CARE RELIEF AID ORGANIZATION (CRO)

TERMS OF REFERENCE (ToR)

Position: Programme Officer (Volunteer)

Organization: Care ReliefAid Organization (CRO)

Position: Programme Officer (Volunteer)

Location: Nigeria Employment Type: Volunteer

Duration: Initially volunteer-based; subject to project availability and funding

Remuneration: Unpaid volunteer position at this stage. Compensation or project-based engagement may be considered when funding is secured.

Reports To: Head of Programmes / Executive Director

1. Organizational Background

Care ReliefAid Organization (CRO) is a strictly women-led, community-driven humanitarian and development organization committed to improving the lives of vulnerable populations through inclusive, rights-based, and sustainable interventions.

Founded on the principles of dignity, equity, and social justice, CRO works at the frontline of crisis response and long-term development, with a strong focus on women, girls, children, youth, and persons with disabilities.

CRO believes that empowering women to lead humanitarian and development action results in more responsive, accountable, and transformative programs for communities. The organization places women and girls at the center of solutions while ensuring no one is left behind.

2. Purpose of the Position

The Programme Officer (Volunteer) will support CRO in the design, coordination, implementation, monitoring, and documentation of humanitarian and development programmes.

The position will contribute to ensuring that programmes are well planned, effectively implemented, evidence-based, accountable to affected communities, and aligned with CRO’s strategic priorities, donor requirements, and humanitarian standards.

The Programme Officer will also support project development, proposal writing, partnership engagement, project start-up, implementation planning, and reporting as opportunities arise.

3. Key Responsibilities

Programme Planning and Development

• Support the design and development of humanitarian and development programmes.

Contribute to concept notes, proposals, logframes, theories of change, workplans, and project budgets.

• Conduct or support needs assessments and situation analyses to inform programme design.
• Identify programme opportunities that align with CRO’s thematic priorities and organizational strategy.
• Support the development of project implementation plans, activity schedules, and programme tools.
• Ensure programme designs are inclusive, gender-sensitive, conflict-sensitive, and responsive to community needs.

Programme Implementation

• Support the implementation of approved projects in accordance with project documents, workplans, budgets, and donor requirements.
• Coordinate with programme teams, field staff, community representatives, partners, and relevant stakeholders.
• Track implementation progress against agreed activities, outputs, outcomes, and timelines.
• Support field-level planning and coordination of programme activities.
• Ensure programme activities are implemented in accordance with relevant humanitarian standards and organizational policies.
• Identify implementation challenges and support the development of corrective actions.

Project Coordination

• Support coordination between programme, MEAL, finance, procurement, logistics, HR, and other relevant departments.
• Participate in project planning and review meetings.
• Maintain programme activity trackers and implementation schedules.
• Follow up on action points from programme meetings.
• Support project start-up and close-out processes.
• Maintain organized programme documentation and records.

Community Engagement and Accountability

• Support meaningful participation of communities in programme design and implementation.
• Ensure that women, girls, children, youth, persons with disabilities, and other vulnerable groups are considered in programme planning.
• Support community consultations, focus group discussions, key informant interviews, and other participatory approaches.
• Work with the MEAL team to ensure that community feedback informs programme implementation.
• Promote accountability, dignity, inclusion, and do-no-harm principles throughout programme activities.

Monitoring, Reporting and Learning

• Work closely with the MEAL team to track programme indicators and results.
• Support collection and documentation of programme data and evidence.
• Contribute to periodic programme reports, donor reports, situation updates, and internal management reports.

Document programme achievements, challenges, lessons learned, success stories, and case studies.

• Participate in programme review meetings and learning sessions.
• Support the implementation of recommendations from monitoring exercises and assessments.

4. Proposal Development and Resource Mobilization

The Programme Officer will support CRO’s resource mobilization efforts by:

• Identifying relevant funding opportunities.
• Supporting donor and partner mapping.
• Contributing to concept notes and funding proposals.
• Supporting the development of project narratives, logframes, workplans, and budgets.
• Conducting basic research on humanitarian and development needs.
• Supporting the preparation of organizational and project profiles for potential donors and partners.
• Contributing to partnership and consortium development efforts.
• Maintaining a tracker of funding opportunities and proposal submissions.

