Job profile
The Grant Management and Learning Coordinator fulfils a key function within the Department of Programme Development, Impact and Learning, sitting in the Grant Management Unit. Under the direct supervision of the Deputy Director of Programme Performance and Monitoring, the Grant Management and Learning Coordinator is responsible for ensuring compliance with donor grants, coordinating consolidation of coherent and accurate project data, supporting timely development and submission of high-quality donor reports, building and maintaining relationships with partners and donors, and proactively identifying the need for contract changes. In addition, the role coordinates the production of high-quality research on the organisation’s Climate Adaptation work and other programming, translating findings into articles, reports and other documents for donors, the NGO community, and other external audiences.
Duties and Responsibilities
The position covers the following key areas of responsibility:
- For assigned grants, serve as the focal point for Afghanaid’s policies and donor contract terms and conditions, maintaining comprehensive knowledge and ensuring that all grant documentation (including proposals, reports, and budgets) is properly stored and available to relevant staff, and that key reporting requirements and other compliance obligations are clearly communicated to finance and project teams.
- Upon the signing of a new grant agreement, facilitate a smooth handover of the project to the Grant Management Unit, following up on outstanding project partnership agreement (PPA) tasks, and confirming reporting responsibilities and processes with relevant parties at the project kickoff meeting.
- Maintain internal and external tracking of reporting timelines, including working with relevant departments to coordinate appropriate data collection, analysis and financial and narrative reporting by Afghanaid and its partners.
- Review and refine high-quality financial and narrative project reports, survey and evaluation reports, and other associated donor communications, ensuring timely submission and compliance with Afghanaid, donor and partner requirements.
- Independently troubleshoot issues raised by project and operational teams, serving as liaison between the project team and donor to address and resolve challenges.
- Facilitate and contribute to regular project review processes, and pre-emptively raise concerns where contractual obligations, quality standards or deadlines are at risk of not being met, especially identifying risks of donor ‘clawback’ and reputational damage.
- In coordination with project teams, partners and the finance team, lead on revisions to project budgets, logical frameworks and other project documents for assigned grants, ensuring timely submission to the donor and follow up on approvals, and communicating updates to relevant departments.
- Support the Consortium Manager in strengthening partner performance and report quality by reviewing and providing input on partner organisations’ annual and semi-annual narrative reports.
- Initiate learning exchanges and facilitate reflection and adaptive management sessions with Afghanaid staff and partners.
- Lead organisational research initiatives, including establishing and managing partnerships with research organisations, individual researchers (including PhD candidates/Masters’ students), universities and institutes, and consultants to facilitate the production of research outputs for Afghanaid. Adapt research findings into policy and practitioner briefs tailored to different audiences, including donors and external stakeholders; and producing reports drawing on the organisational database of past reports and data.
- Lead and contribute to the design of impact evaluations and internal studies, including initiating Terms of Reference, to inform the evolution of Afghanaid’s programming and implementation of the organisation’s strategy.
- Represent the organisation at external fora and in meetings with partners and donors to promote the organisation, strengthen external relations and identify opportunities for new and repeat funding and partnerships that contribute to Afghanaid’s funding pipeline.
- Support organisational learning initiatives where possible, for instance through documenting institutional knowledge and expertise and participating in lessons learned workshops.
- Contribute to organisational capacity through developing and facilitating training and workshops for Afghanaid staff, including in provincial offices, on subjects including effective reporting and impact analysis.
- Lead and support on the development of project reporting, analysis and evaluation templates and tools.
- Facilitate field visits with donor organisations, and virtual visits as required.
PERSON SPECIFICATION
Requirements
Essential
Education
- A Master’s degree in Development Studies, International Relations, Social Sciences or another relevant programme of study
Experience
- 3-4 years of experience of working in a development or humanitarian context, in project support, grant management, programme development or a similar role
- Proven experience of synthesising data and input from various sources into clear and cohesive narrative reports
- Strong experience with logical frameworks and/or theories of change
- Experience working in high-risk or volatile contexts, including humanitarian or emergency settings.
Knowledge and Skills
- Native English proficiency and demonstrated ability to write high quality, polished documents and reports that are consistent with a set brand and style
- Experience turning data and research into clear reports for a variety of audiences
- Strong data entry skills, familiarity with use of a databases, and office tools (Excel, Word)
- Experience in contract management
- Experience in donor/client relationship management in the humanitarian / development sector
- Experience in humanitarian project design or management, and/or budget development or management
- Strong organisational skills, able to plan effectively, set priorities, and meet tight deadlines under pressure
- Strong people and coalition-building skills and proven ability to form good working relations, both internally within the organisation and externally with people at all levels
Personal Attributes
- Intellectually curious and able to question assumptions
- Ability to work independently and as a team member, including in a coordinating capacity with other departments
- Initiative and drive to achieve results, working quickly and accurately with attention to detail
- An outgoing and engaging personality and strong sense of humour, able to build trust and manage relationships with a variety of stakeholders
- Cultural sensitivity and ability to work in diverse multi-cultural environment
- Ability and willingness to travel for work
Desirable
- Experience working on Climate Adaptation projects
- Experience working with, or knowledge of, key institutional donors for development and humanitarian programming in Afghanistan
- Experience with EU/INTPA grants
- Training in and/or exposure to M&E
- Understanding of the cultural, security and operating environment in Afghanistan (or in a similar context)
- Understanding of Dari and/or Pashto
How to apply
Please email a cover letter (no more than two A4 pages) and CV to jobs@afghanaid.org.uk by 09:00 GMT on Saturday, November 7th, 2026, including your name, the job title and the reference number (GMLC 2026) in the subject line. The precision and style with which you present yourself in your cover letter and CV will be given significant weight in shortlisting candidates. Applications with no proper subject (as indicated above) or submitted after the deadline will not be considered. Due to the high volume of applications we receive, we are unable to respond to every application. If you have not heard from us within 3 weeks of the deadline, then you have not been successful for shortlisting.