Star Waves Consultancy Services Company (SWCSC) is seeking to recruit twenty qualified Nutrition Trainers (10 female, 10 male) on a short-term consultancy basis to deliver community-level, hands-on vocational nutrition training under a nutrition-focused livelihoods intervention aligned with the First Foods Initiative.
The Nutrition Trainers will be responsible for delivering 15-20 consecutive days of structured training in assigned districts across multiple provinces, focusing on nutrition-sensitive food preparation, food safety and hygiene, small-scale food processing, kitchen gardening, and basic agri-food livelihood practices. Trainings will emphasize practical skill development, cultural relevance, and adaptability for low-literacy audiences, particularly women, adolescent girls, boys, and youth.
Trainers will integrate basic business and market concepts relevant to food-based micro-enterprises and support the application of skills for household nutrition improvement and income generation. The role requires close coordination with SWCSC field teams, maintenance of basic training documentation, and strict adherence to safeguarding and ethical standards.
The assignment is field-based and will be implemented in seven districts: Qaysar (Faryab), Pasaband (Ghor), Mohammad Agha (Logar), Lalpur and Dara-e-Nur (Nangarhar), Jani Khel (Paktika), and Qalat (Zabul). Trainers must be willing and able to travel to provinces and districts as assigned. The total duration of the consultancy is 15–25 working days.
Roles and responsibilities
- Work under the overall supervision of the Star Waves’ Project Manager or designated Team Leader, in close coordination with SWCSC technical staff and partner organizations.
- Deliver vocational nutrition training activities within the assigned district in line with the approved project plan.
- Be assigned to one (1) district only and deliver 15-20 consecutive days of training in accordance with the approved training schedule.
- Conduct hands-on, competency-based training sessions focusing on food preparation and cooking techniques, with emphasis on nutritious, safe, and culturally appropriate foods.
- Provide practical guidance on food hygiene, sanitation, proper storage, and food safety principles, including the prevention of cross-contamination and foodborne health risks.
- Introduce small-scale food processing and preservation techniques suitable for household and community-level application.
- Support learning on kitchen gardening and agri-food livelihood practices, linking nutrition with sustainable food production and household food security.
- Demonstrate, where relevant, the use of appropriate digital tools or platforms to support training delivery, follow-up, monitoring, and promotion of optimal nutrition practices.
- Integrate basic livelihood and business concepts into training sessions, including simple costing, pricing, and awareness of local market opportunities for food-related micro-enterprises, in line with the First Foods Initiative’s theory of change.
- Maintain basic training documentation, including attendance records and brief session summaries.
- Provide regular inputs and feedback to Star Waves’ field staff to support training implementation, reporting, and quality assurance.
Training Methodology and Approach
The training approach must be highly participatory, inclusive, and adapted to community realities. Trainers are expected to tailor their delivery to low-literacy audiences through the use of demonstrations, visual aids, group exercises, and learning-by-doing techniques rather than purely theoretical instruction. The methodology should respect local food practices, sociocultural norms, and gender dynamics, ensuring that women and adolescent girls are able to participate safely and meaningfully.
Trainers will conduct sessions in relevant local languages and create an environment that is respectful, supportive, and conducive to learning. Particular emphasis should be placed on practical skill acquisition, confidence building, and the direct applicability of skills in daily life or small income-generating activities.
Coordination, Reporting, and Communication
Nutrition Trainers will coordinate closely with Star Waves’ field staff and project management to ensure smooth implementation of training activities. They will be required to maintain basic training records, including attendance lists and session summaries, and to provide brief progress updates as requested. Trainers may also contribute inputs to training implementation reports and lessons learned documentation.
Duration of the Assignment
The assignment will cover between 15-25 working days within the overall project timeline. The exact sequencing of training days and locations will be determined by SWCSC based on the approved implementation plan and field conditions.
