Capacity development specialist

Work base: Disaster Management Department, Government of Bihar, India

The Asian Disaster Preparedness Center (ADPC), established in 1986, is a regional non-profit foundation with headquarters in Bangkok, Thailand supporting the advancement of safer communities and sustainable development, through implementing programs that reduce the impact of disasters upon countries and communities in Asia and the Pacific. The primary geographical focus of ADPC’s activities is Asia with the South, South East and East Asia being the primary sub-regions.

ADPC has more than 30 years of working experience in Asia along with the national and local Government of its charter member countries as well as countries of the Regional Consultative Committee (RCC) on Disaster Management. ADPC works to build preparedness at all levels, from regional, to national, sub-national and even to individual communities.

The Government of Bihar has successfully validated the Bihar Roadmap for Disaster Risk Reduction (2015 2030) in January 2016 with the support from various stakeholders at international, national and state-level.

In partnership with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Asian Disaster Preparedness Center (ADPC) will be providing technical assistance to the Government of Bihar in implementing priority capacity building activities of the recently developed Bihar Roadmap for Disaster Risk Reduction.

Statement of Intent:

ADPC is currently looking for a suitable candidate for the position of Capacity Development Specialist (CDS). As part of the Bihar DRR Roadmap Implementation Support Unit (RISU) team of the Disaster Management Department, Bihar, the CDS’s main responsibility will be to support in establishing a Disaster Risk Management resource center for the Government of Bihar. In particular, he/she will support with preparation of the resource center’s strategic plan identifying training needs and gaps of relevant nodal agencies, leading training/institutional needs assessment, developing and adapting training curricula, training materials, and providing mentoring support to national master trainers. He/she will also work as a trainer in deliver training courses. He/she will develop knowledge management system, liaison with academes and other potential partners in Bihar, and work closely with the project management team to evaluate training programs and impacts of the capacity development initiatives on the ground. This position is open only to Indian nationals.

Note: It is not the intent of this Position Description to cover every aspect of the position requirements, rather to highlight the most important areas of personal and joint responsibility.

Required Qualifications and Specification:

• PhD on Environmental Science, Natural Resource Management, Water Resource Engineering, and/or a related field (such as geospatial sciences, disaster management, climate risk management, agriculture, public health). MSc/Mphil in a related field, combined with specialized experience in similar organization/s, may be considered in lieu of a PhD degree.
• Minimum 8 years of working experience in working with Universities, Training Institutes, Research Institutes or similar entity as a lecturer, trainer or researcher on Environmental Science, Natural Resource Management, Water Resource Engineering, and/or a related field (such as geospatial sciences, disaster management, climate risk management, agriculture, public health) in India and/or the Asian region.
• Capable of designing and conducting training need assessments, surveys, and focus group discussions and policy dialogs using multiple technologies.
• Previous proven experience in application of specific technical information and data into training and capacity building programs is essential.
• Proficient in the use of MS Excel, Access and other statistical analysis software.

Training skills and knowledge

• At least 5 years of experience in working in the capacity of a professional trainer/Instructor for an adult audience;
• Demonstrated knowledge and understanding related to international agreements, practices, and policies on the field of disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation;
• Demonstrated knowledge in adult training and capacity building activities, training material/aid development, curriculum design;
• Excellent English proficiency in oral and written communication, including a demonstrated track record in training material development, technical report writing and ability to communicate technical matters effectively to general audience. Proficiency and communication skills in Hindi will be an added qualification.

Desirables

• Strong networking capacity and understanding of development work at local and regional scales.
• Familiarity with the context of disaster risk reduction in Bihar and/or other states of India in general.
• Experience with both qualitative and quantitative data analysis and reporting.

Personal Qualities

• Self-motivated.
• Demonstrated ability and plan and organize work and time independently.
• Excellent interpersonal skills, team-oriented work style, and experience in working in a multi-cultural environment. - Strong desires to learn, undertake new challenges, must a creative problem-solver, must have self-confidence and willingness to work hard

Responsibilities:

• Undertake Training Needs and Gap Assessments, Institutional Capacity Assessments, Surveys and research in Indonesia.
• Play active role in establishing a Disaster Risk Management resource center/training institute in Bihar. Support in developing the vision paper and five year strategic plan for the resource center based on the results of the capacity assessments. Provide technical resource inputs in activities such as risk assessment and mainstreaming initiatives in agriculture and health sectors in Bihar.
• Design training and capacity development programs on Training of Trainers (ToTs) and related knowledge products based on the needs and priorities of the Bihar DRR Roadmap and the program.
• Develop training materials and adult learning tools to be used in specific capacity building & training programs.
• Develop needs-based knowledge materials such as guidelines, manuals, case studies etc.
• Provide capacity development advice and technical resource inputs to the project team and its partners.
• Liaise with Universities and other training & capacity development institutes in Bihar in institutionalizing training products.
• Conduct training program monitoring and evaluation exercises, contribute in achieving all expected results, develop M&E reports of the training activities of the project.
• Coordinate with other thematic departments of ADPC in implementing their capacity development programs in Bihar.
• Perform other duties and responsibilities as assigned by the State Program Manager and Department Head – Training (ADPC).

Reporting Relationship:

• Reports directly to the State Program Manager.
• Reports and work closely with the Principal Secretary – Disaster Management.
• Works closely with RISU and other staff of State Project Management Team and ADPC. Contract: One (1) year contract with possibility of extension.