Khumbuzile Ngcobo

• Work closely with the Early Warning System Coordinator for the area and the Project Management Unit at uMgungundlovu District Municipality (uMDM), in mobilising the community for participation in the design, implementation and operation of the URP and its components;
• Provide input in the development of community engagement programs to educate the public and community members about the following Umngeni Resilience Project (URP) programs: Component 1 – Early warning system: Early warning and response systems improve preparedness and adaptive capacity of local communities and small-scale farmers drawing on and integrating scientific and local knowledge. Component 2 - Climate-proof settlements: A combination of ecological and engineering solutions to reduce vulnerability of rural and peri-urban communities to existing and anticipated impacts of climate variability and change. Component 3 - Climate resilient agriculture: Small-scale farmers have improved resilience and reduced vulnerability to existing and anticipated impacts of climate variability and change.Component 4 - Capacity building and learning: Sharing of lessons in the three components of the project. Focus is on policy recommendations to facilitate the scaling up and replication of the project in other areas.;
• Ensure active community participation and ownership in the URP, and sense of ownership over knowledge and information being imparted to them identifying all relevant community structures, organising, announcing, and facilitating community meeting
• Identify relevant platforms for community members to express their suggestion, opinions, concerns and raise issues with the project partners, including any experts that may be providing services to the URP;
• Keep the Early Warning System Coordinator, Project Manager and relevant project partners aware of community affairs and possible dynamics;
• Assist the Early Warning System Coordinator, Project Manager and relevant project partners in monitoring and evaluation of the URP, including collection of data, by engaging with members of the community and mobilising them to provide input into monitoring processes.
• Work with the Early Warning System Coordinator to educate the community on early warning systems and mobilise the community to participate and own the development of a ward-based disaster management and response system;

Additional Duties: Early Warning Systems Coordination

• Working with the relevant municipal and provincial departments to oversee the development and piloting of ward-based disaster management response systems in a low-lying high-density settlement.
• Assist Senior Project coordinator in the preparation of monthly and quarterly reports.
• Facilitate, arrange and Chair relevant meetings related to the early warning systems component.
• Effectively and accurately communicate relevant information to relevant committees SANBI and other project partners.

• Conduct fieldwork interviews and surveys as per sampling framework and strictly observing all AFRA Research Ethics requirements.
• Ensure the accurate documenting and recording of interviews/surveys;
• Check content and accuracy of completed questionnaires daily and collect any missing or inaccurate data;
• Ensure the timeous submission of completed questionnaires and digital records of all interviews conducted;
• Attendance and participation in debriefing and data analysis sessions;
• Do title deed searches for the farms and insert Survey General Numbers for the farm where interviews were conducted;
• Make notes on any important observations for each farm visited and submit these as a word document and part of your fieldwork report for each project visited and
• Submit a brief report at the close of the field work which will provide details of interviews/surveys conducted and reflection on the fieldwork.

Deployed by COGTA to support uMgungundlovu District Municipalities and its seven local municipalities with regards to developing, implementing, and monitoring Disaster Risk Management key responsible areas as stipulated by the Disaster Management Act as well as complying with national and provincial imperatives.

• Provide administrative support to the team in developing and implementing disaster management plans and frameworks.
• Acquired schedule of meetings and contact sessions, drafted minutes for the District Disaster Management Advisory Forums (DDMAF) and monthly incident report.
• Attended to procedural administrative requirements, record keeping, and reporting deadlines associated with the functionality.
• Provide administrative support for establishment and maintaining of IGR structures.
• Created database for DDMAF stakeholders, Prepared and distributed information packs and agendas, attendance registers and minutes of meeting.
• Provided administrative support for establishment of the Municipal Disaster Management Centres, capacity building programmes disaster management public awareness campaigns.
• Obtained schedule, invitation/notice, agendas, and attendance register of meetings for IDP alignment, kept records of activities undertaken for alignment of DRM sector plan with IDP, developed schedule of workshops for DRM mainstreaming.
• Updated and maintained database of community structures activated.
• Supported in providing education and training to the public to create awareness of potential risks and coping strategies.
• Provide administrative support to the team to coordinate improved response measures to incidents occurring in the district.
• Draft monthly incident reports, compiled monthly beneficiary Lists, kept record of emergency relief stock issued, filed monthly issuing vouchers and did stock taking of emergency relief stock.
• Provide administrative support to the team to support the municipalities and relevant stakeholders to comply with National and Provincial imperatives.

• Assist in the monthly, quarterly, bi - annual and annual consolidation of expenditure reports
• Assist in the annual assessment of draft budgets as submitted by the municipalities
• Assist in the following up of outstanding MFMA returns
• Assist with other oversight and monitoring functions undertaken by the unit
• Assist with the preparation of ad hoc reports for HOD/MEC/legislature and other ad hoc assignments

• Delivered instruction in language arts encompassing reading, grammar, composition and literature, working with teachers in other subjects to integrate skills across curriculum.
• Developed overall yearly curriculum for teaching English-language learners based on school and national requirements.
• Developed age-appropriate lesson content for literature pieces to meet diverse learning styles.
• Sponsored several student activities and clubs, dedicating many hours per week outside regular school hours.