Job Openings at COOPI - Cooperazione Internazionale

Location: Yobe State (Bade, Damaturu, Jakusko and Potiskum)
Duration of the Project: 6 months (with possible extension)
Starting Date: 1st June
Reports to: Program Manager
Donors: WFP
Basic Salary: COOPI salary grid

Scope of the Vacancy

• He/she is responsible for the project’s execution, in technical, economic/financial terms, and in terms of resources management on field, in compliance with COOPI and the donor’s procedures.
• He/she ensures the expected results attainment in budget management.

Responsibilities

• Activity planning and management: in cooperation with the project staff, he/she plans and monitors the activities ‘progress, in compliance with the contract signed with the donor and with COOPI and the donor’s procedures.
• Administrative and financial management: in collaboration with the Project Administrator/Administrative Coordinator he/she plans all expenditures to make.
• He/she regularly monitors all made expenditures. In cooperation with the Project Administrator and in coordination with the Administrative Coordinator he/she prepares the Purchases Plan.
• He/she ensures the organization and donor’s procedures respect when purchasing goods and services.
• Reporting: In coordination with the supervisor and with the Administrative Coordinator, he/she ensures the preparation, in compliance with the deadlines, of all financial and narrative reports - interim and final - expected by the project.
• He/she is responsible for the preparation of all formal communication and contract modifications requests (ex. budget modification) of the projects he manages.
• Staff Management: In compliance with the country’s rules/laws and with the COOPI’s regulation in the country, he/she selects the local staff to be employed in projects.
• By making use of the organization’s tools he/she evaluates the local staff employed for projects and he/she participates to the evaluation of his/her own project, upon request by his/her direct supervisor.
• He/she coordinates and supervises the work done by all the project staff, in compliance with the organization’s security procedures. He/she is responsible for the initial and continuous training of the project staff under his/her responsibility.
• Goods management: he/she is responsible of the correct management of all goods purchased for the project, both directly and purchased by other offices/field offices. For all goods purchased by the project he/she updates the inventory, in cooperation with the Administrative Coordinator.
• Institutional relations: In relation to the project of his/her competence, he/she communicates with the donors’ officers, the local authorities which are competent in the aspects related to the project, the project’s partners and beneficiaries, in compliance with the organization’s guidelines.
• New projects’ writing: upon request by his/her direct supervisor, and cooperating with the project staff, he/she elaborates, writes and prepares all necessary documents to present new projects, in accordance with the organization’s processes and procedures.

Requirements

• Advanced degree in Food Security, Livelihood, Logistics or related field or equivalent work.
• Minimum 3 years’ experience in the humanitarian field in similar roles.
• Demonstrated experience in food distribution or related field.
• Experience of working within an insecure environment with responsibility for security planning, monitoring and management.
• Experience working on WFP funded projects (BSFP, GFD & Cash Based Transfers)
• Strong analytical and practical problem-solving skills;
• Strong supervisory abilities, and demonstrated capacity of teamwork and of coordination with the relevant actors;
• Very good inter-personal and writing communication skills;
• Ability to organize work efficiently and deliver assignments in a timely manner often under time constraints;
• Proficiency in written and spoken English;
• Computer literacy, with high proficiency in the use of standard office software applications (e.g. Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint).

go to method of application »

Location: Yobe State and Abuja
Duration: 6 months renewable
Starting date: July, 2017
Area of intervention: Northern states of Yobe and Borno

Context and Background

• Since the declaration of state of emergency in the Nigerian federal States of Borno, Yobe, and Adamawa, the escalation of the Boko Haram insurgency has led to multiple displacement crises, with communities fleeing their area of origin to take refuge in camps or host communities.
• In 2014 there was a substantial increase in violence related to Boko Haram and the counter insurgency operations, consequently creating acute and largely unmet humanitarian needs, as IDPs are cut off from their homes and livelihoods, basic services, kinship and social ties.
• In September 2014, COOPI began operating in north eastern Nigeria in response to the humanitarian crisis caused by the insurgency, established its operation in Bauchi State and later expanded to Yobe State considering the heightened presence of IDPs in the LGAs of Fika, Damaturu, Potiskum, Geidam and Yunusari.
• Recently, COOPI initiated an assessment mission in Borno State and establishes a presence in Maiduguri to launch operations in the most affected area of the Lake Chad crisis. COOPI is currently operating in 5 LGAs in Yobe State, reaching about 25,000 individuals among IDPs and host communities with a multi-sectoral intervention covering nutrition, food security and child protection.
• COOPI has recently developed a cash & voucher based response system in Nigeria to address the food insecure communities while integrating this approach with a nutrition component - community outreach, referral system, IYCF campaign and appropriate therapeutic services addressed to malnourished children and pregnant and breastfeeding women.
• Given the unfolding large scale emergency in the north eastern Nigeria, COOPI plans to scale up its current operations in Yobe state and reach newly accessible areas, in addition to areas receiving Nigerian returnees from Niger, with its multi-sectoral services including food security, cash transfer programming, nutrition and protection.
• Furthermore, COOPI plans to set-up operations to extend its humanitarian services to affected populations in Borno state, including the capital Maiduguri and newly accessible areas in the state, where the most vulnerable populations are stuck with insufficient basic services to respond to their immediate needs in a dignified manner

