Senior Food Security / Rural Development National Program Officer

Senior Food Security / Rural Development National Program Officer

The Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) is Switzerland’s international cooperation agency within the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA). In operating with other federal offices concerned, SDC is responsible for the overall coordination of development activities and cooperation, as well as for the humanitarian aid delivered by the Swiss Confederation. SDC Horn of Africa office is in charge of all development and humanitarian activities supported by the Swiss Government in Kenya, Somalia, Ethiopia, Djibouti and Eritrea.
The Swiss Cooperation Strategy Horn of Africa 2013-2016 focuses mainly on Somalia and the dry lands of South-East Ethiopia and North-East Kenya and covers four sectors: 1. Food Security & Rural Development, 2. Health, 3. Governance/Peace Building and 4. Migration. It is designed as a whole of government approach in which SDC is closely collaborating with the Embassies in Nairobi and Addis, the Human Security Division, the Federal Office of Migration, as well as the Federal Department of Defense, Civil Protection and Sports. Governance, gender and conflict sensitive programme management are incorporated as transversal themes. The overall aim of the strategy is to contribute to the reduction of poverty, improve human security, stability and address migration challenges.
Collaboration modalities include bilateral and multilateral instruments, core/earmarked contributions to government- owned and multi-donor projects, contributions to locally managed development funds, as well as direct implementation at regional, country and sub-regional level. Policy dialogue at national and regional level is systematically promoted, as well as donor coordination and aid effectiveness principles in fragile contexts (New Deal).
In relation to the Food Security & Rural Development sector, the SDC is aiming to achieve its goal mainly through engagement in natural resource management (NRM) and by building the resilience of (agro-) pastoral communities in the dry lands of the Horn of Africa.
In this context the SDC Regional Office in Nairobi is looking for a Senior Food Security/Rural Development National Program Officer for the Horn of Africa (Senior NPO)
Tasks/Responsibilities
The senior NPO supports the Cooperation Office in ensuring the quality and result orientation of the SDC’s programme portfolio in the food security/rural development sector with a particular focus on natural resource management.
She/he is responsible for the management/supervision of SDC projects/programmes which includes a close collaboration with the SDC’s bilateral and multilateral implementing partner in the planning, implementation and monitoring processes of projects and programs in the Horn Africa.
As an SDC representative she/he will play an active role in representing SDC in the dialogue with and coordination of international donors, government authorities, and other relevant stakeholders in the food security and resilience sector at national and regional level (including but not limited to Somalia’s PSG 4 Working Group, Somalia Joint UN Resilience Strategy and IGAD Drought Resilience Platform, SDC Agriculture & Food Security Network, etc. ).
She/he will be an active member of the food security team in the SDC Cooperation Office and in this function contribute to maintain a coherent and result oriented portfolio. She/he will participate in and contribute to annual planning and reporting processes, continuous analyses of development and security relevant context etc. He/She will collaborate closely with the SDC Programme Office in Addis Ababa in the food security sector.
Experience and formation

• University and/or master degree in studies related to development cooperation and 10 years experience in rural development, natural resources management/governance in Africa, preferably in the Horn of Africa (Kenya, Somalia and/or Ethiopia)
• Experience in international cooperation and humanitarian aid
• Strong political, cultural and conflict sensitivity; ability to capture political and social dimensions of pastoralism and/or agro-pastoralism and the identification of risks, mitigation measures etc.
• Solid skills in project cycle management including conflict-sensitive programme management experience and exposure to the principles of engagement in fragile states
• Strong knowledge of the multilateral and bilateral aid system (UN, International Finance Institutions etc.).
• Strong analytical capacity and ability to synthesize/communicate conclusions and recommendations and ability to represent positions in stakeholder and policy dialogue.
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team and to deliver high quality in/outputs on time
• Fluent in English (written and spoken); Somali and/or Borana are of particular advantage for the selection

Female applications are encouraged
Employment modalities

• The position is based in Nairobi under a local contract
• Frequent field missions to the whole region for the purpose of project planning/ monitoring sector coordination, policy dialogue are required (incl. travel to accessible areas of Somalia – currently mostly Somaliland, Puntland and Mogadishu - under SDC security measures).
• Foreseen begin of duty is 2nd May 2014

How to apply:

Application to be sent to nai.sdc@eda.admin.ch
Subject line: Senior Food security NPO – Applicant name
Closure: 09.04.2014

http://reliefweb.int/job/643907/senior-food-security-rural-development-national-program-officer