Project Officer

Partnership For Pastoralists Development Association [PAPDA]
Somali Regional State Of Ethiopia, Somalia
Project Management

Job Description

A career opportunity awaits at Partnership For Pastoralists Development Association [PAPDA] — they are hiring a Project Officer in Somali Regional State Of Ethiopia. The successful candidate will bring strong Project Management experience spanning at least 4 - 5 years. The application deadline is Oct, 27 — early applications are encouraged.

PAPDA will implement a two-month, government-coordinated anticipatory action intervention to reduce the humanitarian impacts of riverine and flash flooding in Chereti and Dolobay woredas of Afder Zone. The project responds to rising flood risk associated with the river systems, existing displacement and livelihood losses, damaged infrastructure, and the possibility of further flooding. It combines community-based disaster risk reduction and early warning, household water treatment, preparedness for multipurpose cash transfers (MPCT), and emergency shelter and non-food item (ES/NFI) assistance. The Project Officers will lead day-to-day field implementation in their assigned woredas, working with local authorities and communities.

The Project Officer is responsible for coordinating and delivering the project activities in the assigned woreda, ensuring that implementation is timely, technically sound, inclusive, accountable, and consistent with the approved proposal, budget, donor requirements, PAPDA policies, and ET-RRM activation arrangements. The officer will maintain close coordination with the Project Manager, woreda authorities, community structures, and relevant humanitarian partners.

A. Planning, coordination and implementation

B. Flood preparedness and early warning

C. WASH and household assistance readiness

D. MPCT and ES/NFI activation procedures

E. Accountability, protection and safeguarding

F. Monitoring, reporting and resource management

Key deliverables

  1. Project context
  1. Purpose of the position
  1. Key duties and responsibilities
  • Prepare and update a woreda-level activity plan, procurement and distribution schedule, movement plan, and implementation tracker in consultation with the Project Manager and local authorities.
  • Coordinate regularly with the Woreda Disaster Risk Management (DRM) Office, sector offices, kebele administrations, community structures, and ET-RRM partners; participate in relevant coordination meetings and share timely, verified updates.
  • Support government-led flood preparedness and evacuation planning, including the identification of priority communities, safe routes, assembly points, and referral needs, as directed by the responsible authorities.
  • Ensure that project activities are implemented in line with the approved workplan, budget, technical standards, procurement procedures, security protocols, and donor and PAPDA requirements.
  • Strengthen community-based early-warning dissemination through existing DRM structures, early-warning committees, religious and community leaders, and accessible communication channels.
  • Help verify flood-risk information and ensure that warning messages are timely, accurate, understandable, and accessible to women, older people, persons with disabilities, and other at-risk groups.
  • Organize and document community-led mitigation activities, including sandbag placement, drainage clearing, and protection of vulnerable riverbanks, access routes, and community infrastructure.
  • Coordinate woreda-level preparedness meetings and document decisions, assigned actions, and follow-up with government counterparts.
  • Support transparent identification, registration, verification, and community validation of flood-exposed households for household water-treatment support, MPCT readiness, and ES/NFI assistance, using approved vulnerability criteria and avoiding duplication.
  • Coordinate procurement requests, receipt, quality checks, safe storage, stock records, and distribution planning for water-treatment chemicals and approved flood protection and ES/NFI items.
  • Oversee distribution of water-treatment chemicals to eligible households and provide or coordinate practical guidance on correct dosage, safe treatment, and water storage.
  • Maintain updated beneficiary lists and supporting records, including consent and data-protection safeguards, and promptly address inclusion or exclusion concerns.
  • Support rapid market and financial service provider assessments and prepare operational arrangements for MPCT, including beneficiary verification, payment preparation, and coordination with relevant authorities and service providers.
  • Maintain readiness to assist vulnerable households across the two woredas with MPCT and ES/NFI assistance.
  • Mainstream gender, age, disability inclusion, conflict sensitivity, and protection considerations across assessments, targeting, communication, mitigation activities, and assistance delivery.
  • Ensure communities understand eligibility criteria, assistance entitlements, timing, and available feedback channels; support accessible, confidential, and safe complaints and feedback mechanisms.
  • Apply PAPDA’s safeguarding, PSEA, child protection, anti-fraud, and data-protection requirements; promptly report safeguarding concerns through established confidential channels.
  • Facilitate safe referrals for health, nutrition, food, protection, disability, or other needs outside the project scope, with informed consent and confidentiality.
  • Conduct routine field monitoring and data quality checks; maintain accurate activity, beneficiary, distribution, stock, referral, complaint, and coordination records, disaggregated by sex, age, and disability where feasible and appropriate.
  • Prepare concise weekly updates and timely narrative inputs, indicator tracking, success stories, lessons learned, and incident or risk reports for the Project Manager.
  • Track activity progress against the approved plan and targets, identify delays or implementation risks early, and recommend practical corrective actions.
  • Ensure supporting documentation is complete and submitted on time, including attendance sheets, minutes, assessment forms, delivery notes, distribution lists, photographs where consent is obtained, and monitoring checklists.
  • Coordinate with logistics, procurement, finance, and MEAL colleagues to ensure that requests, goods received, field expenditure, and supporting documents are accurate and comply with PAPDA procedures.
  • Protect project assets and records and support an orderly handover of Protect project assets and records and support an orderly handover of supplies, information, preparedness materials, and community arrangements to the relevant local institutions at project close.
  • Woreda-level implementation and movement plans aligned with the approved project workplan.
  • Community early-warning dissemination and flood mitigation activities completed and documented.
  • Verified, securely maintained beneficiary records and distribution plans for approved WASH assistance and activation-dependent MPCT and ES/NFI support.
  • Pre-positioned stock, Distribution, referral, feedback, and monitoring records maintained and submitted in accordance with project procedures.
  • Weekly progress updates and timely inputs to donor and management reports, including results, challenges, risks, and corrective actions.

