وظيفة شاغرة Field Assistant w

About Mercy Corps

Mercy Corps is a leading global organization powered by the belief that a better world is possible.
In disaster, in hardship, in more than 40 countries around the world, we partner to put bold solutions
into action — helping people triumph over adversity and build stronger communities from within.
Now, and for the future. Working in Lebanon since 1993, Mercy Corps is committed to generating positive opportunities for women, men, boys and girls from Lebanese, Syrian, and Palestinian communities, with a strong focus on engaging youth.

• Mercy Corps exists to alleviate suffering, poverty and oppression by helping build secure, productive and just communities. We do this through:
• Addressing the humanitarian and protection needs resulting from crisis situations for the most vulnerable communities
• Enabling local communities, civil society and government to better prevent and respond to conflict, address needs and deliver sustainable development solutions
• Promoting economic growth and catalysing economic opportunities for vulnerable, under-employed groups in Lebanon

The Mercy Corps Lebanon team consists of over 100 staff working across five offices throughout Mount Lebanon, South Lebanon, Tripoli and the Bekaa Valley.

The Program / Department / Team

The BASATINE Program (Bolstering Agriculture Systems’ Ability to Invest, Nourish, and Employ) is a 42-month AFD-funded program implemented with a consortium consisting of 6 partners in North Lebanon and Bekaa. CARE International is the consortium lead while Mercy Corps is the lead on two of the five components. The intervention aims to immediately address food insecurity and provide needed income and technical support to farmers to survive the current crisis in the short-term, and to improve the capacity of food systems to maintain employment and growth over the longer-term via stronger domestic production and system linkages. Mercy Corps will lead on improved market linkages within the agricultural sector by working with input suppliers and with SMEs within the agro-food industry, and on the generation of evidence through research and regular MEL activities to promote evidence-based sector development.

The program seeks to strike a balance between short-term urgent and ever-evolving humanitarian needs of agricultural producers, and the longer-term building up and facilitation of more efficient market systems supporting the sector. It seeks to address barriers and challenges to increased domestic production along the agriculture value chain(s) that are operationally and financially sustainable. It seeks to identify and scale up potential import substitutes for domestic market consumption and increased food security, while also identifying and addressing barriers to access export markets for improved trade and hard currency generation. The intervention will mainly focus on wheat and vegetables value chains, while also integrating segments of other value chains (poultry, potatoes, trees, etc.) to ensure that it follows a territorial approach. The program will have a strong MEL, research and learning agenda to provide ongoing evidence-based adaptation internally and the generation of actionable, contextualized research for humanitarian and development practitioners, donors, local and national level public sector, and private sector actors.

The Position

The Project Assistant is expected to contribute to the daily tasks related to several activities related to the following: identification of local inputs producers, day-to-day outreach activities, SMEs outreach and support, distribution of inputs, follow up with program participants.  The Project Assistant will work closely with the SME Field Coordinator and the Project Manager to support with the implementation of activities. S/he will work closely with partners and other stakeholders involved in program implementation in order to ensure a coherent and comprehensive program is implemented, lessons are learned, and experiences shared across the various sectors and program teams. She/ he will also support the team in coordinating with the MEL Senior coordinator and MEL Assistants on data collection and maintenance of the database as well as manage the info line for the component.

Essential Responsibilities

Programmatic Responsibilities:

• Assist the Field Coordinator and project manager in planning and implementing activities and follow-ups with agriculture local inputs producers and other MSMEs working in the agriculture and agro-food sector located in Bekaa.
• Provide technical assistance and guidance for the implementation of the development of local agricultural input production component.
• Support the SME Field Coordinator in the planning and implementation of BASATINE program activities.
• Identify capacity development needs for MSMEs in consultation with the Field Coordinator and the Project Manager.
• Support the SME Field Coordinator and the Project Manager on planning training and coaching activities, when needed, in collaboration with service providers.
• Fully document program activities, contribute to data collection and data entry, record keeping, and related tasks for documentation.
• Support the team in the procurement and logistical processes for BASATINE activities.
• Support the team in maintaining the individual files for MSMEs and local producers supported under BASATINE.
• Help with the day-to-day workflow of the distribution of inputs to farmers and processors.
• Support with any administrative tasks in order to ensure the timely and proper progress of activities.

Other Related Responsibilities

• Assist in responding to participants’ inquiries.
• Conduct phone calls and follow up with beneficiaries, if necessary.
• Follow up on all paperwork and reporting needed from the field.

• Conduct field visits to the MSMEs’ and suppliers’ locations with the BASATINE team to ensure proper flow of work and smooth implementation.
• Conduct field visits to supported farmers to ensure proper use of received inputs.
• Support in filing and entering the data of the required assessments to be collected.
• Follow up with procurement on pending PRs and assist in updating the MSMEs tracker sheets and other related tools.

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

وظيفة شاغرة Field Assistant w

None

Accountability

Reports Directly To: SME Field Coordinator

Works Directly With: BASATINE Program team, MC Support Departments (MEL, HR, Finance, Operations), other consortium partners.

Accountability to Participants and Stakeholders

Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts towards accountability, specifically to our beneficiaries and to international standards guiding international relief and development work, while actively engaging beneficiary communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects.

Minimum Qualification & Transferable Skills

• BA/S or equivalent, preferable business administration, agriculture, marketing, international development or other related field.
• Experience and knowledge in the agricultural sector specifically local agricultural input production is great plus.
• At least one year of experience and proven high level of competence in working in economics and market development programs and MSME support. Experience in agricultural value chain programs would be an asset.
• Strong organizational skills, and ability to work independently and take initiative under pressure in a rapidly changing, multi-cultural context, whilst adhering to strict deadlines.
• Excellent communication skills.
• Excellent written and verbal English and Arabic skills.
• Good computer skills and good knowledge in MS Office, Google products (Drive, Sheets, Docs), and online meeting tools (Zoom, Google Meet, MS Teams).
• A demonstrated ability to multi-task and process information into action so as to not delay program activities.
• Demonstrated ability in team work and coordination with partners.
• Ability and willingness to travel to the field as needed to support trainings and field-based activities.
• Positive attitude and passion for your work.

Success Factors

A successful candidate will have the ability to live and work closely with a diverse team of individuals in a highly intense and fluid work and security environment with a capacity to promote new approaches to programming and inspire groups to collaborate closely to implement high-quality programs. S/he will have proven ability to learn quickly, take initiative, and be accountable for results.  Ability to work independently and as part of a team, with curiosity about and sensitivity to new cultures, a desire and ability to learn and grow, both personally and professionally, and a great sense of humor.

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 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 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 to 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.