Senior Programme Officer, Economic Development and Food Security (SPO–EDFS)

Introduction to the JCP country office:

Since 2011, Norwegian Church Aid (NCA) and DanChurchAid (DCA) in Zambia have been working together to implement a socio-economic justice programme that aims to empower rights-holders, especially women and youth through a Joint Country Programme. Through strong networks and alliances within Zambian civil society, we uphold and protect people’s dignity and promote their active participation in the development of Zambia. The JCP Zambia is a fully merged country programme where funding, technical advice, lobbying & advocacy, communication, administration is shared and coordinated, with NCA as the lead agency.  In the 2025-2029 country strategy, NCA and DCA will focus their interventions to save lives, build resilience of local communities and seek justice. We envision an inclusive, resilient and just Zambia. The Economic Development and Food Security programme will build on NCA-DCA’s existing climate smart economic empowerment programmes, and our work on food security and waste for value.

Information about the position:

The NCA-DCA JCP is seeking suitably qualified individual to fill the position of Senior Programme Officer, Economic Development and Food Security (SPO-EDFS).

Purpose of the role:

The SPO-EDFS will lead the development and implementation of the economic development and food security (EDFS) thematic programme of the NCA-DCA 2025-2029 country strategy. They will support strategic engagement of all stakeholders and grant partners to promote sustainable livelihoods that are climate adaptive and gender transformative, particularly through strengthening agricultural value chains and promoting market linkages for small holder producers, including women and youth. The SPO-EDFS will also seek opportunities to grow NCA-DCA’s work on waste for value in Zambia and will seek to increase civic space and opportunities for the participation of local producers in agricultural policy reform.

Key roles and responsibilities:

• Lead the design, implementation, monitoring and periodic review of the economic development and food security programme (EDFS)
• Manage all subgrants to implementing civil society partners under the EDFS programme in full compliance to NCA and donor standards, procurement and compliance requirements
• Ensure all programme reporting at annual and half year intervals are fully achieved as per programme standard
• Lead capacity building in climate smart food production methods for implementing partners using methodologies such as agroecology, conservation farming and micro-investment approaches (e.g. drip feed irrigation, bee keeping, mushroom growing, animal husbandry, etc).
• Lead community level capacity strengthening on disaster preparedness and early warning systems
• Support implementation of the food systems approach in focal communities of the EDFS programme
• Foster innovation, creativity and learning in the implementation of economic development and food security in collaboration with NCA Head Office Thematic and Technical Advisors
• Promote programme integration with broader thematic outcomes on climate and environmental stewardship and fighting inequality with linkages to GBV and climate resilient WASH outcomes
• Ensure that women, girls, youth, people with disabilities and other vulnerable and marginalised groups are prioritized within the EDFS programme
• Enhance private sector engagement on the EDFS programme through strategic partnerships with socially responsible companies, especially in the waste for value sector, agriculture sector, and food value chai
• Mobilize public engagement spaces for advocacy on key reforms to the agriculture sector and waste for value / extended producer responsibility sector
• Contribute to fundraising efforts for the growth of the EDFS programme
• Contribute to strengthening civil society networks and alliances working on climate smart agriculture, food security, and waste for value.

MAIN TASKS

• Provide timely technical support to partners on project implementation, monitoring and reporting of EDFS and Advocacy work
• Collect and review data of partner project proposals, periodic narrative and financial reports and creation of platforms for learning.
• Lead dialogue meetings and national engagements with government and other stakeholders on agriculture
• Programme Surveillance, Quality assurance, compliance with standards and operational procedures
• Capacity Development of EDFS partners on food security, climate food production, food value chains and value addition, promote market linkages and financial literacy of small holder producer
• Partner networking, linkages and coalition building for tackling root causes of economic inequalities
• Build EDFS partner capacities on programme themes, international quality standards and NCAs routines and regulations.
• Develop EDFS plans and reports for incorporation into the NCA-DCA programme documents.

REQUIRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE

• Bachelor of Science degree in a related field. A master’s will be an added advantage
• At least 5 years practical experience in a related field, eg agriculture, agroecology, conservation farming, food systems, agriculture business development, value chains, waste for value. Multidisciplinary candidates are preferred.
• Experience of designing and managing long-term development projects, including budget management and reporting.
• Grant management experience, especially for major donors with high compliance demands.
• Experience in building capacity of Zambian civil society partners
• Experience of working in partnership with Zambian civil society partners to implement projects.
• Excellent English language communication and analytical skills.
• Ability to work in a multicultural environment