EQuIP Programme Manager
Department
Programme
Reporting to
Head of Development Programmes
Coordination
EQuIP Coordinators in country, EQuIP Quality Advisor, EquIP Country Education Advisors, Compliance & Grants Programme Support Officer
Location
Deadline:
Ougadougou, Burkina Faso
17th May 2013
Overview Plan is an international child centred development organisation working in 50 developing countries. With a focus on long term sustainable development, Plan assists children and families across a range of projects including education, health, livelihoods and water/sanitation. Plan also engages in humanitarian work.
Established in 2003, Plan Ireland is a dynamic organisation that supports Plan’s work worldwide with a particular focus on West Africa. Funding is received from a variety of sources including through the public via child sponsorship, Irish Aid, EU, UN bodies, trusts, foundations and corporate firms.
Job Purpose The EQuIP Programme Manager is responsible for overall management and leadership of Education Quality Inclusive and Participative (EQuIP), a multi annual regional programme financed by Irish Aid to support inclusive primary education programmes in Burkina Faso, Guinea, Guinea Bissau and Sierra Leone.
Day to day implementation of the programme is the responsibility of four in-country coordinators. In addition, a Quality Education Advisor, based in Burkina Faso provides expertise in teacher training and curriculum development and an Education Coordinator based in Dublin provides technical expertise in other areas of the programme comprising learning outcomes, equality and equity, ECCD and advocacy. Compliance and financial support are provided through Programme Support and Finance personnel in Ireland.
Under the supervision of the Head of Development in Ireland, the EQuIP Programme Manager will be responsible for coordinating all aspects of the Programme including strategic planning, key decision making, grant compliance and reporting, oversight of project implementation and partner organisations, M & E, financial oversight, regional and international liaison and coordination.
Responsibilities
Strategic Management & Development
Establish an effective strategic management framework for the project incorporating plans for:
effective quality delivery on all outcomes within annual results frameworks and to agreed implementation plans; strong inclusive education strategies focussing on girls and children with disabilities; strong quality education strategies focussing on support for building quality education systems in the four countries; clear targeted education advocacy strategies to create change at policy and practice level nationally in the four programme countries and regionally; effective research programmes designed to build institutional and programming capacity to deliver on inclusive education at national and regional levels; sustainable funding streams focussing on building partnerships and leveraging increased scale of delivery; building innovation and best practice in Plan’s West Africa Regional Office and in the regional education sector.
Management:
Provide management support to the project to ensure quality, cost effectiveness and efficiency in carrying out planned activities; Facilitate the work of EQuIP Coordinators in-country to develop and maintain an effective monitoring and evaluation system; Provide line management support for the EQuIP Quality Education Advisor and facilitate parallel coordination with WARO’s Education Advisor and WARO team; Review, evaluate and analyse project progress and achievement against objectives and make necessary adjustments to ensure corrective actions are taken.
Financial:
Lead the process of annual budget forecasting and revision timetables; Monitor grant budget utilisation to ensure that project expenditures are in accordance with approved budget, necessary adjustments are identified / resolved; Support financial reporting from country and regional offices and collate and finalise with Plan Ireland’s National Office personnel.
Technical:
Manage and coordinate the Irish Aid grant management / compliance requirements. Ensure technical quality of the programme through inclusion of technical advice provided by the Quality Education Advisor (Burkina) and Education Coordinator (Irl); Coordinate project M&E process including baseline survey, mid-term and final evaluation, on-going monitoring and review etc.; Provide support in networking with global, regional and national education networks institutions.
Reporting
Produce monthly job-based progress reports and bi-monthly, six monthly and annual project-based reports in a timely manner; Ensure the project research and related experience is well documented and communicated.
Knowledge, Skills and Behaviours
Essential
Master’s Degree (Education, International Development, Social Sciences, etc.) or primary degree combined with relevant field work experience. Extensive experience of relevant programme management and supervisory experience in the international development field. Demonstrated ability to implement projects with rigorous timelines and deliverables and track program quality through donor approved M&E systems. Ability to coordinate and create relationships at various levels. Ability to work under pressure, as part of a team and independently, and meet deadlines consistently. Experience of working and collaborating with diverse sets of stakeholders, such as local partners, government officials and donor representatives. Ability to respond on short notice and plan / execute several activities at once. Excellent English and French oral and written communication skills
Desirable
Extensive experience managing large donor-funded grants focused on education, community-based development Familiarity with education systems and education challenges in Western Africa Proven work experience in Western Africa
This is not intended to be an exhaustive job description. It may be subject to change.
How to apply:
To Apply
Send CV with cover letter to jobs@plan.ie. For more information on Plan Ireland see www.plan.ie. To discuss the role contact Paddy Austin, Head of Programmes, on 00 353 1 6599601. Closing date: 17th May, 2013.
Plan regrets that only short-listed candidates will be contacted in response to applications.
