Volunteer Position - Animal Nutritionist | Meru Dairy Cooperative, Kenya
Skip to Main Content

Animal Nutritionist | Meru Dairy Cooperative, Kenya

Vets Without Borders has an open Animal Nutritionist position at the Meru Dairy Cooperative Union, located in Meru in the central highlands of Kenya.

Download Job Overview

Job Details

Job Title: Animal Nutritionist

Country: Kenya

Location: Meru, a mid-sized town in the central highlands of Kenya

Partner Organization: Meru Dairy Cooperative Society

Duration: 3 - 12 Months

Start Date: As soon as possible

Pre-departure Training: VWB/VSF will provide training orientation.

Eligibility: Canadian Citizens and Permanent Residents of Canada only

Language: English (essential) Swahili, Kimeru (desirable)

Academic Requirements: University/college degree in Nutrition or Animal Production/Science with specialization related to animal nutrition preferred.

Fundraising: VWB/VSF encourages each volunteer to raise funds towards the organization’s operations.

Volunteer Terms & Conditions 

VWB/VSF covers most of the costs of being an overseas volunteer, including:

  • Return airfare to placement country 
  • Visa/permit costs
  • The cost of required vaccinations, anti-malarial medication, and overseas emergency travel health insurance
  • A monthly living allowance (MLA) that will be paid into the volunteer’s bank account in Canada. The MLA is designed to be sufficient to cover simple housing, basic food requirements, and other typical monthly living expenses.

Volunteer Application: Animal Nutritionist, Meru Dairy Co-operative Union, Kenya

Our Commitment 

Veterinarians Without Borders/Vétérinaires sans Frontière is an equal opportunity employer and values the diversity of our team.

We are committed to inclusive and equitable employment practices and strive to create a workplace that supports diversity, equity, and inclusion. VWB/VSF Canada welcomes applications from all qualified candidates, including members of racialized groups, Indigenous peoples, women, persons with disabilities, and persons of any sexual orientation or gender identity.

Please let us know if you require an accommodation and we will work with you to ensure an equitable hiring process. Thank you for your interest in VWB/VSF Canada.
 
 

Overall Goal

The primary purpose of the Nutritionist volunteer position is to support the development of strategies for enhancing and better utilizing available/potential feed resources and implementing good feeding and nutritional practices—both for animals and human beings in line with our One Health approach. The role will involve working directly with the community members and Meru Dairy Limited extension staff, together with the local coordinator and Africa program manager.

Objectives

  • Implementation of nutritional interventions and trainings
  • Maintain awareness of technical and scientific developments in animal nutrition and propose changes in existing feed formulations
  • Perform research to determine the effectiveness of dietary regimes on different types of animals
  • Ensure that all formulated diet plans and regimes are designed to maximize growth, reproduction, and health
  • Assess the nutritional and economic value of feeding systems and provide advice on bettering them
  • Raise community awareness and consumption of diversified, nutrient-dense, fortified and nutritionally adequate foods
  • Training and capacity-building support for Meru Dairy staff and volunteers

All volunteers are expected to promote gender equality, environmental sustainability, and good governance within their placement responsibilities.

Skills

Essential

  • In-depth understanding of the technical (nutritional), institutional, and policy constraints affecting major livestock feeding systems in developing countries
  • Knowledge of and experience in the application of improved animal nutrition 2
  • Demonstrated knowledge on how to improve food and dietary diversity at the intra-household level
  • Actively works towards continuing personal learning and development in one or more practice areas
  • Effective cross-cultural communication skills
  • Commitment to the principles of volunteer cooperation and familiarity with participatory approaches to development
  • Promotes a knowledge-sharing and learning culture in the office

Desirable

  • 1-3 years of relevant experience in the development of feed resources and improved animal nutrition
  • Previous international work/volunteer experience in Kenya is an asset

About the Project: VETS

Volunteers Engaged in Gender Responsive Technical Solutions (VETS), funded through the Volunteer Cooperation Program at Global Affairs Canada, will engage 190 volunteers to work with local partner organizations in Ghana, Kenya, Senegal, Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam.

Volunteers will help create integrated animal health systems to increase the livelihoods and household nutrition of small-scale farmers. The VETS program utilizes the skills of volunteers to build local partner capacity to support community members, primarily women, to reduce poverty. Through improved production of livestock and crops, volunteers help improve family income and nutrition.

The VETS program is built around the One Health concept, which recognizes that the health of people, animals, and the natural environment are interconnected. This project promotes the production of more and better food and increased incomes from livestock, all the while promoting land rehabilitation and conservation for sustainable development.

Learn More About The VETS Project

About Veterinarians Without Borders

In the global south, more than 90 percent of food animals are raised by subsistence farmers. However, small-scale livestock producers, the majority of whom are women, have very limited access to quality and affordable animal health services.

Aside from the risks associated with the loss of valuable livestock that provides important protein and/or income for low-income households, zoonotic diseases that can be passed from animals to humans offer a very real threat to human health on a wider scale.

Veterinarians Without Borders/Vétérinaires sans frontières (VWB/VSF) works for and with communities in need to foster the health of animals, people, and the environments that sustain us. VWB/VSF works nationally and internationally to train animal health workers, increase food security, and improve animal and public health.

VWB/VSF provides overseas volunteer placements for veterinarians and other animal and public health professionals.

Learn More About VWB

« Go Back

Stories From Around The World

VETS Volunteer Voices: Empowering Women Farmers and Fostering Gender Equity in Kenya

VETS Volunteer Voices: Empowering Women Farmers and Fostering Gender Equity in Kenya

Posted Oct 7th, 2024

#VETSVolunteerVoices aims to bring you the stories of our passionate VETS program volunteers from the field. Meet Madalyn Nielsen, a Gender Advisor Volunteer who spent 3 months in rural Kenya (May - August 2024).

Read more

The Rise of Rabies in Ukraine: A hidden consequence of war

The Rise of Rabies in Ukraine: A hidden consequence of war

Posted Oct 1st, 2024

Thousands of stray animals, many of which were previously cared for by animal welfare groups, individuals, or shelters, are now going unvaccinated – creating dangerous situations for people who encounter them. It’s estimated that over one million dogs in Ukraine are homeless – many living in frontline areas that are increasingly difficult for animal health providers to visit.  

Read more

Building Resilience: VWB Vaccinates Over 57,000 Livestock in South Sudan

Building Resilience: VWB Vaccinates Over 57,000 Livestock in South Sudan

Posted Sep 26th, 2024

In partnership with Action Against Hunger USA, VWB recently completed a 14-day vaccination campaign in Northern Bahr el Ghazal, South Sudan, vaccinating over 57,000 livestock and empowering communities.

Read more

  • I have seen first-hand the benefits of capacity building and gender empowerment for smallholder livestock farmers, and stakeholders in the livestock sector.
    - Dr. Shauna Richards

Become A Part Of The Big Picture

By supporting Veterinarians Without Borders through donations or volunteering, you become part of the Big Picture solution. 

Volunteer  Donate  

+1(343) 633-0272 Contact