Associate Desk Officer

TITLE:                                       Associate Desk Officer, Colombia

DEPARTMENT:                     Emergency Programs

LOCATION:                            Stamford, CT

REPORTS TO:                        Desk Officer

DURATION:                            12 months with possibility of extension

 

Americares is a health-focused relief and development organization that saves lives and improves health for people affected by poverty or disaster. Each year, Americares reaches more than 90 countries, including the United States, with life-changing health programs, medicine and medical supplies. Americares is the world’s leading nonprofit provider of donated medicine and medical supplies. For more information, visit americares.org.

 

Our programs help communities prepare for, respond to and recover from disasters; increase access to critical medicine and medical supplies; improve and expand clinical services; and prevent disease and promote good health in vulnerable communities.

 

Americares Emergency Programs leverage our logistics capabilities, health and medical expertise, global partner network and supply of donated medicine to respond to emergencies, help communities recover from disasters, reduce disaster risk and improve health outcomes. Americares responds to an average of 30 natural disasters and humanitarian crises worldwide each year. Our Emergency Programs interventions include but are not limited to: medications and medical supplies, mobile medical units, rehabilitations and restoration of health facilities, mental health and psychosocial support services.

The current situation in Venezuela continues to deteriorate. Due to multiple factors – loss of income, insecurity and violence, lack of access to food, health care, and other essential services – Venezuelans are departing for neighboring countries throughout the Latin America and Caribbean (LAC) region. As of April 2019, it is estimated that more than 3 million Venezuelans have left the country since 2015.  Host countries face significant challenges as they work to provide an appropriate response to the population influx and are increasingly overstretched. Colombia is the main host country with more than 1.2 million refugees and migrants and another 300,000 returnees, and the number is expected to exceed 2.2 million by the end of 2019.  Colombia receives more than 40,000 Venezuelans each day; around 36,000 of which are pendulum migrants that cross into the Colombia to access resources or services and subsequently return to Venezuela, the rest remain in Colombia long-term or until they transition to other LAC countries.  Venezuelans are arriving with substantial needs and limited resources – of the 1.2 million Venezuelans in Colombia, more than 1.1 million are in need of assistance, and an estimated 900,000 are in need of health assistance. In response, Americares is operating 10 clinics in heavily affected areas – providing free primary health care services to Venezuelan refugees, migrants and Colombian returnees and host communities.

Americares is seeking an Associate Desk Officer, Colombia based in the U.S. to support our response to the Venezuela Regional Crisis in Colombia. The Associate Desk Officer, Colombia will report to the Desk Officer, Colombia and work with the Country Director and Deputy Country Director of Colombia when required. In this role, he/she will provide operational support to the team on the ground and contribute to health program planning and development.