Country: Uganda
Closing date: 10 Dec 2017
Job description
Position: Project Manager - *Can’t Wait to Learn*
Reports to: Area Manager
Supervision of: Project Coordinator, Project Officers
Duty station: West Nile, Uganda
Project number: UGFM1701
Duration and type of contract: One year, with possibility of extension
Commencement: As soon as possible
The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) is a non-governmental, humanitarian organisation with 60 years of experience in helping to create a safer and more dignified life for people affected by displacement. NRC advocates for the rights of displaced populations and offers assistance through its core competences (CCs): Camp Management, Education, Livelihoods and Food Security, Information Counselling and Legal Assistance, Shelter, and Water, Sanitation and Hygiene.
Conflict, drought and economic collapse in South Sudan have driven over one million refugees over the border into Uganda. NRC operates projects in refugee and host community settlements in the districts of Adjumani, Arua and Yumbe in the West Nile region. Its education projects are currently in two main areas: 1) accelerated education programmes (AEP), targeting over-age learners with basic education by providing a condensed curriculum; and 2) youth education and livelihoods programmes, focussing on vocational skills training combined with literacy, numeracy and life skills.
In response to low learning levels and the difficulty of providing access to education for children and youth in West Nile, NRC is partnering with War Child Holland (WCH) to develop WCH’s Can’t Wait to Learn (CWTL) for Uganda. CWTL is a global programme that has ambitions to increase the number of children with access to quality education in areas affected by conflict in Africa and the Middle East. Building on concepts that have been successfully piloted in Sudan (e*-Learning Sudan*), CWTL proposes new, cost-effective solutions to the urgent challenges facing education for children in emergencies by utilising innovative technological solutions with a focus on serious gaming. Globally, the programme is led by War Child Holland. In Uganda, NRC and War Child Holland will implement the project, with technical partners.
The CWTL programme will digitise the Ugandan curriculum on to tablets using a serious gaming format, which will be used by children with guidance from a trained facilitator. In addition to mathematics, reading and psychosocial wellbeing-focused materials will be introduced to the CWTL portfolio during 2018. Developing fresh, interactive materials based on the national curricula, and creating effective partnership structures to distribute these, creates new opportunities for making education accessible to those children who have been excluded. By facilitating their access to an effective and innovative learning tool, the CWTL programme seeks to increase children’s resilience and support their educational (re)integration and progression.
Purpose of the job
NRC seeks a Project Manager who will be responsible for realising the results and ambitions of the multi-year CWTL programme in Uganda, according to set quality standards and donor requirements. They will be responsible for managing the CWTL budget for Uganda. They will contribute to strategic partnership development, programme and project planning, and be responsible for the project management, implementation and monitoring of this complex stakeholder programme in Uganda. They will manage staff directly under the project, including researchers, consultants and implementing teams involved in CWTL. They will liaise and coordinate with War Child Holland staff in Uganda and the global Can’t Wait to Learn team.
All NRC employees are expected to work in accordance with the organisation’s core values: dedication, innovation, inclusivity and accountability. These attitudes and beliefs guide our actions and relationships.
1.Role and responsibilities
Generic responsibilities
Line manage CWTL project staff.
Adhere to NRC policies, guidance and procedures.
Develop, with WCH and partners, the CWTL strategy for Uganda, ensuring its inclusion in NRC’s Education Core Competency and Country Strategy and Macro Log Frames, and participating in the development of relevant education projects to ensure complementarity with CWTL.
Coordinate and manage CWTL project implementation (activities, budget and project documentation) in line with proposals, strategies and donor requirements.
Provide technical direction and ensure high technical quality of the project.
Provide regular progress reports to the Area Manager, the Education CC Specialist, the Regional Education adviser, and partners.
Ensure that the project targets beneficiaries most in need of protection, exploring and assessing new and better ways to assist them.
Develop and manage project budget and coordinate across CCs.
Ensure capacity building of project staff and transfer key skills.
