About us

Do you want to make a positive difference to the future of people and our planet?

At Organic Cotton Accelerator (OCA), we believe organic cotton is the catalyst for a truly sustainable textile sector. Our platform unites the sector to unleash the potential of organic cotton, from field to fashion, for people and the planet. We envision a future where, every time a farmer switches to organic cotton, there is a ripple effect of positivity: farmers earn more and their land and soils are fertile for future generations, protecting our planet. We call this the Organic Cotton Effect.

Your role

OCA’s Programme Officer is responsible for coordinating and managing the implementation of OCA’s farm projects on the ground with supply chain partners, CSOs and farming communities. This person will work closely with the Senior Programme Manager, Pakistan and plays an important role supporting the Programme Team in a range of tasks within the organization, from strategy support and analysis to intervention development and written communications. Frequent Domestic and need base International travel will be involved.

The office is in Pakistan and final candidate will be based in Lahore, Punjab.

Programme Management:

  • Assist Senior Programme Manager, Pakistan in Farm programme planning, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation for projects.
  • Keep in constant communication with the projects to ensure Farm programme implementation timelines remain on track and overall programme goals are being met.
  • Assist Senior Programme Manager in identifying areas for improvement and specific capacity needs of projects participating in the Farm programme.
  • Conduct regular needs assessments and gap analysis of projects to ensure they get the support needed for continuous improvement including but not limited to capacity building for field staff.
  • Plan and execute capacity building workshops for field partners as per OCA’s training methodology and curriculum.
  • Carry out travel to project locations during the growing and harvest season to monitor and support the project and staff.
  • Ensure good communication with the Senior Programme Manager about at-risk deliverables and monitor budgets and associated timelines regularly.
  • Work with the Farm programme team to put in place efficient and effective systems and processes to meet strategic and operational goals.

Stakeholder management

  • Assist Senior Programme Manager in maintaining excellent relationships with ground partners, OCA’s third-party agencies and relevant organizations to meet programme deliverables.
  • Understand and communicate relevant information and serve as a response problem-solver for on-ground projects.
  • Work with the Senior Programme Manager, Pakistan Asia to support stakeholders with information requests and to initiate farm projects.

Data management and reporting

  • Support the communication and measurement of impact in OCA’s farm projects – internally and externally.
  • Document and develop clear, detailed, and timely reports with OCA’s third-party agency including identification of non-conformities and supporting evidence.
  • Ensure timely flow of data from participating projects and ensure that the data received is cleaned and verified with support from the data officer at OCA.
  • Share the results of data analysis with projects to facilitate learning and encourage the continuous improvement of partners involved.
  • Responsible for maintaining good and accurate data in internal progress dashboards for Pakistan projects.
  • Work closely with MEAL Team to provide system input, know-how and maintain a consistent and uniform global data set.
  • Work with the MEAL team at OCA to develop timely and relevant reports and progress updates.
  • Manage the deliverables and relationships with OCA’s third-party agency as per the MEL frameworks developed at OCA.
  • Collect, review, and organise information and tools developed by OCA and others for training and capacity building.
  • Outlining, conducting and/or steering quantitative and qualitative studies on diverse topics with multiple agencies and stakeholders.
  • Research, update and inform team of any relevant changes in the farm-level certification systems for organic in Pakistan and South Asia

OCA Platform Representation and participation

  • Liaising with the communications team to develop material and assets from Pakistan.
  • Coordinating event planning in Pakistan including but not limited to in-person events, webinars etc.
  • Assist Senior Programme Manager in day-to-day organizational tasks within OCA to deliver to stakeholder needs and requests
  • Organizing events for existing OCA partners and supporting the execution stakeholder events
  • Serving as an ambassador of OCA’s mission and activities and be comfortable presenting OCA externally
  • Supporting the maintenance of administrative systems for OCA’s operations in Pakistan
  • Other ad hoc tasks as assigned by the Programme Manager, South Asia within the scope of the OCA’s programmes.
About you
  • Master’s degree, or equivalent higher education qualification, in a relevant field
  • Prior experience (3+ years) in the agriculture, sustainability or textiles sector is expected.
  • Excellent written and communication skills with the ability to communicate clearly and concisely, and to assimilate and process information for wide-ranging audiences.
  • Experience related to organic certification will be considered favorably during the selection process.
  • Sensitized to working with rural and farming communities.
  • Sharp attention to detail and strong ability to deliver quality work in short timeframes.
  • Excellent interpersonal skills, along with the ability to work in a collaborative manner with a team.
  • Comfortable multi-tasking and taking on diverse responsibilities within the organization.
  • Self-steering and comfortable with taking a proactive role in organizing own work.
  • Affinity and familiarity with the variety of actors we work with (producers, value chain players; brands, NGOs, and government) and the principles of the organic standard.
  • Driven and delivery oriented – comfortable working with established deadlines.
  • Good IT skills in Microsoft Office, particularly Microsoft PowerPoint and Microsoft Excel.
  • Fluent in English, Urdu – other regional languages are a plus.
We offer
  • A full-time consultant position with long-term perspective, starting with a 1-year contract (3-month probation period and one months’ notice period for both parties before termination of contract. Contract will be extendable every year based on performance.
  • An enabling, informal, and professional culture of team spirit, initiative, and responsibility.
  • The position to strengthen an organization which was set up to have positive impact at
  • You will receive a competitive salary and package and be given the opportunity to develop and make the most out of your
  • We believe that our people are our business, so along with the tools and support you need to get to where you want to go, we’ll make sure you thrive and have fun along the way.
  • We are dedicated to creating a positive place where the best people want to work and are an equal opportunity employer.
Application procedure

To apply for this position, please send your CV (2-pages max) and cover letter (1-page max) to aishwarya@arthancareers.com by November 20, 2023. Incomplete applications will not be considered.

Preferred starting date: February 2024