Position Description

• In close cooperation with all the different positions in place at Country Coordination level, the Area Coordinator is responsible for the overall management of quality of program, staff management, logistics, security, finance and procedures’ respect. Delegated by the Head of Mission, he/she represents COOPI with donors, institutions, NGOs, local government and international agencies available in the area.
• He/she guarantees the correct project implementation and the donors’ procedures respect.
• He/she cooperates with the Head of Mission in the definition of the Country Strategy and intervention priorities for its area of competence.

Responsibilities
Institutional Relations:

• Delegated by the Head of Mission, he/she manages relations with institutional donors and potential ones. In coordination with the Head of Mission, he/she represents COOPI in its area of competence through relations with institutions, NGOs, local and international organizations, and partners. He/she is also responsible for the Organization’s reputation in the area.

New Opportunities Identification:

• He/she verifies and proposes to the Head of Mission the intervention priorities to consolidate new opportunities of involvement in the area.
• He/she cooperates with the Head of Mission in the identification of new project opportunities in his/her area of competence. Delegated by the Head of Mission he/she participates to the elaboration of the strategy for his/her area of intervention.

Project Management and Strategy:

• Always referring to the Head of Mission and in coordination with the Project Managers, he/she coordinates and directly supervises projects, guaranteeing their correct implementation in conformity with contractual obligations and donors’ procedures, and in line with the COOPI’s procedures and management standards.
• He/she coordinates the elaboration, writing, and necessary documents preparation for presenting new projects, referring to the Head of Mission.
• He/she is responsible for the preparation of projects’ reports and all monitoring documents requested by the coordination office. He/she ensures that all official and administrative documents are transmitted to the Country Coordination.

Country Office Management:

• He/she is responsible for all different aspects linked to the country office management: economic and financial situation, logistics, and local staff management, in conformity with the organization’s guidelines. He/she guarantees the Country Regulation and the respect of the organization’s procedures.

Staff Management:

• He/she is responsible for the local staff management and training, in his/her area of competence, in close cooperation with the relative functions at Country Coordination level, whose indications he/she follows. He/she coordinates the expatriate staff, monitoring their activities, and participates to the staff evaluation, together with the Head of Mission.

Safety:

• He/she is responsible for the expatriate staff security in the area, and for the correct implementation and respect of the general security regulation.

Economic and Financial Management:

• He/she is responsible for the economic management of his/her area of competence.
• He/she supervises the financial management and, in cooperation with the Area Coordination

Administrator and the Administrative Coordinator:

• He/she participates to the preparation of coordination and projects’ budgets. He/she ensures – through the administrative function – the respect of financial reporting deadlines and the organization/donor’s procedures.

Profile

• Advanced Degree in International Education, International Development, Health and Nutrition or a related field or equivalent work.
• Minimum 3 years experience in the humanitarian field and in a similar position, with a track record of success and results achieved;
• Previous experience with an international humanitarian NGO is an advantage;
• Desirable experience of working on EU/ECHO, USAid/OFDA, UN and Italian Cooperation;
• Experience of working within an insecure environment with responsibility for security planning, monitoring and management.
• Strong analytical and practical problem-solving skills;
• Strong supervisory abilities, and demonstrated capacity of teamwork and of coordination with the relevant actors;
• Very good inter-personal and writing communication skills;
• Ability to organize work efficiently and deliver assignments in a timely manner often under time constraints;
• Proficiency in written and spoken English;
• Computer literacy, with high proficiency in the use of standard office software applications (e.g. Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint);
• Valid driving license.