About the Project
The Nutrition Smart Community (NSC) project, implemented by Weltungerhilfe (WHH) in Ethiopia, Malawi, Ethiopia, and Sierra Leone, is a collaboration focused on improving nutrition across the country. This initiative, supported by CSONA and the Kasama Institute of Agriculture and Ecology, aims to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 2 (Zero Hunger) and global nutrition targets.
Job Summary
The Social Accountability Officer will lead CSONA's efforts to empower target communities, civil society networks, and grassroots structures to demand transparency, quality, and equity in the delivery of multisectoral nutrition services. This role is primarily focused on facilitating the transition of community-based nutrition micro-plans into institutionalized government planning and budgeting processes.
Key Responsibilities
- Lead the implementation and consolidation of social accountability systems, including community scorecards and budget tracking.
- Conduct fieldwork to establish and monitor social accountability platforms within traditional authorities in affected villages.
- Train and support community structures and leaders of Community-Based Organizations (CBOs) on reporting mechanisms and dialogue forums.
- Manage grievance response mechanisms to ensure functionality and responsiveness to frontline nutrition, health, and agricultural advisory services.
- Organize joint interface and review meetings to bring together community structures, frontline professionals, and local authorities for corrective action planning.
- Track resource allocations and expenditures for nutrition at the subnational/district council level to promote sustainable investments.
- Review and update community micro-planning and nutrition-sensitive micro-plans developed during Phase I.
- Organize and facilitate multi-stakeholder dialogue forums to ensure that nutrition-sensitive priorities are integrated into Area/Village Development Committees (VDCs/CDCs) and District Development Committees.
- Build institutional capacity to minimize funding gaps between national policy frameworks and weak subnational allocations.
- Empower FNS champions through training and support to serve as key permanent links between local communities and policy spaces.
- Equip FNS champions with strategic advocacy, resource mobilization, budget monitoring, and multisectoral coordination skills.
- Support the active participation of FNS Champions in multi-stakeholder platforms, district review processes, and advocacy events.
Required Qualifications & Experience
- Bachelor's Degree in Social Sciences, Public Policy, Development Studies, Public Health, Community Development, Nutrition, or a related field.
- Minimum of 3 to 5 years of progressive experience working with NGOs or civil society networks in Malawi, with a distinct focus on social accountability, rights-based governance, or policy advocacy.
- Proven technical experience in executing Community Score Cards (CSC), participatory rural micro-planning, and citizen-led socio-accountability initiatives.
- Prior experience working in the nutrition, food security, public health, or decentralized local government sectors in Malawi is highly preferred.
Core Competencies & Technical Skills
- Solid mastery of civic monitoring, downward accountability principles, and navigating community-authority dynamics.
- Knowledge of Malawi's national frameworks, including Vision 2063, the National Multisectoral Nutrition Policy, right to food frameworks, food systems, and the role of District Nutrition Coordinating Committees (DNCCs).
- Exceptional interpersonal skills with the capability to moderate intense dialogue interfaces between right-holders and duty-bearers.
- Proven ability to turn raw qualitative community feedback and quantitative budget rows into refined advocacy messages or policy brief data.
How to Apply
Interested candidates should submit a 1-paged application letter, 2 paged CV with traceable referees, and certified copies of degree certificates to the provided email address. Applications should be addressed to the National Nutrition Officer, P.O. Box 1697, Lilongwe, and must include "SOCIAL ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICER" in the subject line. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted for interviews. CSONA is an equal opportunity employer.