Head of Programmes

Position: Head of Programmes

Contract Length: 2 years renewable

Country Programme: Zambia

Base: Zambia, Lusaka, with frequent extended travels to the field, mainly Mongu, Western Province

Line Manager: Country Director

About the Zambia Programme of People in Need:

People in Need (PIN)opened its office in Zambia in 2017. Since then, PIN has been focusing on improving nutrition, health, WASH and livelihoods of vulnerable groups and promotes good governance by engaging civil society organisations in local and national advocacy and policy formulation initiatives. With the growing incidence of natural disasters and an anticipated surge in refugee arrivals, PIN Zambia provided humanitarian aid and early recovery support to refugees in North-Western Province and to the most vulnerable farmers in Western Province during a period of severe drought in 2020. During the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic, PIN Zambia has helped to prevent and mitigate the impact of COVID-19 by improving water, sanitation and hygiene practices in rural and urban communities and health facilities and by designing, establishing and implementing a rapid shock responsive safety net. Since 2018 until now, PIN has been implementing a series of programmes focused on access to clean and renewable energy by leveraging the benefits of biogas technology, both in rural and urban areas.

About the role:

The Head of Programmes (HoP) supervises all programmes (development and emergency), with the specific responsibility for the timely and efficient programme implementation, and most importantly the quality of projects and programmes in terms of their impact. By supervising the implementation of results-based M&E systems, the Head of Programmes also guides the programme strategy and development of future programmes.Together with the Country Director, HoP represents PIN to donors and partners, ensuring that PIN is recognised for its field experience. Furthermore, HoP engages in medium and long-term planning and strategy activities, ensures continuous quality improvement of programmes and contributes to a positive working environment for its staff.

Main Duties & Responsibilities:

• Overall supervision and support of currently implemented programmes in all the phases of project cycle.
• Strategic planning, programme development and proposal writing including incorporating innovations, research and good practices.
• Participate in Country Management Team meetings and decision making, in line with PIN strategies and policies.
• Direct supervision of Program Managers (and/or Project Managers), who are further managing respective project / programme teams.
• Building of synergy among the programmes, ensure cooperation with Country Program’s supporting departments and PIN Knowledge & Learning department.
• Supervising MEAL (monitoring, evaluations, accountability and learning) processes and procedures, tracking programme status through internally developed monitoring tools and use of common IT tools (e.g. Navision, ELO), through monthly review meetings.
• Striving for quality of programmes including mainstreaming accountability systems and cross-cutting issues like gender, social inclusion, climate change and good governance.
• Ensuring financial side of programming is understood and followed by the project teams together with financial department.
• Ensure timely and high-quality reporting is done by all programmes towards donors.
• Develop external contacts (in coordination with Country Director) and relations with partners (organizations, authorities) in Zambia.

Main Requirements:

• A graduate degree in a relevant field (humanitarian action, development work etc.)
• Minimum of 3-years relevant experience in a similar position.
• Experience in managing development projects.
• Experience in managing projects by different donors (UN, EU etc).
• Experience working in a complex context; experience from Zambia/Africa region is an asset.
• Proven proposal writing skills; proven analysis and report writing skills.
• Understanding of development project cycle.
• Understanding of MEAL (monitoring, evaluation, accountability, learning) and its tools (for example Kobo).
• Capacity to meet deadlines.
• Understanding of Zambia context is an asset.
• Fluency in English – written and spoken.
• Results orientation.
• Strategic thinking.
• Initiating action and change.
• Analytical skills, sound judgement.
• Flexible, proactive approach.
• Gender and cultural sensitivity.
• High degree of rationality; a scientific wake of thinking, and a very good grasp of logic.
• Outstanding communication skills – written and spoken.
• Strong interpersonal skills.
• Demonstrated patience, enthusiasm and strong personal skills with attention to detail, ability to follow procedures, meet deadlines and work both independently and cooperatively with team members.
• High ethical standards.
• Commitment to and understanding of PIN’s aims, values and principles.

PIN Offers:

• Working environment in a well-established middle-sized and continuously growing humanitarian organization in a challenging context;
• Salary and benefits according to PIN’s salary scale. Expected salary 2650 – 2950 EUR super gross (based on experience) plus monthly subsistence allowance of 1500 EUR.
• Accommodation and local transport costs covered. Accommodation in a shared PIN guesthouse or allowance for individual accommodation.
• 25 days of holiday per year.
• Travel insurance (covers health care incl. the repatriation).
• Reimbursement of travel expenses with travel to the country of residence once every 6 months of work.
• Reimbursement of costs of visas and vaccinations; assistance with the visa application procedure.
• Reimbursement of the medical check-up before and after the deployment.
• Free 24/7 medical helpdesk and psychological consultation available online.
• Free access to e-learning sites, global PIN’s Induction Training, Knowledge and Learning department onboarding, and individually tailored capacity-building opportunities.

People in Need is committed to preventing any type of unwanted behavior at work including sexual harassment, exploitation and abuse, lack of integrity and financial misconduct and is committed to promoting the welfare of children and adults with whom People in Need involves. People in Need expects all staff to perform job duties and responsibilities in accordance with People in Need code of conduct and key policies (available at: https://www.peopleinneed.net/key-policies-4142gp). People in Need Staff will undertake the appropriate level of training.

All offers of employment will be subject to satisfactory references and appropriate screening checks, which can include criminal records and terrorism finance checks.

We are committed to ensuring diversity and gender equality within our organization and encourage applicants from diverse backgrounds to apply.