Handicap International-Belgium
Position/Title: Project Coordinator
Location: Male, the Republic of Maldives

Handicap International-Belgium is seeking a highly motivated individual with survey and epidemiological experience to fill the position of Project Coordinator. This is a one-year position starting in September 2008, in order to oversee and help implement a nationally-representative survey on disability in the Maldives.

Handicap International-Belgium (HIB) is an international organization headquartered in Brussels whose aim is ensure the full rehabilitation and integration of persons with disabilities. It currently operates programs in 13 Asian, African, and Latin American countries and works across a wide spectrum, with prevention projects (in maternal and child health, road safety, and disabling illnesses such as HIV/AIDS), rehabilitation and inclusion projects (community-based rehabilitation, physical rehabilitation centers, inclusive education, and socio-economic integration), and human rights (through support to disabled people’s associations). In addition, HIB has mine awareness and action projects, and is currently responding to crises in China, Burma, and the DRC. Finally, HIB is an international advocate on various issues including the global cluster munitions ban.

The Maldives is a Muslim nation composed of close to 1200 islands in the Indian Ocean, 200 of which are inhabited. It has a total population of 300 000. According to the 2003 “Report on Survey of People with Disabilities”, published by the Ministry of Gender and Family, an estimated 3.4% of the population is disabled, although this is likely an under-representation due to the methods used. Handicap International Belgium’s Maldives program was initiated in response to the December 2004 tsunami, which washed over all but 9 of the islands. Current projects include supporting the government in its development of a national policy on disability, and, on selected islands, disability awareness and empowerment campaigns and community-based rehabilitation activities. The Project Coordinator will be responsible for managing all aspects relating to the design and implementation of a nationally representative survey on disability, which is one of the Maldives program’s key activities.

Description:

This position will be focused on coordinating, from start to finish, the design and implementation of a nationally-representative survey on disability. This survey is intended to provide information on the impact of disability in people’s lives, through the lens of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which entered into force on May 3, 2008.

 Responsibilities include:

• Perform an initial thorough analysis, and reformulation, of existing information and data

• Coordinate and manage the survey process with the research and survey teams, and with the Maldives- and Brussels-based staff

• Supervise all stages in the survey design and implementation (including defining aims and objectives; choosing the appropriate theoretical framework for the definition of “disability”; choosing the methodology; choosing the most appropriate tool for detecting disability; training the survey team; analysis and reporting phases, etc.)

• Organize and supervise the field organization (including recruitment and management of the survey team; arranging transportation and accommodation; creation of survey tools; preparing supplies and materials, etc.)

• Design and implement survey trainings

• Maintain regular contact with the research consultants

• Set up and coordinate the survey advisory group

• Ensure the quality of the data collected

• Submit periodic progress reports to the advisory group and to HIB

• Analyze preliminary data

• Organize the end-of-survey workshop to share preliminary results

• Manage the survey budget

• Synthesize and compile all tools and materials into a comprehensive toolkit

• Prepare final report

Skills/Experience required:

• MPH, MHS, MS or PhD

• Previous survey experience, including hands-on experience with the survey design process in low-resource settings

• Knowledge of epidemiology

• Knowledge of sampling techniques and mixed method data collection strategies

• Experience working with consultants and institutional partners (government ministries)

• Experience in substantive search, review and analysis of existing literature and data

• Excellent quantitative and qualitative skills

• Knowledge of international human rights law and norms, especially as applied to people with disabilities

• Strong problem solving skills and analytical capabilities

• Ability to multi-task and to be effective in time-sensitive situations

• Excellent English communication skills – both written and oral

• Ability to work effectively in a team

• Willingness to live overseas

• Willingness to travel

• Strong statistical analysis skills desired

• Software experience (Excel, and either Stata, SAS, S-PLUS, SPSS, Epi-Info) desired

• Previous budget management experience desired

• Previous experience working with disabled populations desired

Deadline: ASAP

TO APPLY: Please email letter of interest, resume and names of three references to: monique.ferguson@handicap.be. In the subject field of the email, please type: “Maldives Project Coordinator”.

http://en.handicapinternational.be/index.php