Fresh Career at CRS for Program Manager II- Nigeria- Emergency Coordinator- Borno State

Catholic Relief Services is the official international humanitarian agency of the Catholic community in the United States. We alleviate suffering and provide assistance to people in need in more than 100 countries, without regard to race, belief or nationality. 

CRS maintains strict standards of efficiency, accountability and transparency. Last year, more than 92 percent of revenues we spent went directly to programs that benefit the poor overseas.


Position Title: Program Manager II- Nigeria- Emergency Coordinator- Borno State

Department/Country: Nigeria, based in Maiduguri
Reports To: Emergency Program Director
FLSA: Exempt
Band: D

About CRS: Catholic Relief Services carries out the commitment of the Bishops of the United States to assist the poor and vulnerable overseas. Our Catholic identity is at the heart of our mission and operations. We welcome as a part of our staff and as partners people of all faiths and secular traditions who share our values and our commitment to serving those in need.

Background: In May 2013, the Government of Nigeria (GON) declared a State of Emergency (SOE) in the northeastern (NE) states of Yobe, Borno, and Adamawa in response to ongoing conflict. The economic system of the NE region has been severely disrupted, with serious impact on agricultural and income generating activities, resulting in reduced purchasing power at the household (HH) level. In the NE states, an estimated 2.1 million internally displaced persons (IDPs) are currently living with host families or in camps. Borno state is the worst affected and currently home for the biggest IDP population in Nigeria with over 1.5 million IDPs.

Over the last few weeks, the humanitarian situation in Borno has deteriorated significantly. The re-opening of Local Government Areas (LGAs) which were previously inaccessible has led to new IDP locations in the state, while ongoing conflict has resulted in the influx of more IDPs into Maiduguri metropolis and establishment of satellite camps in the state. Ongoing sector needs include, among others, food security, nutrition, shelter, WASH, psycho-social support, and livelihoods.

Catholic Relief Services (CRS) has worked in Nigeria for more than 25 years. Through local partners, CRS has implemented programs in 24 of the country’s 36 states, demonstrating the agency’s extensive grassroots network and significant capacity to reach the rural poor. Focusing on agriculture, emergency response and recovery, and health, CRS is helping to strengthen health care systems, faith-based partners, other community-based organizations, and government institutions. CRS’ current projects are improving the lives of more than 1.4 million Nigerians including in the northeast where CRS has been working, in Yobe State, since 2014.

Job Summary
The PMII Emergency Coordinator will be responsible for managing emergency response programming activities in food security, WASH, nutrition, shelter, psycho-social support, livelihoods, NFI distributions, and other potential activities such as cash-for-work. He/she will provide technical and management support to the program team and partners, in addition to ad-hoc technical consultants. Strengthening the technical and management capacity of emergency program staff and partner organizations will also be an important part of this role. The PM will help to ensure consistency, quality, efficiency, and accountability of emergency activities implemented. He/she will also ensure strong coordination with other actors and CRS’ active participation in multiple coordination forums and working groups. In addition, the PMII Emergency Coordinator- Borno will help grow our emergency portfolio, and will work in collaboration with colleagues to identify opportunities and submit proposals.

Job Responsibilities
Project Design, Proposal Development And Program Management

• Lead and manage emergency programming in Borno in close collaboration with the Emergency Program Director and country team.
• Keep abreast of emergency needs and mobilize support and resources.
• Adjust strategies for recovery and rehabilitation programming as needed.
• Contribute to preparing concept notes and grant proposals for submission to major donors. This will include working closely with program staff, resource agencies, partners and communities to do project design, including participatory needs assessments and gap analyses, development of results frameworks, selection of the most appropriate response options, etc. and proposal writing, using CRS guidance documents including ProPack I, TAG, and EFOM.
• Ensure program quality through ensuring adherence to relevant standards and guidelines (Sphere, CRS Protection Policy, Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning in Emergencies, and CRS MEAL policies and procedures), ensuring that a comprehensive M&E system is set up during project start-up, frequent field visits, organizing and facilitating regular (weekly, monthly or quarterly) monitoring and reflection meetings to review project progress, and assessing and strengthening partner capacity and contributing to an overall emergency response strategy..
• Closely manage emergency program budgets and ensure spending is consistent with resources available. With the finance department’s assistance, ensure budget holders are trained on budget management and meet budgetary cycle deadlines.
• Prepare or assist staff to prepare regular program and financial reports for CRS donors and partners as required.
• Assess and strengthen field office and partner capacity in needs assessment, program planning and monitoring.
• With Administration and Finance departments, ensure program compliance with all CRS and donor administrative and financial requirements.
• Develop and maintain strong collaboration with CRS technical experts in multiple sectors, including Food Security, WASH, Nutrition, etc.
• Identify emergency capacity building needs for staff and partners involved in the response. Take the lead on coordinating any formal or informal emergency training events organized by CRS for staff and partners.
• Support Program Managers/Officers and M&E staff to develop, effectively implement and improve, as needed, the M&E systems across all projects.
• Promote the appropriate use of information and communication technology for development or emergency programming.
• Promote regular project reviews and other learning events.
• Lead any effort to document best practices and lessons learned from the response.
• Prepare regular updates on emergency program activities for SitReps.
• Work with program staff to promote CRS partnership principles and strengthen partnerships.

