Programme Support Officer- Veterinarian

Main duty and Responsibilities:

Field-Based Livestock Health Support, Feeding Practices, and Dairy Value Chain Development:

• Conduct routine field visits to livestock beneficiaries and provide timely animal health guidance.
• Advise farmers on improved animal husbandry practices, including feeding, housing, breeding, and hygiene.
• Identify, report early response to livestock disease outbreaks in coordination with VFU.
• Maintain accurate records of treatments, vaccinations, and veterinary services provided.
• Promote improved livestock feeding practices, including fodder production, feed formulation, feed conservation, and efficient feed utilization.
• Support dairy value chain development through improved milk production, hygiene practices, safe milk handling, and linkages with local buyers/collection points.
• Conduct regular field visits to monitor animal health, feed availability, and dairy production performance at household level.

Veterinary Field Unit (VFU) Support and Field Operations:

• Support the establishment and effective operation of Veterinary Field Units at community level.
• Assist in the preparation, safe handling, and distribution of veterinary supplies to VFUs.
• Support distribution of livestock inputs to beneficiaries in line with project guidelines.

Community Training and Awareness:

• Conduct awareness sessions for farmers and herders on livestock care, disease prevention, and hygiene practices.
• Share practical guidance on improved livestock management to increase productivity and drought resilience.
• Promote good animal health practices at household and community level.

Training and Technical Support (Paravet Trainer Role):

• Support the Veterinarian in developing and implementing weekly and monthly field plans, including deworming campaigns and farmer training.
• Deliver community-based training on animal feeding, health care, and preventive disease control.
• Support formal training events by organizing venues, materials, and ensuring farmer participation.
• Support collection of data on animal health, vaccination coverage, deworming, and feed utilization.
• Support distribution of paravet kits and livestock inputs as per project procedures.
• Maintain communication with the DAIL Livestock Department and relevant stakeholders.

Coordination, Reporting, and Accountability:

• Prepare and submit weekly and monthly work plans and reports to the line supervisor.
• Support data collection against project indicators and maintain proper records of activities, beneficiaries, and feedback.
• Act as a communication link between communities and project staff.
• Report community issues, risks, feedback, complaints, and success stories to the Livelihood Support Officer.
• Support accountability and community feedback mechanisms to ensure transparency and responsiveness.

Core Humanitarian Standards (CHS) and Emergency:

• The concern is committed to CHS to ensure downward accountability. CHS standards guide Concern activities in all stages both emergency and development projects /programs. In Afghanistan, we also bounded our activities by Accountability framework and therefore any Afghanistan employees is responsible to comply with CHS principles and benchmarks as instructed by its policies and therefore make sure that all accept and implement CHS standards in all our activities.
• To give full support in relation to emergencies/ humanitarian operations when occurring in any area that Concern Afghanistan will respond. This can include but is not limited to participation in the Concern Afghanistan Rapid Deployment Unit (CARDU) and deployment on emergency response teams.

Qualifications & Experience:

ü  Degree in Veterinary Science, Animal Health, or Para veterinary Studies from a recognized University

ü  2 - 3 years of practical experience in livestock health, vaccination, deworming, and animal husbandry services.

Skills:

ü  Good knowledge of livestock health, animal husbandry, and common diseases.

ü  Ability to deliver farmer awareness sessions and training on livestock care.

ü  Skilled in identifying sick animals and promptly reporting cases to the supervisor.

ü  Basic recordkeeping and reporting skills, including use of Microsoft Office.

ü  Strong communication skills in Dari; knowledge of English is an advantage.

ü  Ability to work effectively in remote communities and spend at least 90% of time in the field.