State Programme Manager at Reconnect Health Development Initiative

Job Summary

• Are you an experienced development professional passionate about programme leadership, community impact, and sustainable development?
• Reconnect Health Development Initiative (Reconnect HDI) is looking for a results-driven State Programme Manager to lead our programmes in Benue State.
• We're looking for someone who can:
  • Lead and deliver impactful development programmes.
  • Manage donor-funded projects, budgets and reporting.
  • Develop competitive funding proposals and identify grant opportunities.
  • Build strong partnerships with government, NGOs and community stakeholders.
  • Lead teams and ensure programme quality, accountability and measurable results.
• Our ideal candidate: An experienced NGO/INGO professional with strong programme management, grant writing, donor compliance and stakeholder engagement skills.

Job Purpose

• The State Programme Manager will provide strategic and operational leadership for Reconnect HDI's programmes and interventions in Benue State.
• The role is responsible for the effective planning, implementation, monitoring, evaluation and reporting of programmes, ensuring alignment with organisational strategy, donor requirements and the needs of target communities.
• The postholder will build and maintain strategic partnerships with government institutions, civil society organisations, Organisations of Persons with Disabilities (OPDs), community structures, donors and other relevant stakeholders.
• The role will also contribute to organisational growth through resource mobilisation, proposal development, programme design and the identification of new funding opportunities.
• The successful candidate will ensure that all programmes are delivered to a high standard, within approved budgets and timelines, while upholding safeguarding, accountability, gender equality, disability inclusion and other relevant humanitarian and development standards.

Key Responsibilities
Programme Planning, Design and Implementation:

• Lead the planning, coordination and implementation of Reconnect HDI's programmes and projects in Benue State, ensuring alignment with approved work plans, organisational objectives and donor agreements.
• Develop and maintain detailed programme work plans, activity schedules, implementation frameworks and operational plans.
• Coordinate programme activities relating to Gender-Based Violence (GBV), Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS), Psychological First Aid (PFA), governance, leadership, disability inclusion and other relevant thematic areas.
• Oversee the planning and delivery of trainings, workshops, community engagements, stakeholder dialogues and capacity-building activities.
• Ensure that programmes respond to identified community needs and are designed with meaningful participation from beneficiaries and relevant stakeholders.
• Strengthen referral pathways and coordination mechanisms across health, protection, psychosocial support and social services.
• Support OPDs in organisational development, institutional strengthening, governance, capacity building and formal registration processes, as appropriate.
• Monitor implementation against agreed objectives, deliverables, milestones and performance indicators, taking corrective action where necessary.
• Identify implementation challenges and operational risks and develop practical solutions to maintain programme quality and continuity.
• Ensure that programme activities comply with approved proposals, contractual obligations, organisational policies and relevant regulatory requirements.

Programme Quality, Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning (MEAL):

• Lead the implementation of programme monitoring, evaluation, accountability and learning plans in collaboration with the relevant teams and partners.
• Ensure that programme objectives, outcomes, outputs, indicators and targets are clearly defined, measurable and consistently tracked.
• Oversee the collection, verification, analysis and documentation of programme data to assess progress, effectiveness and impact.
• Conduct regular field visits, programme reviews and implementation assessments to verify the quality of activities and identify areas for improvement.
• Ensure that beneficiary feedback, complaints and community perspectives are systematically collected, documented and addressed through appropriate mechanisms.
• Document lessons learned, promising practices, success stories and programme outcomes to inform programme improvement and future project design.
• Ensure that programme data is accurate, securely managed and available for timely decision-making and reporting.
• Work with relevant colleagues to conduct needs assessments, baseline studies, evaluations and other evidence-gathering exercises as required.
• Promote adaptive programme management by using monitoring findings and feedback to improve implementation and achieve intended outcomes.