Staff Management

• Supervise approximately 20 staff members to support the response.
• Support staff through close attention to staff care, mentoring, and development and monitoring of CRS Performance Plans through coaching sessions and appraisals as per CRS policy.
• Promote appropriate staff behavior in the field and a Do No Harm approach for a better understanding of local communities and the local working environment.
• Ensure to integrate security management into program activities with a particular attention to the strategy of acceptance and compliance of staff with security procedures

Representation: 1. In collaboration with the Emergency Program Director, maintain contact with donor agencies, the UN cluster system, and other NGOs to ensure that interventions are coordinated with those of other agencies, and meet local requirements.

• Ensure active participation in coordination forums, including the UN sectoral clusters.
• In collaboration with the Emergency Program Director, represent CRS and share information regularly with local authorities, local partners, the UN, other NGOs and other appropriate networks.
• Identify/negotiate funding opportunities and pursue strategic partnerships for ongoing emergency activities.

Key Working Relationships
Internal: CR, Emergency Program Director, DCR, HoOps, Security Manager, Senior Business Development Manager and other senior CRS programming and operational staff in Nigeria; DRD, PQ; STA Health, HRD; STA WASH, HRD; STA Food Security & Livelihoods, HRD.
External: Appropriate cluster leads, UN-OCHA, state and local government offices, local and international NGOs, UN agencies, Caritas partners, and donors.

Qualifications

• Masters Degree in related field or equivalent experience
• Minimum of five years of relevant field-based project management experience required. Extensive experience in managing moderately complex projects.
• Five years of experience working in emergency, development or recovery programming with an international NGO.
• Experience in emergencies and program planning and management.
• Demonstrated application of Emergency Standards.
• Demonstrated ability to work in partnership with local communities and NGOs as appropriate.
• Ability to represent CRS at high level coordination meetings with donors, local government, UN, and other international NGOs.
• Demonstrated leadership ability in strategic planning initiatives.
• Is committed to gender and conflict sensitive programming
• Proven ability to develop proposals and write reports meeting donor requirements.
• Excellent analytical, management, communication and negotiation skills.
• Must be able to prioritize multiple work demands and work effectively and efficiently with minimal supervision.
• Familiarity with policies, procedures, and priorities of USAID, UN agencies and Caritas agencies preferred.
• Experience in staff development and partner capacity strengthening.
• Knowledge of CRS program quality standards preferred.
• Advanced computer literacy and proficiency in Microsoft Office (MS Word, Excel, etc.).
• Experience working in security compromised zones
• Excellent inter-cultural sensitivity and interpersonal skills necessary in insecure environments

Agency-wide Competencies (for all CRS Staff): These are rooted in the mission, values, and guiding principles of CRS and used by each staff member to fulfill his or her responsibilities and achieve the desired results.

CRS Emergency Competencies: Each CRS staff member working in emergencies is expected to have the following competencies to fulfill his or her responsibilities and to achieve the desired results:

Required Foreign Language:

Work Environment:

Disclaimer
This job description is not an exhaustive list of the skill, effort, duties, and responsibilities associated with the position.

CRS’ talent acquisition procedures reflect our commitment to protecting children and vulnerable adults from abuse and exploitation.

EOE


How to Apply



Click Here to Apply Online