Liaise and collaborate with relevant local authorities and other key stakeholders.
Promote the rights of IDPs/returnees in line with NRC’s advocacy strategy.
Specific responsibilities
Lead the development of specific programme plans within the CWTL Programme for Uganda, including detailed project plans, quality standards, timeline, detailed budgets and milestones, in strong collaboration with the global Can’t Wait To Learn programme team.
Contribute to the development of processes, tools and guidelines to ensure smooth project management and implementation.
Ensure that available budgets are well managed and spent according to agreed plans, in collaboration with NRC and the global Can’t Wait To Learn programme team.
Ensure monitoring, evaluation and learning is integrated into programme and project design from the outset.
Ensure transparent, high quality and timely financial and narrative reports about programme deliverables and research findings are submitted to partners for feedback and then on to the CWTL global programme team.
Contribute to the development of the research plan in collaboration with the global Can’t Wait To Learn programme team and WCH’s Research and Development unit.
Integrate evaluation in the various sub-projects to collect evidence for innovative methodologies, with the support of the global CWTL research committee and research staff.
Ensure the effective roll-out of appropriate mathematics-focused interventions in Uganda, together with NRC education team, the CWTL global project team, and WCH Uganda.
Support the effective integration of evidence-based reading and psychosocial support focused interventions into the CWTL portfolio, over time.
Ensure buy-in and support from all stakeholders including the Ministry of Education and Sports, District Education Offices, the office of the Prime Minster, UNHCR and UNICEF, in collaboration with NRC regional and WCH global teams.
Identify important findings and results and share these with the global CWTL programme team on a regular basis.
Document and share programme results and the potential for replication and scaling-up with relevant stakeholders as required and under the lead of the global CWTL programme team.
Ensure transparent, high quality and timely financial and narrative reports about programme deliverables and research findings are submitted that meet external donor requirements.
Actively write/provide input to CWTL colleagues for proposal writing and fundraising purposes.
Coordinate all CWTL stakeholders and partners in Uganda, keeping them engaged, ensuring that expectations and results are being met.
Act as an in-country focal person for the CWTL programme responding to any media requests under the supervision and guidance of the NRC Country Director and in liaison with the CWTL Deputy Programme Director.
Support the transparent and cost efficient procurement of goods, in line with donor requirements and CWTL policy.
2.Competences
Professional competences
Generic professional competences:
· Minimum five years’ experience working as a Project Manager in a humanitarian/recovery context.
· Experience working in complex and volatile contexts.
· Technical expertise in the following areas:
Extensive knowledge of education programming (psychosocial support is an asset).
Knowledge and experience of programme and project management in complex multi-stakeholder programmes, with the capacity to manage multiple stakeholders.
Expertise in technology-based learning solutions and programme management tools.
Minimum of five years’ experience in developing methods, tools and programmes/interventions, and delivering training.
Knowledge and experience in research and M&E.
Strong planning and organisational skills.
Minimum of three years’ experience in managing people.
Outstanding communication and interpersonal skills.
Strong problem solving abilities.
· Relevant academic degree or studies (education, international development, conflict or social studies, etc.).
· Knowledge about own leadership skills/profile.
· Fluency in English, both written and verbal.
· Valid driver’s license.
Context specific skills, knowledge and experience:
· Extensive knowledge of conflict-affected affected emergency, post-emergency or developing countries, preferably in the Great Lakes, East Africa or the Horn of Africa.
Behavioural competences
· Managing resources to optimise results.
· Managing performance and development.
· Empowering and building trust.
· Handling insecure environments.
3.Performance Management
The employee will be accountable for the responsibilities and the competences, in accordance with the NRC Performance Management Manual. The following documents will be used for performance reviews:
• Job Description.
• Work and Development Plan.
• Mid-term/End-of-trial Period Performance Review Template.
• End-term Performance Review Template.
• NRC Competency Framework.
How to apply:
To apply, please visit www.nrc.no; then go to vacancies.