Project Officer
ABOUT MERCY CORPS
Mercy Corps is powered by the belief that a better world is possible. To do this, we know our teams do
their best work when they are diverse, and every team member feels that they belong. We welcome
diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be stronger and have a long-term impact.
The Program / Department / Team (Program / Department Summary)
Mercy Corps Jordan (MCJ) recognizes that communities are the best agents of their own change and
development and that local markets are strong engines of long-term recovery. Therefore, MCJ
empowers people to survive crises, build better lives and transform their communities, helping people
triumph over adversity and build stronger communities from within. Through a social behavior change
approach (SBC) and by targeting smallholder farmers, food producers, and youth, the proposed
initiative will provide immediate support to improve production and ensure access to profitable markets,
while building capacities for income generation beyond the life of the program. Sustainability is central
to the design of this program which uses a community-based water management approach giving
ownership of activities and outputs to communities and improving the management of the water
resources. This program strongly emphasizes self-sufficiency and will leverage Mercy Corps
CATALYSE approach (Communities Acting Together to Advance Linkages Yielding Social
Engagement), which puts communities at the center of program development and implementation and
supports the facilitation of an enabling environment and opportunities that deliver long term benefits.
To help strengthen the community’s human, physical and financial capital, Mercy Corps will work with
the community, smallholder farmers, food producers, and youth to (1) establish water security through
mentorship and infrastructure rehabilitation to decarbonize water systems; (2) adopt best agricultural,
water, and irrigation practices; (3) develop entrepreneurial skills, networks, and agency to access
business opportunities, financial markets, and digital services. This will in turn help improve the
community's ability to cope with shocks and meet their long-term needs in a climate-responsive
community-based approach, thereby enhancing their livelihoods and resilience.
Also, Mercy corps is working with 11 flood-prone communities (in urban and rural areas) to measure
their resilience, develop interventions with the communities to address flood risks, advocate with the
government to address these gaps, and take learnings from resilience measurements and interventions
to share with the government and global level policy conversations focused on climate change and
disaster risk reduction. The interventions will not only strengthen physical infrastructure, but also build
social and human capital through activities such as participatory development of community evacuation
plans. The program will further facilitate the development and training of community advocacy
committees – the committees will identify flood resilience support needs and advocate to local
government stakeholders on improved policies and investment. This participatory approach will equip
communities with networks, platforms, and skills so they can actively engage with and influence local
policies beyond the program period.
The Position
The project officer will be responsible for the implementation of the “Livelihoods and Environmental
Actions for Development” project. S/he will serve as a primary contact person for the project participants
and will coordinate their participation in the project, including training modules, follow-up, mentoring,
management of sub-grants, and community project identification and implementation. The project officer
will be responsible for liaising with the local communities and local CBOs during the project. S/he will also
be responsible for monitoring the achievement of the results set by the project in his/her area of
responsibility. The project officer will also be tasked with data collection, conducting surveys, submitting
progress reports, and making logistics arrangements in cooperation with other Mercy Corps staff.
Frequent travel to the field from Amman will be required. The project officer will be reported directly to
the project coordinator.
Essential Job Responsibilities:
1. Establish and maintain good working relationships with the program stakeholders in targeted
communities including youth, relevant government bodies, CBOs, and communities.
2. Follow up on the project activities and deliverables in targeted areas.
3. Travel/ drive to project locations as planned and required in coordination with Community
Engagement Coordinator for the day-to-day implementation of project activities.
4. Work closely with the local community on developing and implementing their activities in the targeted
areas.
5. Ensure the sustainability of implemented projects according to the project scope and report on the
participants who benefit from the projects.
6. Identify Engagement activities through dialogue sessions with project stakeholders (youth,
community members, CBO, and Government representatives) following the criteria selected by the
project.
7. Follow up on the successful implementation of the project activities ensuring compliance with the
scope of the project.
8. Conduct regular meetings with the local partners to discuss the project plan to ensure timely
implementation of project goals.
9. Ensure monitoring of project activities, and contribute to the project evaluation, including end-of-
project surveys and interviews.
10. Document all program activities on the activity log sheet, achievements, and challenges in weekly
reports.
11. Plan, provide logistical support and implement to introduce lessons learned, and challenges, and
share learning among community members/ partners from different experiences.
12. Follow up on the implementation and the closing of the sub-grants with local CBOs.
13. Submit required reports (field visit reports, activity reports, weekly reports) to the Project Coordinator.
14. Facilitate and coordinate visits, assessments, and research to reflect the project activity's impact.
15. Ensure proper visibility of project activities.
16. Support other pillars in the project
17. Conduct himself/herself both professionally and personally in such a manner as to bring credit to
Mercy Corps and not jeopardize its humanitarian mission.
