Community Forestry Management Director

Vacancy Announcement Position: Community Forestry Management Director, USAID Vietnam Sustainable Forestry Management Activity Application deadline: 21 August 2020 At RECOFTC, we believe in a future where people live equitably and sustainably in and beside healthy, resilient forests. We take a long-term, landscape-based and inclusive approach to supporting local communities to secure their land and resource rights, stop deforestation, find alternative livelihoods and foster gender equity. We are the only non-profit organization of our kind in Asia and the Pacific. We have more than 30 years of experience working with people and forests, and have built trusting relationships with partners at all levels. Our influence and partnerships extend from multilateral institutions to governments, private sector and local communities. Our innovations, knowledge and initiatives enable countries to foster good forest governance, mitigate and adapt to climate change, and achieve the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations 2030 Agenda. RECOFTC is inviting candidates to apply for the position of Community Forestry Management Director as part of the RECOFTC Viet Nam Office and the project Vietnam Sustainable Forest Management Activity. The successful applicant will be based in Hanoi, Viet Nam, with occasional travel to the field sites in six provinces. The contract duration is for 12 months with a possibility of extension subject to satisfactory performance until the close of the project. Project Background The Vietnam Sustainable Forest Management Activity will help the Government of Vietnam reduce carbon emissions associated with deforestation, the degradation of natural forests, and poor plantation management. The project will implement a “Green Prosperity” approach that strengthens local communities’ ability to protect their natural resource base and reduce emissions while building a strong foundation for sustainable livelihoods and equitable economic growth. The project will work in six provinces—Hoa Binh, Nghe An, Thanh Hoa, Quang Nam, Quang Tri, Thua Thien Hue—and focus on five key activities:

Strengthening community forest management
Promoting conservation-friendly enterprises
Improving law enforcement to tackle environmental crimes
Enhancing the management of production forests
Mobilizing domestic resources.

Specific tasks and duties The Community Forestry Management Director is an integral part of the senior management team for the project and reports to the Chief of Party and the RECOFTC Viet Nam Director. The Community Forestry Management Director leads the project implementation focusing on improving and expanding community forestry management in target provinces. In this role, the Community Forestry Management Director will coordinate with the Government of Viet Nam, local organizations and other technical experts to:

design and implement activities for improvement of community forestry management
supervise a team of technical experts to improve and expand community forestry
promote women’s participation into community forestry
increase conservation-friendly community-based enterprises
reduce the conversion of natural forests into other uses
improve the management of natural production forests through a co-management approach
increase allocation of production forests to communities.

Specific tasks and duties include:

Provide technical leadership for strategic development of a comprehensive approach to community forest management integrating land use planning, forest zoning and land allocation, benefit sharing, forest monitoring systems and financial management in target provinces
Design and deliver participatory capacity development of community forest groups to:
- Design and implement co-management plans
- Monitor and report against performance metrics
- Integrate women’s participation in community forestry management
Provide technical assistance to and coordination with Viet Nam’s Forest Protection Department at the provincial and district level to implement co-management plans
Integrate community forestry management models with the new Forestry Law which came into effect in 2019
Coordinate to develop and include payment for forest environmental services agreements into community forest co-management
Provide technical support to the forest monitoring specialist, gender equity and social inclusion director, and gender equity and social inclusion field officers
Provide technical guidance to provincial managers and field teams, including the community forestry management coordinator, enterprise development specialist, community forestry facilitators, and administration and logistics assistant
Produce reports related to CFM to the Chief of Party and RECOFTC as needed
Perform other tasks as assigned by the Chief of Party and RECOFTC Viet Nam Director

Qualifications and experience The Community Forestry Management Director will have the following essential qualifications and experience:

Master’s degree in forestry, or relevant area required; advanced degree preferred.
10 years of experience in the forestry/ community forestry or with development projects, preferably with a focus on sustainable community forestry management planning and implementation in Vietnam
Knowledge of community forestry management progress in Vietnam
Expertise in business planning and strategy development, community forestry management models, community based enterprise, value chain and public private partnerships and development for timber, NTFPs, PFES
Prior experience managing teams preferred in technical strategy development, activity planning and relationship building with communities
Excellent networking and communication skills
Fluent in English and Vietnamese preferred
Vietnam national only

RECOFTC’s core values At RECOFTC, our core values are the foundation of our culture and guide all our work. In addition to job specific skills and experience, the applicant should possess the following characteristics, attitudes and skills:

Embrace innovation
Adapt to, and learn from, challenges
Collaborate with partners and stakeholders
Nurture commitment, responsibility and ownership
Prioritize sustainability
Cultivate participation, social inclusion and gender equity

How to apply Interested candidates are requested to submit a CV and a cover letter indicating why they are suitable for this position along with salary requirements and current contact details of three referees, including recent supervisors to vietnam-recruitment@recoftc.org. Please quote the position title in the subject line of the email. Only short-listed candidates will be notified. RECOFTC has a competitive compensation package. Offers are based on salary history, relevant experience and qualifications of the selected candidate. To learn more about RECOFTC, please visit our website www.recoftc.org Applicants shall not be discriminated against based on ethnicity, religion, age, nationality, physical disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, colour, marital status, medical condition, or any other classification protected by RECOFTC’s values and code of conduct. Reasonable accommodation may be made so that qualified disabled applicants can partake in the application process. Women are strongly encouraged to apply. Please inform RECOFTC’s Human Resources in writing of any special needs at the time of application. RECOFTC is an equal opportunity employer and the successful candidate will be selected based on merit. RECOFTC retains the right to offer this position at a job grade relevant to the qualifications and experience of the selected candidate.