Psychosocial Support (PSS) Assistant (Monguno) at Danish Refugee Council (DRC)

Danish Refugee Council (DRC) is a Danish international non-governmental organisation, which promotes and supports durable solutions to the problems faced by refugees and internally displaced people all over the world. DRC is present in more than 30 conflict territories around the world assisting displaced people with shelter, food, income-generating activities, and a wide range of other assistance. It is of utmost importance for DRC to work in compliance with the DRC Accountability and Quality Management system and national legislation. Smooth, reliable and effective operational systems are preconditions for DRC to maintain its position as a trustworthy and reliable partner for our donors and an accountable organisation towards our beneficiaries.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Psychosocial Support (PSS) Assistant

Location: Monguno, Borno
Reporting and Supervised by: PSS Officer
Employment Period: 12 months with the possibility of extension

Background

• Danish Refugee Council (DRC), and its safety unit, have had an operational presence in Nigeria since 2015. DRC Nigeria is the largest DRC country mission in the West Africa region and one of the largest DRC country missions globally.
• Currently, DRC delivers life-saving assistance and protection to vulnerable, conflict-affected populations including internally displaced persons, returnees and host communities in the areas of armed violence reduction, humanitarian mine action, livelihoods, nutrition and food security, protection, shelter and non-food items (NFI) and water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) in 30+ Local Government Areas (LGAs) across Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states in northeast Nigeria.

Purpose / Objective of the Position

• The PSS Worker implements structured and unstructured psycho-social support activities and training for beneficiary groups.

Responsibilities
Generic Duties:

• Conduct a variety of structured and unstructured activities (recreational, psycho-social and informal skills training) for beneficiaries, catering to the various psycho-social needs and interests of different beneficiary groups (adults, adolescents, children if required in the proposal although as DRC is a general protection agency in Nigeria, often children will be referred to CP actors for structured PSS);
• Prepare for structured psycho-social support activities by carefully reading the PSS SOPs and Curriculum Manuals and preparing all required material and equipment in advance;
• Conduct recreational activities with children and adults such as sports activities, arts and crafts, dance music, drama etc;
• Support community resource persons in the implementation of vocational and skill training; 
• Facilitate the participation of all segments of the target population in the planned activities ensuring the inclusion of the most vulnerable groups;
• Ensure that during all activities proper attention is paid to specific emotional and physical needs;
• Monitor beneficiaries’ progress during psychosocial support activities and identify persons with unusual changes in behaviour or other signs of psychosocial distress for referral to a Case Management/PSS officer or PSS TL; 
• Carry out all tasks respecting key protection principles including but not limited to: do no harm, non-discrimination, confidentiality and accountability;
• Conduct focus group discussions and other participatory activities to engage community members in protection activities and to better understand their needs and interests;
• Engage community volunteers in planned recreational activities and awareness sessions held at the community center according to a planned activity schedule ensuring they work in pairs and under your supervision
• Maintain daily attendance registers and monthly inventory sheets for each activity conducted. 
• Ensure a safe, friendly and non-discriminatory environment is upheld during all activities;
• Participate in meetings and training in and outside the centres and/or in DRC offices when requested;
• Complete additional tasks assigned by the Supervisor.

Specific Duties:

• (Can be adapted to the particularities of the job location and the requirement of the specific project, but should be approved by the Protection Coordinator before advertising the vacancy).

Person Specification
Educational Qualification and Professional Experience:

• University Degree in a related field (Social Work, Psychology, etc); 
• Two years of relevant work experience;
• Strong knowledge of psycho-social programming in the humanitarian context.

Competencies: (Knowledge, Skills & Abilities)

• Computer literacy (Word, Excel) 
• Confidentiality, respect and non-discriminatory attitude
• Strong technical knowledge in protection and psycho-social support
• Ability to train people, facilitate training and build participants’ knowledge and skills
• Good interpersonal and communication skills
• Good analytical and reporting skills
• Ability to show empathy
• Ability to work under pressure
• Fluency in Hausa and another language spoken in Borno state/Adamawa state (written and spoken)
• Working knowledge in English (written and spoken)

General Regulations:

• The employee shall follow DRC instructions on safety, confidentiality and ethical guidelines, including the Code of Conduct and the Humanitarian Accountability Framework.
• Employees should not engage in any other paid activity during the DRC contract period without prior authorization.
• Employees should not engage in any activity that could harm DRC or the implementation of any project during the DRC contract period.
• Employees should not give interviews to the media or publish project-related photos or other material without prior authorization.
• Employee shall return all borrowed equipment for the project to DRC after the end of the contract period or upon request.

Application Closing Date
29th July, 2024

Method of Application
Interested and qualified candidates should:
Click here to apply online

Important Information

• All applicants must send a cover letter and an updated CV (no longer than four pages). Both must be in English.
• DRC provides equal opportunity in employment and prohibits discrimination in employment on the basis of race, sex, color, religion, sexual orientation, age, marital status or disability.
• DRC encourages all applicants to apply and does not practice any discrimination in any recruitment process.
• However, all applicants shall take into consideration that DRC cannot offer an international work contract to a citizen of the country of assignment (in this specific case, Nigeria)
• Applications submitted after the closing date stated above will not be considered.