Head of Mission-DRC At INTERSOS

INTERSOS is a non-governmental, non-profit Humanitarian Organization which aims to assist victims of natural disasters and armed conflicts. INTERSOS bases its action on the values ​​of solidarity, justice, human dignity, equal rights and opportunities for all people, respect for diversity, cohabitation, attention to social groups the most vulnerable.

Terms of reference

Job title : Head of Mission

Code: SR-38-9115

Country: DRC

Duty station: Goma (with frequent missions to other bases)

Start date : 02/12/2024

Contract duration: 12 months (extendable)

Under the supervision of: Regional Director Central and Eastern Africa (Headquarters)

Dependents: all coordinators

General context of the project

Present in the DRC since 2010, INTERSOS has been financed by UNHCR, UNICEF, CEI, PAM, ECHO and Pooled Fund/CHF and works in partnership with local non-profit organizations, beneficiary committees and municipalities, community leaders, Civil Society, local authorities and local and international NGOs.

The technical sectors of intervention are mainly: protection, child protection, health and nutrition, education and food security.

Today, INTERSOS is present in the region of Ituri, North Kivu, South Kivu and Tanganyika, especially with protection monitoring projects financed by the UNHCR.

Specific experience has been developed with regard to: protection monitoring, sexual and gender-based violence, peaceful cohabitation, training of partners and stakeholders on aspects of protection, community awareness on protection, identification of children released from the forces and armed groups, unaccompanied/separated from their families, vulnerable within communities, psychosocial support, material assistance, educational and/or socioeconomic reintegration.

General objective of the position

The general objective of the Head of Mission is to represent INTERSOS and act in accordance with specific directives and under the supervision of the Regional Directorate for Central and Eastern Africa. The CdM manages and coordinates operations, human and financial resources, logistical resources and security in the country of assignment.

Main responsibilities and tasks

The CdM manages and coordinates operations, human and financial resources, logistical resources and security in the country of assignment.

He/she is responsible for:

Communication and representation

• Represent INTERSOS at the national level;
• Establish and maintain relationships with local institutions, donors, NGOs, international agencies and other stakeholders;
• Establish, guarantee and control government recognition procedures for the organization and formalities of the host country;
• Be the reference person for the press and media.

Planning and implementation of project/s

• In coordination with the Regional Director, define country priorities based on the context and needs analyses;
• Monitor donor intervention strategies and priorities in the country and evaluate, promote and develop new projects;
• Plan mission activities and verify their implementation; supervise, monitor and evaluate the implementation of projects also through periodic visits to areas of operation;
• Approve project reports and interim and final financial reports and take responsibility for presentation to donors;
• Guarantee compliance with INTERSOS procedures (eg: the supply of goods, works and services).

Information and reporting

• Transmit information received from headquarters to field teams;
• Responsible for the continuity and quality of field-headquarters relationships;
• Write monthly reports on country operations for the Regional Director.

Finance

• With the support of the Country Administrator, verify monthly mission expenses and ensure their compliance with financial planning;
• Assume responsibility for managing mission funds (including bank accounts);
• Define the economic and financial planning of the mission, guarantee self-sufficiency and consistency of expenditure.

Human ressources

Be ultimately responsible for the management of expatriate and national human resources:

• Regarding expatriate staff:
• reception, organization of briefings and debriefings;
• identification of human resources needs, development of job profiles;
• validation of the mission organization chart;
• individual monitoring: support, advice and evaluation of your team (intermediate and end of mission assessment);
• ensures regular evaluation by line managers;

For local staff:

• in coordination with headquarters, definition of the national personnel management policy;
• ensures the implementation of the internal regulations of the mission.

Security

• Responsible for developing/updating mission security plans (capital and bases), in collaboration with the base manager and the Logistics Coordinator;
• Monitoring and documentation of security issues in the country;
• Monitoring team movements and ensuring compliance with safety rules (CPP);
• Final responsibility for all decisions regarding security;

Profile required

Education

• General higher education: Economics, Administrative and financial management, Political science, University diploma in humanitarian matters. Alternatively solid field experience

Professional experience

• At least 5 years of experience as head of mission or other coordination and management position in emergency humanitarian contexts;
• Experience in implementing activities funded by UN donors or ECHO
• Previous experience in Africa and in emergency humanitarian contexts (desirable)

Professional requirements

Technical skills:

• Ability to set high standards of work quality
• Ability to analyze and integrate information from a wide range of sources
• Ability to manage funds, logistics and human resources
• Excellent oral and written communication skills
• Superior ability to write project proposals and reports
• Knowledge of the food security and/or water and sanitation and/or protection sectors
• Mastery of IT tools (MS Office package, Internet, email, etc.)

Behavioral skills:

• Strong organizational and problem-solving skills with an analytical approach
• Strong interpersonal skills and demonstrated ability to establish effective working relationships with staff, beneficiaries and other stakeholders
• Ability to take initiative and work independently
• Ability to achieve effective results, considering the imperatives of speed, scale and quality.
• Ability to integrate and work well within multi-ethnic and multi-cultural teams
• Ability to develop and maintain collaborative relationships

LANGUAGES

• Fluent French (spoken, read, written) essential
• Good knowledge of English and/or Italian (desirable).

Personal requirements

• Adherence to humanitarian and INTERSOS values