Business Support Assistant

Introduction:

Human Appeal is an incorporated UK charity and a global humanitarian and development organisation. We save lives, alleviate poverty, transform and empower local communities whilst championing humanity, impartiality, neutrality, and independence and establishment of self-sustaining development programmes. Our vision is ‘’ to become the global agent of change for a just, caring, and sustainable world’’.

Position Summary:

The main purpose of the position involves monitoring all Chakki flour fortification activities, ensuring coordination with the supervisor and designated project team. Supporting capacity-building activities for staff at assigned Chakki mills and ensuring the implementation of quality assurance and control processes. The position also involves conducting SBC and sensitization activities, developing B2B linkages, preparing and submitting activity reports, maintaining accurate production data records, ensuring data integrity, and addressing queries and discrepancies in data to support the Chakki mills.

• Monitor all Chakki flour fortification-related activities and maintain coordination with supervisor (WFP focal point) and WFP project team.
• Assist and support on capacity-building activities for staff of assigned Chakki mills, food inspectors, food safety officers, LHWs, lab staff, Nashonuma mobilisers and district focal persons on fortification, quality assurance and quality control processes to promote sustainable and adequate/effective fortification process of Chakki flour.
• Assist in providing timely and adequate support to Chakki flour fortification, installation and maintenance of micro- feeders, its calibration and setting flow rate of premix as per standards prescribed by Pakistan’s Standard and Quality Control Authority and PFA regulations.
• Closely monitor assigned Chakki mills to ensure that there is uninterrupted supply of premix according to their requirements and perform timely coordination with the supervisor and project team.
• Ensure timely and smooth supply of iron Spot test kits to Chakki Mills and food inspectors for monitoring of fortification compliance at production, market and household level.
• Collect samples of fortified Chakki flour from the assigned Chakki mills regularly and ensure its delivery at identified labs as per experimental design for analysis.
• Assist in the identification of small-scale mills (Chakki) as per WFP guidelines.
• Support surveys at market and household to monitor the availability of adequately fortified Chakki flour and ensure compliance keeping close coordination with the project team.
• Assist project team in coordination measures with district government authorities for awareness creation activities at district level to generate the needed demand for fortified wheat flour in coordination with other functional units or agencies.
• Conduct SBC and sensitization activities in the assigned districts at the Chakkis/BNP Facilitations Centers in coordination with the BNP staff and other stakeholders.
• Provide support to the Chakkis in the development of Business to Business (B2B) linkages to create/increase demand of fortified wheat flour.
• Prepare and submit daily, weekly, and monthly activity/monitoring plans and reports to supervisor and WFP focal point and WFP project team.
• Gather information with clear direction to support the drafting of documents and preparing reports by other staff.
• Ensure the proper record keeping of production data, premix consumption and iron test kits etc. at Chakki.
• Collect and collate the accurate field data and timely share with the supervisor.
• Take responsibility for data integrity to facilitate availability of accurate information in corporate systems.
• Respond to queries and escalate where appropriate to provide a timely and accurate service to Chakkis.
• Take responsibility for the maintenance of set standard systems and files, to ensure information is accurate and readily available for the function.
• Identify simple discrepancies in statistics and data, such as missing information, and report to senior staff to support Chakkis to deliver.

Qualification & Experience:

• Bachelor's Degree in project management or Master’s degree in agriculture or business management, international relations, sustainable development, economics, development studies or related field related education background.
• At least 4 3 years of experience in project management, implementation, monitoring and evaluation. You will have previous experience working with business and project administration systems, including financial administration. Previous experience with WFP, SUN Partners and/or on Food Systems projects is mandatory.
• Knowledge of PSEA, Protection & GBV, Gender & Inclusiveness in recovery context. .
• Ability to communicate in local languages is required.
• Good level of spoken and written Sindhi, English and local languages.
• Excellent skills in execute administrative tasks in a timely manner and a strong ability to work with diverse groups/individuals, ranging from local partners, local authorities, local community groups, the civil society and the private sector.
• Excellent ability to work as part of a team.
• Ability to work in an environment where there are physical discomforts associated with change in weather or discomforts associated with noise, dust or dirt.

Skills and Proficiencies:

• Ability and willingness to autonomously travel to duty site and villages when required.
• Willingness and capacity to be flexible and accommodating when faced with difficult and frustrating working conditions like long distance walking to work/distribution sites.
• Excellent spoken and written local language /Urdu and English language skills.
• Good computer skills – ability to write weekly and monthly reports and data analysis.

Note: As, we are looking for immediate hires, we will be reviewing candidates on rolling basis.