Oxfam GB Emergency Sanitation Researcher

Emergency Sanitation Researcher £22,723 to £26,940 per annum 1 year contract, starting January 2013 Based Oxford, UK

For a number of years Oxfam GB has been hosting emergency sanitation forums with a view to improving sanitation in emergencies. The Oxfam Slab (manufactured by Nag Magic), which became the Inter Agency Plastic Latrine Slab, was a product of these forums. The first was held in Oxford in 1995,recently Interagency emergency sanitation forums have been held in Brussels, Delft and Stoutenberg. The outcome of these meetings has been a very clear list of what is missing in the sanitation sector, in order to promote effective means in responding to sanitation in emergencies.

Over the last year or so the landscape shows signs of changing, with a number of suppliers, including the two British companies that provide much of the water equipment, starting to produce sanitation equipment. There is also now more interest from donors, such as DFID, OFDA, and the Dutch Government in emergency sanitation.

WASTE, IFRC and Oxfam have now formed a consortium, funded by OFDA for the next two years. This consortia will spend their full time on developing ways to answer the gaps highlighted – from options for sludge treatment & disposal to a raised latrine appropriate for emergency contexts such as urban (unable to dig in the ground), to floods etc.

The role You will assist Oxfam’s Sanitation team leader to find practical solutions to the gaps identified in providing safe excreta disposal in emergencies. You will carry out a desktop/scoping study to understand what field staff view is their most urgent gap in sanitation when responding to emergencies and for each of the gaps identified, develop detailed specifications which meet the requirements of our logistics team, and moreover suppliers which will enable them to initiate prototypes for our consideration and trial in the field. In addition you will also design different ways in seeking suppliers, individuals and relevant organisations to communicate their ideas and concepts for solving the various problem statements – potentially through innovation competitions, identifying appropriate suppliers and organisations for product development around the world. You will also coordinate, collaborate and share information with WASTE and IFRC during the project cycle, represent Oxfam in technical and coordination meetings; organise and monitor UK and field trials of equipment where necessary, liaise with academic professionals, students, suppliers, local authorities, NGO staff etc during the design phase, and prototype field trials; and manage the budget and the reporting requirements for the project

The person Most importantly, you should have proven practical experience in developing countries in appropriate sanitation and hygiene promotion activities. It is desirable that some of this should have been in emergency relief programmes for an appropriate length of time. A suitable qualification in any discipline relating to Public Health Engineering is the necessary educational background, although experience could substitute for a formal qualification, but not vice versa. A good understanding of the challenges faced in delivering sanitation in different contexts and countries – e.g. flood, earthquake, urban etc., plus a high level of awareness and sensitivity to the particular needs and capacities of women, girls, men and boys and ability to demonstrate this awareness and sensitivity to others. This context understands the importance of closing the sanitation loop - from the latrine infrastructure to the emptying, and safe treatment and disposal of the waste. Plus you’ll need the ability to communicate complex technical information to non-specialists to positively influence programme design and implementation That means you’ll need diverse and complex problem-solving ability, requiring professional knowledge field experience and an understanding of development and humanitarian work. With diverse information sources good judgement on credibility and accuracy of the information is essential, as is experience of applied field research or product development, data collection and analysis and report writing. Diplomacy and tact in order to work with people at managerial and, on occasions, senior government levels is important and you should also be at ease in working with local people. Well developed interpersonal awareness; collaborative team skills (both as a leader and follower); and proven ability to be flexible in demanding situations are key and strong written and spoken English essential.

How to apply:

To find out more about this role and to apply, please visit www.oxfam.org.uk/jobs and quote reference: INT5900..