Humanitarian Programme Director at Save The Children

Locations: Abuja/Maiduguri, Borno
Job Type: Permanent

Role Purpose

• As a member of the Nigeria programme Senior Management Team the humanitarian programme director will lead on the strategic direction of the response to the crisis in North East Nigeria and will be accountable for ensuring that the response reaches out to as many children in need as safety and resources will allow in a cost effective manner with high quality programmes.
• S/he will ensure that this is achieved through a well managed team of experienced managers, support staff and technical advisers and will seek the required funding support through high level lobbying and advocacy with Save the Children members, all strategic coordination bodies within Nigeria and all potential donors.

Scope of Role

• Reports to: The Country Director
• Budget Responsibilities: approx. USD 30 million (current portfolio: 31.8 million USD). The portfolio and budget responsibilities will vary with the expansion or contraction of the programme in the long-term.

Key Areas Of Accountability
Humanitarian Vision and Strategy:

• To lead on the production of a humanitarian Strategy and that this is reviewed on an annual basis and documented each year by mid February.
• Ensure that the annual humanitarian strategic plan is informed by the 3 pillars of Save the Children’s Global and Country Strategy plans which aim to ensure that all children will survive, be protected and have access to an education.
• Indicate within the annual strategy intentions for geographical targeting and reach and thus numbers of children to be reached.
• Define within the plan a clear strategy for different approaches to work that may be adopted separately or severally whether through partners, direct implementation or through advocacy.
• Engagement with strategics level coordination groups for the humanitarian response within Abuja
• Ensuring on-going analysis of humanitarian trends in the northeast to develop early warning signals for a proactive rather than a reactive humanitarian programme.

Humanitarian Programme Delivery:

• Continually guide the humanitarian response team on assessments, programming and changes in plans that will affect the annual strategic plan
• Work with the SMT members to ensure that SCI Nigeria has the necessary capacity to meet the management, logistical and technical requirements of any humanitarian programme undertaken and to ensure effective coordination of the programme activities with key stakeholders at state and national levels.
• Collaborate with relevant departments at the CO to ensure timely decisions are made regarding opportunities for delivery of concept notes and project proposals to allow the humanitarian work to reach more children
• Ensure compliance with SCI’s MEAL framework and in particular to ensure that adequate controls and training is in place to SCI’s policies and approaches to child safeguarding
• Develop initiatives for continuous learning, pilots and innovation
• Ensure the humanitarian programme delivery is principled and is based on SCI global standards where applicable and on other global minimum standards, such as SPHERE.

Representation:

• Provide feedback to CO, RO, SC Members for global messaging and engagements with international coordination fora, concenrede with northeast Nigeria or the Lake Chad Basin crisis
• Facilitate funding and non-funding partnership (within the SCI global partnership framework) to increase participation and design of quality capacity building plans for partners. Including NGO partners (local and international) , networks, alliances, institutions, UN, Government of Nigeria, etc.
• Support the team to ensure programme learning and innovation are documented and shared at appropriate national, regional and international l level
• Ensure active and effective collaboration with the advocacy and campaigns team at CO and RO levels
• Actively engage with the HCT, iNGO Forum and other coordination platforms

Team Management, Coaching and Capacity Building:

• Human resource management in compliance with SCI policies, procedures and guidelines and in consultation and coordination with the Human Resource team in Borno and at the CO.
• Promote a continuous learning environment within the humanitarian response programme and country programme through dissemination of up-to-date thinking on humanitarian issues
• Manage a multidisciplinary team of programme and technical staff. Performance manage all direct line reports including development and coaching of staff.
• Team building and development of team capacity, with particular focus on developing skills, knowledge and capacity relevant to attaining the SCI Nigeria Country Programmes objectives and vision

Qualifications

• Education to a Master's degree level preferably in Social Sciences, International Development, Livelihoods and Humanitarian Assistance
• Additional training degrees on humanitarian response programming, humanitarian leadership, humanitarian negotiations, budgeting for US and EU based donors or equivalent

Experience and Skills
Essential:

• Minimum 5 years experience in the field leading humanitarian and/or preparedness programs
• Knowledge and experience of emergency and development issues; deep understanding of causes of emergencies, emergency programming and links with policy
• Proven experience of building and leading teams and evidence of strong people management skills
• Proven programme & project cycle management skills - proposal and report writing skills; monitoring and evaluation skills and experience
• Proven Representation skills at senior coordination and strategic levels
• Knowledge and experience of promoting gender equity, and an active commitment to promoting the interests of marginalized people in all aspects of SCI’s work
• Ability to work with others to develop vision into strategy and communicating and influencing this to a wider audience
• Proven knowledge of computerized system; high degree of computer literacy and word processing and spreadsheet skills essential
• Fluency in written and spoken English
• Ability to work under pressure, prioritises well and meet deadlines
• Ability to travel extensively, especially to remote disaster prone/affected areas
• Commitment to the aims and objectives of SCI’s Child Safeguarding policy and SCI code of conduct
• Strong understanding of humanitarian principles and standards and how it is applied in
• emergency contexts.
• Credibility to lobby, influence and represent Save the Children at all levels

Desirable:

• Experience in working in Nigeria, particularly northeast Nigeria
• Knowledge of Hausa or Kanuri language.