Social Cohesion Officer - MMC, Jere and Mafa

Country: Nigeria Organization: INTERSOS Closing date: 5 Nov 2026 Key responsibilities 1. Conflict and context analysis • Carry out a conflict and do-no-harm analysis at each facility site. Identify the groups involved, what divides and what connects them, past tensions, power dynamics and risks linked to the facility. • Map stakeholders for each facility: landowning families, traditional leaders, host community members, returnees, IDPs, women and youth groups, and government offices. Note each group's interests and expectations. • Update the analysis every quarter. Advise the Project Manager on conflict risks before key decisions on land, membership, plot allocation or benefits. 2. Ownership and land tenure process • Lead the ownership and tenure audit. Collect and review Phase 1 MoUs, land donation letters, Certificates or Rights of Occupancy, community resolutions and site records. • Facilitate consultations with landowning families, first separately and then jointly with government and communities, using free, prior and informed consent principles. • Support negotiation of the land-use instrument for each site (long-term lease, conditional donation or regularisation through the Ministry of Lands) and of the landowner recognition and benefit package. • Draft the Tripartite Facility Management Agreements with the legal adviser. Coordinate their signing by the lead MDA or LGA, the cooperative and the landowning family or traditional institution. • Organise public validation meetings where each agreement is explained in local languages and a summary is displayed at the facility. 3. Governance structures • Facilitate transparent selection of members and supervised elections of the Facility Management Committees, with protected seats for a Women's Lead, a Youth Lead and a landowner representative. • Support each group to draft its constitution and bye-laws, including term limits, removal procedures, conflict-of-interest rules and a code of conduct. • Set up and support the LGA Facility Oversight Committees in MMC, Jere and Mafa. Provide technical support to the secretariat of the State Asset Oversight Committee. • Train committees in leadership, transparent decision-making, inclusive participation and accountability to members. • Put the safeguards against elite capture in place: public display of membership lists and plot allocations, quarterly social audits, and General Assembly meetings. 4. Social cohesion and peacebuilding • Facilitate community dialogues between landowners, host communities, IDPs and returnees, women and youth, and government officials, to agree a shared vision for each facility. • Lead the development and signing of a Government–Community Compact in each LGA, setting out what government and communities each commit to. • Organise landowner recognition events at commissioning, together with traditional and government leaders. • Coordinate quarterly joint monitoring visits and the twice-yearly community open days. • Set up, train and mentor Peace and Grievance Committees in mediation and dispute resolution. Make sure they include traditional, religious, women, youth, landowner and IDP/returnee representatives. • Mediate disputes over land, access, water allocation, membership and benefits directly. Escalate unresolved cases through the agreed path: facility committee, then traditional leader and LGA mediation, then the Facility Oversight Committee. 5. Early warning and accountability • Maintain a log of tensions, disputes and how they were resolved. Report it every two months to the LGA Oversight Committees and monthly to the Project Manager. • Make sure grievances are linked to the Feedback and Complaints Response Mechanism (FCRM). Refer protection concerns to the Protection focal point. • Help design and analyse the social cohesion perception survey (baseline and endline) with the MEAL Officer. 6. Supervision of community mobilisers • Plan and supervise the community and committee work of the three community mobilisers. • Train them in facilitation, mediation basics, conflict sensitivity and safe referral. • Review their reports, and check the quality and inclusiveness of meetings they organise. 7. Handover readiness • Assess the ownership, governance, inclusion and cohesion criteria of the handover readiness scorecard for each facility. • Document lessons learned on ownership resolution and social cohesion for WFP and partners. Cross-cutting duties • Stay impartial and be seen to be impartial. Never take sides in disputes or make commitments on behalf of government or landowners. • Make sure at least 40% of members of every governance structure are women and youth, and that persons with disabilities, returnees and IDPs take part meaningfully. • Follow PSEA, safeguarding, confidentiality and security procedures. • Carry out any other reasonable duties related to the project, as assigned by the Project Essential requirements: Qualifications, experience and competencies Education • Essential: a university degree (B.Sc or HND) in Peace and Conflict Studies, Sociology, Political Science, Law, Public Administration, Development Studies or a related social science. • Desirable: a Master's degree in Peace and Conflict Studies, Development or Law. Experience Essential • At least 4 years of experience in social cohesion, peace building, community governance or conflict-sensitive programming. • Proven experience facilitating community dialogues and mediating disputes, preferably over land, water or shared resources. • Experience setting up or strengthening community structures such as committees, cooperatives, WUAs or peace committees, including elections and constitutions. • Experience working with traditional institutions and State and LGAs in North-East Nigeria. • Experience with NGOs, UN agencies or government programmes in humanitarian or recovery settings. Desirable • Experience negotiating land-use, asset handover or community ownership agreements. • Knowledge of customary and statutory land tenure in Borno State, including the Land Use Act. • Experience with livelihoods, WASH or infrastructure projects where communities share assets. • Experience with Accountability to Affected Populations (AAP) and feedback mechanisms. Skills and competencies • Excellent facilitation, negotiation and mediation skills. • Able to stay neutral, build trust and handle sensitive information with discretion. • Strong analysis of power and conflict dynamics, and sound judgement on risk. • Clear writing of agreements, meeting records and reports. • Cultural sensitivity and respect for local customs, with a commitment to inclusion of women, youth, persons with disabilities, IDPs and returnees. • Commitment to PSEA, safeguarding and humanitarian principles. • Proficient in MS Office or Google Workspace. Languages • Essential: fluent English and Hausa. • Strongly desirable: fluent Kanuri. . How to apply Interested and Qualified? Apply here Form