Country Director At Street Child

Description

Role: Country Director, Mozambique
Location: Maputo, Mozambique
Contract Type: Full-Time Employee, 24 months fixed term, renewable
Estimated Travel: 35%

Background:

Street Child (SC) is a rapidly growing, child-focused, humanitarian, and development organisation. In 2023, Street Child celebrated reaching over 1.5 million children across 25 countries over its fifteen years of existence. This was accomplished with and through a growing network of more than 200 national and local actors.

Street Child has been operating in Mozambique since 2019, focusing on Cabo Delgado province. Its portfolio currently includes around $1 million dedicated to child protection and education in emergencies programming. Most programme implementation is done through local partners, supported by a team of 10 team members.

Role Purpose:

As Country Director for Street Child in Mozambique, you will lead our team in achieving our mission to keep all children safe, in school, and learning. Reporting to the East & Southern Africa Regional Director and working closely with Country Head of Programmes, your primary goals will be to build a high-performing and cohesive team, provide visionary leadership, drive programme growth, and cultivate strategic partnerships that drive our mission forward.

Street Child operates on the principle of equitable partnership, creating space for local actors to deliver impactful services within their communities. Therefore, your success will be measured not only by direct programming outcomes but also by the achievements of our local partners. Through effective team management, strategic planning, program oversight, and resource mobilization, you will advance Street Child’s long-term vision and presence in Mozambique.

Person Specifications: The ideal Country Director candidate will possess an entrepreneurial spirit, exhibit a go-getter attitude, and possess a business development mindset. Additionally, the ideal candidate will be an astute manager and strategist, whose visionary leadership will be vital in guiding a high-performing team toward achieving our mission of keeping all children safe, in school, and learning. Exceptional leadership abilities, along with strong coaching, teamwork, and communication skills, are essential. The candidate must exhibit analytical thinking and the ability to research innovative intervention methods, coupled with a creative and flexible approach to problem-solving.

Key Responsibilities:

Team Building and Leadership

• Recruit, mentor, and empower a highly effective team, fostering collaboration, accountability, and continuous growth.
• Lead by example, providing inspirational leadership, setting and communicating clear objectives to guide the team.
• Ensure the Mozambique team is equipped and has the mindset to build equitable and complementary partnerships by strengthening and establishing relationships with local partners, government, and international actors.
• Promote open communication and collaboration between programme, finance, and operational teams.

Strategy Development and Long-term Vision

• Develop and implement a comprehensive country strategy aligned with Street Child’s global and regional objectives.
• Lead strategic planning initiatives, engaging team members, partners, and authorities to identify Street Child’s value alongside emerging trends, challenges, and opportunities.
• Ensure programme, finance, and operational teams are aligned with and guided by strategic objectives.
• Work closely with East and Southern Africa regional and global Street Child offices to inform organizational strategy at all levels.
• Conduct thorough assessments of new geographical areas, preparing for future implementation and expansion.

Programme Management Oversight

• Provide strong oversight of all programmatic activities, ensuring alignment with country strategy and Street Child’s mission and strategic objectives.
• Work closely with the Country Programme Manager to design innovative and adaptive programming to respond to Mozambique’s dynamic context.
• Ensure projects are delivered within scope, on budget, and meet Street Child’s established quality standards.
• Ensure program performance is monitored and evaluated effectively, using data and feedback to drive continuous improvement and ensure high-quality outcomes.
• Ensure robust reporting meets internal and external requirements, including donor reports.

Operations Oversight

• Oversee all operational aspects, including safety, security, and crisis management, ensuring staff well-being and operational continuity.
• Develop and implement comprehensive safety and security protocols, ensuring team members have proper training to respond to emergencies.
• Oversee effective logistics, procurement, and administrative functions to support programmatic activities efficiently and effectively.
• Stay up to date with, and ensure compliance with legal, regulatory, and organisational policies and procedures.

Resource Mobilisation

• Cultivate strong relationships and bolster Street Child’s reputation among donors, relevant authorities, partners, and stakeholders in Mozambique.
• Input into East & Southern Africa Regional resource mobilisation strategy, working closely with the Regional Director to identify and pursue regional opportunities and relationships.
• Work closely with the fundraising team in London and the East Africa regional office to identify new funding opportunities and lead efforts to secure funding for programs and initiatives.
• Lead proposal development efforts, collaborating with local partners to create compelling pitches aligned with donor priorities and Street Child’s strategic objectives.

Advocacy, External Engagement, and Representation

• Serve as Street Child’s primary advocate and spokesperson in Mozambique and promoting our mission and values.
• Act as a sectoral leader, capturing lessons to strengthen our approaches, and sharing Street Child’s learning internally and externally.
• Engage with government officials, civil society organizations, and other stakeholders to influence policy decisions and drive systemic change in support of vulnerable populations.
• Represent Street Child at forums, conferences, and working groups, advocating for locally led response alongside the right to education for all in Mozambique.

Risk, Compliance & Security Management

• Ensure Street Child safety and security protocols are in place and being followed, with clear measures for risk mitigation and crisis management.
• Take overall responsibility for the safety, security, and risk management of all Street Child Mozambique staff, programs, and operations.
• Ensure adherence to safeguarding policies to protect program participants, particularly children.
• Conduct regular assessments of partner organizations to ensure compliance with Street Child’s standards and guidelines.

Qualifications and Experience:

• Extensive 8-10 years’ experience in the humanitarian or development sector, with a strong track record of team building, business development, and operational management.
• Experience in overseeing or delivering education, child protection, and/or livelihoods programmes.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to build relationships and influence stakeholders at all levels.
• Demonstrated expertise in strategic planning, program management, and resource mobilization, with a focus on sustainable impact.
• Fluency in both English and Portuguese, written and spoken. Fluent Spanish or Italian are acceptable in the absence of Portuguese.

Street Child’s commitment to Safeguarding:

Street Child is committed to the safeguarding and protection of the communities we serve, our partners, our volunteers, and our staff. As part of this commitment to safeguarding, all offers of employment will be subject to satisfactory references and appropriate background checks. Street Child also participates in the Inter-Agency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme. In line with this Scheme, we will request information from job applicants’ previous employers about any findings of sexual exploitation, sexual abuse and/or sexual harassment during employment, or incidents under investigation when the applicant left employment.

Employment Conditions:

This unaccompanied position is based in Maputo and is open to both Mozambican and international applicants. International hires will receive a living allowance, local health insurance, an annual home leave ticket, and a 3.5% retirement contribution.