The Ethiopian Red Cross Society (ERCS) wants to hire employees in the following vacant positions the details of which are mentioned below. 

The Ethiopian Red Cross Society (ERCS) was established in 1935 and is one of the oldest and largest humanitarian organizations in Ethiopia. ERCS provides services to communities affected by natural and manmade disasters through the provision of emergency responses, ambulance and first aid, family reunification, essential drugs, water and sanitation, and other humanitarian services. ERCS also runs disaster risk reduction programs with the aim of creating resilience households and communities. Currently the ERCS has a structure consisting of 12 Regional Offices, 34 Zonal Branches and 131 District/Woreda Branches, 599 Woreda Red Cross Committee and 5871 Kebele Red Cross committees.

ERCS also runs disaster risk reduction programs relating to food security, climate change adaptation, livelihood diversification, and institutional capacity building interventions, with the aim of creating resilience households and communities. ERCS works in partnership with the Ethiopian Government, International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent (IFRC), International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), partnering National Societies, members, volunteers and the communities we serve.

Details of the vacant position 

Job Title:  - Locally Led Adaptation & Anticipatory Action Officer

Reporting to: - W@HCA Coordinator

Terms of employment: -Contract for one year (Renewable based on performance)                                                                        

Place of Work:  Jigjiga, Somali Region, Ethiopia (with frequent field travel)

Salary: -  Negotiable  

The Ethiopian Red Cross Society (ERCS) is implementing Water at the Heart of Climate Action (WHCA) Project and other Anticipatory Action related projects in the Somali Region of Ethiopia. These projects focus on anticipatory action and locally led adaptation to address water-related risks, including drought, floods, and cholera outbreaks. This role aims to strengthen early warning and early action (EWEA) systems and ensure community-driven climate adaptation strategies and actions are effectively designed and implemented in collaboration and coordination with the relevant government and non-government stakeholders in the Somali Region of Ethiopia (particularly The Somali Region Disaster Risk Management Office, Meteorological Office, Water Office, Health Office, Natural Resource Management Office, Agricultural Office and Social Affairs Office). In addition, these project are being implemented by putting communities at the center of all the actions to ensure ownership and sustainability. 

2. Purpose of the Role

The Locally Led Adaptation & Anticipatory Action Officer will:

• Strengthen early warning and anticipatory action mechanisms for water-related risks.

• Support communities in designing and implementing locally led adaptation initiatives.

• Facilitate risk-informed decision-making and improve forecast-based early action.

• Build coordination mechanisms with key government and humanitarian stakeholders.

3. Key Responsibilities

a) Early Warning & Anticipatory Action

• Develop and operationalize early warning triggers for drought, floods, and cholera.

• Support the localization of Early Action Protocols (EAPs) at regional and community levels.

• Facilitate data-driven decision-making by integrating hydro-meteorological information into forecast-based financing and anticipatory action systems.

• Provide technical support for the simulation, activation, and revision of early action plans.

b) Community-Led Adaptation & Risk Reduction

• Conduct community-based climate risk assessments to guide locally led adaptation planning.

• Strengthen community capacity to implement anticipatory actions using participatory approaches.

• Support the integration of indigenous knowledge with scientific forecasting for effective risk reduction.

c) Coordination & Capacity Building

• Strengthen (establish when necessary) the anticipatory action technical working groups at regional and woreda levels.

• Train ERCS staff, volunteers, and communities in early warning interpretation and risk-informed early action.

• Foster multi-stakeholder collaboration with government agencies, meteorological institutions, and humanitarian actors.

d) Reporting, Monitoring, Evaluation, Documentation and Sharing 

• Assess and document the effectiveness of early warning systems and anticipatory actions.

• Explore innovative risk communication approaches for timely community alerts.

• Ensure that effective monitoring and evaluation systems are in place as per the agreed M&E frameworks for the projects, implementation progress are regularly tracked and reported as the provided reporting templates. 

• Contribute to global and national knowledge-sharing platforms on anticipatory action and climate resilience.

Job Requirements

4. Qualifications & Experience

• Master/BA degree in Hydro-meteorology, Agro-Meteorology, Disaster Risk Management, Environmental Science, Climate Science, or related fields.

• Minimum 3–5 years of experience in early warning systems, anticipatory action, and disaster risk reduction.

• Technical expertise in hydro-meteorological forecasting, risk assessment, and contingency planning.

• Strong coordination and partnership-building skills with government and humanitarian actors.

• Experience in community-led climate adaptation and participatory disaster risk reduction could be a strong asset.

• Fluency in Somali and English (mandatory).

5. Reporting & Supervision

The coordinator will report to the ERCS, Somali Branch, Program Manager and work closely with ERCS technical teams and key partners, including the IFRC, NLRC, Ethiopian Disaster Risk Management Commission (EDRMC), and regional meteorological and hydrology in

How To Apply

We invite candidates meeting the required qualifications to fill out the employment application form with the indicated link THIS LINK before the closing date of this announcement on December 31, 2025.

Qualified women are strongly recommended to apply!