IYCF Counselor (Mount Lebanon)

Job Purpose

The IYCF counselor will be in direct contact with the beneficiaries covered under this program. He/she will assess PLWs and caregivers of children under 24 months of age in order to identify specific feeding support needs using rapid and full assessments, and provide skilled one-to-one IYCF counseling.

Responsibilities

• Conduct door-to-door visits on a daily basis to identify and engage the target community in Mount Lebanon Area
• Assess mothers/caregivers and their children to identify specific feeding support needs, using rapid and full assessments, with face-to-face observations
• Ensure that the safe identification of Pregnant Lactating Women (PLW) and caregivers is done with transparency, confidentiality, and efficiency to meet the needs and provide access to needed services
• Provide skilled Infant and Young Child Feeding (IYCF) counseling and support for breastfed and non-breastfed children under 6 months of age
• Provide messages on IYCF recommended practices to mothers who have malnourished children
• Give counseling sessions related to optimal Infant and young child feeding practices at the field level
• Refer mothers to mother-to-mother support groups; establish any if/where needed and support the activities of these groups
• Conduct regular follow-up visits to PLWs and caregivers of children under 2 years to ensure that they have adopted the improved breastfeeding and nutritional practices (each mother should adopt three new actions/habits)
• Provide micronutrient supplements to the targeted beneficiaries to avoid micronutrient deficiency
• Fill the data accurately including all notes collected from the field using kobo/papers forms
• Record and keep collected information on daily screened PLWs and caregivers and produce daily reports using data entry formats in tablets generated for standard reporting;
• Ensure transparent, accurate, and timely collection of quantitative and qualitative data and information
• Communicate any issues encountered during data collection immediately to the Nutritionist Supervisor
• Report daily to the Nutritionist Supervisor on all activities progress and field visits using an online tracking sheet
• Support CHWs in the screening and referrals of malnutrition cases at the community level
• Keep the Area Coordinator well informed about the project challenges encountered
• Reporting breast milk substitute (infant formula) distribution to the Area Coordinator
• Ensure data protection and confidentiality

Minimum Hiring Requirements 

• A university degree in Nutrition, Midwifery 
• Completion of the 20-hour training on Infant and Young Child Feeding is desirable
• At least 1 to 2 years of related experience
• INGO/NGO experience is preferable
• Experience in working with refugees, vulnerable Lebanese, and migrant communities is desirable
• Previous experience working for a humanitarian organization and/or work experience in data collection is desirable
• Demonstrate a high level of cultural sensitivity, professionalism, politeness, and objectivity when dealing with the beneficiaries under all circumstances
• High ability to adapt to field setting; motivation to work in a challenging environment requiring personal flexibility
• Time management and the ability to meet deadlines
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills
• Good command of the English language
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office applications, Google drive tools, and Kobo collect.

Corporate Competencies

• Demonstrate integrity and respect to the values and mission of the organisation
• Adaptability, sensitivity and respect to cultural, religious, racial, gender, age and nationality differences
• Promote gender equality within the humanitarian and/or development work
• Promote vision, mission and strategic plan of the organisation in Lebanon
• An honest team-player with strong interpersonal skills

Functional Competencies 

• Accurately completes and organizes multiple tasks by taking into account priorities and deadlines 
• Ability to identify program challenges and plan and communicate alternatives for smooth implementation of programs
• Builds and establishes proper and organized relationships with management, staff, partners and stakeholders as required

Knowledge Management and Learning

• Ability to familiarize with new areas and people.
• Ability to deal with day-to-day stresses, complaints and field-level security concerns that may arise.
• Ability to use tools provided with little direction. 
• Ability to build new relations with individuals on the field in a comfortable and safe way. 
• Ability to differentiate between personal and business relations on the field.

Important: Applications must be submitted as instructed in the submission guideline that will become available once the applicant passes the qualification pre-selection questions. Submissions through any other media will not be considered.