Regional Head of Programme (RHoP) - West Africa

Background

DRC is a Danish international non-governmental organisation, which promotes and supports durable solutions to the problems faced by refugees and internally displaced people all over the world. DRC is present in more than 30 conflict affected territories around the world assisting displaced people with shelter, food, income generating activities, legal aid and a wide range of other protection assistance activities.

The Danish Refugee Council (DRC) runs a regional programme in West Africa focusing on border areas between Liberia, Côte d’Ivoire, South East Guinea, Mali and Burkina Faso that includes protection and emergency interventions as well as rehabilitation and recovery activities.

The programme currently has a regional office located in Abidjan-Côte d’Ivoire as well as coordination offices located in Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso), Bamako (Mali), N’Zérékoré (Guinea) and Monrovia (Liberia). The programme receives funding from DANIDA, EC, ECHO, NOVO, SDC, UNHCR, WFP and UNICEF along with private contributions with a portfolio of around US$ 15 million. Presently the programme is employing approximately 30 expatriate employees and 400 local staff.

Purpose

DRC strives to be one of the absolute leading displacement focused INGOs in West Africa in terms of relevance, impact and quality. To that end, DRC is currently engaged in an organizational development process aimed at building more solid strategic, programmatic and operational coherence and synergy across the region.

In close collaboration with the Regional Director and DRC regional senior programme staff and advisors, the incumbent’s prime objectives will be to provide leadership and management of the strategic programming aspect of this process, oversee the strengthening of DRC’s programme development, quality and accountability framework and coordinate DRC’s regional engagement in protection and migration issues.

The RHoP is part of DRC’s Regional Senior Management Team and has direct line-management of the Regional Grants Management Manager/Officer, the Regional M&E Manager/Officer, the HAP Regional Team and the Programme Development Section.

The RHoP is expected to have senior level management experience and a demonstrable successful track record of organizational development and resource mobilization, to be able to conceptualize and articulate DRC’s vision and to have the strong oral and written communication skills required to translate the vision into action.

Experience and understanding of refugee and displacement issues in the region and/or from other similar complex protracted displacement situations is an advantage.

Specifically

• To conceptualize and articulate DRC’s vision and translate that vision into action across the West Africa region
• To establish a high performing programme team that supports and facilitates the building of a cohesive and transformative regional programme
• To work as part of DRC’s Senior management Team (SMT), refining, developing and improving operational approaches, compliance and systems, supporting the Regional Director to build and deliver the most effective and sustainable interventions

Key Responsibilities

Strategy Programme Development. Collaborate with the RD to develop the regional strategy and related processes, the context analysis and the SPD and identify key regional strategic initiatives. Ensure DRC’s country programmes are guided by a consistent, updated regional strategic framework that promotes a right based approach to the displacement challenges in the region.

Policy coordination. Play a key role in promoting DRC as a main actor within protection and migration issues in the region, through coordination activities and interaction with key players such as donors, relevant NGOs, and government counterparts.

Donor, grant and relationship management.Work with the RD, the CDs and others to ensure high quality donor and stakeholder relationships and compliance.

Programme Development & Quality Management

• Ensure the implementation of a regional programmatic strategy through a cross border and community based approachWork with the Regional Director, the CD’s and the protection teams to strengthen the Protection sector in WA and to define the strategic directions of DRC’s protection programming; update the regional protection framework.
• Coordination and leadership of protection activities based on the DRC’s WA strategy and cross border approach across five countries, including management and trainings.
• Work to integrate the protection and cross border approach into the programme; work with the Sector Coordinators and Managers to ensure that all programmes are contextually appropriate and that they consider and apply protection principles to their activities.
• Ensure that global policies, standards and approaches are met in all regional and country projects/programmes, ensuring the quality of projects, proposals & reports against organisational and donor standards of operation,
• Develop an Advocacy Strategy with donors as well as with government authorities at the local, regional and international levels.
• Ensure appropriate programme development, technical, communication and advisory support is available to country and regional programmes, in line with organizational priorities
• Ensure standard approaches and learning across countries,
• Facilitate regional, cross-country learning,
• Ensure internal and external reporting is completed on-time and respond to organisational and donor standards
• Organize assessments in new contexts where protection is needed within the WA region.

Staff Management. Direct managerial oversight and support of DRC’s Regional Quality section (Grants Management, M&E, and HAP).

• Ensuring that the each has clear and realistic performance based management goals.
• That each promotes a right based approach to the displacement challenges in the region.

Reporting Arrangements

The position is supervised by the Regional Director. The RHoP directly supervises the following positions:

DRC Regional Grant staff DRC M&E regional manager

Personal Specifications

• Proven ability with respect to the design, management, monitoring and evaluation of large scale country and/or regional programmes, preferably with a focus on protection and durable solutions for refugees and displaced people.
• A minimum of 7-10 years of management experience at senior level, preferably in complex humanitarian environments.
• Experience with humanitarian accountability.
• Experience of fund raising, networking, advocacy and coordination highly desirable.
• Experience with donor liaison.
• Strong analytical skills.
• Fluency in written and spoken French and English.
• Cultural sensitivity and adaptability.
• Work related experience from the West Africa region or similar complex displacement situations.

Terms and Conditions

Availability: 1st of August 2015

Duty station: Abidjan, Ivory Coast. This is an accompanied position.

Area of Operation: Ivory Coast, Liberia, Guinea, Mali and Burkina Faso,

Contract: 1 year renewable contract. Other employment conditions in accordance with the Danish Refugee Council’s Terms of Employment for Expatriates. This position is rated as A5 on DRC’s Expatriate salary scale available at www.drc.dk

Commitments

DRC has a Humanitarian Accountability Framework, outlining its global accountability committments. All staff are required to contribute to the achievement of this framework into the work of DRC (http://www.drc.dk/HAF.4265.0.html)

Further information

We encourage all qualified candidates to apply, irrespective of nationality, race, gender or age.

For further information about the Danish Refugee Council, please consult our website www.drc.dk.

About DRC

The Danish Refugee Council (DRC) is a private, independent, humanitarian organization working on all aspects of the refugee cause in more than twenty five countries throughout the world. The aim of DRC is to protect refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs) against persecution and to promote durable solutions to the problems of forced migration, on the basis of humanitarian principles and human rights. DRC works in accordance with the UN Conventions on Refugees and the Code of Conduct for the ICRC and NGOs in Disaster Relief.

The protection and assistance to conflict affected population is provided within a long-term, regional and rights-based approach in order to constitute a coherent and effective response to the challenges posed by today’s conflicts. Assistance consists of relief and other humanitarian aid, rehabilitation, support to return and repatriation as well as promotion of long-term solutions to displacement and its causes. In addition, support and capacity building of local and national authorities and NGOs form an integral part of DRC’s work.

HOW TO APPLY:

All applicants must send a cover letter and an updated CV. We only accept online applications here. If you have questions or are facing problems with the online application process, please contactjob@drc.dk.

Applications Deadline: 21st of June 2015