Country Manager Local Impact At Aga Khan Foundation

AKF Tajikistan is seeking for a qualified individual for the Local Impact program Country Manager position to lead the overall program and annual budget planning, implementation, budget spending, training, and management including design planning, reporting, capacity building and compliance in Tajikistan. The Country Manager will coordinate the cross-border program activities and reporting with other country offices in Kyrgyzstan and Afghanistan. He/she will be also responsible for regional-level engagement with AKF/AKDN stakeholders and USAID staff on technical and operational matters to promote Local Impact and generate subsequent Associate Awards.

RESPONSIBILITIES

Project Management:

• Manage AKF Tajikistan Local Impact activities, initiatives and facilitate workplan requirements and deliverables. Coordinate and develop a detailed implementation plan (DIP) for the entire period with yearly breakdown of the project in line with donor approved project documents (proposal, budget, log frame, etc.) and the grant agreement. Review and update DIP including budgeting on annual basis.
• Manage all financial aspects including the preparation and management of the project budget, conducting analysis, monthly budget spending review and reporting on a quarterly basis.
• Manage the effective implementation of approved project DIP jointly with implementing partners and ensure an integrated vision among different project’s components and focus on achieving the results defined in the project work plan and PMF.
• Act as the key liaison between USAID Tajikistan mission office and all other local stakeholders on matters related Local Impact program in Tajikistan. Oversee the conception, management, delivery, and evaluation of all activities such as visits by USAID mission and Global and regional project teams, government representatives to Local Impact project sites.
• Ensure that gender equality and women’s empowerment (GEWE), safeguarding, environmental protection, and disaster risk reduction is mainstreamed and adequately considered in project planning, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation.
• Ensure delivery of project activities on schedule, on budget and in accordance with the project agreement and subsequent plans/budgets agreed to with the donor.
• Coordinate and conduct meetings with Implementing Partners / project team on a weekly/monthly or ad hoc basis to discuss the project progress and gaps and formulate and agree on corrective measures and actions.
• Conduct regular compliance controls and ensure the project activities are planned and implemented according to AKF Tjk and donor requirements.
• Provide regular and adhoc updates to AKF Tjk Head of Programmes and/or other senior management team (SMT) members on project progress and seek their feedback, advise on relevant issues.
• Participate in AKF Tjk’s quarterly and annual programme progress review meetings and contribute to knowledge, experience sharing.

Design Planning, Facilitation, and Research:

• Identify opportunities and write design proposals in close collaboration with local teams based on internal priorities and discussions with USAID mission.
• Support the team in planning design process, methods, and tools to use.
• Support the projects and teams in conducting design process and workshops.
• Ensure gender equality is mainstreamed into programme design, planning, budgeting, implementation, monitoring and evaluation and resource mobilization.

Human Centered Design

• Lead the Human Centered Design Teams to bring together learnings from design processes by leading the discussion of data collected in the field (a process called synthesis). This will include debriefing and discussing user feedback with your teams-collaborating to turn research into potential directions for design.
• Lead building prototypes and test solutions with target audiences to collect feedback and iterate on solutions.

Capacity Development, Reporting and Documentation

• Support conducting workshops and learning expediencies to build design capacity of local teams and stakeholders.
• Offer compliance training and support to project team, as needed.
• Lead in the overall report collection, consolidation, editing and feedback.

Monitoring, Evaluation, Knowledge Management and Dissemination

• In coordination with M&E team, implementation partners develop monitoring, evaluation and knowledge sharing documents (PMF, etc) complaint to approved project documents and AKF systems.
• In coordination with MERLU and Safeguarding manager, develop and introduce the complaint reporting mechanisms in place within projects locations with various range of channels for beneficiaries and stakeholders safely to report.
• Facilitate the process where AKF M&E team provides timely capacity building and information session, support to all implementing partners team on project level monitoring, evaluation and knowledge sharing plan, project measurement framework expectations, roles, and responsibilities.
• Ensure that monitoring, evaluation, and knowledge sharing plan of the project is implemented timely and effectively so its products, reports meet the requirements of AKF and project donor.
• Conduct regular scheduled or ad-hoc field visits to promote and supervise efficient, effective, and quality implementation of the project activities in the field. Following the field visits arrange debrief meetings with partners and share the visit findings and recommendations in written.
• Ensure that the project progress, status as well as actuals against indicator targets are updated by project team in Awards Information Management System (AIMS) of AKF on quarterly and annual basis.
• Organize, facilitate, and participate in knowledge sharing events, sessions using the best practices, lessons documented.

Staff management

• Manage all aspects of project human resources management, including recruitment, performance management, resource planning, goal setting, and training and development for team members at the country level. Ensure team members are accountable for their areas of responsibility and complete required tasks within desired timeframe and quality expectations with the goal toward efficiency and effectiveness of operations.
• Participate and contribute to the recruitment of the project team to ensure smooth project delivery across functions.
• Support the development of individualized work plans, track, and review staff performance.
• Supervise project staff by providing input, feedback, guidance, and direction.
• Identify capacity building needs to enhance relevant technical and managerial skills.

ESSENTIAL QUALIFICATIONS

Education:

• Bachelor’s or master’s degree in social or economic sciences or other related disciplines.

Special skills & knowledge

• Experience with program start-up and planning, ideally with USAID projects.
• Experience with USAID leader with Associate Awards.
• Experience and familiarity with adaptive programming and budgeting.
• Experience in developing trainings, tools, templates, guidelines, and operating procedures for USAID programs.
• Experience in managing and leading capacity building initiatives.
• Understanding of and experience with applying USAID rules and regulation.
• Ability to deliver needed solutions and delight through unexpected details.
• A systems thinker and can logically visualize complex systems.
• Good communication skills, ability to communicate complex concepts to a variety of audiences.
• Demonstrated written, presentation and organizational skills in English.
• Strong proficiency with Microsoft Office suite.
• Able to travel project sites in Tajikistan, internationally, including Afghanistan and the United States.
• Proficiency in Tajik, Russian and English is an asset.

Experience:

At least five years of relevant program management experience on international development projects, with a minimum of three years of experience in managing a USAID cooperative agreement or contract and leading program management of USAID funded project.