Senior specialist, livelihoods/HEA, FEWSNET

Description

Save the Children is seeking a qualified Senior Specialist, Livelihoods for the USAID-funded Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET) contract.  The goal of FEWS NET is to provide decision makers with timely and rigorous early warning about emerging or evolving food security crises, while developing the capacity of local and regional institutions to detect and mitigate the risk and impact of food insecurity. This position will be based in Washington, DC.  This individual will assist and provide support to deliver early warnings of actual and potential hazards, food insecurity, vulnerability to food insecurity, and famine.

S/he will coordinate livelihoods systems and vulnerability assessments, including baseline livelihood profiles and zone maps in rural and urban areas of Africa, Latin America, the Caribbean, and Central Asia and provide technical expertise for developing and executing innovative approaches to livelihood and/or enterprise development, food security and related areas.  The Senior Specialist will lead efforts to improve methodologies and local capacity in livelihoods framework and vulnerability analysis, develop and update the program’s toolkits and manuals for systematically conducting and maintaining household livelihoods and vulnerability assessments, and provide inputs to periodic reports, bulletins, and alerts related to food security early warning systems.

Required competencies

- Bachelors Degree required, Masters strongly preferred, in an appropriate discipline
- Minimum of  5+ years of prior work experience in, and training in livelihoods and the household economic approach (HEA) to assessing malnutrition and poverty
- Experience in applying HEA to famine early warning systems
- Demonstrated experience of building capacity in livelihoods and HEA monitoring, analysis and reporting
- At least two years of experience living and working in a region in which FEWS NET field staff work (mainly sub-Saharan Africa and Central America and Haiti)
- Advanced ability to use a personal computer and standard software packages (Microsoft word processing, spreadsheets, etc.)
- French and/or Spanish language skills of the FS 2+ level or greater strongly preferred
- Experience with projects that are focused on food security, information sharing/dissemination, poverty mapping, natural disaster and/or famine risk assessment, early warning, and disaster relief
- Excellent oral and written communication skills
- Able to travel internationally as needed