Hygiene Promotion Assistant

Badghis

  • Organization: IRC - International Rescue Committee
  • Location: Badghis
  • Grade:
  • Occupational Groups:
    • Administrative support
    • Environment
    • Water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH)
  • Closing Date: 2025-10-13

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) responds to the world's worst humanitarian crises, helping to restore health, safety, education, economic wellbeing, and power to people devastated by conflict and disaster. Founded in 1933 at the call of Albert Einstein, the IRC is one of the world's largest international humanitarian non-governmental organizations (INGO), at work in more than 40 countries and 29 U.S. cities helping people to survive, reclaim control of their future and strengthen their communities. A force for humanity, IRC employees deliver lasting impact by restoring safety, dignity and hope to millions. If you're a solutions-driven, passionate change-maker, come join us in positively impacting the lives of millions of people world-wide for a better future.

Main Purpose of the Job:

IRC Afghanistan has been working with conflict and natural disaster affected communities in Afghanistan since 1988. Its Humanitarian Program has 10 field offices outside of Kabul, including offices at Nangarhar, Logar, Paktia, Khost, Helmand, Laghman, Bamyan, Kunduz, Badghis and Herat provinces. The priority outcomes of Environmental Health (EH) is to ensure that people are protected from water, sanitation and hygiene-related diseases. The overall purpose of the position is to contribute towards health improvement of the targeted communities including schools though practising safe hygiene including good health care seeking behaviour.  This position will support all aspects of technical design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of community hygiene and sanitation promotion; development of hygiene and sanitation promotion implementation approaches, methodologies and guidelines including providing feedback for purposes of improving programme quality. Hygiene promotion and safe practices including IPC initiatives/activities may be extended to targeted health facilities where IRC will be providing basic health services. This role will largely entail working with other EH staff (Engineers) alongside other sectors (Health and Nutrition) in strengthening mainstreaming of hygiene promotion in the current EH/WASH and Health activities. Under the direct supervision of the Environmental Health Manager, the Hygiene Promotion Officer will be responsible for direct implementation of the Hygiene Promotion component of the IRC response activities that influence safe hygiene practices at the targeted communities including maintaining a strong link with the targeted communities. Depending on the target locations, the Hygiene Promotion Officer will both work directly with trained Community Hygiene Promotion Volunteers or through Hygiene Promotion Assistants and further in coordination with Community Health Assistants, through Community Health Promoters and Community Health Supervisors.

Duties and Responsibilities:

Program:

  • Support design and assessments/studies that are geared towards identifying existing hygiene and sanitation practices, WASH-related health risks, barriers to safe hygiene practices and priorities in target communities, schools and health facilities.
  • Working closely with the EH/WASH and Health staff, support analysis  of data/assessment findings to inform on design of Hygiene Promotion approaches that are sustainable and in line with the MoPH community strategies.
  • Under the guidance of the EH manager and working with other WASH staff plan activities to geared towards reducing risky hygiene practices, with reference to both knowledge and behavioral aspects at targeted communities and local institutions.
  • Supporting the EH manager in the design of IEC materials that are appropriate to the context while also ensuring that technical and social aspects of water and sanitation programming are integrated.
  • Directly oversee implementation of hygiene promotion and disaster risks reduction (DRR) activities that include social mobilisation, and awareness raising sessions at targeted communities and households, schools, health facilities and other institutions through appropriate community engagement approaches.
  • Directly oversee distribution of WASH related NFI kits activities working closely with the MEAL by following the approved workflow processes developed for such activities.
  • Support the EH/WASH engineers in the design and overseeing implementation/construction of appropriate Sanitation Infrastructure at targeted local institutions and at the community level.
  • Support communities in identifying hazards and conducting participatory risk assessments.
  • Facilitate the formation and capacity-building of Community Disaster Management Committees (CDMCs).
  • Organize training sessions and simulation exercises on preparedness, mitigation, and response.
  • Ensure integration of DRR concepts into school-based and community-based activities.
  • Liaise with local authorities and other stakeholders to strengthen community resilience and preparedness systems.
  • Selection of communities and leading on recruitment of CHVs

