Country Director – Sudan and Horn of Africa 33 views0 applications

Country Director – Sudan and Horn of Africa

Location: Nairobi, Kenya
Contract type: International/National position
Reporting to: Regional Director, Africa and Latin America

About the role

Norwegian People’s Aid (NPA) has been operating in Sudan since 2022, delivering humanitarian assistance and strengthening locally led civil society in one of the world’s most severe humanitarian crises. Since the outbreak of war in 2023, the Sudan programme has been managed remotely from Nairobi through partnerships with Sudanese organisations.

As NPA continues to strengthen its presence in the Horn of Africa, we are expanding our regional portfolio to include Ethiopia and exploring opportunities across the wider region, including humanitarian response, civil society, peacebuilding and Mine Action programming.

We are now seeking an experienced Country Director – Sudan and Horn of Africa to provide strategic leadership for this growing regional portfolio. This is a unique opportunity to shape NPA’s long-term presence across one of the world’s most dynamic and complex regions.

The Country Director will provide overall leadership for NPA’s Sudan programme and the wider Horn of Africa portfolio, ensuring high-quality programme delivery, strategic growth, strong partnerships and organisational excellence. The role combines strategic leadership with operational oversight in a complex regional setting characterised by remote management, partnership-based programming and rapidly evolving humanitarian and political contexts.

What we offer

• Strategic leadership role: Lead the development and growth of NPA’s Sudan and Horn of Africa portfolio across humanitarian response, civil society, peacebuilding and future Mine Action programming.
• Contribute to regional influence: Shape NPA’s strategic positioning, donor engagement and partnerships across one of the organisation’s priority regions.
• Opportunity to build and grow: Drive programme expansion, establish new partnerships and explore opportunities in additional countries across the Horn of Africa.
• Meaningful impact: Support locally led responses that strengthen civil society, protect vulnerable communities, and contribute to peace, resilience and democratic participation.

Key responsibilities

• Provide strategic leadership and overall management of NPA’s Sudan and Horn of Africa portfolio.
• Lead programme growth, fundraising and resource mobilisation across the region.
• Represent NPA with donors, government authorities, UN agencies, civil society organisations and other key stakeholders.
• Lead political, humanitarian and contextual analysis and translate findings into strategic priorities and programme development.
• Strengthen partnerships with national organisations and promote locally led programming.
• Ensure effective programme quality, monitoring, accountability and learning across all programme portfolios.
• Lead and support regional management teams through effective leadership, performance management, and organisational development.
• Ensure compliance with NPA policies, donor requirements, and organisational risk management frameworks.
• Promote collaboration and integration across humanitarian response, civil society, peacebuilding and Mine Action programming.
• Identify opportunities for regional expansion and strengthen NPA’s long-term presence across the Horn of Africa.

Qualifications and experience

• Relevant higher education.
• Minimum 10 years of senior management experience in humanitarian, development, peacebuilding or Mine Action programming.
• Minimum 5 years of experience in a Country Director, Regional Director or equivalent senior leadership role.
• Demonstrated experience managing complex multi-country and/or remote operations in fragile and conflict-affected settings.
• Proven track record in programme growth, donor engagement, fundraising and resource mobilisation.
• Strong understanding of humanitarian, development and partnership-based programming.
• Experience of working in Africa; experience from the Horn of Africa is a strong advantage.

Personal qualities

You identify with NPA’s management competencies:

• Integrity – act with strong ethics and professionalism.
• Trust – build credibility, empower others and foster collaboration.
• Openness – encourage innovation, learning and continuous improvement.
• Accountability – create results through people and lead with clarity and responsibility.

You are also:

• A strategic and inspiring leader with excellent judgement.
• Comfortable operating in complex political and humanitarian contexts.
• An effective communicator with strong influencing and relationship-building skills.
• Resilient, adaptable, and able to make sound decisions under pressure.
• Committed to localisation, partnership and NPA’s organisational values.

Additional information

• Frequent international travel throughout the Horn of Africa, including travel to high-risk and hardship locations, is required.
• This is an international position with a competitive expatriate package, including comprehensive insurance, professional development opportunities, paid travel, home leave and an additional week of annual leave.

Please note: NPA is committed to strengthening national and regional leadership capacities. While this position is currently planned as an international position, we also welcome applications from qualified national and regional candidates who have the required competencies and experience. Depending on the profile of the selected candidate and organisational considerations, NPA reserves the right to offer either a national or international contract.

About the recruitment process: We work continuously for more diversity and inclusion throughout the Norwegian People’s Aid. We encourage all qualified candidates to apply.

We kindly ask you to carefully read NPA’s Code of Conduct, Safeguarding Policy and Anti-Corruption Policy, before you submit your application. If you are the selected candidate for this position, you will be asked to complete and sign a Safeguarding self-declaration as well as our Code of Conduct. All policies related to ethics can be found on our website.

We look forward to hearing from you!

How to apply

“To apply for this position, please submit your application through our recruitment portal: Search for Jobs. Please note that applications sent by email will not be considered