The IRC was registered in Uganda in mid-1998 and implements rehabilitation activities in the sectors of Child and Youth Protection and development, Health, Economic recovery and Development and women protection and empowerment as well as contributing to the response to the Southern Sudanese Refugee situation. IRC Uganda has a head office in Kampala, field offices in Kiryandongo, Lamwo, Moroto, Kyaka and West Nile.

Position Overview

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) has received a $10 million grant from the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation to implement a three-year project titled ‘Kulea Watoto’ – meaning ‘nurturing children.’ Kulea Watoto is an initiative aimed at improving early childhood development and transforming livelihoods of refugees and host communities in Uganda by providing nurturing care and early childhood learning opportunities, and to build their own skills to generate income for their families. The project will use a unique two-generation approach to reach out to young children under five years of age and their caregivers in Yumbe, Kyegegwa and Kampala districts, implemented in partnership with four local partners – the AfriChild Centre, Madrasa Early Childhood Program, Kabarole Research and Resource Centre and Literacy and Adult Basic Education (LABE). To achieve this, the project will offer learning sessions for parents and caregivers on responsive caregiving and provision of early learning opportunities, improved links to children’s services in local communities, livelihoods training, and start-up funding for promising business ideas, and more.

Early Childhood Development (ECD) and caregiving is a core organizational priority at the IRC with links to Health, Education, Child Protection, and Nutrition as detailed by the Nurturing care framework. Through Kulea Watoto program, IRC and the partners seek to meaningfully implement an integrated program that will strengthen the ECD service provision in the target locations/settlements. To support these efforts, IRC’s ECD Kulea Watoto team is looking for ECD Assistant to enable ECD activity implementation at field level in Kyaka II refugee settlement and surrounding host community. The desired candidate will have strong experience in community mobilization and sensitization, implementing ECD activities in the refugee settlement setting and understands well the importance of early childhood development and responsive caregiving.