REACH Nutrition Assessment Officer (Public Health Unit) at IMPACT Initiatives

Reference No: 21/NGA/AO01
Location: Abuja / Maiduguri, Borno
Contract duration: 6 months
Start date: ASAP
Supervisor: Reach Research Manager - Public Health Unit

Position Profile

• REACH’s Public Health Unit engages with sectors and working groups across the humanitarian response. This includes Food Security and Livelihoods (FSL), Nutrition, WASH, Cash, CCCM/Shelter and more.
• REACH Nigeria’s Public Health Unit is seeking an assessment officer with experience with nutrition assessments to support various activities, including SMART surveys, MUAC screenings, IPC Acute Malnutrition analysis, as well as the Cadre Harmonisé, a comprehensive analytical framework that considers various indicators of food and nutrition security outcomes and the inference of contributing factors.
• Engagements of the position will include conducting assessments, supporting in analysis, building capacity building, supporting coordination and strategic engagement to promote innovative methods towards understanding sector-related needs in North East Nigeria.

Responsibilities

• Under the direct supervision of the REACH Research Manager of the Public Health Unit, the Nutrition Assessment Officer (NAO) will be responsible for assessing nutrition, health, and mortality needs and conditions in North East Nigeria and for working closely with other sectoral specialists and REACH teams to provide relevant analysis to the humanitarian response.

This includes:

• In collaboration with the Public Health Unit Research Manager, and under the guidance of the Deputy Country Coordinator, providing support to humanitarian actors in Nigeria working in the field of Nutrition, specifically including the Nutrition Cluster with relevant and timely data and analysis;
• Further developing and expanding REACH’s nutrition and health portfolios, ensuring close collaboration with other sector-specific analysts including the WASH;
• Supporting the development of new projects and programme strategies, as well as the production of donor reports and new proposals;
• Conducting nutrition assessments either as technical support to nutrition partners in Nigeria, or as ad hoc rapid nutrition assessments, including the design, planning, training and implementation, data cleaning and analysis, and reporting of the assessment results;
• Representing REACH Nigeria in Nutrition and Health Sector meetings and as a technical representative on the Nutrition Information Working Group (NIWG);
• Providing ad hoc technical support to the Nutrition Cluster or the NIWG in the analysis of nutrition data or other secondary data sources, or technical training of staff, as requested;
• Participating in the Cadre Harmonise (CH) analysis workshops for Acute Malnutrition;
• Providing technical support to other REACH departments on the collection or interpretation of nutrition, health, and mortality data as requested;
• Coordinating and ensuring timely data collection, including management of field staff whererelevant;
• In coordination with the REACH Country Coordinator, Deputy Country Coordinator and Public Health Unit Research Manager, representing REACH externally with donors, partners and the wider aid community through sectors and working groups.

Confidentiality:

• The NAO will maintain the strictest confidentiality on all data collected and related processes. He/she will actively take measures to prevent the unauthorized sharing of any information and data belonging to IMPACT and its partners, or collected during his/her assignment with IMPACT.

Accountability to Communities and Beneficiaries:

• The staff member is responsible for ensuring that all relations with the communities we work are conducted in a respectful and consultative manner.
• Due attention must be paid to ensuring that communities are adequately consulted and informed about IMPACT programme objectives, activities, beneficiary selection criteria, and methodologies. This is the responsibility of every IMPACT staff member.

Requirements

• Excellent academic qualifications, including a University Degree (preferably a Master’s Degree) in a relevant discipline (for example, but not limited to Public Health, Nutrition, Epidemiology, Statistics, etc.);
• SMART Survey Manager certification is highly preferred
• IPC Acute Malnutrition Level 1 training is highly preferred
• Experience conducting nutrition assessments (SMART, SQUEAC, RNA), or experience conducting
• quantitative data collection (household surveys) in emergency contexts is highly preferred;
• Training, certification, or relevant programmatic experience in other relevant nutrition topics (CMAM, IYCF, etc.) is considered an asset;
• Strong skills in Excel are required;
• Experience using statistical software such as EpiInfo, SPSS, STATA, or R is required;
• Experience using GIS software such as QGIS, ArcGIS, Google Earth is considered an asset;
• Experience designing data collection forms in Kobo, ODK, or similar mobile data collection tools is considered an asset;
• Prior knowledge of Nigerian context an asset;
• Ability to work independently;
• Familiarity with the humanitarian aid system and relevant actors.

Conditions

• Salary defined by the IMPACT salary grid; educational level, expertise, hardship, security, and performance are considered for pay bonus
• Additional monthly living allowance
• Free food and lodging provided at the organisation’s guesthouse/or housing allowance (depending on contract length and country of assignment)
• Transportation costs covered, including additional return ticket + luggage allowance
• Provision of medical, life, and repatriation insurance + retirement package