SBCC/ Nutrition Assistant at the International Medical Corps (IMC)

International Medical Corps is a global, humanitarian, nonprofit organization dedicated to saving lives and relieving suffering through health care training and relief and development programs. Established in 1984 by volunteer doctors and Nurses, International Medical Corps is a private, voluntary, nonpolitical, nonsectarian organization. Its mission is to improve the quality of life through health interventions and related activities that build local capacity in underserved communities worldwide. By offering training and health care to local populations and medical assistance to people at highest risk, and with the flexibility to respond rapidly to emergency situations, International Medical Corps rehabilitates devastated health care systems and helps bring them back to self-reliance.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: SBCC/ Nutrition Assistant

Location: Biu, Borno

Job Summary

Under the direct supervision of the Program Manager, the SBCC/ Nutrition Assistant shall be responsible for the implementation of the Social and Behavior Change Communication (SBCC) component of International Medical Corps WFP funded INP project.
The SBCC/ Nutrition Assistant under the leadership of the Program Manager will be expected to draw upon relevant behavior change theories and social norms approaches to Behavior Change Communication and develop effective behavior change strategies and tools to achieve SBCC project goals.
He/ she will ensure the strategies foster appropriate health seeking behavior among the targeted population to support demand creation for health, nutrition and protection services.

Key Responsibilities

Support the initial rapid appraisal/ formative research on target communities to understand the socio-cultural context and establish behavioral barriers and influencers.
Lead in regular community /partner sensitization or mobilization activities geared towards creating awareness on the SBCC messages among the community members and other stakeholders.
Support the design and development of SBCC strategies and action plan that will be most effective in delivering the project goals and objectives and take lead in the implementation.
Work with other team members to develop, pre-test and produce communication tools and job aids based on evidence-based theories and methodologies, in line with the SBCC strategy as well as social mobilization, campaigns and training materials.
Initiate community dialogue meetings following the set protocol and guidelines to establish solution finding initiatives that would improve uptake and utilization of project messages.
Respond to inquiries regarding the technical aspects of the project and related intervention procedures.
With the help of the community, select SBCC facilitators that are already beneficiaries of any EU – FAO/ WFP supported assistance to assist with project implementation.
Participate in capacity-building and demonstration activities of the SBCC facilitators by providing technical assistance, in community sensitization and mobilization and behavior change communication.
Maintain open line of communication with the community to obtain feedback, complaints and work with the SBCC facilitators to maintain a log of the feedback/ complaints and come up with corrective actions.
Build partnerships and serve as principal liaison between relevant stakeholders and International Medical Corps in the development and implementation of the SBCC Project.
Mobilize social support at all levels to create and sustain an enabling environment for the delivery of the intervention.
Work with M&E to design and develop qualitative and formative research including the establishment of performance indicators and measures to monitor and record outcome and impact data of the project.
Monitor and provide supportive supervision to facilitators as they deliver SBCC project activities at community level.
Document all lessons and continually improve the quality of the project delivery.
Develop reporting tools for SBCC facilitators and compile monthly reports of SBCC sessions conducted and people reached with key messages.

Prevention of Sexual Exploitation and Abuse:

Actively promote PSEA (Prevention of Sexual Exploitation and Abuse) standards within International Medical Corps and amongst beneficiaries served by International Medical Corps.
Any other duties that may be assigned from time by supervisors

Compliance & Ethics:

Promotes and encourages a culture of compliance and ethics throughout International Medical Corps. As applicable to the position, maintains a clear understanding of International Medical Corps’ and donor compliance and ethics standards and adheres to those standards. Conducts work with the highest level of integrity.

Qualifications and Experience

Bachelor’s degree in Health, Nutrition or Behavioral/ Social Sciences and over 3 years of professional experience in implementing social and behavior change communication programs. Experience in northeast Nigeria is an added advantage.

Required skills:

Experience in community mobilization and sensitization as well as social mobilization and campaigns in relation to SBCC.
Knowledge of public relations, marketing, social and behavior change communication models and strategies and their practical application.
Technical knowledge of one or more of the project topic areas (health, nutrition, WASH, gender) is desirable.
Demonstrable experience in developing and implementing social and behavior change communication, advocacy and public relations projects and programs in northeast Nigeria and/or that have demonstrated impact, at scale.
Demonstrated ability to work, communicate, and build rapport with a variety of audience, of different cultural and gender background.
Experience working with a non-governmental organization with an EU funded project is an added advantage.
Competence with the use of MS application packages (Word, Excel, PowerPoint).
Good experience in monitoring and evaluation of programs including report writing and communication skills.
Capacity to work under stressful situations.
Strong organizational, planning and time management skills.
Good understanding of organization’s project area.
Good command of English (reading, writing, speaking). Knowledge of Hausa and other local languages is an added advantage