5. Partnership and Stakeholder Engagement

• Support engagement with government institutions, humanitarian coordination structures, donors, NGOs, CSOs, community leaders, and other relevant stakeholders.
• Participate in coordination meetings and workshops where required.
• Support the development and maintenance of relationships with implementing and strategic partners.
• Assist in documenting partnership meetings and agreed action points.
• Support the identification of opportunities for collaboration, networking, and joint programming.

6. Programme Documentation

The Programme Officer will support the development and maintenance of:

• Project proposals and concept notes.
• Project implementation plans.
• Activity workplans and schedules.
• Programme reports.
• Project trackers.
• Meeting minutes and action-point trackers.
• Beneficiary and activity documentation.
• Success stories and case studies.
• Lessons learned documentation.
• Donor and partner reporting materials.  Project close-out documentation.

7. Expected Deliverables

The Volunteer Programme Officer will contribute to:

• Quality project concepts and proposals.

Project workplans and implementation schedules.

• Updated programme activity trackers.
• Programme progress reports.
• Donor reporting inputs.
• Project documentation and evidence.
• Needs assessment and situation analysis reports.
• Lessons learned and success stories.
• Stakeholder and partnership engagement records.
• Funding opportunity and proposal trackers.
• Programme start-up and close-out documentation. Qualifications and Experience

Minimum Requirements:

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent qualification in Development Studies, International Development, Social Sciences, Public Administration, Humanitarian Studies, Project Management, or a related field.
• At least 1–3 years of relevant experience in programme/project management, preferably within an NGO or humanitarian/development organization.
• Experience supporting project implementation and reporting is desirable.
• Good understanding of humanitarian and development programming.
• Strong report-writing and proposal-development skills.
• Good organizational and coordination skills.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Good knowledge of Microsoft Office, particularly Word and Excel.
• Ability to work independently and collaboratively.
• Willingness to support field activities when required.

9. Desirable Skills

Experience or knowledge in the following areas will be an advantage:

• Humanitarian project cycle management.
• Proposal and concept-note development.
• Donor reporting.
• Project planning and budgeting.
• Community engagement and accountability.
• Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning (MEAL).
• Humanitarian coordination mechanisms.
• Protection, gender, disability inclusion, and safeguarding.
• Needs assessments and participatory approaches.
• Partnership and consortium management.
• Knowledge of humanitarian standards and principles.

10. Core Competencies

The successful candidate should demonstrate:

• Strong programme coordination skills.

Planning and organizational ability.

• Analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Excellent communication and report-writing skills.
• Teamwork and collaboration.
• Initiative and ability to work independently.
• Attention to detail.
• Accountability and professionalism.
• Adaptability and willingness to learn.
• Commitment to humanitarian principles.
• Commitment to gender equality, inclusion, safeguarding, and accountability to affected populations.

11. Volunteer Engagement and Remuneration

This is an unpaid volunteer position at the current stage of CRO’s organizational development. The position is intended to strengthen CRO’s programme development and implementation capacity while the organization pursues and develops funded humanitarian and development projects.

There is currently no salary, stipend, or financial remuneration attached to the position.

However, where CRO secures funded projects requiring programme personnel, the organization may consider transitioning the volunteer engagement into a paid project-based or employment position, subject to available funding, project requirements, performance, and organizational procedures.

The volunteer will have the opportunity to gain practical experience in humanitarian programme management, project development, proposal writing, donor reporting, partnership engagement, and programme coordination.

12. Safeguarding and Code of Conduct

The Programme Officer will be required to comply fully with CRO’s policies and standards relating to:

• Child safeguarding and protection from sexual exploitation and abuse (PSEA).
• Prevention of sexual harassment and abuse.
• Protection of vulnerable and affected populations.
• Anti-fraud and anti-corruption.
• Conflict of interest.
• Confidentiality and responsible information management.
• Code of Conduct.
• Gender equality, diversity, and inclusion.
• Do-no-harm and conflict-sensitive programming.

Any form of exploitation, abuse, harassment, discrimination, fraud, corruption, or conflict of interest will not be tolerated.

10. Application Process

Interested candidates should submit via this link: https://forms.gle/zXY5afvqicq1SB8m8

Deadline for Application is on 30^th September 2026