Yemen Country Director At Action for Humanity

We are recruiting a Country Director (CD) for our new and challenging, yet extremely rewarding response operations in Yemen. You will build the programme along with a team with strong focus on quality fundraising and representation. We will be working in both the north and the south of Yemen, hence you will have experience of establishing and leading teams in unstable environments, knowledge of regional politics and developing trends, and a strong track record in resource mobilisation and effectively managing organisational growth whilst ensuring programme quality.

The CD will lead the Senior Management Team in Yemen, focusing on growing the programme to meet needs, developing the vision and strategy and take overall responsibility. The role also ensures information from the country programme is shared across departments and will represent Action for humanity (AFH) at the highest levels; donors, national authorities, clusters and national partners in Yemen

Responsibilities:

The CD will oversee AFH’s entire operation in Yemen. S/he will directly manage the operations and programmes teams. In co-operation with the appropriate staff, s/he will undertake the following responsibilities:

Programme Development and Management:

• Undertake programme planning and development in line with AFH’s organizational strategy.
• Develop the country strategy for Yemen in line with AFH’s organizational strategy
• Build a team of experienced and dedicated personnel at the Yemen country office.
• Develop and implement programmes in consultation with all staff and stakeholders, inside Yemen.
• Ensure stakeholders participate meaningfully in the planning, implementation and monitoring and evaluation of projects.
• Conduct participatory research to identify and develop new projects, aligned with AFH’s organizational strategy.
• Plan time frames and budgets as well as development of new concept papers and liaison with in-country donors.
• Grant Management, and Donor Compliance: Ensure timely quality reporting to donors and compliance with donor requirements, including leading your programme and grants team to build a compliance and performance focused management system.
• Donor Engagement and Funding: Lead on donor engagement within country and with regional donors.
• Contribute to efforts to identify and secure in-country funding from Yemen based donors and providing the programme funding to deliver on the Yemen country strategy.
• Work with the team and provide information necessary to help develop proposals and reports, in line with donor schedules. Provide final country level approval of concept papers, proposals and budgets
• Mobilize the support of government, NGO and community stakeholders, including development of fundraising strategies in country with submission of proposals that have to be signed-off by the UK office.
• Develop coordination and capacity building initiatives for all staff to ensure learning and best practice is shared and developed. This will evolve to include partnership management and transferred learning.
• Produces monthly reports on a timely basis to HQ as required.
• Organize and facilitate internal and external evaluations of the project, using these as opportunities to elicit and document achievements, challenges, learning and opportunities.
• Facilitate visits to project sites by donor representatives and other AFH representatives
• People management: Take ultimate responsibility for Human Resources and Development. Leading and motivating all staff, promoting effective cohesion and team identity across the various field offices and projects.
• Ensuring that AFH’s standards and values are known and followed within the mission.
• Reporting: Ensure adherence to organisational requirements, including child safeguarding policy, safety and security, minimum standards for quality programme cycle management and regular programme reporting.

Fundraising:

• Work in line with the institutional fundraising strategy and with support from the UK Programmes/Operations team to raise funds through relationship building and proposal development.
• Develop and submit concept notes/ proposals with support from Global Head of Institutional Funding and strategic partnerships and Head of Programmes, UK.
• Negotiate grants and partnership agreements with in-country donors.
• Identify in-country funding opportunities, aligned to AFH’s organizational strategy.
• Work with the in-country and UK Finance teams to develop accurate and realistic donor budgets.

Financial Management:

• Comply fully with AFH’s finance policies and procedures and provide the finance department (HQ, Manchester) with financial requests and expenditure information reports in an accurate manner on a monthly basis.
• Comply fully with the donors’ requirements and conditions.
• Compile donor reports in a timely manner with feedback and support from the Programmes and Operations Team and sign-off from the CEO.
• Comply fully with the Yemeni Government’s regulations and requirements.
• Ensure all expenditure is authorized and in line with the programme and project budgets.
• Ensure receipts and supporting documents are compiled and achieved properly.

Security Management:

• Responsible for ensuring compliance of security protocols within the team, imparting and training partners in security planning, and maintaining oversight of the country-security context at the tactical level
• Ensure reporting and recording incidents for the Security coordination in Yemen and the UK.
• Update at least annually and/or whenever appropriate, security and evacuation plans with relevant stakeholders.
• Ensure all national staff and visiting staff comply fully with AFH’s security policy and procedures. Security is non-negotiable and overrides programme consideration

Communication and Representation:

• Represent the organization to key donors, diplomats, multilateral organizations, journalists and visitors in Yemen.
• Ensure effective networking, profile and representation with local, national and international authorities, donors and peer agencies.
• Ensure quality of communication material including case studies for UK based communications team.
• Interface with Fundraising Team in production of blogs, photos, videos and case-studies.
• Circulate and inform staff of AFH’s communications strategy and external messaging.

Human Resources:

• Be overall responsible for the implementation of HR policies and procedures in Yemen and ensure they comply with AFH’s HR policies and practices and Yemen labor laws.
• Line management of team of diverse local staff and expatriate staff conducting regular supervision and support. This will include local and distance management of geographically separate teams and overseeing the management of relationships with local partner organizations.
• Lead the recruitment and orientation of new local and international staff members.
• Conduct or oversee at least annual appraisals of all staff working under the Yemen programme.
• Ensure compliance with security and child protection protocols and procedures
• Arrange for field visits to address local staff needs and ensure compliance with AFH policies and procedures.
• Maintain learning and competency development amongst staff and partners through identification of individual learning objectives, institution of regular training programmes and competencies assessments.

Other:

• Liaison with local government authorities to ensure representation, good relations and full compliance with local Laws and/or customs as far as possible.
• Follow up with changes in Border, Registration, Residency and other policies that impact employees and organization in country of operation.
• Ensure legitimacy of staff and operations, and clear legal standing for all office operations.

Person Specification

Qualifications

• Master’s degree in one of the following subjects: Business Management / International Relations / Development / Environmental / Conservation Management or other related fields;
• A minimum of ten years’ experience of managing including at least five years in humanitarian field.
• Proven track record in successfully developing, leading, and managing small to large-scale programmes in various humanitarian sectors.

Knowledge and skills

• Excellent leadership abilities to manage human and financial resources, with experience in leading change and driving the vision of the organization.
• Excellent team management and interpersonal skills.
• Decision making skills with the ability to think and manage strategically.
• Sound knowledge of participatory approaches.
• Excellent IT skills
• Security and risk management
• Demonstrated successful track record in securing funding from institutional donors and grant reporting.
• Grant management and reporting
• Demonstrated fundraising skills, and experience working with donors;
• Must be committed to equal opportunity employment policies and AFH’s code of ethics;
• Adhere to humanitarian principles and international humanitarian laws
• Fluency in English
• Fluency in Arabic (highly desirable)

Experience

• Maintaining relationships at a senior level with relevant organisations
• M.E.A.L. Setting up monitoring, evaluation, accountability and learning systems, including the use of logical frameworks.
• High level negotiation and influencing skills, and the capacity to develop and maintain strong relationships at all levels with NGOs and donors’ representatives and government officials.
• Track record of building organizational talent by promoting performance culture and encouraging empowerment and delegation.
• Ability to work outside normal office hours and attend meetings at weekends or evenings
• Willing to travel locally & internationally