Employment Term:            Fixed Term (6 Months)  

Level:                                      National, D1                                       

Location:                             Sittwe, Myanmar

Closing Date:                      6 February 2025

The Role:

Oxfam is looking for Senior WASH Officer.

Job Purpose:

The main responsibility of the job holder is to facilitate and support the camp-based Community Mobilization (Commob) team, ensuring that hygiene promotion and community engagement activities in the Sittwe IDP camps are implemented by Oxfam and Solidarités International (SI) as per agreed standards and timelines. Oxfam and SI are working in partnership (referred to as "OXSI") to provide water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) services in 11 camps and villages in Sittwe Township, home to over 100,000 people. The program’s main objectives are to provide essential WASH services, initiate the transition to community-managed WASH, hand over specific WASH services to the private sector, civil society, and/or government, and build community resilience.

The job holder will oversee the WASH activities under the Community Engagement sector, managing and coordinating the operation of the Community Engagement in WASH program in the Sittwe IDP camps. Additionally, the post holder will report to the WASH Field Coordinators and coordinate with the WASH Coordinator to support the overall WASH activities. The role also includes ensuring high-level coordination with the Localization, Gender and Water Quality teams within Oxfam’s WASH team, and SI’s Construction, Sanitation, and Community Mobilization teams in Sittwe and the IDP camps.

Key Responsibilities:

1. Technical

• Participate in the design, planning and implementation of Public Health promotion and community engagement activities in their respective camps.
• Participate in developing camp based common activity planning and implementation in line with the activity guideline and SoPs to enhance the harmonization of hygiene promotion and community engagement activities and approaches between Oxfam and SI within the camps and Sittwe level.
• Coordinate and involve in the different assessments and surveys as needed and produce quantitative and qualitative data using different techniques such as transect walks, FDGs, key informants’ interview and PDM.
• Support the WASH team in the selection of community groups, and design and implementation of community engagement activities as per agreed standards and timelines.
• Be actively involved in the development of different IEC materials, formative research and any other program studies.
• Contribute to the design to monitor and measure progress and the health impact of the WASH intervention.
• Empowerment – support and coach the WASH officers and Community engagement facilitators and volunteers on technical WASH empowerment – Coach WASH officers during on-the-job training on procedures and systems for the logistics, Finance and HR teams and ensure timely support from these sectors.
• Take the lead on developing weekly and monthly workplans together with the WASH officers and ensure all the developed work plan are compiled and submitted to WASH field coordinators. In addition, ensure the regular monitoring of the progress of the activities according to the developed work plan.
• Oversee the coordination, planning and carrying out of different NFI distributions taking place in the camps.
• Together with WASH Field Coordinators and under the leadership of the WASH Coordinator, develop SOPs, TORs, and guidelines for different project activities as needed.
• Emergency response – participate in public health response to emergencies such as disease outbreaks, cyclones or flooding/monsoon, etc.

2. Co-ordination

• Coordinate with logistics, Finance and HR teams and ensure timely support from these sectors is provided to staffs. Such support includes, but not limited to procurement, payments, salaries, recruitment, appraisals, etc.
• Facilitate the participation of WASH officers to internal and external coordination meetings related to the program implementation and participate as needed according to WASH Field Coordinator requests.
• Support the WASH officers to coordinate project activities implementation with SI construction and sanitation teams, attending joint meetings and assessments as needed, and to make sure the work plan, approaches, guidelines and SoPs for key activities and events are uniform across camps.
• Closely coordinate with OXSI MEAL team for development of data collection tools, and in carrying out different assessments and surveys.
• Closely coordinate with OXFAM Gender officer and Protection focal point to make sure that the hygiene promotion and community engagement activities are strictly integrated with the gender and protection activities and adhere to the gender strategy and feminist principles.
• Proactively oversee and participate as needed in camp-based coordination meeting with SI, other INGOs/NGO partners, CMAs and CMCs.
• Coordinate with different sector leads (Education, camp management, GBVs, Health and other sectors) implementing in OXSI camps, and involve in joint activities carried out in the camps such as campaign, events etc.

3. Management

• Line Manage WASH Officer in accordance with Oxfam policies.
• Assess the capacity of the WASH officers and WASH assistants, identify the gaps, and organize technical and on-job trainings for them accordingly.
• Take the lead in developing/planning capacity building sessions and trainings and production of required materials according to the needs of staff and different community groups.
• Take the lead on developing weekly and monthly work plans together with the WASH officers and ensure all the developed work plan are compiled and submitted to WASH Field Coordinators.
• Manage the performance development, performance monitoring and assessment of WASH Officers.
• Work closely with logistics team in procurement and stock management, ensure that project materials/supplies are procured in sufficient time and to the necessary standard/ quality.
• Proactively follow up on the procurement plan, develop and timely submit purchase requests to the logistics team and follow up on the procurement status of the requisitions.
• Actively follow up on the different payments in the camps in timely manner, collect and appropriately compile the vouchers and submit to finance after getting approval from the budget holder.
• Upon the request from WASH Field Coordinators, participate in financial and procurement planning and review meetings, and support the WASH Field Coordinators in monitoring the procurement processes.
• Take responsibility for security matters in the camps and to make sure matters of staff well-being and safety in the field are satisfactorily managed.
• Assist with solving the project related issues in the camps by coordination with other working partners, CMC, CMAs and land owners.
• To ensure management of the cases obtained from Accountability team, support case managers in order to solve WASH related cases timely, and involve in the cases obtained from Safe-guarding hotlines and SpeakUp if requested by investigation team.

