About CRS:
Catholic Relief Services carries out the commitment of the Bishops of the United States to assist the poor and vulnerable overseas. Our Catholic identity is at the heart of our mission and operations. We welcome as a part of our staff and as partners people of all faiths and secular traditions who share our values and our commitment to serving those in need.
Department : Health
Job Title : Project Officer-OVC/Social Determinants of Health (Ref:2016/47)
Grade : 5
Reports to : Senior Project officer
Based in (Location) : Naivasha, Nakuru County
Background:**
CRS has been working with OVC in Rift valley for last ten years. Currently CRS is in APHIA plus NYB consortium and operating within a cost extension anticipated to end in March 2017. The obligation of CRS within the consortium is to spearhead the implementation of social determinants of health and support for OVC/PLHIV through an integrated model guided by OVC PEPFAR guide, National plan of action for OVC, Quality Service Standards for OVC and model for Community Prevention with Positives.

Job Summary:**
The project officer is responsible for implementing project strategies that would promote an integrated approach to address social determinants of health to improve the well-being of OVC and caregivers, targeted by APHIAplusNuru Ya Bonde. The officer is expected to work hand in hand with Results 3 and 4 as s/he continuously engage key stakeholders to deliver on their mandate.

Specific Responsibilities:**
Responsibility 1: Marginalized, poor and underserved groups have increased access to economic security initiatives through coordination and integration with economic strengthening programs.
The officer will be responsible for skills building and transfer to IP staff and support them to link the project beneficiaries to viable economic strengthening activities appropriate to their age, skills, and experience.

Main activities
1. Ensure marginalized, poor and underserved groups have access to economic security initiatives
2. work with IPs and other stakeholders to come up with strategies that eliminate barriers to female participation in economic activities
3. Work with IPs to ensure strategies that focus on the improvement of rural food security and youth programs
4. Create linkages with programs that provide savings and loan schemes, micro-insurance, entrepreneurship, vocational and job-readiness training; as well as matching with value-chain and other market-based initiatives

Responsibility 2: Improved food security and nutrition for marginalized, poor and underserved populations
Working with other stakeholders, the Project officer will mentor IPs, transfer skills, support and/or link the marginalized, poor and underserved populations to help them understand the interplay between diet, nutrition and hygiene for PLHIV and other chronically ill persons, pregnant and lactating women, and children under five years.

Main Activities
1. Support interventions and strategies that increase food security, improved nutrition and sustainable livelihoods amongst the target groups
2. Support activities that improve target population’s hygiene
3. Support IPs conduct counseling, nutrition assessments and body mass index (BMI) monitoring or measurement of mid upper-arm circumference (MUAC);
4. Support IPs adopt low labor intensive food security interventions.
5. Ensure strong coordination with other related programs including, but not limited to, the Global Hunger and Food Security Program among others

Responsibility 3: Marginalized, poor and underserved groups have increased access to education, life skills, and literacy initiatives through coordination and integration with education programs
The Project officer will work with IPs to ensure project beneficiaries have access to education, life skills and literacy initiatives that ultimately contribute to better health.
Main activities
6. Increase access to education, life skills and literacy initiatives for OVC and marginalized children, and youth
7. Improve enrollment and retention in primary and secondary school especially for girls
8. Strengthen strategies for interventions that address barriers to accessing educational, drop out, and wastage.
9. Ensure creative solutions that increases sustainable access to primary and secondary education to reduce reliance These include linkages to individual scholarships, household economic strengthening for OVC households and provision of educational supplies
10. Support initiatives that improve community early childhood development programs
11. Support initiatives that increase access to schooling for highly marginalized children and youth

Responsibility 4: Increased access to safe water, sanitation and improved hygiene
The Project officer will work with IPs to support PLHIV infants, and children have access to clean water, sanitation and hygiene practices to limit the spread of infections.
Main activities
12. Support infrastructure improvements in community and schools that will enhance access to improved water supply and sanitation
13. Support initiatives that increase hand washing with soap within the community health facilities and schools

