Essential Requirements:
At least 10 years of water and sanitation sector expertise related to current Kenyan private sector and local government context.
At least five years in a technical managerial role.
University degree in civil engineering, or related technical field, at Master’s level.
Proven experience in undertaking activities aimed at capacity building of private and public sector actors to effectively manage water supply/sanitation services, carry out system operation and maintenance, improve technical, financial and management performance, and extend service coverage.
Experience in working on urban water supply systems; community-based water supply and sanitation program implementation and operation is essential;
Strong communication skills, both interpersonal and written, to fulfill the technical and managerial responsibilities proposed.
Knowledge and experience working on Kenyan water supply and sanitation issues in a devolved setting;
Familiarity with USAID environmental and construction codes, reporting and management requirements preferred;
Strong English writing and speaking skills.
Overview: The Kenya Integrated Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (KIWASH) Project is a five-year, USAID-funded project to improve lives and health through the development and management of sustainable water, sanitation, and hygiene services in Kenya.
Its purpose is to institutionalize catalytic models of sustainable service delivery for accelerated water and sanitation access in nine target counties and to improve complementary hygiene behaviors.
The overall Project target is to enable one million people to gain access to improved WASH services.
Sheladia Associates, Inc., a US engineering firm, is seeking a qualified candidate to serve as Water and Sanitation Advisor on the KIWASH Project.
Candidates must have Kenyan citizenship. This is a full-time position for a period of up to 3 and ½ years. Successful candidate must have ten years related experience, five of which that have been in a supervisory/managerial role.
Requires a Masters level university degree in civil engineering and strong English language written and verbal skills.
The position calls for demonstrated experience providing capacity building services to the private and public sectors.
Salary and benefits are competitive. Position to start in April 2017.
Summary of Primary Duties: The Advisor will oversee and lead the successful implementation of the water and sanitation hardware (infrastructure) portion of the project in the nine KIWASH counties.
He/she will also act as one of the senior Project Managers, advising the Chief of Party and Deputy on project policy, planning and implementation.
The Advisor will also be responsible for, and supervise, all project work and activities associated with Water Resources User Associations (WRUAs); assistance to Water Service Providers (WSP’s) to reduce Non-Revenue Water (NRW); and increased environmental sustainability of WASH services; and the management of, and monitoring of, climate change risk adaptation.
The duties will cover both urban/peri-urban and rural areas and will comprise both technical advisory and construction design and supervision duties.
The infrastructure may comprise urban surface and ground water supply systems; fecal sludge management; expansion of existing rural supply schemes; small-scale irrigation schemes and water supply/sanitation facilities at health or education facilities.
Essential Duties:
The Water and Sanitation Advisor will:
Design, develop and implement strategies and project work plans to increase WASH coverage in the project counties;
Develop and implement construction plans for infrastructure investments and ensure that the KIWASH Construction Plan is fully complied with;
Provide technical leadership to ensure that all construction design documents produced are of high quality and within the context of the project scope, schedule and budget;
Advice on, and manage, WASH and Multiple Use water Systems (MUS) infrastructure activities in the project counties;
Assist with the selection of Kenyan engineering staff and manage the technical inputs and outputs of all assigned staff, consultants, engineers, subcontractors, and project partners;
Provide training to national project staff, community members and government staff;
Ensure timely completion of infrastructure activities by providing quality assurance and quality control for the design and construction of small to medium scale WASH infrastructure and MUS which are to be in compliance with USAID and Government of Kenya environmental and construction codes, reporting, and management requirements and DAI policies.
Provide overall technical and management leadership to KIWASH and ensure the achievement of program objectives and expected result and assist with the monitoring and evaluation of the Project per the requirements of the Activity Monitoring and Evaluation Plan;
Liaise and coordinate with County-based Government water/sanitation, education and health staff, Water Service Providers (WSP’s, i.e. County Government owned water and sewerage companies), and beneficiary communities;
Assist with the production of RFPs, RFQs, or BOQs, and provide input on specifications, cost estimates, deliverables, and evaluation criteria; and provide inputs on WASH infrastructure and MUS’s for site selection, surveys and designs;
Participate in bid evaluation committees to select qualified construction firms (sub-contractors) or vendors for equipment and materials;
Prepare reports, manuals, guidelines and other publications as required; and
Other project duties as assigned by the Chief of Party.
Supervisory Responsibilities:
Supervise assigned staff which include: Four County-based WASH Infrastructure Specialists; Environment and Climate Change Specialist, Environment Officer and GIS Specialist.
Base of Operations: Nairobi with frequent travel to the other eight project counties, i.e. in western Kenya: Busia, Kakamega, Kisumu, Migori, Nyamira and Siaya and in the eastern region, i.e. Kitui and Makueni.
Reporting: During the three month probation and transition phases, the Specialist will report to the International Water/ Sanitation Advisor based in Nairobi. On completion of the transition phase he/she will report to the Chief of Party.
