Senior Project Officer at Mercy Corps Nigeria

Mercy Corps is a leading global organization powered by the belief that a better world is possible. In disasters, in hardship, in more than 40 countries around the world, we partner to put bold solutions into action – helping people triumph over adversity and build stronger communities from within. Now, and for the future.

Mercy Corps Nigeria implements a variety of programs with the goal of building productive, secure and just communities. Our work covers the following sectors: economic development, livelihoods / food security, adolescent girls & boys’ empowerment, financial resilience, conflict management, and humanitarian response. Common themes include community engagement, inclusive development, gender, and working in partnership with local government, the private sector, and civil society actors.

We are  recruiting to fill the position below:

 Job Title: Senior Project Officer

Requisition Number: SENIO006958
Location: Katsina
Job Category: Programming

Department Summary

• The Senior Project Officer will be part of Mercy Corps Nigeria’s Resilience and Climate Adaptation portfolio and will support the implementation of the Protecting Food Security Against Flood & Drought Cycles project in Katsina State.
• The project aims to improve food security and community resilience through integrated flood and drought mitigation measures, climate-resilient infrastructure, sustainable land management, and capacity strengthening of farmers and pastoralists.
• Key interventions include watershed restoration, construction of solar-powered water systems, development of community food and fodder storage facilities, and promotion of climate-smart agriculture and rangeland management practices.
• The Senior Project Officer will provide day-to-day technical and operational leadership for field implementation, ensuring that project activities are delivered efficiently, on time, within budget, and in accordance with Mercy Corps standards, donor requirements, and government regulations.

The Position

• The Senior Project Officer is responsible for coordinating field implementation of project activities across target communities, supervising technical teams and community facilitators, managing relationships with local stakeholders, monitoring implementation progress, and ensuring high-quality delivery of project outputs.
• Working under the supervision of the Technical Project Manager, the Senior Project Officer serves as the primary field focal point for implementation and ensures effective coordination between technical, operations, procurement, finance, MEAL, contractors, and community stakeholders.

Essential Responsibilities
Project Coordination and Implementation:

• Coordinate day-to-day implementation of all project activities across assigned Local Government Areas and communities.
• Develop detailed implementation plans and monitor progress against approved work plans.
• Coordinate implementation of project interventions including Flood and drought mitigation measures, Climate-resilient water infrastructure, and community storage facilities.
• Ensure activities are implemented according to technical standards, work plans, budgets, and donor requirements.
• Monitor implementation timelines and proactively address implementation bottlenecks.
• Ensure project documentation is complete, accurate, and maintained according to Mercy Corps procedures.

Technical Support and Quality Assurance:

• Support technical assessments, baseline studies, and site selection processes.
• Assist in reviewing engineering designs, Bills of Quantities (BoQs), technical specifications, and implementation plans.
• Conduct routine field supervision to ensure quality implementation of infrastructure activities.
• Monitor contractor performance and verify completed works before certification.
• Ensure compliance with Mercy Corps Infrastructure Minimum Standards and relevant national regulations.
• Identify technical issues during implementation and recommend corrective actions.
• Support quality assurance and quality control processes for all project interventions.

Community Engagement and Capacity Strengthening:

• Coordinate community mobilization and stakeholder engagement activities.
• Facilitate participatory planning meetings with community leaders, farmer organizations, pastoralist groups, women’s associations, and local authorities.
• Support establishment and strengthening of community management committees.
• Organize and facilitate technical trainings on Flood and drought preparedness, Water infrastructure management, and Operation and maintenance of community assets
• Promote community ownership and sustainability of project investments.

Contractor and Infrastructure Supervision:

• Coordinate daily supervision of contractors and construction activities.
• Monitor construction schedules and ensure adherence to approved technical specifications.
• Verify quality of construction materials and workmanship.
• Ensure compliance with environmental, health, safety, and safeguarding standards.
• Support procurement processes by preparing technical inputs and monitoring delivery of construction materials.
• Assist with infrastructure commissioning and handover to communities.

Monitoring, Evaluation and Reporting:

• Support implementation of the project’s Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning (MEAL) framework.
• Collect, verify, and submit high-quality implementation data.
• Conduct routine field monitoring visits and beneficiary verification.
• Track progress against project indicators and milestones.
• Prepare weekly, monthly, and quarterly implementation reports.
• Document success stories, lessons learned, innovations, and best practices.
• Support donor monitoring visits and technical assessments.

The Senior Project Officer will contribute to achieving key project targets, including:

• Protection of productive land through flood and drought mitigation measures.
• Construction or rehabilitation of solar-powered water systems.
• Development of climate-resilient food, seed, and fodder storage facilities.

Coordination and Partnership Management:

• Maintain effective working relationships with key stakeholders at state, local, and community level.
• Represent Mercy Corps at community coordination meetings and technical forums as delegated.
• Ensure regular communication between field teams and project management.

Financial and Administrative Management:

• Monitor field activity budgets and expenditures.
• Support preparation of procurement plans and activity budgets.
• Verify invoices and contractor payment documentation.
• Ensure efficient utilization of project resources.
• Maintain complete activity documentation and filing systems.

