities of the community resilience groups and local governance structures, especially with relations to sensitization, action planning and involvement in learning sessions.
• Support the documentation of weekly/monthly implementation progress report and impact highlights with the Program Manager.
• Participate in all strategic planning meetings and activities, gathering and sharing relevant information with all relevant actors.
• Participate in relevant coordination platforms and forums, with Mercy Corps and National technical working groups to share learnings and leverage on proven approaches to inform implementation.
• Ensure all interventions adhere to Mercy Corps’ Gender Policy, Do No Harm principles, and beneficiary accountability standards.
• Ensure that program implementation is responsive to communities and partners and consistent with Mercy Corps’ relevant program guidelines, principles, values, quality standards and strategic plan.
• Promote and contribute to the integration and mainstreaming of conflict sensitivity, gender and other pertinent cross-cutting issues into program implementation.

Finance & Compliance Management:

• Ensure compliance with Mercy Corps’ regulations and use of Mercy Corps’ procurement and finance processes

Security:

• Ensure compliance with security procedures and policies as determined by country leadership;
• Proactively ensure that team members operate in a secure environment and are aware of policies.

Organizational Learning:

• Mercy Corps’ team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our beneficiaries and to international standards guiding international relief and development work, while actively engaging beneficiary communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field programs.

Knowledge and Experience

• Bachelor’s Degree in Social Sciences, Public Administration, Development Studies or other relevant fields from a recognized University.
• 2 years of work experience with a local or international NGO working with marginalized communities with community engagement or COVID/health-related programming.
• Proven experience in capacity building, coordinating activities, developing plans and drafting reports.
• Strong interpersonal, communication and presentation skills and capacity to maintain relations with community leaders. Experience in building and maintaining strong/productive relations is required.
• Proficiency in computer use particularly Microsoft Office (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint) is preferred.
• Strong interpersonal, writing, and oral presentation skills in English is a requirement. Knowledge of Kanuri and Hausa is required while other local languages are an added advantage.
• Demonstrated attention to detail, ability to follow procedures, strong leadership and proven team building experience, ability to meet deadlines and work independently is required.
• Willingness to spend much time in the field and work closely with program target groups.

Success Factors:

• The selected team member must have a strong background in Behavioral Change Communication (BCC) and knowledge of risk communication and community engagement strategies.
• The person should demonstrate a sound knowledge of demand generation for vaccine/health-related or community-led interventions.
• He/She has great interpersonal communications skills for ensuring inclusive involvement of all stakeholders involved and the modalities involved in efficiently monitoring implementation.
• Mercy Corps team members represent the agency both during and outside work hours.
• Team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner and respect local laws, customs and MC's policies, procedures, and values at all times and in all in-country venues.

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion:

• Achieving our mission begins with how we build our team and work together. Through our commitment to enriching our organization with people of different origins, beliefs, backgrounds, and ways of thinking, we are better able to leverage the collective power of our teams and solve the world’s most complex challenges.
• We strive for a culture of trust and respect, where everyone contributes their perspectives and authentic selves, reaches their potential as individuals and teams, and collaborates to do the best work of their lives.
• We recognize that diversity and inclusion is a journey, and we are committed to learning, listening and evolving to become more diverse, equitable and inclusive than we are today.

Equal Employment Opportunity:

• Mercy Corps is an equal opportunity employer that does not tolerate discrimination on any basis.
• We actively seek out diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be collectively stronger and have a sustained global impact.
• We are committed to providing an environment of respect and psychological safety where equal employment opportunities are available to all.
• We do not engage in or tolerate discrimination on the basis of race, colour, gender identity, gender expression, religion, age, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin, disability (including HIV/AIDS status), marital status, military veteran status or any other protected group in the locations where we work.

Safeguarding & Ethics:

• Mercy Corps is committed to ensuring that all individuals we come into contact with through our work, whether team members, community members, program participants or others, are treated with respect and dignity. We are committed to the core principles regarding the prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse laid out by the UN Secretary-General and IASC.
• We will not tolerate child abuse, sexual exploitation, abuse, or harassment by or of our team members.
• As part of our commitment to a safe and inclusive work environment, team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner, respect local laws and customs, and adhere to the Mercy Corps Code of Conduct Policies and values at all times.
• Team members are required to complete mandatory Code of Conduct eLearning courses upon hire and on an annual basis.