We are looking for a highly qualified person for the position as Area Manager for the Danish Refugee Council in Gambella region, Ethiopia.
Who are we?
DRC has been providing relief and development services in East Africa since 1997 focused on assisting those impacted by forced displacement. DRC has offices across the region, and opened its first office in Ethiopia in 2009. The program now covers nine offices spread across Ethiopia and Djibouti to address the needs of refugees, IDPs, and migrants in transit, with a country coordination office based in Addis Ababa.
In Western Ethiopia, DRC has been in the forefront of responding to the refugee influx from South Sudan into the Gambella region, primarily in the sectors of protection, livelihoods, shelter and water, sanitation and hygiene with funding from BPRM, Danida, ECHO, and UNHCR. DRC operates in 6 refugee camps as well as at the Pagak reception center. DRC moreover operates a sub-office in Dimma, providing a comprehensive response to South Sudanese refugees residing in remote Okugo camp. Due to the ongoing conflict and famine in South Sudan, new refugees continue to arrive to Ethiopia, requiring a sustained emergency response and dedicated, professional leadership to ensure quality implementation.
About the job
The Area Manager is responsible for overall management and strategic direction of DRC’s emergency programme in Gambella. The programme covers the provision of emergency and transitional shelter, protection and youth empowerment, livelihoods, and water, sanitation and hygiene to South Sudanese refugees. The Area manager will represent DRC with the local and regional government bodies, especially UNHCR, ARRA, beneficiaries and other partners as part of regular and quality communications to maintain good relations. Due to the sustained attention and humanitarian needs in Gambella, the position requires diplomatic and professional representation. The position will ensure fair, accountable and transparent management of programme, finance and human resources and promote a learning environment for staff and the organisation. The Area Manager will also be responsible for compliance to Standard Operating Procedures for safety, security and general operations.
Duties and Responsibilities
Programme Management
- Overall responsibility for the design, implementation and effective monitoring of agreed projects and activities in areas of livelihoods and infrastructural projects with refugees and host communities.
- Ensure effective monitoring, evaluation and documentation of all activities and processes. Ensuring the analysis of data collected (at various levels) to inform activity changes to improve programme quality.
- Ensure the development and implementation of all activities in line with the Core Humanitarian Standards and DRC programme policies especially gender, age and disability.
- Proactively seeking funding opportunities to scale up and/or expand activities working closely with the Country Director, the Head of Program and DRC’s technical advisors. This includes identifying and undertaking assessments and writing concepts and proposals.
- To oversee Gambella programming with short-term visits and ensure quality of programme delivery.
Technical Programme
- To be engaged strategically with all technical sectors as need and provide management and strategic input/oversight.
- To facilitate linkages and support with Regional Advisors and be the point person if there are no technical leads.
- Oversee and provide strategic support to sectoral teams operating in the area.
Representation and Relations
- Represent DRC with the regional/local governments, UN bodies and non-government organizations as required and ensure that appropriate DRC staff attend the ad hoc and regular meetings, clusters, technical working groups as applicable to DRCs programme.
- Engage with all stakeholders as regularly as possible. This would include local and refugee leadership, local and regional government, Donors, and partners
Ensure accurate and on time reporting internally and externally. Including contributing to external donor reports and ensuring monthly DRC progress reports are sent to regional government, ARRA, UNHCR, and other donors.
Team Management
- Lead regular staff and management meetings in Gambella.
- Manage direct reports to agreed job priorities and identify learning and development needs for programme staff, under your direct and indirect supervision. Bring human resource/staff management issues to the senior management team and/or CD for decisions.
- With team leaders manage the programme activities budget lines; ensuring effective and efficient use of resources including financial, human and all assets.
- Ensure programme teams work closely with the support team to delivery DRC policies and procedures in finance, procurement and logistics including effective planning weekly, monthly and quarterly.
- Overall responsibility for security in and around the Gambella zone including ensuring adherence to agreed security protocols, recommending changes to security protocols and working with the Logistics and Security Officer to deliver the agreed security action plan.
- Any other activities as requested by the Country Director.
About you
In this position, you are expected to demonstrate DRC’s five core competencies:
Striving for excellence: You focus on reaching results while ensuring an efficient process.
Collaborating: You involve relevant parties and encourage feedback.
Taking the lead: You take ownership and initiative while aiming for innovation.
Communicating: You listen and speak effectively and honestly.
Demonstrating integrity: You act in line with our vision and values.
Qualifications: To be successful in this role you must have:
- Minimum of 5 years’ experience in programme development and implementation in emergency context, including quality monitoring and evaluation processes.
- A University level degree in, social sciences or economics. Substantial work experience in the areas of emergency, camp management, and/or the development sector, especially with displaced/refugees communities can substitute education qualification.
- Relevant technical expertise/experience in some sectors of humanitarian programming such as WASH, shelter, livelihoods, and protection, etc.
- Proven ability to build external relationships with diplomacy, tact and professionalism in a complex and demanding environment.
- Demonstrated ability to manage and support multi-sector programmes including operational planning and problem solving.
- Demonstrated experience of people management and teambuilding.
- Demonstrated experience of financial and asset management.
- Demonstrated ability to undertaken representation with senior government officials.
- Excellent written and presentation skills in English
- Strong analytical capacity for programme design and development.
- Ability to work independently and as part of a team
- Proficiency in common computer packages and financial software i.e. Word, Excel, Power point etc.
- Must show ability to work in an isolated and challenging environment.
Conditions
Contract: One year contract with possibility of extension, subject to funding and performance. Salary and other conditions are offered in accordance with DRC’s Terms of Employment at A13 for international staff or competitive salary and conditions as per national staff terms of employment, as relevant.
Availability: August 2017
Duty station: The position will be based in Gambella
More Information
- Job City Gambella