Team Supervision:

• Provide day-to-day supervision and mentoring of partner Project Officers, Community Facilitators, and Technical Assistants.
• Coordinate work schedules for field teams.
• Promote teamwork, accountability, and high performance.
• Support staff capacity development through coaching and on-the-job mentoring.

Risk Management and Compliance:

• Identify implementation risks and recommend mitigation measures.
• Ensure compliance with donor regulations, Mercy Corps policies, safeguarding requirements, and security procedures.
• Promote environmental and social safeguards throughout implementation.
• Report incidents, challenges, and emerging risks in a timely manner.

Success Factors

• The successful Senior Project Officer will possess strong project coordination skills, sound technical knowledge, and excellent field management capabilities.
• They will be highly organized, solutions-oriented, and able to manage multiple priorities in dynamic environments. Success in this role requires strong leadership, effective communication, technical problem-solving, and the ability to build trust with communities, contractors, government counterparts, and project teams while consistently delivering high-quality results.

Risk Levels

• Risk Level: Level 3, Level 2, Level 1.
• Level 3: Frequent contact with participants, direct contact with children, access to sensitive data, and/or high level of accountability.
• Level 2: Some contact with participants; unplanned non-direct contact with children.
• Level 1: Likely to have no contact with participants or sensitive data.

Supervisory Responsibility

• May supervise Project Officers, Community Facilitators, Field Assistants, Technical Assistants, Enumerators, and Casual labor teams during implementation activities. Also provides technical oversight to contractors during field implementation.

Accountability:

• Reports Directly To: Technical Project Manager
• Works Directly With: Program Team, MEAL Team, Operations & Procurement Team, Finance Team, Security Team, Government Counterparts, Contractors, Community institutions.

Accountability to Participants and Stakeholders:

• Mercy Corps team members are expected to support accountability to program participants, community partners, government institutions, and donors by promoting participation, transparency, inclusion, and feedback mechanisms throughout project implementation.

Requirements
Minimum Qualifications & Transferable Skills:

• Bachelor’s Degree in Civil Engineering, Agricultural Engineering, Environmental Management, Agriculture, Water Resources Engineering, Natural Resource Management, Project Management, or a related field.
• Master’s Degree is an added advantage.
• 5–7 years of progressively responsible experience implementing donor-funded infrastructure, climate resilience, agriculture, or natural resource management projects.
• Demonstrated experience supervising construction or community infrastructure projects.
• Experience working with rural communities and local government institutions.
• Experience supervising contractors and managing community-based implementation.
• Strong planning, coordination, reporting, and organizational skills.
• Excellent interpersonal, facilitation, and stakeholder engagement skills.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office applications and mobile data collection platforms.
• Fluency in English is required; knowledge of Hausa and other local languages spoken in Katsina State is highly desirable.
• Professional certification in Project Management (PMP, PRINCE2, or equivalent) is an advantage.

Living Conditions / Environmental Conditions:

• The position is based in Katsina State, with extensive travel to rural and remote project communities.
• Field assignments may require travel to areas with limited infrastructure and seasonal accessibility.
• The incumbent must comply with all Mercy Corps security and safety protocols.

Application Deadline 
14th August, 2026.

Method of Application
Interested and qualified candidates should use link below to Apply.

Click here to apply

Note
Ongoing Learning:

• In support of Mercy Corps’ commitment to continuous learning, team members are encouraged to dedicate 5% of their working time to professional development, technical learning, and knowledge sharing.

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion:

• Achieving our mission begins with how we build our team and work together.
• Through our commitment to enriching our organization with people of different origins, beliefs, backgrounds, and ways of thinking, we are better able to leverage the collective power of our teams and solve the world’s most complex challenges.
• We strive for a culture of trust and respect, where everyone contributes their perspectives and authentic selves, reaches their potential as individuals and teams, and collaborates to do the best work of their lives.
• We recognize that diversity and inclusion are a journey, and we are committed to learning, listening, and evolving to become more diverse, equitable, and inclusive than we are today.

Equal Employment Opportunity:

• Mercy Corps is an equal opportunity employer that does not tolerate discrimination on any basis.
• We actively seek out diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be collectively stronger and have a sustained global impact.
• We are committed to providing an environment of respect and psychological safety where equal employment opportunities are available to all.
• We do not engage in or tolerate discrimination based on race, color, gender identity, gender expression, religion, age, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin, disability (including HIV / AIDS status), marital status, military veteran status, or any other protected group in the locations where we work.

Safeguarding & Ethics:

• Mercy Corps is committed to ensuring that all individuals we come into contact with through our work, whether team members, community members, program participants or others, are treated with respect and dignity.
• We are committed to the core principles regarding prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse laid out by the UN Secretary General and IASC and have signed on to the Interagency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme.
• We will not tolerate child abuse, sexual exploitation, abuse, or harassment by or of our team members.
• As part of our commitment to a safe and inclusive work environment, team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner, respect local laws and customs, and to adhere to Mercy Corps Code of Conduct Policies and values at all times.
  • Team members are required to complete mandatory Code of Conduct elearning courses upon hire and on an annual basis.