ENRICH MNP Programme Coordinator in Elgeyo Marakwet County, Kenya

About Nutrition International and ENRICH Project

Nutrition International (NI), formerly the Micronutrient Initiative, is a Canadian-based international non-governmental organization (NGO) dedicated to improving the health and nutrition of the world’s most vulnerable; especially women and children.NI is part of a consortium of NGOs implementing the Enhancing Nutrition Services to Improve Maternal and Child Health (ENRICH) project. The ENRICH project is funded by Global Affairs Canada (GAC), and World Vision Canada targeting five countries in Africa (Kenya and Tanzania) and Asia (Bangladesh, Pakistan and Myanmar).The consortium is led by World Vision and includes Harvest Plus, the University of Toronto, Canadian Society for International Health and the Hospital for Sick Children. The project will be implemented over a four-year period, concluding in 2020. The Enhancing Nutrition Services to Improve Maternal and Child Health (ENRICH) project aims to improve the health and nutrition status of mothers, newborns and children in select regions of Bangladesh, Kenya, Myanmar, Pakistan and Tanzania.

The project seeks to achieve this goal through strengthening of health systems with an emphasis on community outreach services, improving nutrition of pregnant women, infants and young children during the first 1000 days from conception to 24 months of age, and ensuring accountability of results at all levels. ENRICH takes a comprehensive approach to:

I. Improve delivery of essential health services, including basic nutrition and nutrition-sensitive services to mothers, pregnant women, newborns and children under two;

II. Increase production, consumption and utilization of nutritious foods and micronutrient supplements; and

III. Strengthen gender-responsive governance, policy and public engagement in maternal, newborn, and child health in Canada and target countries.

The project is expected to increase the access to basic nutrition and health services to a total of 2.09 million people, including 835,000 women and 740,000 children. In Elgeyo Marakwet County, the project is expected to directly benefit 288,209 people, of which 80 per cent are children under two years and pregnant and lactating women.

Key NI interventions areas are:

I. Health system strengthening through capacity development of healthcare workers in delivery of nutrition services, supply chain management, data collection, analysis and use of nutrition data and information.

II. Behavior Change Interventions (BCI) informed by formative research in the project area to develop a context-specific behavior change strategy for improving the nutrition status of women and children.

III. Food fortification to increase the demand and consumption of adequately fortified foods as well as promote optimal feeding practices of infants and young children.

IV. Policy engagement and advocacy to support the creation of an enabling environment for implementation of the ENRICH project and to use project evidence to advocate with key decision-makers in government for the scale-up of nutrition-specific and nutrition-sensitive interventions.

MNP programme implementation in Kenya Research shows that the use of Micronutrient Powder (MNP) has been associated with reducing anemia and iron deficiency for children under two years of age1. A review of previously conducted MNP interventions has identified some crucial steps to successful implementation, including: i) careful consideration of distribution platforms and behaviour change interventions; ii) selection of reliable suppliers to ensure continuity of the commodity; iii) establishing partnership with actors with credibility in targeted communities; iv) clearly defined indicators for measuring success related to, for example, coverage; and v) well trained frontline health workers in counselling in IYCN and use of MNP2,

Nutrition International has worked with the Elgeyo Marakwet County Ministry of Health (MoH) on the design of an MNP programme and implementation plan. The plan was informed by an MNP landscape analysis and consultation with government and other stakeholders in nutrition. The MNP programme is expected to be implemented up to March 2020. The aim of the MNP programme is to improve the nutritional status of infants and young children through the promotion of optimal feeding practices. A BCI strategy, based on the findings from the formative research and the baseline assessment, is being developed and will be ready for distribution in February 2019.

Purpose of the Position:

Nutrition International is looking for an ENRICH MNP Programme Coordinator to work closely with the County MoH to support the implementation of a home fortification intervention, along with other tasks when required, in Elgeyo Marakwet. The specific tasks of the ENRICH MNP coordinator are as follows:

§ Ensure continuous availability of MNP at targeted health facilities for distribution to mothers and caregivers of children 6-23 months of age.

