Food security & livelihoods coordinator

Job Profile

Oxfam Purpose

- To work with others to overcome poverty and suffering

Team Purpose

- Livelihoods and food security technical specialists sit within the overall Programme team, responsible for coordinating and delivering integrated programmes in different livelihoods zones delivering on community development and resilience.

Job Purpose

- To ensure quality of Food Security and Livelihoods activities across all aspects of Oxfam's programme in Myanmar, including substantial representational and policy work collectively designed to elicit sustained pro-poor change

Dimensions

- Objectives set with manager, mainly relating to the quality of programme work in specialism for project or programme and the implementing team.
- Impacts directly on programme quality and contributes to the achievement of Oxfam's strategic change objectives
- Programme development of innovative work that could be new to Oxfam.
- Provides technical guidance across a broad range of programme components, requiring conceptual understanding and skills beyond direct area of technical expertise.
- Significant contribution to programme design, risk assessment and management support related to the area of technical expertise.
- Significant representation role in relation to areas of technical expertise, long-term development of policy and practice for Oxfam programmes in own specialism. External contacts are broad ranging with a wide spectrum of stakeholders.
- Diverse and complex problem-solving, requiring a depth of professional knowledge and experience.
- Advice and problem-solving often given over distance with limited information.
- Information sources are diverse, ranging from academic research to data collection in programme and non-programme areas, requiring a judgment on credibility and accuracy of the information and abilities to make complex technical information accessible and usable to non-specialists.
- Work patterns are not routine and often high pressure.
- Decisions in research and development are important for Oxfam's capacity to implement and the profile of a particular aspect of policy work.
- Impacts on external policy and practice of other agencies and through advocacy and policy work on the international debate in relief and development.
- Short, medium and long term planning is required in the context of changing priorities.

Key Responsibilities

Programming and technical support

- Working with the DCD, PMs, the HPC and partners, lead the design of innovative and appropriate Food Security and Livelihoods interventions, which strengthen the programme's ability to deliver against the objectives of the country strategy. This includes a focus on integrating women's participation and promoting equity and women's leadership.
- Ensure that food security and livelihoods technical staff (direct reports and matrix managed) provide consistent and high quality support to programmes.
- Work with Senior Programme Managers to ensure the integration of Oxfam's approach to Livelihoods (women economic leadership, power in markets and adaptation and risk reduction) in programmes and partner portfolios.This will include supporting the development of programme plans, project proposals and project monitoring and evaluation reviews.
- Lead on the identification and delivery of relevant analytical tools necessary to inform design, monitor progress and impact and develop a credible base of evidence on which to support our abilities to influence policy and practice. This will include rapid assessment tools and analyses relevant to rapid onset emergencies. To ensure that staff and partners have the skills and understanding to collect, process and interpret resulting data.
- Determine in each of Oxfam's interventions the scope for linking food security and sustainable livelihoods, with emphasis on mainstreaming vulnerability analysis, disaster risk reduction and adaptation to climate changes as appropriate.
- Proactively work to develop quality proposals and support the management of donor contracts and donor relationships in country
- Liaise with Livelihoods Advisors both at the EA Regional Center and in Oxfam Head Office for additional technical inputs as well as to assess the appropriateness of Oxfam's global food livelihoods approaches in the Myanmar context.

Capacity Building of Staff and Partners

- Contribute to the Civil Society Development team in supporting key strategic partners' capacities to design and implement relevant food security and livelihoods approaches
- Identify and assess the capacity needs in livelihoods, food security and DRR of Oxfam staff, partners and counterparts involved in the programme; seek effective and efficient ways to build staff and partner capacity and plan and implement capacity building activities.
- Facilitate linkages of national staff to relevant learning resources and opportunities on critical issues for our livelihoods and DRR/ Climate Change Adaptation developments within and outside Oxfam
- Work constructively with staff and partners to produce process documents to guide implementation, monitoring and ensure accountability.
- Support the development of mechanisms & tools that facilitate staff and partners to document lessons and models of good practices from our livelihoods work and share good practice

Representation, networking and advocacy

- Actively engage and contribute effectively to the development and profile of the FSWG and its importance as a network in influencing policy and practice. To support the FSWG's initiatives by contributing to key areas of research (particularly in land rights and social protection)
- Based on programme experience, support Oxfam's livelihoods advocacy and research efforts at the national, regional and global level.
- Build and foster networks that enhance sharing & learning among relevant organizations engaged in livelihoods developments in Myanmar including local organizations, interagency initiatives and the private sector when appropriate.
- Represent Oxfam in meetings related to areas of technical expertise and support broader inter-agency initiatives.

Regional livelihoods work

- In line with Country and Asia Regional Strategies, identify national and regional networks relevant to Sustainable Livelihoods, Emergency Food Security and DRR/Climate Change work, and contribute where appropriate to Global OI campaign work.

Skills and Competence

- Experience in the design and management of Food Security and Livelihoods projects, including a mature understanding of humanitarian and sustainable livelihoods programming in a variety of livelihoods intervention areas.
- Overseas experience, of which a substantial part should involve recent food security and livelihoods related work, with knowledge of food security assessments, agriculture and fisheries interventions, small business, market analysis, cash based interventions is preferred.
- A degree in agriculture, development studies or other discipline that provides an understanding of food security and livelihood programming.
- Community development skills, including participatory community assessment and planning techniques, with skills in capacity building of communities and experience of working with livelihoods groups/community-based structures.
- Excellent representational and communication skills, with a proven ability to coordinate with and influence others. This includes diplomacy and good interpersonal skills.
- Strong analytical, planning and prioritisation skills - with ability to work independently with initiative and a capacity to remain calm under pressure and not lose sight of strategic priorities.
- Experience in monitoring and evaluation of programmes, as well as Disaster Risk Reduction and vulnerability analysis.
- Experience of working with and developing the capacity of staff and partners
- Excellent team leadership and management skills and the ability to motivate and facilitate the work of teams/colleagues.
- Demonstrated experience of integrating gender and diversity issues into food security and livelihoods programming.
- Sensitivity to cultural differences and the ability to work in a wide variety of cultural contexts and committed to Equal Opportunities
- Ability with good knowledge of spoken and written English will be an asset Competent to work with significant levels of autonomy
- Willingness to travel ad spend time in the field.
- Excellent communicator with proven ability to build relationships with key contacts in Oxfam and with other stakeholders.
- Have good knowledge of Sphere standards, Humanitarian Accountability Principles, and Humanitarian needs assessment.