Uganda: Regional GIS Officer – Uganda - 2015

Organization: Agency for Technical Cooperation and Development

Country: Uganda

Closing date: 28 Feb 2015

Department: Program

Position: Regional GIS Officer – Uganda

Contract duration: 6 months

Location: Kampala, Uganda

Starting Date: ASAP

I.Background on ACTED

ACTED is a French humanitarian NGO, founded in 1993, which supports vulnerable populations, affected by humanitarian crises worldwide. ACTED provides continued support to vulnerable communities by ensuring the sustainability of post-crisis interventions and engaging long-term challenges facing our target populations, in order to break the poverty cycle, foster development and reduce vulnerability to disasters. Our interventions seek to cover the multiple aspects of humanitarian and development crises through a multidisciplinary approach which is both global and local, and adapted to each context. Our 3,300 staff is committed in to responding to emergencies worldwide, to supporting recovery and rehabilitation, towards sustainable development.

Our teams in the field implement some 340 projects in 34 countries covering the following sectors emergency relief, food security, access to health, education and training, economic development, microfinance, advocacy, institutional support, and regional dialogue, cultural promotion.

Based on considerable experience addressing the needs and situations of vulnerable communities, ACTED contributes to the international agenda towards reaching the Millennium Development Goals, through a wide range of partnerships, innovative initiatives, and campaigns.

II. Country Profile

Capital Office : Kampala

National Staff : 108

International Staff : 7

Areas : 2 (Northern Uganda, Karamoja)

On-going programmes : 9

Budget : 2.4 M €

ACTED has been active in Uganda since May 2007, both in the northern region and Karamoja. In the North, ACTED supports the early recovery process with a specific focus on the needs of returning populations displaced by years of conflict. It also expands access, retention, equity and quality of primary education. In Karamoja, the focus is enhanced food security and resilience to disasters, especially droughts, as well as improving the primary education sector.

ACTED focuses its intervention on strengthening livelihoods through improved resource management, conflict mitigation and capacity building. In Northern Uganda, as internally displaced persons (IDPs) have returned home and gained access to land, ACTED is working with farmers on infrastructure and capacity development to rebuild agricultural livelihoods. In the Karamoja/Pokot area, ACTED responds to severe food insecurity caused by the drought in the Horn of Africa, providing support to agro-pastoral communities to increase their purchasing power and protect their assets, reducing vulnerability to natural disasters. As part of its integrated cross-border strategy between Uganda and Kenya, ACTED maintains its community-driven disaster risk reduction (DRR) focus and promotes conflict mitigation to ensure peaceful and sustainable access to shared resources.

In 2013, ACTED maintains a strong focus on this approach and looks at extending it further along the border with Kenya. ACTED continues working with community-level structures and initiatives such as the APFS, the CDMCs or the DEWS to continue building the communities’ resilience to disasters.

III. Position Profile

The GIS Officer reports directly to Area Coordinator

GIS Officer responsibilities include:

1. General

• Preparation, conception and production of maps, including the supervision and monitoring of mapping-related data collection and ensuring dynamic linkages between GIS data and ACTED Database;

• Co-developing GIS components in proposals and supervising the implementation of these GIS components in approved projects;

• Train the AMEU team on usage of maps and GPS;

• Represent ACTED in GIS related coordination meetings.

2. Preparation, conception and production of maps

• Identify map information needs;

• Identify and access map information sources;

• Work closely with the Database Manager to ensure an accurate link between the GIS and the Database data, cross check data collected in the field and to develop dynamic links between Database and GIS data and to ensure regular updates and solve eventual discrepancies;

• Ensures that the produced maps meet the requirements of concerned ACTED departments.

3. C. Supervision and monitoring of mapping related data

• Conceptualize methodologies for collecting GPS and other GIS related data, as according to need;

• Organize and supervise GIS field missions;

• Managing and supervising the GIS assistant and the staff on the GIS;

• Monitor accuracy of data collected.

IV. Qualifications:

• Flexibility and adaptability are essential, as well as the ability to plan, take initiative and organize work independently. In addition Impartiality, objectivity and confidentiality are imperative;


• Good command of GIS software (especially those used by ACTED), Excel, Word and Database software such as Access or Foxpro. Familiarity with other information and data sources related to GIS to be recommended to ACTED for better GIS practices would be an asset.


• Understanding the nature of the work carried out by programs is necessary for ensuring the relevancy and usability of the maps produced. Therefore a proactive and self-motivated attitude towards gaining a good understanding of ACTED programs, innovating GIS activities and developing new GIS components for proposals is essential;


• Willingness to learn and capacity to innovate: The GIS Manager must be inventive and eager to improve his or her own skills, and be capable to adapt, shape and develop tools best suited for ACTED’s activities


• Ability to travel to the field for data collection, cross-checking the data and provide training to field staff;


• Good organizational and communication skills with international and national staff and rural communities.

IV. Conditions

• Salary defined by the ACTED salary grid; educational level, expertise, hardship, security, and performance are considered for pay bonus


• Additional monthly living allowance


• Free food provided + housing allowance


• Transportation costs covered, including additional return ticket + luggage allowance


• Provision of medical, life, and repatriation insurance + retirement package

V. Submission of applications:

Please send, in English, your cover letter, CV, and three references tojobs@acted.org

Ref : RGIS/UG/SA

For more information, visit us athttp://www.acted.org

How to apply:

Please send, in English, your cover letter, CV, and three references tojobs@acted.org

Ref : RGIS/UG/SA

For more information, visit us athttp://www.acted.org