Company Profile

John Snow Inc. is a leader in improving the health of individuals and communities by providing high-quality technical and managerial assistance to public health programs worldwide. JSI has implemented projects in 104 countries, and currently operates from eight U.S. and 81 international offices for the past 30 years.

Job Description

• Job Title: Nutrition Officer
• Job Location:Tamale, Ghana
• Reporting Relationship:The Nutrition Officer reports to the JSI RING Nutrition Component Manager based in Tamale, Ghana

Project Description
The Resiliency in Northern Ghana (RING) project is a 5-year integrated project funded by the USAID Feed the Future (FtF) Initiative and is designed to contribute to Government of Ghana (GoG) efforts to sustainably reduce poverty and improve the nutritional status of vulnerable populations. The goal of RING is improved livelihoods and nutritional status of households in Ghana. John Snow Inc. (JSI) implements nutrition activities in Northern Ghana as a subcontractor to Global Communities on the RING project.

Job Summary
JSI is seeking a Nutrition Officer who will monitor district-level nutrition activities in line with RING mechanisms in collaboration with District Assemblies. The Nutrition Officer will provide direct technical assistance to district-level nutrition activities, focusing on implementation, quality review, attendance at trainings, follow-up on implementation by trainees, and competency criteria in target districts. This position will require a background in nutrition with project management experience.

Major Duties and Responsibilities

• Implement day-to-day nutrition activities as outlined in the RING work plan, focused on building capacity of district level staff, and providing technical support to district staff to develop, budget, and implement nutrition activities included in District Assembly work plans.
• Coordinate with and provide technical assistance to Ghana Health Service district Nutrition Officers.
• Identify new opportunities to integrate and strengthen nutrition activities within local health systems and community services, in collaboration with District Assemblies.
• Support training of facility-based personnel in major program topics as outlined in the RING work plan.
• Contribute to the development of written nutrition resource materials, including process and implementation guidelines appropriate for use by District Assemblies and project staff.
• Provide routine written programmatic and technical reports as required, and other documents as needed.
• Review and edit content in documents/outputs produced by consultants and other staff, as needed.
• Monitor performance of nutrition activities against indicators and program goals and identify and document challenges and best practices in collaboration with RING monitoring and evaluation staff.
• Conduct joint supervision visits of district level nutrition activities with District Assemblies.
• Develop and sustain relationships within the nutrition community in target districts.
• Participate in routine meetings of District Assemblies, RING staff, and local partners as needed.
• Support quality improvement efforts in assigned districts.
• Other duties as assigned.

Required Skills or Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in Nutrition, Community Health, Program Management, Public Health, or similar field with a Master’s degree preferred.
• At least five (5) years of proven experience in implementing nutrition development programs.   
• Strong proficiency in Microsoft Word and Excel.
• Excellent written and verbal English skills.
• Fluency in relevant local languages.  
• Familiarity with nutrition issues in Ghana at the national and district level.
• Ability to effectively work independently and outside of conventional office environments, if needed.
• Demonstrated ability to work with local authorities in Ghana, especially at the district level.
• Demonstrated understanding of government protocols and ability to effectively manage cross-ministerial and department communications.
• Demonstrated ability to translate technical information into practical guidance and tools and effectively communicate these to stakeholders at the district level.
• Must be authorized to work in Ghana.
• Ability and willingness to travel domestically up to 80% of time.