Afan Oromo to English Translator

Position Summary

We are seeking a highly skilled and detail-oriented Afan Oromo to English Translator to translate qualitative interview transcripts, audio recordings, and handwritten field notes from Afan Oromo into high-quality English. The successful candidate will ensure that translations accurately convey the original meaning, context, tone, and nuances of the source material while maintaining linguistic clarity, consistency, and professionalism.

The translator will work within established timelines and quality standards to support research, monitoring and evaluation, documentation, and reporting activities.

Key Duties and Responsibilities

Translation and Transcription

• Translate qualitative transcripts, interviews, discussions, and field notes from Afan Oromo into English accurately and professionally.
• Listen to audio recordings and cross-check translated transcripts to ensure consistency with the original content.
• Preserve the original meaning, intent, tone, and cultural context of speakers during translation.
• Produce English translations that are clear, grammatically correct, and easily understandable.
• Ensure that translated documents faithfully reflect the information contained in the audio recordings and notebooks without distortion or omission.
• Deliver high-quality translations and transcriptions within agreed timelines
• Review and edit translations to improve linguistic quality, readability, and consistency.
• Verify completeness and accuracy of transcriptions against source audio files.
• Identify and resolve discrepancies between audio recordings, notes, and transcripts.
• Conduct proofreading and quality checks before submission.
• Ensure adherence to project-specific translation guidelines and terminology.

Documentation Management

• Maintain organized records of translated and transcribed materials.
• Follow standardized document formatting and file-naming conventions.
• Ensure all outputs are properly version-controlled and submitted according to project requirements.

Confidentiality and Ethics

• Handle all project information with strict confidentiality.
• Protect sensitive participant information and comply with data protection requirements.
• Sign and adhere to confidentiality and non-disclosure agreements where required.

Collaboration

• Work closely with researchers, project coordinators, supervisors, and quality assurance teams.
• Clarify ambiguous terms, dialects, or contextual issues when necessary.
• Participate in translation review meetings and quality improvement activities.

Education

• Bachelor’s Degree in Translation, Linguistics, Language Studies, Journalism, Communication, Social Sciences, or a related field.

Experience

• Minimum of 5 years of experience in translation and transcription services.
• Familiarity with health-related terminology or demonstrated experience translating health-related documents.
• Demonstrated experience translating qualitative research interviews, focus group discussions, surveys, or assessment data.
• Experience working with development organizations, NGOs, research institutions, or consulting firms is an advantage.

Required Skills and Competencies

• Native fluency in Afan Oromo.
• Excellent written and spoken English.
• Strong understanding of Afan Oromo dialects and cultural contexts.
• Ability to translate and transcribe audio recordings accurately.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Word, Excel, and other document management tools.
• Familiarity with qualitative research terminology and methodologies is desirable.

Professional Competencies

• Excellent attention to detail.
• Strong proofreading and editing skills.
• Ability to work independently with minimal supervision.
• Strong time management and organizational skills.
• High level of professionalism and integrity.
• Ability to maintain confidentiality of sensitive information