Volunteer Position - Livestock Specialist | CARE Laos
Skip to Main Content

Livestock Specialist | CARE, Laos

Vets Without Borders is looking for a Livestock Specialist volunteer to work with CARE International in Vientiane, Lao PDR.

Download Volunteer Placement PDF

Volunteer Placement Details

Position Title: Health Specialist

Country: Lao PDR

Location: Phongsaly Province

Partner Organization: CARE International

Duration: 6 months (flexible)

Start Date: June to September 2023 (or upon availability)

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

Eligibility: Canadian Citizens and Permanent Residents of Canada only

Language: English (essential). Willingness to study Lao as additional language.

Academic Requirements: Master's in agriculture or international development with a strong focus on agriculture and food security.

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: Livestock Specialist, CARE, Lao PDR

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 Livestock Specialist volunteer is to facilitate the increase in income for ethnic indigenous women and strengthen their technical capacity through improved livestock and value chain practices.

Objectives

  • Support livestock activities including technical capacity building and improving/setting up the community vaccination system.
  • Support with the income generation activities and promote the green techniques.
  • Organise and lead the technical training to project staff, government partners, and farmers to improve livestock practices.
  • Provide guidance to the farmers with the marketing plan and market access.
  • Review and assess the project activities implemented together with the project staff and provide the relevant advice accordingly.
  • Support the rollout of climate change strategy and relevant policies.

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

Skills

Essential

  • 5 - 8 years of working experience in livestock cultivation (especially large animals and vaccination systems) and livelihood security in the development sector.
  • Strong background in community development and income generation.
  • Excellent experience and knowledge of value chain in agriculture production.
  • Background in designing high quality, participatory training courses to different level of participants.
  • Demonstrated ability to plan and manage workflows independently and balance competing priorities to meet deadlines.
  • Demonstrated good interpersonal skills, sound judgment, planning, problem solving and team building skills.
  • Ability to work as a team member and contribute to group objectives and works effectively in a group setting.
  • Experience of working with different stakeholders/partners including the donors, government, and international development partners.
  • Effective cross-cultural communication skills;

Desirable

  • Understanding of the community context in Lao PDR. Previous international work/volunteer experience in Laos or other developing countries.
  • Good understanding of climate change adaptation and resilience in the livelihood context.
  • Experience in participating/supporting assessment and using the analysis to better inform and improve interventions, key messages, M&E frameworks, communications and advocacy strategies.

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

Webinar: Volunteering for Her: Championing Gender and Climate Resilience in Laos

Webinar: Volunteering for Her: Championing Gender and Climate Resilience in Laos

Posted Nov 27th, 2024

Register now for our upcoming, live webinar to be held on December 5th, in recognition of International Volunteer Day 2024, to learn about the intersection of gender and climate in Laos and how our volunteers are making a difference in rural communities.

Read more

Renewed Global Commitment to Reduce Antimicrobial Resistance: A Complex Challenge Requiring a One Health Approach

Renewed Global Commitment to Reduce Antimicrobial Resistance: A Complex Challenge Requiring a One Health Approach

Posted Nov 18th, 2024

Written by Dr. Andrea Ellis (DVM), a member of the VWB Board of Directors, this article explores the evolution of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) thinking, highlighting the critical role of environmental inclusion and a One Health approach, and showcasing how VWB’s focus on animal husbandry, disease prevention, and antimicrobial stewardship aligns with the Quadripartite partnership’s vision for a coordinated global response.

Read more

Poultry and Possibility in Ukraine: Rethinking Aid in Protracted Crises

Poultry and Possibility in Ukraine: Rethinking Aid in Protracted Crises

Posted Nov 14th, 2024

In this op-ed, VWB's Executive Director, Charmaine Brett, discusses how poultry farming is helping to build sustainable recovery for families in Ukraine.

Read more

  • The most rewarding part of my placements was helping others and seeing the many lives that are impacted along the way.
    - Nikki Sheedy

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