Action Against Hunger
Position Title: Field Research Coordinator
Number of positions: One (1)
Duty Station: Somalia
Ref: VA 021/2019
Organizational background: Action Contre la Faim (Action Against Hunger) has been
conducting humanitarian programs in Somalia since May 1992. Currently, AAH is
conducting its humanitarian activities in Somalia focused on treating and
preventing malnutrition, increasing access to clean water and appropriate
sanitation, strengthening the food-security, livelihoods and thus boosting the
resilience of communities in Somalia as well as emergency response via program
bases in Somalia.
The Positions and responsibilities:
Action Against Hunger (AAH) has
received a two-year contract from the United States Agency for International
Development (USAID) Office for Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA) for the
Identifying the Prevalence of and Risk Factors for Relapse after Recovery from
Severe Acute Malnutrition Globally project.
The project is led by AAH, in
partnership with the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM).
The goal of this research project is
to measure relapse rates among children who are discharged from outpatient
therapeutic programs (OTP) following successful treatment for severe acute
malnutrition (SAM).
In addition to measuring relapse to
SAM, the project aims to better understand overall child health and nutrition
outcomes during the year following SAM treatment (e.g. linear growth, illness,
relapse to moderate acute malnutrition [MAM]). Secondary outcomes will also
include exploring the programmatic costs associated with relapse as well as
individual-level and programmatic-level risk factors associated with relapse,
in particular WASH-related risk factors. The study will be implemented in four
different countries – Mali, Nigeria, South Sudan, and Somalia.
The Field Research Coordinator in
each country will be primarily responsible for implementing the data collection
processes as described in the study protocol. They will be the main in-country
point of contact for all matters related to the study.
The Field Research Coordinator’s core
responsibilities will include but not limited to the following:
The Field Research Coordinator will
be based in the field and serve as the main point-of-contact in-country for all
elements of the project.
Potential responsibilities in this
role include:
·
Serve as the in-country point of
contact achieve in-country IRB approval (with support from ACF-USA and
implementing NGO support)
·
Coordinate closely with the PI by
participating in regular (weekly/bi-weekly) calls with the PI to communicate
progress in recruitment, enrollment, and completion of follow-up visits by
participants, as well as submitting weekly reports regarding data collection
and study activities
The Field Research coordinator will
have primary responsibility for the collection of data for the project, as well
as maintaining overall data quality.
Responsibilities include:
·
Train and manage all data collectors
·
Oversee proper informed consent
process by data collectors
·
Ensure quality of data collection and
fidelity of study protocol implementation
·
Work closely with community health
workers / volunteers (CHW/Vs) as well as CMAM clinic staff to identify and
enroll participants
·
Track enrollment progression of both
post-SAM children and non-SAM children
·
Enter all data into electronic data
bases and reconcile any data entry errors with original hard copy forms
·
Track participant completion of
follow-up appointments and manage the CHWs who travel to the field to encourage
caregivers to return to the clinic for their follow-up visit
·
Oversee anthropometric measurements
by data collectors and OTP clinic staff during follow-up visits to ensure
accuracy in data
·
Oversee household surveys, water
sample collection and analysis, food sample collection and analysis and rectal
swab collection, and ensure compliance with study protocols with support from
LSHTM
·
Collaborate closely with AAH
Nutrition and WASH Heads of Departments
·
Collaborate closely with OTP clinic
staff to obtain OTP clinic data of each post-SAM participant and transfer data
from clinic forms into electronic database for the research project
·
Performs other duties as assigned
Qualifications
The ideal candidate will have
experience working in research projects and/or monitoring and evaluation in the
field.
We are seeking an individual who is
adept at following study protocols, who has good judgment and problem-solving
skills, and has strong communication skills and documentation habits.
The person needs to have
well-developed interpersonal skills (to be able to develop good rapport with
data collectors and other in-country stakeholders) and be familiar with
Community-based Management of Acute Malnutrition (CMAM) programming.
·
At least a master’s degree from an
accredited college or university in a major such as social or health science
with 2 years relevant experience in the field; or a bachelor’s degree from an
accredited college or university in a major such as social or health science with
5 years relevant experience in the field
·
Experience organizing and
participating in field-level data collection as part of a research study or
program monitoring and evaluation;
·
Training in and proven knowledge
around nutrition programming in low-income countries;
·
Knowledge of MS Office Suite required
and comfortable working with computers with minimal IT support.
·
Experience with mobile data
collection tools (eg Kobo) (preferred but not required)
·
Ability to live and work in a
developing country with travel to remote locations for the duration of data
collection
·
Fluent in English and French is a
requirement
·
Proven experience with field work,
preferably the country where the study takes place
·
Possess strong organizational skills,
attention to detail.
·
Possess significant team management
skills.
·
Ability to take initiative and
prioritize multiple tasks with minimum supervision.
·
Genuine interest in and commitment to
the mission and principles of Action Against Hunger.
·
Excellent interpersonal skills,
ability to work both independently and as a member of a team
How to Apply
Applications, should include a CV
with cover letter and 3 professional references to be sent via email to:
hr-recruitment@so-actionagainsthunger.org not later than 21 September 2019
clearly mentioning the position on the subject line and the preferred duty
station. Field Research Coordinator – Mogadishu
Only Shortlisted candidates will be
contacted for interviews.
Female candidates are particularly
encouraged to apply.
This position is open to Somalia
nationals