About Somali Regional State Of Ethiopia

Somalia is located in the Horn of Africa and has a growing job market, particularly in the humanitarian, development, and private sectors. Major employment hubs include Mogadishu, Hargeisa, Garowe, Baidoa, and Kismayo, with opportunities from international NGOs, UN agencies, government institutions, and an expanding private sector.

Ereyada Soomaaliga (Somali Keywords): Shaqo Buuxda • Shaqo Cusub

Qualifications & Requirements

Core competencies

Supervision and working relationships

The Project Officers reports to the Area Manager or designated Project Coordinator and works closely with PAPDA programme, MEAL, finance, logistics/procurement, and operations staff. The officers maintain functional coordination with woreda DRM offices, relevant sector offices, kebele administrations, community representatives, and humanitarian partners. The Project Officer does not independently approve procurement, cash transfers, beneficiary entitlements, or changes to project scope and budget.

Work Conditions and Requirements

Cross-cutting issues

  • Bachelor’s degree in Social studies, Environmental and health-related, or a related field of study.
  • At least four years of relevant experience in humanitarian project implementation, preferably in emergency response, anticipatory action, DRR, WASH, cash assistance, ES/NFI, or community-based programming.
  • Experience coordinating with local government offices, community structures, and humanitarian partners in field settings; experience in Somali Region is an advantage.
  • Understanding of beneficiary targeting and verification, accountability to affected populations, protection mainstreaming, PSEA, safeguarding, and safe handling of sensitive information.
  • Experience maintaining activity records, collecting and checking field data, and preparing clear written reports.
  • Fluency in Somali and working ability in English are required.
  • Ability to travel and work in remote locations, including under changing access and weather conditions, while following PAPDA security procedures.
  • Planning, organization, and timely follow-through.
  • Community engagement, respectful communication, and coordination.
  • Integrity, accountability, confidentiality, and sound judgment.
  • Inclusive and culturally sensitive approach to working with affected communities.
  • Problem solving, adaptability, and effective teamwork.
  • Accurate documentation and clear verbal and written communication.
  • Full-time position based in the project woreda
  • Flexibility to work outside regular hou r
  • The project officer must adhere to organizational policies, including the code of conduct, child protection policies, and health and safety regulations. Compliance with ethical standards is mandatory. Training Certificate on humanitarian principles and standards is preferable.

How to Apply

Interested and qualified applicants can click the button below and apply by attaching the relevant documents and certificates till the deadline October 27, 2026 by

Clicking Here

Apply on employer site

Apply at: https://papda.odoo.com/jobs/project-officer-341

Job Details

Posted: October 22, 2026
Organization: Partnership For Pastoralists Development Association [PAPDA]
Location: Somali Regional State Of Ethiopia, Somalia
Sector: Project Management