Head of Program – Yemen At War Child Canada

Position Summary

War Child Canada’s program and operation in Yemen are at the start-up phase. We are planning to build active presence and operational set-up focusing on economic empowerment, education, and child protection. We are looking for a seasoned Head of Program with a passion to build our program in Yemen. The Head of Program is a member of the War Child Canada’s Senior Management Team (SMT) and reports to the Country Director. She/he leads on the program design, quality implementation, monitoring and documenting the impact of War Child Canada’s humanitarian work in Yemen. The position holder will also work closely with Director International Program and technical leads at the HQ and actively support external relations, resource mobilization, program design and proposal development, internal and external reporting.

Key Areas of Responsibilities:

Program Development and Reporting (40%)

1. Support the Country Director and SMT with regular scanning of funding environment, conduct and update, including identification of key institutional donors, their interest and thematic areas aligned with War Child Canada’s strategic objectives
2. Support the Country Director to develop War Child Canada’s Yemen resource mobilization strategy aligned with the country strategy and annual plan
3. With support from HQ funding team, lead on the development of concept notes, Logframe, and program proposals for solicited and unsolicited calls and ensure these have input from country team, local partners, and communities
4. Explore partnership with development and humanitarian actors by building alliances, network, and joining likeminded organizations and consortiums
5. Lead on both internal and external reports – ensure preparation and submission of timely and high-quality progress reports including to donor and government ministries where needed

Program Implementation (30%)

1. Represent War Child Canada in external meetings with government, UN, Clusters e.g. Protection Cluster, Education Cluster ,GBV-Sub cluster, FSAC) NGO and coordination bodies
2. Lead on the coordination with host country ministries, ensure War Child Canada’s agreement and MoUs are valid and up to date
3. Supervise program implementation staff by providing direction, input, and feedback
4. Communicate with partners, beneficiaries, and other stakeholders to gain community support for the programs and to solicit input for improvement
5. Ensure that program activities comply with professional standards and War Child Canada’s Code of Conduct and values
6. Serve as overall budget holder for program implementation; effectively manage and support budget holders for relevant program pillars and projects
7. Ensure programs are implemented in ways responsive to the communities and children in line with War Child Canada’s values and strategic plan and following the organization’s compliance procedures

Program Monitoring and Field Support (10%):

1. Prepare program team’s monthly and quarterly monitoring plans and ensure dissemination to relevant staff including the M&E
2. Conduct field mission, assess effectiveness of program, challenges faced and support provided to local implementing partners
3. Collect information, feedback, stories of changes and high-resolution pictures from the field activities that can be used to cascade War Child Canada’s program and for fundraising

Strategic support to SMT (10%)

1. Assist the Country Director with country strategic planning, annual planning, programmatic and geographical expansion and ensure communities needs are addressed in the strategic and annual plans
2. Keep the CD and SMT updated of major development and policy shifts that may impact War Child Canada’s country program
3. Serve as Officer In charge, as and when requested by the Country Director through a written Delegation of Authority

Staff Management (10%)

1. Install effective team management structure and processes: e.g. individual staff annual performance objectives are set, weekly team meetings, team work plan, 1:1 meetings and their written record to track progress on performance, take disciplinary actions where required
2. Recruit staff and manage their performance.

Academic Background and Knowledge

• Master’s degree preferably in management, business, administration, or social science
• At least 5-8 years of program management experience with international non-governmental organizations
• Strong expertise in program design, proposal development, M&E, budget monitoring, reporting and coordination
• Demonstrable knowledge and experience of child protection, education, and livelihood programs
• Experience of Yemen or similar context is mandatory
• Demonstrable experience of managing teams and building staff capacity

Skills

• Fluency in written and verbal English with strong analytical skills.
• Command on Arabic language will be an asset
• Excellent leadership skills in building a strong and competent team
• Strategic thinking, strong organizational and analytical skills
• Strong consulting and coaching abilities
• Ability to manage stress and willing to work under strict deadlines
• Excellent skills of operating Microsoft Word and Excel
• A positive problem-solving approach
• Good interpersonal and team-working skills
• Cultural sensitivity and respect for local norms

Note: This position is open to both national and expats; qualified national staff particularly female candidates are encouraged to apply. For national staff local contract will apply

Application Process:

Qualified Yemeni nationals especially women candidates are strongly encouraged to apply. Interested applicants should send their resume and an accompanying cover letter in English electronically to: yemen@warchild.ca

The deadline for submission of application is June 17, 2022. Please ensure your application email has the subject heading of ‘Head of Programs – [insert your name]’ Only those applicants selected for an interview will be notified. For more information about War Child Canada, please visit www.warchild.ca