About United Purpose

United Purpose (UP) is a movement of people and organisations that strive to end poverty and inequality across the globe. UP is a leader in community-led development and grassroots innovation. For more than 40 years, UP is working globally with frontline activists, community organisations and individuals to help people gain agency over their own lives – so they can move Beyond Aid.

About the Project

In the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT), orphaned children who have lost only their father and living with mother in women headed household are similarly imperiled to those who have lost both parents. These orphaned children and their families are extremely vulnerable due to an enormous challenge for single mothers to initiate economic activities on their own and often face multi-forms of stigma, exclusion, discrimination and barriers. Most of the orphaned children are forced to leave school to work as child labourers to support their family or leave the school as they simply cannot afford fees/expenses relating to education.

Aiming to create an enabling environment where orphaned children enjoy their rights and dignity through community led sustainable support, United Purpose is implementing Penny Appeal funded project “Sofol (Success): Integrated Support for the Lifelong Success of Orphaned Children in Bangladesh” at three upazilas in the Khagrachari hill district. The project will build and strengthen families and communities’ capacities to provide a supporting environment for orphaned children by providing appropriate supports and access to basic services on an equal basis and protect orphaned children from all forms of abuse, violence, exploitation and discriminations. The key components of the project are; 1). Quality Education for orphaned children through school and out of school learning mechanism; 2). Financial Security for orphaned guardians through creating sustainable income generating opportunities; 3). Health & Wellbeing of orphaned children promoted through ensuring WASH and nutrition facilities; and 4). Increased access to social protection schemes by linking orphaned children’s families to the service providers.

Reporting and Staff Supervision:

The Project Officer -Health and Nutritionshall report to the Project Manager and shall guide and coordination with the project team consisting of staff from diverse cultural background and ethnicity.  

Duties and Responsibilities:

1. Key responsibilities include (not limited to)
• With the support and guidance of Project Manager, lead the planning and implementation of health and nutrition activities through close coordination with the project team and target groups such as orphaned  children’s guardian/mothers, Women Business Centres (WBC), self-help groups, adolescent and youth groups, etc.
• Ensure quality in the programme by building capacity of the local partner staff, WBC entrepreneurs, women self-help groups, orphaned  children’s guardians/mothers through trainings and orientation on health, WASH, and nutrition.
• Provide technical support to project team for innovative strategies and appropriate approaches which ensure smooth implementation of health and nutrition activities.
• Be self-driven and responsible for delivering of health and nutrition component’s planned activities and targets, and address all sorts of health and nutrition related issues in consultation with the line management for moving ahead along with necessary liaising with stakeholders.
• Identify critical programme gaps and vulnerabilities, and clarify roles, responsibilities and accountabilities to effectively address those gaps.
• Provide guidance to field teams on common standards, innovative strategies and approaches which ensure a capacity to address inclusive education and learning opportunities for children in development, and reflect good practice in developmental education responses for children.
• Provide support to MEAL team with activity tracking and monitoring, data collection, database administration, and M&E related coordination with counterparts.
• Be self-driven and responsible for the education component’s delivery target, address all sorts of education activity related issues in consultation with the line management for moving ahead along with necessary liaising with stakeholders.
• Any other responsibilities as requested by the line manager and senior management of UP.
2. Specific duties and responsibilities:
1. Planning, implementation and budget management:
• Develop plans and implement village based WASH and nutrition plan , School based blue school activities and little doctor activities through guidance from the Project Manager and coordination with the project team.
• Develop training modules, SBCC (Social Behavior Change Communication), IEC (Information, Education and Communication) and other relevant promotional materials on health, WASH, nutrition, and necessary linkage and referral service, etc.
• Planning and facilitation of capacity and skills development trainings for WBC entrepreneurs, orphaned children’s guardians/mothers, and women self-help groups.
• Mapping and organising appropriate children groups, adolescent and youth groups, and women self-help groups for facilitation of awareness education on health, WASH and nutrition.
• Identify potential areas of undernutrition protection and improvement of WASH behavior and practices at household and individual level.
• Facilitate health, WASH and nutrition campaigns at local level through engaging all target groups.
• Develop capacity of WBCs, self-help groups, adolescent and youth groups in organising nutrition campaigns and identifying Moderate Acute Malnutrition (MAM) and Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM) cases and create referral services.
• Develop strategies for analysing and addressing constraints of access to nutritios food intake and production.
• Provide technical support to the project team members for successful implementation of the health, WASH and nutrition awareness education and community mobilisation activities.
• Promotion of health, WASH and nutrition education and practices through establishing functional and inclusive spaces and neighbourhood among orphaned  children’s mothers, women self-help groups, WBCs, and local communities in project locations.
• Facilitate and provide technical support to orphaned  children’s guardians/mothers in reaching to services of health, WASH and nutrition.
• Assist Project Manager in ensuring smooth management and implementation of the project especially health, WASH and nutrition component’s activities.
2. Networking, coordination and linkage building:
• Maintain effective coordination with children’s guardians/mothers, WBC entrepreneurs, community leaders, and adolescent and youth groups.
• Establish  and networking with local government authorities, health service authorities, and other relevant government line departments for functional link and referral services.
• Facilitate WBCs, self-help groups, adolescent and youth groups in playing active roles to building network and linkage with public and private sector service providers.
• Facilitate field teams in organising shared-learning visit for WBC entrepreneurs, self-help groups and orphaned children’s guardians/mothers.
3. Knowledge management, monitoring, reporting and documentation
• Provide support to M&E team in tracking of activity progress, timely collection of quantitative and qualitative information from the fields through coordination with field teams, and other counterparts, when required.
• Documentation of lessons learned, case stories, and prepare promotional materials in coordination with MEAL team and communication unit.
• Prepare and submit periodic reports along with case studies and experience capitalisation documents.
3. Other:

