Program Officer

Vacancy Announcement

Organization Background

The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) is a US non-profit, tax-exempt, private organization established in 1895 that saves wildlife and wild places by understanding critical issues, crafting science-based solutions, and taking conservation actions that benefit nature and humanity. With more than a century of experience, long-term commitments in dozens of landscapes, presence in nearly 60 nations, and experience helping to establish over 150 protected areas across the globe, WCS has amassed the biological knowledge, cultural understanding and partnerships to ensure that vibrant, wild places and wildlife thrive alongside local communities.

WCS Viet Nam Program Overview

WCS has been working in Viet Nam since 2006, focusing on strengthening the commitment, capacity and actions of the government of Vietnam to combat wildlife trafficking. Through support and cooperation to executive and judiciary sectors, including Ministry of Public Security, Supreme People’s Court, Supreme People’s Procuracy, Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, and the National Assembly, it has provided and shared intelligence on criminal wildlife networks which help generate well-informed decisions in enforcement operations. WCS Viet Nam have generated a wide range of reliable data on a number of related issues on illegal wildlife trade, trained and briefed about 4,000 law enforcement officers, policy makers, journalist, researcher and managers at nation-wide  in investigation and enforcement techniques, legal barriers and distributed a number of technical handbooks and guides. It has assisted central agencies to review and propose necessary changes to national legislation, criminal intelligence analysis systems, inter-agency cooperation. WCS has also facilitated Government to Government dialogue through multilateral and bi-lateral collaboration efforts, between Viet Nam and Asian, African and Latin American countries, to detect and respond to illegal wildlife trade networks. Its wildlife health expertise has been leveraged to address unregulated wildlife trade and mitigation of pandemic threats, through collaborative research, training, and policy development. Recently, WCS Viet Nam has also expanded to species conservation, with a focus on finding and protecting Rafetus Swinhoei in the wild.

Job Summary

The Program Officer (PO) will contribute to WCS’s work in Viet Nam by providing the technical expertise in the areas of health and wildlife monitoring and supporting the implementation of wildlife health related projects. 

• The PO will work with the Health Team to collaborate with Vietnamese government agencies and project partners, to plan and implement a national wildlife disease surveillance network incorporating both passive surveillance (detecting and recording wildlife morbidity and mortality events) and targeted surveillance for especially dangerous pathogens (EDPs), zoonotic diseases, and viral spillover risk at human/wildlife/domestic animal interfaces;
• The PO will support monitoring and capacity development activities by engagement in the design and implementation of training activities and training follow up with relevant local government agency partners including protected area and forest protection rangers, local veterinary and public health officials, and partners from research and academic institutions in Viet Nam.  
• The PO will support to establish a wildlife health surveillance system, enhance wildlife morbidity and mortality detection and reporting, and implement research focused on EPDs and assessing viral spillover risk and wildlife trade and consumption as a pathway for infectious disease emergence.

Responsibilities 

A.      Project activities implementation

• Contributes to the planning of active and passive wildlife disease surveillance and research projects related to disease at the human-wildlife-domestic animal interface including the wildlife trade;
• Assists in training and training follow up to project partners on active and passive wildlife disease surveillance including wildlife health issues, sample collection, and animal handling;
• Supports good working relationships with relevant Vietnamese government agencies and/or institutions to secure the necessary support for project activities including sample collection, sample transport/storage, disease diagnostics and dissemination of results, SOP development, network implementation;
• Assists with organization of stakeholder meetings organized by the Health Team in Viet Nam and present and translate material where necessary;
• Contributes to the planning and implementation of field-based activities including making arrangements with local partners for training, sample collection, organizing field trip schedules and travel logistics; collection of samples from wild animals, appropriate storage and handling of these samples, and acquisition of export and sample transport permits where necessary for diagnostics;
• Provides inputs to financial reports, project reports, and donor reports in English and Vietnamese.
• Supports the Health Team supply and equipment purchasing and inventory, including reagents, diagnostic kits and consumable supply needs of partner laboratories for project activities. 

B.      Data Management & Analysis

• Supports field data collection, data entry associated with active and passive wildlife disease surveillance and other research studies;
• Supports data analysis as instructed and reporting to project partners.

C.       Networking, Partnership and Program Development

• Communicate and coordinate with Health Team’s partners and relevant institutions in Viet Nam;
• Contribute to ideas and development of new health projects in collaboration with other teams in the WCS Viet Nam program.

D.      Budget Management

• Assures timely accounting and reporting on all project expenditures.

E.       Others

• Represents the Health Team in public meetings and events, as required;
• Performs other tasks as assigned by the direct supervisor.

Minimum Requirements

• Minimum bachelor/college degree in a related field of veterinary medicine or biology or wildlife conservation;
• At least three years relevant work experience in a similar position;
• Experience developing materials and delivering trainings with Vietnamese government agencies, and academic/research institutions;
• Basic skills and awareness of bio-risk management, animal handling, biological sample collection, data recording and sample management;
• An interest in supporting the management and implementation of program activities;
• Proficient in written and verbal communication skills in English Language;
• Computer skills mandatory, proficient in Microsoft Office Applications;
• Concern for wildlife conservation & environmental issues is an asset.

Application Process: Interested candidates, who meet the above qualifications should apply online via this link:https://forms.gle/VBt72ULFMMsJA1PZ9 latest by 23:59 of 08 August 2021.

WCS is an equal opportunity employer and the organization complies with all employment and labor laws and regulations that prohibit discrimination in hiring and ensures that candidates from all backgrounds are fairly and consistently considered during the recruitment process. We are dedicated to hiring and supporting a diverse workforce. We are committed to cultivating an inclusive work environment and look for future team members who share that same value. The organization provides equal employment opportunities for all qualified candidates. The organization does not discriminate for employment based on age, color, disability, gender identify, national origin, race, religion, sexual orientation, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by laws and regulations.