Program Assistant

About Project Concern Zambia (PCZ)

PCZ is a local Zambian organization affiliated with Project Concern International (PCI), a Global Communities Partner, an INGO operating in Zambia since 1996. PCZ strengthens the capacity of community-based organizations and Non-Governmental Organizations and collaborates with the Government Republic of Zambia (GRZ) to address the health and socioeconomic needs of vulnerable children, adolescents and their primary caregivers and make them resilient to overcome hunger and hardship.

Project Summary

Funded by the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), PCZ will implement the Service Delivery for Vulnerable Children and Adolescents (SDVCA) Project, coined the USAID ECAP II Project (Sustainable, Technically Rigorous, Resilient, Optimal, Networked, and Gender Responsive) in 14 districts in Central and Southern Provinces. PCZ will lead a robust and uniquely qualified partnership organizations to improve the resilience and health outcomes among VCA via a sustained, locally-led VCA comprehensive case management service delivery project at household, facility, and community levels focusing on health (with a particular focus on HIV/AIDS for at risk and HIV-positive VCA and their caregivers), education, social protection, child protection, livelihood and household socioeconomic empowerment services to ensure VCA are healthy, safe, schooled, and stable.

PCZ seeks to recruit a Program Assistant

Job Summary

The Program Assistant will directly report to the Chief of Party (COP) and will liaise closely liaise with the Deputy Chief of Party (DCOP), Community Services and Linkages Manager, Strategic Information Manager and the technical team; Government Ministry of Health (MOH), Ministry of Community Development and Social Services (MCDSS), Ministry of General Education (MOGE) and their decentralized provincial and district offices; the private sector; and will be a member of appropriate MOH Technical Working Groups (TWGs). S/he will be proactive in assisting the COP to ensure the program is implementing evidence-based and high-quality interventions in line with national, USAID and the United States Government PEPFAR Country Operation Plan (COP) guidance. The Program Assistant will have skills required to write quality project reports and should have good budget management and analytical skills. S/he will also be required to represent the COP in high level virtual and in-person meetings, should have good presentation and communication skills and be able to eloquently communicate program achievements and best practices to external audiences. The Program Assistant will be knowledgeable about evidence-based and state-of-the-art HIV biomedical prevention, treatment and care services for pediatrics, vulnerable children and adolescents and interventions needed to address social determinants of health in these populations.

Job responsibilities

• Provide quality assurance controls and work with the technical team to ensure USAID ECAP II HIV and social, and child protection trainings, case management protocols and standard operating procedures (SOPs) are in line with national, USAID, and PEPFAR/COP guidance
• Sit on MOH HIV treatment, prevention, and adolescent health TWG meetings and stay abreast of latest local, global and COP HIV technical guidance and evidence and rapidly provide technical leadership to ensure the guidance/evidence is adapted and integrated into project training, service delivery, monitoring and evaluation protocols.
• Constantly liaise with MCDSS and MOGE and ensure the program is coordinating and linking effectively to Government social protection, livelihood and education support programs
• Support the COP to ensure the program is leveraging private sector support, manage and maintain relationships with private sector partners.
• Lead the documentation of program success stories, best practices, challenges and lessons learned and disseminate widely to appropriate audiences and through social media platforms.
• Lead the collation of monthly program reports from the field and support the COP to compile them into one succinct program report.
• Support the Executive Director/COP to compile annual organizational reports in liaison with the Board of Directors and be responsible for widely sharing the report using different social media platforms.
• Represent the COP in high level virtual and in-person meetings and eloquently communicate program achievement, success stories, challenges and lessons learned, document meeting notes and share with the COP, DCOP, key personnel, and Provincial Coordinators.

Required Skills and Experience

• Degree in public health, Public Administration, Sociology, Development Studies or equivalent
• A minimum of 5 years of professional experience working in the area of program management with a focus on HIV/AIDS, Orphans and Vulnerable Children, and public health programming. Knowledge of private sector engagement will be an added advantage.
• Demonstrated experience in applying and integrating quality assurance control systems in program management.
• Demonstrated experience in documenting reports and case studies and disseminating success stories and lessons learned.
• Demonstrated ability to work effectively in team settings.
• Demonstrated knowledge of HIV epidemic control strategies.
• USAID ECAP II writing and presentation skills
• Excellent English oral and written communication skills; working knowledge of at least one of Zambia’s main local languages
• Qualified women and Zambians are highly encouraged to apply