4. Report

• Ensure weekly, monthly, quarterly and situational/assessment reports are timely compiled and submitted to the WASH Field Coordinators.
• Ensure other WASH project related reports such as events, trainings, meetings, coordination, campaigns etc. are properly captured and submitted to the WASH Field Coordinator in a timely manner.
• Timely report to respective responsible person for any other issues related to program, logistics, HR, finance, etc.
• Remind the officers to upload documentation of any incidents in the camps.

What we are looking for: 

Skill and Competence:

• A post-secondary training in social science or public health is desirable.
• Minimum of 4 years of NGO work (preferably post-emergency and recovery phases), with practical experience in community mobilization, Public Health Promotion and community engagement.
• Experience of participatory approaches and tools, field assessments and monitoring, community development, public health and community engagement projects.
• Experience of working in emergency setting, risk assessment together with field and Sittwe team.
• Knowledge of WASH in emergency response and experience in applying Sphere standards; understanding of humanitarian principles and ways-of-working.
• Knowledge of Hygiene promotion and Community Engagement approaches such as PHAST, CLTS, WASH in school and community action planning.
• Diplomacy, initiative, communication and interpersonal skills, together with the capacity to remain calm under pressure and not lose sight of priorities.
• Sensitivity to cultural differences and an in depth understanding of Myanmar culture and practices. Committed to Equal Opportunities (e.g. race, ethnicity, religion, disability).
• A thorough understanding and commitment towards gender equity issues and accountability in recovery / development work.
• Flexibility when working with project community/partners and good negotiation skills, diplomacy, and tact to work with all stakeholders.
• Good written and spoken English and Myanmar is essential.

We offer:

We offer a competitive salary and a range of additional benefits to staff including flexible working options, generous pension scheme, annual leave, additional leave allowances, company sick pay, life assurance and a range of other benefits. 

From the day you join Oxfam we invite you to stretch and learn in your role. Our wide range of Learning & Development opportunities includes in-house courses, e-learning modules, on-the job learning opportunities, coaching and mentoring, and much more. 

You can read more about all Oxfam has to offer here.

Flexfam: 

We believe flexible working is key to building the Oxfam of the future, so we’re open to talking through the type of flexible arrangements which might work for you. 

How to apply:

As part of your online application, please upload your up to date CV and Cover Letter explaining your suitability against the essential criteria in the job profile.  

Our values and commitment to safeguarding

Oxfam is committed to preventing any type of unwanted behaviour at work including sexual harassment, exploitation and abuse, lack of integrity and financial misconduct; and committed to promoting the welfare of children, young people, adults and beneficiaries with whom Oxfam GB engages. Oxfam expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment through our code of conduct. We place a high priority on ensuring that only those who share and demonstrate our values are recruited to work for us.

The post holder will undertake the appropriate level of training and is responsible for ensuring that they understand and work within the safeguarding policies of the organisation.

All offers of employment will be subject to satisfactory references and appropriate screening checks, which can include criminal records and terrorism finance checks. Oxfam GB also participates in the Inter Agency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme.  In line with this Scheme, we will request information from job applicants’ previous employers about any findings of sexual exploitation, sexual abuse and/or sexual harassment during employment, or incidents under investigation when the applicant left employment. By submitting an application, the job applicant confirms his/her understanding of these recruitment procedures.

We are committed to ensuring diversity and gender equality within our organisation and encourage applicants from diverse backgrounds to apply.

About us

Oxfam is a global community who believe poverty isn’t inevitable. It’s an injustice that can be overcome. We are shop volunteers, women’s right activists, marathon runners, aid workers, coffee farmers, street fundraisers, goat herders, policy experts, campaigners, water engineers and more. And we won’t stop until everyone can live life without poverty for good.

Oxfam GB is a member of international confederation of 21 organisations working together with partners and local communities in the areas of humanitarian, development and campaigning, in more than 90 countries. 

A thriving diverse Oxfam:

It’s people power that brings about change. To play our part as a global organisation working to overcome poverty and inequality, we need equality, diversity and inclusion across our community of staff, partners and volunteers. Together, we’re committed to becoming a more diverse workforce, better able to tackle the global challenges that face our world today.

To do that:

• We need to dismantle the unequal power structures that exist everywhere, this including Oxfam and the wider development and charity sectors.
• We need an inclusive Oxfam where everyone can bring who they are to our work and feels celebrated for the differences they bring.
• We want and need everyone, and that means we need you.