Capacity Building:

  • Organise and conduct hygiene promotion trainings to communities and community volunteers using approved MoPH modules and approaches.
  • Support formation and training of Community groups established for managing operation, repair and maintenance of WASH infrastructure in coordination with the EH sub-sectors (water supply and sanitation).
  • Support formation and training of groups established in schools for managing operation, repair and maintenance of WASH infrastructure in coordination with the EH sub-sectors (water supply and sanitation).
  • Supporting continued mentoring of other EH/WASH staff, Community Health Assistants, Community Health Promoters and Community Health Supervisors on hygiene promotion approaches.
  • Training DRR committees and CHVs on DRR in close coordination with relevant stakeholders.

Monitoring and Reporting:

  • Maintain an update list of all CHPVs and/or CHPs and your supervision and the different locations they are based in.
  • Supervise and monitor implementation of all hygiene promotion activities against set work plans on a day-to-day basis.
  • Weekly activity progress reporting of all hygiene promotion activities through the indicator tracking systems to the EH manager.
  • Support and participate in regular program monitoring activities that include household surveys, FGDs and PDMs upon completion of kit distributions.
  • Oversee and supervise water quality monitoring activities at household level to assess the effectiveness of point of use water treatment approaches.
  • Participate in the monitoring utilisation and appropriate use of the various WASH facilities, provide feedback to the EH engineers and communities on actions that ensure safe and hygienic use of such facilities.

Coordination:

  • Liaise directly with communities (CDCs), acting as a link between IRC and the beneficiaries through mobilisation and encouraging the targeted beneficiaries and all other stakeholders to participate in the IRC activities.
  • Support liaison with local institutions and local authorities (DRRD, DoRR, WASH Cluster) including other agencies operational the project target areas on hygiene and sanitation issues to ensure coordination and effective implementation of activities.
  • Support strengthening of integration of the EH and Health sectors on all aspects related to community health and hygiene promotion.
  • Support strengthening of mainstreaming protection, gender and other environmental related issues into the EH programming aspects.

Supply Chain and Finance:

  • Support development of EH hygiene promotion related activity costing for preparation of budgets and monthly cash forecasts.
  • Responsible for raising all PRs related to EH hygiene promotion and sanitation activities, timely and according to procurement plans set.
  • Work closely with Supply Chain in follow-ups and tracking PRs to ensure speedy processing and processing internal requisitions of stock for WASH-related activities.

Rqueirements:

  • Degree in Public Health or   Environmental Health or related field (Community Health, Community development, Social / applied sciences) with a bias in Public Health and Sanitation or Diploma on the above with at least three years proven field experience.
  • Minimum field experience of 1-2 years in hygiene Promotion through social mobilization and community engagements.
  • Experience as a trainer in Community hygiene promotion, and other BCC approaches that include Participatory Hygiene and Sanitation Transformation (PHAST), Child Sanitation and Hygiene Transformation (CHAST), Community Lead Total Sanitation (CLTS), School Lead Total Sanitation (SLTS) or in any other relevant approach.
  • Strong communication, listening skills and sensitive to the needs and priorities of different groups within the community.
  • Ability and willingness to travel, and work in hard-to-reach rural areas for implementing hygiene promotion activities.
  • Experience and knowledge in understanding social-cultural dynamics of the intervention area, and community engagement and negotiation skills.
  • Strong interpersonal skills and ability to establish and maintain effective working relations with a team.
  • Able to communicate and write in English and should be able to fluently communicate and write Dari and Pashto languages.
  • Computer skills (including MS Word, Excel, Access, and internet).
  • Working experience with migrant populations is an asset

Standard of Professional Conduct: The IRC and the IRC workers must adhere to the values and principles outlined in the IRC Way – our Code of Conduct. These are Integrity, Service, Accountability, and Equality.

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