Community Mobilization and Engagement Specialist (CMES), Malawi

Job Description

Save the Children is currently recruiting for a Community Mobilization and Engagement Specialist (CMES) for an upcoming USAID Next Generation Early Grade Reading (NextGen) activity. This activity is aiming to solidify and build on the contributions made to date as part of the implementation of Malawi’s National Reading Program (NRP) towards improving the delivery of high-quality early primary reading instruction in all Malawian primary schools.

The CMES will be responsible for mobilizing community, parental and familial support for the acquisition of reading skills by students enrolled in the early grades of primary school. The CMES will design and utilize easy-to-use training materials for communities to better understand and support early grade reading activities. The CMES will build effective relationships with stakeholders to further reading and pre-reading skills acquisition.

This is a key position on the senior leadership team and is contingent upon award from USAID. Malawian nationals are strongly encouraged to apply.

What You’ll Be Doing (Essential Duties)

• Serve as technical lead on all community outreach and mobilization activities.
• Lead the review of evidence on reducing family financial barriers to education; use the results of this review to design pilot tests of apparently successful strategies; and lead the scale up of successful model in collaboration with government authorities and others
• Improve the access of parents, caregivers and learners to decodable, leveled and supplementary reading materials for use in home; collaborate with existing stakeholders (including Global Book Alliance members, the World Bank Read@Home initiative, the Malawi National Library Services (MNLS) and private sector partners) to identify existing strategies as well as innovative practices that have shown success in other contexts; and pilot and scale distribution models, including digital texts, and texts adapted for children with disabilities.
• Lead the development of approaches and materials to improve children’s oral language development and social-emotional skills, including non-Chichewa speakers, and children with disabilities like the deaf; support parents with distance and in-person training to adopt new behaviors and practices; develop in-home coaching models for parents, and train networks of local partners to expand support to parents.
• Identify agencies/organizations implementing community-based activities
• Mobilize community structures like Community Based Organizations (CBOs), Area Development Committees (ADCs), Village Development Committees (VDCs), Parents Teachers Association, and faith community to support home reading activities
• Lead the development of behavior change approaches to support parents in reading to children, taking into account all language groups, including non-Chichewa speakers, and children with disabilities like the deaf; review practice to date in creating changes in reading practices in homes in Malawi and identify promising practice based on that review; develop and provide tools and training, both distance and in-person, to support parents in adopting new behaviors and practices; and develop community-based approaches to complement these in-home approaches where evidence-based and effective.
• Oversee the development of context-appropriate distance-based programming, including radio and/or television programming for parents and their children to help promote early literacy skills, including in English; piloting cellphone-based or online-based supports for parents in which they and their children can participate; and oversee the evaluation (including learners’ circles), adaptation and diffusion of distance-based options for learners with disabilities to acquire early literacy skills.
• Assist in the preparation of donor reports and project reports
• Coordinate and monitor the efficiency and effectiveness of the work of short-term consultants as required

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in any development-related field of social sciences, development studies, management, or education
• At least two years’ experience in community mobilization, community engagement, and working with families at the zonal, school, or household level to further educational outcomes.
• Ability to interact and build performing relationships with stakeholders especially with organizations, departments and institutions that complements the acquisition of reading skills at school and community level.
• Experience and expertise in designing materials for marginalized communities and resource poor settings.
• Experience working with pilot projects, and ability to analyze and understand evaluation data to determine what is working and make recommendations for adaptation and scaling.
• Demonstrated supervisory experience of professional staff
• Ability to liaise with senior MoE officials and dignitaries, executives of NGOs, FBOs, CBOs, the for-profit business community, and senior members of the donor community;
• Demonstrated in-depth understanding of Malawian education system.
• Experience living and working in Malawi preferred
• Strong oral and written communication and presentations skills in English

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience working with USAID projects
• Excellent written communication and presentation skills in English
• Master’s Degree in development, or related field

About Save the Children

Save the Children believes every child deserves a future. In the United States and around the world, we give children a healthy start in life, the opportunity to learn and protection from harm. We do whatever it takes for children – every day and in times of crisis – transforming their lives and the future we share.

Our work for children and their families requires that we commit—at every opportunity—to work together to identify and dismantle persistent systemic and structural racism, inequality, and any other forms of discrimination in this country and beyond. As an anti-racist organization, Save the Children will not tolerate discrimination in any form—in our employment practices, amongst our staff, in our leadership or toward the people we serve. We stand in solidarity with all people to fight for equal rights, justice, inclusion, and belonging.

We provide equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, ancestry, sexual orientation, national origin, age, handicap, disability, marital status, or status as a veteran. Save the Children complies with all applicable laws.

Save the Children is committed to conducting its programs and operations in a manner that is safe for the children it serves and helping protect the children with whom we are in contact. All Save the Children representatives are explicitly prohibited from engaging in any activity that may result in any kind of child abuse. In addition, it is Save the Children’s policy to create and proactively maintain an environment that aims to prevent and deter any actions and omissions, whether deliberate or inadvertent, that place children at the risk of any kind of child abuse. All our representatives are expected to conduct themselves in a manner consistent with this commitment and obligation.

Save the Children is committed to minimizing safety and security risks for our valued employees, ensuring all are given training, support and information to reduce their risk exposure while maximizing the impact of our programs for children and families. Our shared duty, both agency and individual, is to seek and maintain safe working conditions for all.

About the Organization

Save the Children believes every child deserves a future. In the United States and around the world, we give children a healthy start in life, the opportunity to learn and protection from harm. We do whatever it takes for children – every day and in times of crisis – transforming their lives and the future we share.

Our work for children and their families requires that we commit—at every opportunity—to work together to dismantle persistent systemic and structural racism embedded in this country. Save the Children will not tolerate racism in any form—in our employment practices, amongst our staff, in our leadership or toward the people we serve. We stand in solidarity with all people of color to fight for equal rights and justice.

We provide equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, ancestry, sexual orientation, national origin, age, handicap, disability, marital status, or status as a veteran. Save the Children complies with all applicable laws

Save the Children is committed to conducting its programs and operations in a manner that is safe for the children it serves and helping protect the children with whom we are in contact. All Save the Children representatives are explicitly prohibited from engaging in any activity that may result in any kind of child abuse. In addition, it is Save the Children’s policy to create and proactively maintain an environment that aims to prevent and deter any actions and omissions, whether deliberate or inadvertent, that place children at the risk of any kind of child abuse. All our representatives are expected to conduct themselves in a manner consistent with this commitment and obligation. Any violations of this policy will be treated as a serious issue.