18. The project officer may be required to work additional hours and some weekends as dictated by the
demands of the project.
19. Participate in conducting community mapping to select new neighborhoods and share his /her
recommendation.
20. Collect the formal approvals from the governmental agencies, municipalities, and other stakeholders
for the project.
21. Assist the community coordinator in ensuring CARM issue-solving and provide feedback from the
community.
22. Assist the coordinator to ensure effective project planning and support project implementation
including, timely follow-up and organization of internal meetings including engineers and other
technical staff) and supporting LEAD staff to ensure effective project implementation.
23. Other duties as assigned by the Supervisor.
SECURITY:
• Observe the guidelines provided by the Ministry of Health regarding COVID-19.
• Ensure compliance with security procedures and policies as determined by country
leadership.
• Proactively ensure that team members operate in a secure environment and are aware of
policies.
ORGANIZATIONAL LEARNING
• As part of our commitment to organizational learning and in support of our understanding that
learning organizations are more effective, efficient, and relevant to the communities they
serve, we expect all team members to commit 5% of their time to learning activities that
benefit Mercy Corps as well as themselves.
SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITY: N/A
ACCOUNTABILITY
Reports Directly To: Project Coordinator
Works Directly with: Mercy Corps Engineering Team, Mercy Corps Subawards Team, Project Partners
(CBOs and private sector tech partners), Mercy Corps Operations, Finance, PAQ, and Human Resources
teams, Mercy Corps HQ Technical Support Unit
ACCOUNTABILITY TO PARTICIPANTS AND STAKEHOLDERS
Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our
program participants, community partners, and other stakeholders, and to international standards guiding
international relief and development work. We are committed to actively engaging communities as equal
partners in the design, monitoring, and evaluation of our field projects.
Minimum Qualification & Transferable Skills
• A university degree in Management, International Development, or a relevant field.
• Experience in community and youth engagement and livelihood and agriculture models
• At least 2-3 years of experience in international development or humanitarian assistance
programs.
• Experience in development project implementation in the Southern parts of Jordan.
• Fluent in both Arabic and English.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills.
• Strong proficiency in Microsoft Office applications including Excel and Word.
• Possibility of overnight/movement in the governorates of Jordan (south in particular).
• Valid driver’s license and willingness to travel to targeted communities in different
governorates.
Success Factors
• Demonstrated ability to lead and communicate effectively with team members of varied work
styles,
• follow procedures and meet deadlines.
• Deep commitment to humanitarian principles and values.
• Ability to work under pressure, independently and with limited supervision.
• Demonstrated creative problem-solving skills.
• Security, political and cultural awareness.
• Highly developed interpersonal communication skills.
• Demonstrated decision-making and leadership skills and excellent time management
capacities.
Competencies:
• Follow-up
• Collaboration/Teamwork
• Focus on Quality
• Time-Management
• Communication skills
Ongoing Learning
In support of our belief that learning organizations are more effective, efficient, and relevant to the
communities we serve, we empower all team members to dedicate 5% of their time to learning activities
that further their personal and/or professional growth and development.
Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
Achieving our mission begins with how we build our team and work together. Through our commitment
to enriching our organization with people of different origins, beliefs, backgrounds, and ways of thinking,
we are better able to leverage the collective power of our teams and solve the world’s most complex
challenges. We strive for a culture of trust and respect, where everyone contributes their perspectives
and authentic selves, reaches their potential as individuals and teams, and collaborates to do the best
work of their lives.
We recognize that diversity and inclusion is a journey, and we are committed to learning, listening, and
evolving to become more diverse, equitable, and inclusive than we are today.
Equal Employment Opportunity
Mercy Corps is an equal-opportunity employer that does not tolerate discrimination on any basis. We
actively seek out diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be collectively stronger
and have a sustained global impact.
We are committed to providing an environment of respect and psychological safety where equal
employment opportunities are available to all. We do not engage in or tolerate discrimination on the
basis of race, color, gender identity, gender expression, religion, age, sexual orientation, national or
ethnic origin, disability (including HIV/AIDS status), marital status, military veteran status or any other
protected group in the locations where we work.
Safeguarding & Ethics
Mercy Corps is committed to ensuring that all individuals we come into contact with through our work,
whether team members, community members, program participants, or others, are treated with respect
and dignity. We are committed to the core principles regarding the prevention of sexual exploitation and
abuse laid out by the UN Secretary-General and IASC. We will not tolerate child abuse, sexual
exploitation, abuse, or harassment by or of our team members. As part of our commitment to a safe
and inclusive work environment, team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional
manner, respect local laws and customs, and adhere to Mercy Corps Code of Conduct Policies and
values at all times. Team members are required to complete mandatory Code of Conduct eLearning
courses upon hire and on an annual basis.
