Employer: Renaissance
Location: Bangladesh
Start date: 8 Nov 2012
Duration: 6 months
This is an exciting opportunity to work with Renaissance to provide safe, clean drinking water to communities in Bangladesh.
Background
The European Voluntary Humanitarian Aid Corps (EVHAC) is an initiative developed by the European Community Humanitarian Office (ECHO) of the European Commission. Volunteers working under the EVHAC project will be placed directly with VSO”s partner organisations in Bangladesh or South Sudan, and will be supported by VSO offices in each of those countries.
VSO is the world”s leading independent international development organisation that works through volunteers to fight poverty in developing countries. VSO”s high-impact approach involves bringing people together to share skills, build capabilities, promote international understanding and action, and change lives to make the world a fairer place for all. VSO has around 1,500 volunteers working with partners in 36 countries.
What does the role involve?
You will work with staff at Renaissance, to create a model water treatment plant system in one village which can be replicated in other communities. To achieve this you will:
Review the existing water treatment plant system to identify its strength and improvement areas
Design and plan a system using the appropriate low cost and sustainable technology to meet the needs of the community
Share plans with local government institutions, the government of Bangladesh line agency and relevant NGOs at local level for feedback and validation
Link with relevant government institutions for technical support with initial system startup
Deliver maintenance training to youth groups and the local community.
Skills, qualifications and experience required
You’ll have a relevant degree in irrigation/water engineering and proven experience in water plant systems construction, ideally in developing countries. You’ll be a passionate person, committed to working with marginalised people in the community, with the ability to lead and support people in a challenging and resource limited environment. You’ll need to be an articulate and persuasive person able to inspire and motivate others. If you have experience of capacity building in community groups, that would be ideal. Flexibility, patience and a positive attitude are all crucial for this role as is a sense of humour and adventure!
And the rest…
These are voluntary placements. We”ll ask you to commit 6 months to make a sustainable contribution to development goals and in return we”ll provide you with invaluable training before your placement, a local living allowance, return flights, accommodation and insurance.
To apply for this role please go to EVHAC/VSO website or email evhac@vsoint.org. Please put the following job reference on your application form: B0404/0002/0001
Please note the EVHAC project is only open to citizens of EU countries. We will be unable to respond to applications from applicants outside the EU. Please visit http://www.vsointernational.org/ for non-EU volunteering opportunities with VSO.