Junior Environmental Health Agent

BACKGROUND:

The International Rescue Committee, one of the world’s largest humanitarian international NGOs, provides relief, rehabilitation, and development support to vulnerable people and communities over 30 countries. We began work in Ethiopia in 2000 in response to severe drought in Ethiopia’s Somali region and are currently aiding Ethiopians and refugees in six regions in Ethiopia, implementing emergency and development programs in health, water and sanitation, economic recovery and development (ERD), women’s protection and empowerment, education, child protection, and multi-sectoral emergency response.

Job Overview: 

Under the direct supervision of the Hygiene Promotion/PLA Officer and with the technical support of the other IRC team, the junior Environmental Health Agents is expected to implement the International Rescue Committee’s (IRC’s) community-driven Participatory Learning and Action (PLA) approach to mobilize beneficiary communities to collectively identify and analyze their water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) problems, outline solutions in community action plans, and implement these plans. The JEHA also ensures establishment of community-based Water user Associations/WUA, community mobilized for conduct series of Kebele based meetings with different community groups/PLA groups.

Major Responsibilities:

 A. Hygiene promotion activities

· Take active role in mobilizing of the community facilitators at community level and facilitate training for the facilitators, ensure community action plan implementation.

· Ensure all the community voluntaries have properly attend PLA sessions in regular base and properly recorded each activity.

·  Mobilize target community for effective implementation of project activities.

· Conduct home visit and address hygiene promotion activities for HH in the kebeles and regular report the output of the home visits to the HP/PLA officer.

·  Support target communities in constructing HH pit latrines.

 B. Strengthening of WUAs

· In coordination with capacity building assistant, establish and support WUA. 

· In coordination with community capacity building assistant, Ensure the   WUA have developed by laws and follow up the functionality of by laws.

· In coordination with capacity building assistants, ensure all the water schemes have developed the water fee collection as per their village context and have official financial management trucking system.

·Serve as the focal point for all Hygiene and Sanitation activity and Environmental Health (EH) activity by basing in the assigned Kebele.

Job Requirements:

·       Community mobilization skills

Educational Requirements:

• Primary education completion certificate up to 6 grades
• “Applies basic knowledge of work routines and standards; requires ability to understand oral and written instructions and perform simple tasks.
• ability to write and read.
• Preferable primary education up to Grade 6
• •Some ability in Language optional as per the JD
• At least one year experience

 Preferred experience & skills:

• Good communication with clients and staffs
• NGO experience or any related experience is a plus.
• Demonstrated ability to work effectively with kebele level officials.

 Language Skills: 

•  Knowledge of the local language; ‘Sidamu Affoo’ is Mandatory.