§ Support the implementation of the ENRICH BCI strategy to promote optimal feeding practices and the appropriate use of MNP.

§ Monitor the distribution of MNP and data collection quality at facility and community level.

§ To assess County capacity needs to undertake an MNP intervention (e.g. human resources and training, community mobilization and supply chain) beyond the support of the ENRICH project.

Scope of Work

1. Planning

· Support County MoH, WV Kenya and NI in planning the launch of the MNP Programme.

· Support County MoH and WV Kenya in planning the trainings of ToTs, front-line health workers and Community Health Volunteers in the implementation of the MNP and BCI programme.Commodity management

§ Support County MoH to forecast supply needs over the course of the project based on coverage and distribution targets.

§ Ensure supply chain mechanism function effectively i.e. accurate recording of dispensed MNP, timely transport of MNP to targeted health facilities and adequate storage of the commodity.

§ Support MoH and NI in monitoring stock levels to ensure timely procurement and continuous supply of MNP.

§ Monitor the implementation of the waste disposal plan as outlined in the MNP Implementation Plan.

3. Data collection, monitoring and reporting

§ Work with County MoH, WV Kenya and NI to operationalize the monitoring plan as outlined in the MNP Implementation Plan and ensure its complementarity with data collection conducted during the annual survey and mid-term evaluation on coverage, adherence and acceptance as well as stock management.

§ Conduct regular monitoring visits at County, facility and community level to validate MNP programme activities i.e. distribution and counselling, BCI activities, supportive supervision, reporting and data quality audits.

§ Participate in data review meetings to review the quality of reporting of the MNP programme and suggest corrective measures for improvement.

§ Work with County MoH to ensure adequate documentation of lessons learned and good practices of the ENRICH MNP programme.

4. Co-ordination and communication

§ Establish and maintain communication with the County Ministry of Health (i.e. Nutrition Coordinator, Pharmacist, Community Strategy Focal Person, Health Records and Information Officer and World Vision ENRICH Project Manager).

§ Provide regular updates on the MNP programme to the ENRICH Project Officer.

§ Represent NI, alongside the ENRICH Project Officer, in project monthly steering committee meetings at County level. The ENRICH MNP Programme Coordinator will perform other duties as required. Key Deliverables to NI

§ Work Plan for the duration of the contract. The work plan will be developed in consultation with the ENRICH Project Officer and be aligned with the project’s year two Annual Work Plan and MNP Programme Design and Implementation Plan.

§ Revised monitoring plan for the MNP programme, including BCI activities, informed by the experience of operationalizing the plan in the first couple of months of implementation.

§ Monthly and quarterly progress report, submitted as per the agreed timelines in the above mentioned work plan.

§ Final report that includes lessons learned and good practices for improvement in the implementation of the MNP programme, including recommendations for integration of MNP, BCI activities targeted for IYCN and MNP activities, capacity development of healthcare providers, supply chain management and monitoring and reporting. Reporting Lines: The MNP Programme Coordinator will report directly to NI’s ENRICH Project Officer and will work in collaboration with the Elgeyo Marakwet County Health Department.

Selection procedure and contracting:

The selection process will be competitive and will be overseen by NI at all stages in consultation with the County Health Department. The MNP Programme Coordinator will be stationed in the office of the Elgeyo Marakwet County Nutrition Coordinator. The selected MNP Programme Coordinator will sign a service contract with NI.

Remuneration:

A competitive compensation is offered based on NI consultancy rates and upon submission and acceptance of deliverables stipulated in the contract.

Contract Length: The duration of the contract will be 10 months.

Qualifications

NI seeks an ENRICH MNP Programme Coordinator with the following qualifications:

§ A minimum of three to five years nutrition programme experience at County or National level, e.g. coordination of Maternal and Child Health and Nutrition projects

§ At least a Bachelor’s degree in Nutrition, Public Health, Nursing or similar relevant discipline preferred or equivalent experience

§ Good knowledge of the Kenya health system

§ Strong attention to detail and analytic skills

§ Proficient in MS Word, Excel and PowerPoint

§ Strong written and spoken English