Company Background

IOCC was established in 1992 as the official humanitarian organization of the Standing Conference of Canonical Orthodox Bishops in the Americas (SCOBA). IOCC’s global operations are managed from its headquarters in Baltimore, Maryland with field offices in Eastern Europe, the Middle East and East Africa. IOCC has extensive experience implementing programs in partnership with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration (PRM), as well as European and other international donors. In its nearly thirty years of operation, IOCC has amassed considerable experience worldwide in emergency and development settings and across a range of sectors, including food security, WASH, micro-credit lending, health, nutrition, agriculture, shelter, infrastructure, education, livelihoods, capacity building and civil society development through programs that support communities lifting themselves out of poverty and achieve economic sustainability.

IOCC began its work in Ethiopia in 2003, partnering closely with the Ethiopian Orthodox Church Development and Inter-church Aid Commission (EOC-DICAC). In its 18 years operating in Ethiopia, IOCC has worked in cooperation with EOC-DICAC, international and local NGOs, and various ministries, including the ministries of Health, Education, and Agriculture, and provided humanitarian and development assistance to communities throughout the country. IOCC projects have improved the lives of Ethiopians and refugees from neighboring Somalia and South Sudan by helping improve the quality of healthcare, creating access to food and education, clean water, improved sanitation facilities, agriculture, livelihoods and jobs.

Project Description

The primary purpose of Food Security and Livelihood Program Manager position is to lead the planning and implementation of a funded food security and livelihoods intervention in Amhara region, Ethiopia. The Manager will also work to identify additional funding opportunities in the Food Security and Livelihood sector and develop relevant proposals.  The project’s overall goal is to contribute to Ethiopian communities’ recovery from the desert locust invasion and their resilience to shocks and crises. The project will combine humanitarian interventions that mitigate risks and vulnerability to help target families overcome the immediate negative effects of the desert locust invasion with development interventions aimed at building target families’ adaptive capacity to withstand similar crises in the future. The identified project will focus on cash and voucher assistance, food access, WASH, natural resource management, and livelihood diversification. Communities will be at the centre of this approach and the Program Manager with support from two project officers will play a facilitation role, providing inputs, facilitating unconditional cash intervention, building capacity and supporting the establishment of community groups and institutions that help families overcome the immediate effects of the desert locust as well as building their preparedness and adaptive capacity for future shocks. The Program Manager will also be responsible for identifying new partnerships, design and development of the food security and livelihood program.

Duties and Responsibilities

Program Management (80%)

• Oversee and directly manage a donor funded food security and livelihood project according to approved objectives, plans of action, budget and reporting.
• Lead a team of food security and livelihood technical staff and engage in the provision of technical support to project stakeholders to ensure that the project is implemented to the highest quality standards.
• Lead the project reporting (narrative and financial) in-line with donor requirements including monitoring financial expenditure and the submission of periodic reports (interim, annual, quarterly, field visit, monthly management and situation reports) for internal use, Project Consortium Lead/HEKS, Agency for Civil Society Organizations (ACSO), government signatories of the project, etc.
• Lead in using the findings of surveys and ongoing analysis to develop and/or revise plans, approaches and design modifications to meet changing conditions to ensure optimal project performance that can be implemented within the established budget.
• Analyze budgeted and actual expenditures with the Finance Manager on a monthly basis and address any issues of over or under-spending.
• Conduct timely technical supportive, supervision and monitoring field trips.
• Ensure the effective implementation of personnel and administrative management systems, including policies and procedures.
• Identify and assess the capacity needs of the national staff, partners and counterparts involved in the program, plan and implement capacity building activities.
• Oversee procurement and logistics procedures for efficient use and proper documentation of all activities in accordance to organizational and donor guidelines.
• Enhance documentation of lessons learnt and best practices of programs to be shared with relevant stakeholders.
• Coordinate and network with other stakeholders to promote appropriate humanitarian and development programming. This includes attending and engaging with relevant coordination meetings and technical sessions called by the Consortium lead/HEKS, and other government organizations such as Disaster Risk Management and Food Security Sector (DRMFSS), Ministry of Agriculture, Agriculture Taskforce, and other agencies.
• Develop a thorough analysis of the food security and livelihoods situation through primary and secondary assessments and with due consideration for women and youth; and lead the design and development of food security and livelihood program portfolio.
• Perform other duties as required or assigned.

Business Development (20%)

• In coordination with the Country Representative, develop relationships with donors in the Food Security sector.
• Build the reputation of IOCC in this sector by attending cluster meetings, donor events, and networking with other NGOs.
• Develop fact sheets and marketing information about IOCC and it’s work in the sector as needed.
• Lead the development of proposals and budgets that respond to identified funding opportunities.

• Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSA): Knowledge of international donors and working in humanitarian and development programs is required. Budgeting, needs assessment, and supervisory skills, including team building and leadership; excellent inter-personal communication skills; advanced written and spoken communication skills in English and Amharic languages, and advanced computer skills.
• Competencies: Ability to build strong personal and organizational relationships with all internal and external staff and contacts; sensitivity to cultural conditions and practices; tenacity in observing procedures, regulations, and other requirements in implementing and maintaining IOCC programs; ability to think strategically, analyze issues, and make appropriate recommendations.
• Education: Masters’ degree in Agriculture, Economics, Sociology, Psychology & related field with a minimum of 10 years experience in planning, managing, coordinating, and supervising livelihood projects such as business development and marketing, value chain analysis, entrepreneurship small enterprises development, and cash and voucher programming.
•  Experience: A minimum of 10 years experience in humanitarian and development work with non-government organizations (local and international) in developing countries and experience in cash and voucher assistance, training, project monitoring, staff mentoring, evaluation and reporting skills, proposal development experience, and leading need assessments is required.