District Head – Maharashtra Inclusive Livelihoods Programme (MILP) : ACCESS Development Services (ACCESS)

Apply by 20th Oct 24

ACCESS Development Services (ACCESS) is a national non-profit organization with a focus on incubating innovations and developing sustainable models for livelihoods promotion of the poor. ACCESS, with its head office in New Delhi has a pan-India presence with operations across 13 states. More at www.accessdev.org

About ACCESS – BRAC UPGI Partnership:
BRAC is one of the world’s largest development organizations, dedicated to empowering people living in poverty. Working across 12 countries in South Asia and Africa, BRAC impacts more than 120 million people worldwide. BRAC takes a holistic approach to alleviating poverty with programmes that include microfinance, education, healthcare, food security programmes, and more. The Ultra-Poor Graduation Initiative (UPGI), an initiative of BRAC

International, aims to support governments to scale the Graduation approach and facilitate 21 million more people lift themselves from extreme poverty by 2026.

In India, BRAC has signed an MoU with DAY-NRLM under the Ministry of Rural Development, GoI, to support the implementation of an inclusive livelihoods programme for households living in extreme vulnerability. BRAC International is signing an MoU with ACCESS to set up the state programme management unit (SPMU) within MSRLM (UMED) to facilitate comprehensive coordination and oversight of MILP. ACCESS will be responsible for managing, coordinating, and aligning various facets of the initiative, ensuring integration with different components and supporting the programme’s overall implementation in the state of Maharashtra.

POSITION: District Head, Maharashtra Inclusive Livelihoods Programme (MILP)

LOCATION: Nashik, Maharashtra

REPORTS TO: CEO, Maharashtra State Rural Livelihoods Mission (MSRLM) & State Anchor, MILP

Position Summary:
In this context, ACCESS is inviting applications from self-driven professionals who are interested to take on the role of District Head. This person will be responsible for timely and high-quality implementation of the project by tracking and documenting project information at the district level. The district head will facilitate the design, implementation, and coordination of the livelihood strategy with different thematic coordinators, and MSRLM, along with other technical partners. The person will also work on synthesizing and organizing data to communicate it to the State Anchor and other team members. This position will operate within MSRLM, directly reporting to CEO, MSRLM with a dotted line reporting to State Anchor, MILP.

Responsibilities:

• Oversee and coordinate the MILP district operations. Ensure that the district and block PMU teams for MILP are embedded within the MSRLM structure.
• Development of district implementation plan in close coordination with State Anchor, other thematic leads and MSRLM.
• Monitor the implementation of district plan and submit progress reports as per requirement. Ensure timely data entry into MIS for the MILP.
• Ensure capacity building and training of all SRLM staff, community cadres and CRPs in line with MILP requirements.
• Make field visits, meet and coordinate with stakeholders at district and block level to address issues relatedto implementation of the program.
• Support the district SRLM team, block team, community cadres, CBOs and CRPs in designing and establishing the required systems and in program implementation.
• Work with various government departments ensuring that the target program participants are enrolled, receiving necessary services they are eligible for.
• Facilitate the district, block, and cluster level program teams by engaging them in team discussion and other strategic deliberations.
• Participate in different kinds of training as and when required
• Plan for organizing awareness building programs, trainings and workshops on social issues depending on the needs of the community and project requirements
• Establish and maintain effective working relationships with local NGO staff, and District level development Officials and Govt.
• Identification and documentation of best practices, case studies, IEC material
• Acting as the local contact of the organization in the district and representing organization in different
  community level meetings, trainings and workshops
• Planning logistics, venue and other associated tasks for meetings and other important initiatives.
•  Any other programme related tasks and requirements assigned by the State Anchor, MSRLM or ACCESS.

Qualifications:

The candidate should have professional experience in programme management, working with government, working experience in poverty alleviation programming in India in the areas of rural development or social development initiatives either directly or through development partners, national or international development sector agencies or international donors. Basic understanding of the policy landscape and the relevant government frameworks and schemes is required. Experience of working with state / central government in the capacity of technical support provider/advisor / funder with proven experience of providing services to government for improving their systems and programmes is desirable.

Education & Experience:

• Master’s degree/Diploma in Social Sciences from a reputed institution.
• Minimum 5 years of relevant work experience as outlined above, preferably with 2 years of experience at district level programmes related to livelihood, rural development, microfinance, social protection.

Skills and Competencies:

• Familiarity with government schemes and policies.
• Experience and understanding of the rural social, rural poverty, economy, livelihoods and value chains with demonstrated experience of working with grassroot communities.
• Strong understanding of field-level challenges in rural India concerning the delivery of government programs and schemes.
• Good organisational and management skills.
• Detail-oriented with a commitment to maintaining high-quality standards.
• Maintain organised and up-to-date project files and documentation.
• Provide logistical support for project meetings, workshops, and events.
• Proficiency in MS Office.
• Exceptional interpersonal skills.
• Should have strong written and oral communication skills in Hindi and English.
• Fluency (written and oral communication) in Marathi is mandatory.
• Ability to work in small teams, manage multiple priorities, and adapt to changing needs.
• Travel Requirement: Willingness to travel and stay in remote areas, as and when required. This is a strictly on-site position with no work-from-home policy.

COMPENSATION: The salary range for this position is commensurate to industry standards and will be determined based upon experience set of the candidate and the HR policies of the organization.

ACCESS is an Equal Opportunity Employer, and is committed to providing an environment of fairness, and mutual respect where all applicants have access to equal employment opportunities. ACCESS values diversity and inclusion, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, religion, national origin, marital status, age and disability.

Interested candidates should send their details as below link:
https://forms.gle/8nbiycEr6dMA78zt9

Only short-listed candidates will be contacted. The deadline is 20th October, 2024.