Responsibility 5: Strengthened systems, structures and services for protection of marginalized, poor and underserved populations
Promote initiatives that address change in harmful social norms and structures that condone or promote gender-based violence (GBV), child maltreatment, stigma and discrimination by improving and expanding social and protective systems and services in public and private sectors.
Main activities
14. Increase access to quality protective services to survivors of child maltreatment and children without adequate family care.
15. Work with Department of Children Services, Provincial Administration, Police , Civil registration, Social Services and other stakeholders to protect OVC rights
16. Disseminate strategies, policies and protocols regarding protection of women and children to community level
17. Integrate with other result areas to ensure health and social services systems to support victims of rape and child maltreatment are strengthened
18. Provide leadership in mobilization of multi-sectoral coordination (justice, health, social services) to reduce gender based violence and child maltreatment.

Agency-wide Competencies (for all CRS Staff):
These are rooted in the mission, values, and guiding principles of CRS and used by each staff member to fulfill his or her responsibilities and achieve the desired results.
19. Serves with Integrity
20. Models Stewardship
21. Cultivates Constructive Relationships
22. Promotes Learning
Add Competencies Relevant for the Specific Position:
A professional with high personal integrity and commitment
A good steward of agency resources
An individual that can cope and work with people from diverse backgrounds
Ability to being sensitive, self-motivated and empathetic

Supervisory Responsibilities (if none, state none):
None

Key Working Relationships:**
Internal:
Project Officers are key members of Health Sector responsible for skills building and transfer to IP, GOK and the community to ensure better access to services. They are expected to use mentorship and accompaniment to ensure APHIAplus service delivery. To accomplish their mandate, they are expected to work closely with other CRS programming units to ensure a holistic and integrated approach to project implementation as detailed in the proposal.
External:
Externally key functions include representing CRS in various forums and forging relations with the APHIA Plus consortium, GOK, IPs, other stakeholders and the community. Ensure that CRS mandate of skills building, mentorship and skills transfer in areas of social determinants of Health in APHIAplus Rift is implemented in tandem with the other two Result Areas.
Required Qualifications and Experience:**
• At least a university degree in Sociology, Anthropology, Nursing, Public Health or other relevant area of study
• Have solid working knowledge (practical skills) in the following areas: OVC, CPWP, VCT, HTC, Counseling, ART and dealing with social determinants of health.
• Experience in dealing with a multifaceted project
• 3-5 years’ experience implementing and integrated OVC, CPWP and HIV/AIDS projects, preferably in an NGO setting
• Experience in implementing US Government-funded projects
• Demonstrated ability foster integration in programming approach
• Ability to transfer skills and knowledge through, training, mentorship and accompaniment
• Demonstrated ability to work with various teams.
• Excellent written, oral communication
• Excellent computer skills (Microsoft Office Programs).
• Excellent understating of GOK, USAID and CRS operating procedures

Required Foreign Language:**
None
Required Travel:**

Anticipated travels will be within Nakuru County, however, possibility of travels outside Nakuru County may be necessitated by the project.
Work Environment:
The project officer shall be based in Naivasha but will be supporting activities in the following four sub counties; Naivasha, Gilgil, Nakuru North and Subukia.

HOW TO APPLY:
Disclaimer:
This job description is not an exhaustive list of the skill, effort, duties, and responsibilities associated with the position.
Written applications indicating the reference number of position applied for and CV including day-time contact phone numbers, as well as names and contact information of three references should reach the below-mentionedby Close of Business Monday October 10, 2016.
Human Resources Manager
Catholic Relief Services – Kenya Program
E-mail: hr@ke.earo.crs.org
Please indicate the Reference Number on the ‘email subject. Only Shortlisted candidates will be contacted.
Note: Catholic Relief Services (CRS) does not charge any fees from applicants for any recruitment. Further, CRS has not retained any agent in connection with this recruitment