Africa Regional Program Coordinator, Enhanced Homestead Food Production

Africa Regional Program Coordinator,Enhanced Homestead Food ProductionDakar, Senegal 

Established in 1915 with Helen Keller as a founding trustee, Helen Keller International (HKI) works to save the sight and lives of the most vulnerable and disadvantaged.  Headquartered in New York City, HKI offers programs in 21 countries in Africa and Asia as well as in the United States.  The organization combats the causes and consequences of blindness and malnutrition by establishing programs based on evidence and research.  Each year, their programs directly benefit millions of people, and children are a primary concern.  HKI programs address malnutrition, cataract, trachoma, onchocerciasis, refractive error and diabetic retinopathy.  HKI has over 700 staff and a worldwide annual budget of over $50 million.

Position Overview

HKI’s Enhanced Homestead Food Production (EHFP) program has helped communities to establish technically-improved local food production systems by creating gardens yielding micronutrient-rich fruits and vegetables year-round, complemented with poultry and small livestock production and nutrition behavior change communication. HKI has received funding to expand this program to four countries in Africa and is seeking an experienced Program Coordinator to lead this program whose goal is to strengthen the capacity of the agricultural extension services and establish and build community capacity for demonstration farms in state-of-the-art homestead food production, small animal husbandry activities and behavior change communication (BCC) for essential nutrition actions (ENA). This program aims to create the conditions for scale-up and replication while documenting and disseminating important lessons learned. The position is based in Dakar, Senegal with international travel.

Scope of the Position

Program Planning, Management, and Leadership

• Provides overall program management and leadership of the multi-country EHFP Program. Takes an active role working closely with country teams to identify and recruit key staff, and in the development of project/country work plans. Follows up the preparation and signature of different sub-grants with country teams. Coordinates external partner activities. Ensures compliance with donor requirements and HKI policies, procedures, and processes.

• Provides programmatic leadership, coordination, and consistency across HKI’s homestead food production programs throughout Africa. Facilitates regular virtual/face-to-face meetings between EHFP country level project leaders to ensure regular information sharing and knowledge management.

Technical Leadership

• Act as HKI’s principal technical leader in Africa in homestead food production through own knowledge and network of technical experts in fields related to the various aspects of homestead food production. Provides timely and regular technical support to country level teams on project design, reporting and monitoring, ensuring feasibility and quality assurance through appropriate selection of national partners, adequate project management, and supervision. Facilitates country level and regional linkages with technical institutions and other agriculture organizations. Helps ensure the development of quality, evidence based technical tools and guides.

Program Monitoring

• Ensures HKI country offices provide accurate and timely reporting of project results,  and develop and implement appropriate monitoring and evaluation tools for partner activities at sub-regional and country level. Consolidates reports for reporting to the donor and HKI regional office.

Grant Compliance and Budget Control

• Ensures donor funds are managed in accordance with HKI and donor policies and good financial standards. With country teams, develops financial monitoring tools that are linked to activities and implementation plans and tracks budget expenditures over time to ensure budget compliance. Reviews financial reports for the project and monitors the project budgeting and activities.

Representation

• Represents HKI at appropriate global and regional meetings related to the EHFP Program. Facilitates linkages between civil society, government, CGIAR, SUN and CAADP that promote and build awareness of evidence based approaches to mainstreaming nutrition within the agriculture arena.

Dissemination of Information

• Takes lead in assisting country offices and sub-regional implementing agencies to document and publish/present key programmatic results and lessons learned related to EHFP. Identifies virtual reporting and data management options that support knowledge management. Shares information across countries and expands lessons learned to other countries where HKI has programs. Maintains the technical information in related section of the HKI web site.

Supervision

• The position provides oversight of project technical specialists (BCC/IYCN) coordinates with country project coordinators. Reports to the Regional Nutrition Advisor and assists the Deputy Regional Directors and Country Directors with planning, assigning, and directing work related to the implementation of the project including review of performance of HKI national EHFP coordinators.

Requirements/Qualifications

• At least a Master’s Degree in Agriculture, Agronomy, Horticulture, International Development, Nutrition or related field, plus at least 7 years’ experience implementing agriculture or food security programming, including home gardening, or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Strong track record in undertaking and supporting data collection, analysis and report and article writing.
• Experience managing multi-country projects preferred.
• Experience managing CIDA and US government funded projects preferred.
• Strong technical skills in agriculture, food security, and nutrition programs, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa.
• Experience in capacity building of government extension workers, farmers, and women’s groups.
• Communication and language skills:
  • Strong interpersonal skills in dealing with external contacts, as well as internal colleagues.
  • English and French fluency, both oral and written.  Ability to read, analyze and interpret the most complex documents.
• Highly computer literate.
• Ability to undertake extensive field travel (approximately 35%).

To Apply 

Qualified candidates should submit a cover letter and resume tohkihr@hki.org noting the position title in the subject line.

Applications will be accepted until the position is filled.