The Ugandan Jobline

Job Title:  Senior Project Officer – Land
Rights

Organisation: Catholic
Relief Services (CRS)

Duty Station: Uganda

Reports to: Homes and Communities Program Manager

About US:

Catholic Relief
Services (CRS) is an international non-governmental organization (NGO)
supporting relief and development work in over 100 countries around the world.
CRS carries out the commitment of the Bishops of the United States to assist
the poor and vulnerable overseas. CRS’ Catholic identity is at the heart of our
mission and operations; serving people on the basis of need, regardless of
creed, ethnicity or nationality. CRS works through local church and non-church
partners to implement its programs. CRS has worked in Uganda since 1965,
initially providing emergency assistance to Sudanese refugees living in the
north. Over the years, CRS has expanded its programming to also address
development needs in western, central and eastern Uganda. CRS’ projects in Uganda
currently include agriculture, health, microfinance, peace building and youth.
CRS Uganda implements its programs through partnerships with local
organizations, including the Catholic Church, other faith-based organizations
and community entities for maximum impact and sustainability.

Job Summary:  The Land Rights Senior Project Officer –
Homes, Land and Property (HLP) is required to support CRS’ programs to ensure
the legal rights of refugees and landowners are protected and help the project
team address challenges with ensuring women, the elderly, child headed
households and persons with disabilities, who may not be able to travel to find
work, or face protection risks or greater problems accessing homes, land and
property, have appropriate access to all project activities.

Key Duties and Responsibilities:  Under the supervision of the Homes and
Communities Program Manager, the Land Rights Senior Project Officer – HLP will:

·       
Carry
out an assessment of the context in Bidibidi refugee settlement and surrounding
host communities to determine the current legal framework related to HLP. If
one does not exist, in consultation with camp management, local government, NGO
actors and refugee welfare committees lead the development of a legal framework
for HLP;

·       
Prepare
documentation for securing agricultural land access and rental agreements
whilst ensuring rights of refugees and landowners are protected;

·       
Lead
identification of landowners and liaise with them with regard to access
arrangements;

·       
Lead
discussions on Natural Resource Management with the community and local
authorities;

·       
Monitor
compliance with existing tenancy/land agreements;

·       
Manage
landowner/access database;

·       
Produce
regular reporting updates on the status of land access/tenancy related to CRS
operations and the wider community;

·       
Compile
and submit timely weekly activity reports and monthly progress reports

·       
Advise
management about issues affecting project implementation, or key local issues
affecting future project developments;

·       
Elaborate,
compile and maintain database of protection referrals and support in the
follow-up of referred cases as appropriate, including cases that are referred
through the Community Centers;

·       
Elaborate,
compile and maintain key protection and gender resources library;

·       
Form and
build relationships to maximize the potential for collaborative programming
with Local Government;

·       
Support
Accountability staff to ensure Feedback Response Mechanisms (FRM) are in place
and are accessible to all members of the community;

·       
Ensure
protection and environmental issues are fully considered throughout the project
cycle with women, elderly, most vulnerable being included in decision-making
for all project activities;

·       
As
required, lead trainings on HLP and awareness raising campaigns within target
communities.

·       
Contribute
in collecting good practices, case studies for documentation, evidence-building
and demonstration. alternative solutions and designs that can reach scale;

·       
Pilot
alternative HLP related solutions and processes for families to attain safe dignified
home and community.

Qualifications, Skills and Experience:

·       
The
applicant for the Catholic Relief Services (CRS) Senior Project Officer – Land
Rights employment vacancy should hold a Bachelor’s degree or higher in law,
agriculture, agroforestry, economic, business or social sciences from a
recognized academic institution.

·       
Experience
with HLP and land negotiation in refugee and host communities in West Nile.

·       
At least
five years of professional experience. Appropriate relevant and comprehensive
experience in the field of humanitarian response/early recovery with
markets-based cash/voucher programming, agricultural livelihoods, or
shelter/WASH experience a plus.

·       
Must
have experience working in Housing, Land and Property and a demonstrated
understanding of regulatory environment within the context of Ugandan refugee
settlements.

·       
Good
knowledge and experience of working with local partners.

·       
Proven
experience in liaison with all levels of Local Government.

·       
Fluent
English language (speaking and writing). Knowledge of the local languages
spoken by South Sudanese and host communities living on or near Bidibidi
settlement

Desirable

·       
A
capacity and desire to pass on skills and information, a confident communicator
and willing to work in a collaborative and respectful way with target
communities.

·       
Flexibility
and ability to work under pressure and meeting deadlines in changing situations

Agency-wide Competencies (for all CRS Staff): These are rooted in the mission, values, and
guiding principles of CRS and used by each staff member to fulfill his or her
responsibilities and achieve the desired results.

·       
Trusting
Relationships

·       
Professional
Growth

·       
Partnership

·       
Accountability

Emergency
Competencies: Each staff member
working in emergencies is expected to use the following competencies to fulfill
his or her responsibilities and to achieve the desired results.

·       
Communicates
strategically under pressure

·       
Manages
stress and complexity

·       
Actively
promotes safety and security

·       
Manages
and implements high-quality emergency programs

·       
Influence
Competencies (for all Homes and Communities Staff):

·       
Effectively
communicates the agency’s priorities and leverages local relationships to bring
stakeholders perspective to decision-makers, based on job-specific
responsibilities

·       
Understand,
recognize and facilitate opportunities for influence at the project/program
level

·       
Strategically
represents the technical sector for influence

How to Apply:

All candidates
should Email a cover letter and CV only to ug_recruitment@crs.org 

Large files and/or
scans of documents will lead to rejection of your application, in the subject
line of the email, copy and paste – SENIORPROJECTOFFICERLANDRIGHTS only

All applications
that do not contain this exact subject line will be rejected and not read

Only selected candidates
that meet the requirements will be notified

Deadline: 3^rd July 2020

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