Closing date: 28 Feb 2010
Location: Sudan (the) - Khartoum
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On behalf of USAID’s Office of Transition Initiatives, AECOM is recruiting and hiring the USAID/Office of Recovery Initiatives’ (ORI) North Sudan Field Program Manager position. The Field Program Manager will be a member of the USAID/ORI Sudan team and will be based in Khartoum, Sudan with frequent travel for extended periods to project locations and field sites throughout Northern Sudan. The position will be employed by AECOM, ORI’s implementing partner in Northern Sudan, and managed by the ORI Director or his/her designee. Due to this arrangement, the Field Program Manager will work in the USAID office as required to carry out duties, but will reside in non-USG quarters and have office space at AECOM.
Position Title: USAID/ORI Northern Sudan Field Program Manager
Period of Performance: One (1) year, with two (2) one year option periods.
Place of Performance: Sudan
Duty Station: Khartoum, Sudan
Category: International Development
Status: Project
Salary: Commensurate with Experience
General Summary:
1. BACKGROUND
The ORI Sudan program is a follow-on to USAID’s Office of Transition (OTI) program operating in Sudan since 2003. ORI funds activities to support successful implementation of Sudan’s Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA). Sudan’s political horizon includes important and potentially contentious events, particularly elections, popular consultations for Southern Kordofan and Blue Nile states and a referendum on unity or secession for the people of the south. ORI’s program in Northern Sudan is focused on conflict management, peace dividends and support to these crucial political processes.
2. CORE FUNCTIONAL AREAS OF RESPONSIBILITY
The Field Program Manager will work for the USAID Office of Recovery Initiatives (ORI) Sudan program, supporting the ORI country team in the development, oversight and management of the ORI country program.
The Field Program Manager will work closely with ORI implementing partner organizations in the management and implementation of program activities. The Field Program Manager must demonstrate problem-solving skills and the ability to implement creative approaches to monitoring and evaluating the ORI program’s activities in order to advise the ORI Director and other members of the Senior Management Team of ways to improve the program’s activities and modalities. The Field Program Manager may be asked to periodically assume, in addition to his/her own duties, the responsibilities of one or both the ORI Deputy Director and the ORI Director. The Field Program Manager must demonstrate professional maturity and ability to effectively represent ORI to the high volume of delegations consistently visiting Sudan. The Field Program Manager must also demonstrate personal maturity given the pervasive proximity of peers and supervisors in both professional and social settings at all hours of the day. Given Sudan’s near-term timeline of elections, popular consultations and referendum, the Field Program Manager must have both expertise and experience with programming in support of relevant political processes. Because of the likeliness of changes in program direction and implementation, the Field Program Manager must be a highly flexible individual capable of redesigning his/her roles and responsibilities.
The successful candidate must also be willing and able to perform a wide range of administrative functions (budget preparation, financial management, records management, travel assistance, etc.) to help ensure programmatic success.
Specific duties include the following:
Under the direct supervision of the ORI Director or his/her designee (e.g. the ORI Deputy Director), the Field Program Manager will:
- Support the effective implementation of the ORI Sudan program by ensuring activities are coordinated and integrated with other USAID and donor programs;
- Advise the ORI senior management on program performance in the field, and offer input regarding the improvement of programmatic and operational modalities;
- As necessary, act as primary liaison with ORI implementing partners at the field level, including ensuring team goals and objectives are being met and understood by all;
- Work with USAID and other counterparts to help shape and develop strategies and activities in support of USG, USAID, and ORI objectives at the field level;
- Assist the ORI team in the overall monitoring and evaluation (M&E) of ORI-sponsored activities designed to achieve ORI strategic objectives;
- Support ORI senior management in meeting USAID administrative requirements (budget preparation and tracking, financial management, agreement management);
- Maintain detailed records/files of program information;
- Assist in supervising, training, and/or mentoring Foreign National PSC (FNPSC) ORI staff; and locally hired teams in the field;
- Coordinate and advise on implementing partner operational platform and activities in the field in line with ORI objectives, to ensure team goals and objectives are being met and are understood by all, even during rapid periods of change;
- Draft weekly and quarterly programmatic and analytical political reports incorporating information from ORI activities;
- Assist ORI senior management in supervising periodic baseline surveys, and survey teams, and communicate and present results to a range of audiences in the US Government, host country government, and other stakeholders;
- Assist in meeting and collaborating with USAID Mission personnel, U.S. Embassy staff, host country government officials, implementing partners, international organizations, indigenous and international NGOs, international donors, and others key players who may be interested in ORI activities or have important information related to the start up or ongoing development of ORI activities;
- Assist in regularly communicating and sharing program information with other USAID activity managers, bilateral donors, UN Organizations, International Organizations, and indigenous and international NGOs to ensure visibility and synergy of USAID/ORI activities;
- Communicate and present lessons learned to audiences such as US government officials, host country government officials, other donor officials, and others as required;
- Participate in the USAID/Sudan inter-office conflict management working group; providing analysis for the development of a USAID-wide strategy for responding to identified priority conflict flashpoints.
- Serve as Acting ORI Deputy Director or Director as required;
- Perform other duties as determined by the supervisor to ensure successful ORI program implementation.
SUPERVISORY RELATIONSHIP:
The Field Program Manager will take direction from and will report to the ORI Director or his/her designee.
SUPERVISORY CONTROLS:
The supervisor will set overall objectives. The employee and the supervisor together will develop deadlines, projects, and work to be accomplished. The incumbent is expected to take initiative, act independently, and manage his/her tasks with minimal supervision.
3. PHYSICAL DEMANDS
The work is generally sedentary and does not pose undue physical demands. During deployment on Assessment teams or during site visits, there may be some additional physical exertion including long periods of standing, walking over rough terrain, or carrying of moderately heavy items (less than 50 pounds).
4. WORK ENVIRONMENT
While in Khartoum, the work is generally performed in an office environment. However, the position also requires extensive travel for extended periods of time to project locations and field sites throughout Sudan, which may additionally involve special safety and/or security precautions, wearing of protective equipment, and exposure to severe weather conditions.
Khartoum is an adult dependent-accompanied post only and does not allow minor dependents. A separate maintenance allowance will be authorized for incumbents with dependents who do not accompany them to post.
5. START DATE: Immediately, once visas are obtained.
EDUCATION/EXPERIENCE REQUIRED FOR THIS POSITION (GS-13)
(Determines basic eligibility for the position. Applicants who do not meet all of education and experience factors are considered NOT qualified for the position.)
Bachelor's degree AND a minimum of 6 (six) years of progressively responsible work experience, including a minimum of two (2) years must include experience with a USG foreign affairs agency, large international assistance organization, or non-governmental organization, in community development, economic development, mediation/ arbitration, conflict resolution, democracy and governance, international law, and/or human rights activities, including overseas field experience in humanitarian assistance, transition programs, or democracy-building.
OR
Master's degree (with significant study in or pertinent to the specialized field, including, but not limited to, international development and social sciences) AND minimum of four (4) years of recent project management experience with a USG foreign affairs agency, large international assistance organization, or non-governmental organization, in community development, economic development, mediation/arbitration, conflict resolution, democracy and governance, international law, and/or human rights activities, including overseas field experience in humanitarian assistance, transition programs, or democracy-building.
AND
A minimum of two (2) years of overseas field experience, preferably in relation to political processes in conflict-prone countries.
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Reference Code: RW_7Y5QD8-54