• Other duties as assigned by the line manager and senior management to enable and develop UP programmes.

Education and other qualifications:

• Minimum Master Degree in Nutrition/Public Health/Social Science
• Highly motivated, self-starter able to work in a challenging work environment with minimal direct supervision.
• Excellent inter-personal and communication skills.
• Relevant training on health, WASH and nutrition.
• Respect to cultural diversity, ethnicity and gender sensitivity.
• Ability to take responsibility and work under pressure.

Experience:

• Minimum 7 years’ experience with 3 years of professional experience in similar role.
• Experience in international NGO/ NGO or similar organization
• Understanding on the contexts of health, WASH and nutrition in the Chittagong Hill Tracts
• Experience on working in collaboration with local government counterparts in the Chittagong Hill Tracts. 
• Experience in development of high standard SBCC and IEC material, training module preferred, and promotional materials.
• Experience in working with diverse-cultural background’s teams.

Skills:

• Basic skills on ICT operation, and proficient in using MS Office
• Communication, networking and community mobilization.
• Health, WASH and nutrition and social cohesion.
• Work with women entrepreneurs
• Leadership and decision-making.
• Organizational management skills.
• Module and SBCC materials development.

Language Requirements:

• Excellent in reading, writing and speaking in English and Bangla.
• Understanding of CHT indigenous language(s) and Chittagonian dialect will be an added value.

Assessment: Evaluation of qualified candidates may include a written assessment exercise which may be followed by competency-based interview.

Application Procedure:

• Please fill in your CV in official form available Here.
• Please submit your CV at upb.recruitment@united-purpose.org
• You must use the Name of the Position in the subject line of email.  Do not write any additional words, then electronic sorting will be difficult and may delay processing your application. 
• Application to be submitted by 4 June 2022.
• Salary and other benefit: As per UP HR policy. 
• Career Growth: In an international environment, there is excellent opportunity for professional growth in development sector.
• Special Note:
• Female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.
• Indigenous/Local candidates from the Chittagong Hill Tracts are strongly encouraged to apply.
• Warning: Kindly be informed that United Purpose does not charge any fee for recruitment and also does not employ any third party / agents in its recruitment process.