Financial Management, Budgeting and Donor Compliance:

• Develop programme budgets, budget narratives, resource plans and operational forecasts in collaboration with the Finance Department and relevant management personnel.
• Monitor programme expenditure against approved budgets and work plans, identifying variances and recommending corrective actions.
• Ensure that programme resources are used efficiently, transparently and for their intended purposes.
• Review programme expenditure and financial reports with the Finance Department to ensure consistency between financial and programmatic performance.
• Ensure compliance with donor financial rules, procurement requirements, documentation standards, reporting obligations and other contractual conditions.
• Support financial forecasting, budget revisions, expenditure tracking and the preparation of donor budget reports.
• Ensure that appropriate documentation is maintained for programme activities, including attendance records, training reports, procurement records, activity approvals and supporting evidence.
• Support internal and external audits, donor verification exercises and compliance reviews by ensuring that relevant programme documentation is complete and accessible.
• Escalate suspected fraud, misuse of funds, significant budget variances or other compliance concerns through established organisational procedures.

Donor Reporting and Stakeholder Communication:

• Prepare and submit timely, accurate and high-quality narrative reports, progress updates, case studies and other programme documentation for management, donors and partners.
• Ensure that reports clearly communicate programme achievements, challenges, expenditure progress, lessons learned, outcomes and corrective actions.
• Coordinate the collection of reporting inputs from project staff, implementing partners and relevant departments.
• Maintain an organised programme filing and documentation system, ensuring that key records are accurate, current and readily retrievable.
• Support the Country Director in responding to donor enquiries, coordinating donor visits and providing updates on programme implementation.
• Ensure that donor commitments, reporting deadlines, deliverables and visibility requirements are tracked and met.
• Contribute to the development of organisational reports, presentations, concept notes and programme updates as required.

Business Development and Resource Mobilisation:

• Proactively identify and pursue funding opportunities relevant to Reconnect HDI's mission, strategic priorities and programme areas.
• Monitor funding announcements, Requests for Proposals (RFPs), Calls for Proposals, Expressions of Interest (EOIs), grant opportunities and other competitive funding mechanisms.
• Research and maintain a pipeline of prospective donors, including international development agencies, multilateral institutions, government funding programmes, foundations, corporate social responsibility initiatives and other relevant funding sources.
• Lead or coordinate the preparation of high-quality concept notes, expressions of interest, grant applications, technical proposals and full funding proposals.
• Develop programme designs, theories of change, logical frameworks, implementation plans, monitoring frameworks and budget narratives to support funding applications.
• Work closely with the Country Director and relevant technical and finance personnel to ensure that proposals are evidence-based, costed appropriately, aligned with organisational priorities and compliant with donor requirements.
• Ensure that funding applications are submitted on time and include all required technical, financial, organisational and compliance documentation.
• Develop and maintain relationships with prospective donors, funding partners, implementing partners and other strategic stakeholders.
• Track proposal submissions, funding decisions, donor feedback and opportunities for resubmission or further engagement.
• Contribute to strategies for improving proposal quality, funding success rates and the sustainability of existing programmes.
• Identify opportunities to scale successful interventions, develop new programmes and expand Reconnect HDI's presence and impact in Benue State.
• Maintain a funding opportunity tracker and provide periodic updates to the Country Director on resource mobilisation activities and the funding pipeline.

Partnership Development and External Representation:

• Build and maintain productive working relationships with relevant state ministries, departments and agencies, local government authorities, health and social service providers, CSOs, OPDs, community-based organisations and traditional and community leaders.
• Strengthen coordination and collaboration among stakeholders working in mental health, psychosocial support, GBV prevention and response, disability inclusion, protection and community development.
• Identify opportunities for strategic collaboration, joint programming, referral partnerships and consortium participation.
• Represent Reconnect HDI at relevant government meetings, technical working groups, stakeholder consultations, workshops, conferences and community engagements, as authorised.
• Participate in programme coordination platforms and contribute to policy discussions and advocacy initiatives relevant to the organisation's mandate.
• Maintain effective communication with implementing partners and ensure that agreed responsibilities, deliverables and reporting requirements are understood and fulfilled.
• Support the development and maintenance of partnership agreements, memoranda of understanding and other collaboration arrangements where required.
• Ensure that external engagements uphold Reconnect HDI's values, professional standards and organisational reputation.