Job Description
For the Position of Community Management Specialist
Regional Fisheries and Livestock Development Project (Noakhali Component)
Agricultural Sector Programme Support, Phase II
Introduction
The Regional Fisheries and Livestock Development Component (RFLDC) is one of three constituent components under Danida’s Agricultural Sector Programme Support to Bangladesh, Phase II. The RFLDC began on October 1, 2006 and is scheduled to end on September 30, 2011. There are two Technical Support Units (TSU) at field level, in Noakhali and Barisal, responsible for day-to-day Component management, each headed by the Project Director, who is supported by a Senior Advisor, appointed by Danida. The Noakhali TSU will have a technical assistance staff of between 50-60 persons, expected to support Government of Bangladesh and NGO personnel working with the Component and to assist farmers’ organizations, local government and the private sector, who are the main Component stakeholders.
The RFLDC follows an integrated, demand driven and participatory extension approach, involving a major capacity building effort with local farmers through Field Schools in the fisheries, livestock and related sectors. The Field Schools are expected to develop into Farmers’ Organizations (Community-based Organizations), which develop strong links to the government and non-governmental service providers and the private sector input supply and marketing institutions. The Union Parishad are expected to have an important role in the Component through protection of the rights of the hardcore poor Component beneficiaries and through support to the CBOs, notably through allocation of an annual block grant. The field-based Technical Support Services are also expected to assist in the testing of new policy initiatives of the Department of Livestock Services and the Department of Fisheries in such areas as seed quality, system certification, traceability and in research initiatives in such areas as prawn hatchery development, feed formulation and development of new pro-poor technologies.
Job Description
The Community Management Specialist under RFLDC (Noakhali TSU) is responsible for day-to-day liaison with local institutional stakeholders (Community-based Organizations / Local Government) in the Component. His specific responsibilities are:
- Supervising the overall implementation of Component activities concerned with creation and capacity building of local institutions
- Building capacity of individual CBOs and CBO Associations in identifying their needs and developing strategies and plans to address those needs
- Organizing cross-CBO training and capacity building events
- Promoting the linkages between the farmers’ organizations and the private sector input suppliers and marketing institutions, including organizing regular meetings to discuss issues and problems
- Encouraging proper record keeping amongst the CBOs in relation to events and financial management.
- Training and capacity building of Union Parishads in relation to the role of the Unions in the Component (public relations campaign)
- Assisting national consultants in implementation of the Union Parishad audit
- Assisting in identification of Unions qualifying for the Block Grant
- Monitoring of the process of proposal, review and management of the Block Grant by the Standing Committee on Fisheries and Livestock
Qualifications
The appointee will have a Masters degree (Minimum 2nd Class, CGPA 3.00) in Arts/Science/Commerce, related to Local Institutional Development/Decentralization. If from a technical science discipline, he/she will have at least 10 years experience working with rural institutions in the sub-sector. If a social scientist, he/she will 10 years working experience in the application of such approaches in the fisheries and/or livestock sector.
The appointee will be able to communicate fluently and confidently in both spoken and written English; he/she should be able to write short analytical reports on aspects of rural institutional development.
The appointee will work closely with and report directly to the Training and Extension Manager and indirectly to Project Director and Senior Advisor |
