Position based in MALAWI
(Lilongwe district with frequent trips to other districts)
CONTEXT
Inter Aide has been working in Malawi since 1992 with poor rural communities. The association is present in the Central and Southern regions of the country through the implementation of agricultural development programs, access to water and sanitation, maintenance of water points and community health.
In the agricultural field, the association focuses on the dissemination of agro-ecological practices, agro-forestry and the improvement of small-scale livestock management, particularly the raising of local chickens, which is essential for rural households in Malawi. The average smallholder has about 10 to 30 chickens, depending on the time of year and the performance of the farm. With very little investment, this type of farming can be a significant source of income for households that manage it well and manage to increase the size of their flock. One of the main constraints to greater profitability of local chicken farming is, as in many other African countries, the loss of animals to Newcastle disease, which is the main cause of rural poultry mortality and discourages farmers from investing in it. The government of Malawi, through its central veterinary laboratory, is producing a vaccine that is highly effective and simple to use (eye drop administration), adapted to the local context and the absence of a cold chain in the villages. Unfortunately, since the development of this vaccine in 2004, the veterinary services have never been able to provide a regular large-scale vaccination service, leaving the vast majority of the population without access to this service.
Inter Aide, in collaboration with a local partner and the animal health department, has developed over the last ten years an expertise on the implementation of community vaccinators’ networks allowing the vaccination of chickens belonging to small producers in the most isolated areas of 3 districts (out of the 28 in the country). The autonomy of the network at a local level is achieved over cycles of about 6 years, following the training and capacity building of vaccinators’ organizations, capable of managing their vaccine supply, the programming and organization of quarterly vaccination campaigns, all based on an entrepreneurial approach allowing for significant benefits for both producers and vaccinators.
Inter Aide is looking for a program manager who will be responsible for developing the program in new districts and supporting the animal health department to improve vaccine production capacity.
CONTENT OF THE MISSION
The Program Manager will be based in Nathenje, Lilongwe District, Central Region.
He/she will be responsible for:
- Coordinating the implementation of poultry vaccination services against Newcastle disease. He/she will supervise with his/her team the implementation of 3 annual vaccination campaigns which currently reach about 60 000 families/year (Inter Aide is a major actor in this field in Malawi). The project is expected to grow and reach more families in the coming years.
- Preparing the sustainability of these services by contributing to:
- The gradual empowerment of community-based vaccinators’ associations in their operational, functional, and financial aspects (there are currently 5 such associations with approximately 400 vaccinators in 3 different districts).
- The development of the vaccine supply chain.
- Prospecting for the establishment of the service in new districts, coordinating and accompanying the geographic deployment of the immunization service, involving collaboration with local communities and authorities, identifying and training new village vaccinators and organizing the vaccine supply chain.
- Working closely with government services and support the Animal Health Department in scaling up the vaccine production unit.
In addition, the Program Manager will be responsible for:
- Supervising, evaluating and strengthening the local team: coordinators, field facilitators, administrative assistant, driver-logistician, security guards;
- Ensure the link and communication with actors involved in the program (leaders of associations, vaccinators, traditional authorities) and the institutional and sector actors (national vaccine production center, department of livestock, decentralized services of the Ministry of Agriculture at the local level, commercial suppliers, other NGOs, etc.);
- Ensure the quality of technical training offered to vaccinators;
- Monitoring and evaluating the impact of the program and conducting studies (needs assessment, village targeting, project deployment mapping, etc.);
- Logistical coordination of the program;
- Financial and operational reporting to the Head of Sector and to the Administrative and Financial Manager (monthly accounts and regular activity reports);
- strategic reflection about the content of the program (messages, approaches) and its geographical deployment (identification of future intervention zones, possible location of offices in new districts)
As part of his/her duties, the Program Manager will be required to make frequent trips to the villages in the intervention zone and occasionally to other regions of the country (exchange visits, prospecting).
PROFILE
- Training related to the topics addressed (veterinarian, agricultural engineer, rural development, etc.)
- Knowledge and experience in at least one of the following areas: village poultry farming / animal health / deployment of services in rural areas / agricultural commodity chains / structuring of organizations in rural areas
- First professional experience essential, including some in a similar context
- Experience in team management required
- Ability to delegate and diplomacy, ability to negotiate with government authorities
- Taste for the field and team management, dynamism and flexibility
- Resistance to cultural and social isolation
- Fluency in English is essential (oral and written)
- Driving license B
STATUS
- French legal volunteer status – 24 months
- Volunteer allowance of 1400 € net monthly + field allowance
- Full health insurance + repatriation insurance
- 1 round trip by plane at the beginning and the end of the mission + 1 round trip per year
- Possibility of departure with spouse for couples
Position to be filled early May 2022
Applications will be selected as they are received.
Please send to recrutement@interaide.org
Your CV and covering letter indicating in the subject line the reference MAL/RP/AGRO/NTJ/2022
More information on http://www.interaide.org