Country Director Burundi
Organization
Help a Child is a Christian international NGO specialized in community development with its headquarters in the Netherlands and it has been operating in Burundi since 2009. Founded in 1968, Help a Child’s mission is to improve the wellbeing of children living in poverty and crisis through supportive communities.
Together with local and international organizations, Help a Child Burundi is active in different programs: Since our entry in 2009, Help a Child’s visibility in the country is increasing and we are becoming recognized as one of the key players in both development and emergency relief sectors. Seeing the first results of the Building Bridges in Burundi, we feel encouraged to empower and restore vulnerable communities, with a focus on youth and employment in Burundi. This is closely linked to our ambition to reinforce top-down accountability through local and good governance. In emergency relief, we see new opportunities, working together with many other partners, and testing new methods such as cash transfer. It is inspiring to bring together lessons learnt in both programs and see how we can bridge the gap.
Help a Child Burundi supported 2 refugee camps and 3 returnees’ transit centers in Burundi in November 2021. Help a Child Burundi has started a new partnership with UNHCR and WFP to support refugees and returnees’ families including unaccompanied children. Together with UNHCR and WFP, Help a Child is ensuring the provision of food items and Non-Food items respectively to Refugees and Returnees as well as cash-based interventions to unaccompanied children, ensuring secure and proper orientation of the usage.
Position
The Country Director (CD) will be responsible for the long-term and overall success of Help a Child’s country program in Burundi. The CD will manage the country office, the Help a Child Burundi Program, and the country team. (S)he is responsible for successful fundraising, the development and implementation of the Help a Child Burundi country strategy, delivering high-quality projects, sound financial management, and strategic stakeholder management. Furthermore, the CD will end up responsible for quality control & evaluation, including adherence to donor standards and quality reporting. The CD will, with the support of managers and team leaders, manage a team that currently consists of 50 professionals.
Main tasks and responsibilities
- Identify, create and capitalize on funding opportunities for further growth of the Help a Child portfolio.
- Represent Help a Child at key events.
- Successfully invest in and expand networks of relevant stakeholders, including Dutch and other foreign embassies, donor representatives, Burundi national/ local government entities, and like-minded INGOs in order to develop partnerships.
- Ensure strategic growth, development and delivery of the Help a Child Burundi Country Program, in line with the Help a Child mandate, strategy and Theory of Change.
- Ensure that existing and new projects are in line with strategy, operational plans and budgets.
- Responsible for timely and high-quality reporting to back donors and Help a Child’s International Office.
- Responsible for ensuring strong and outstanding collaborative relations with Help a Child’s International office.
- End-responsible for sound financial management and control of the administrative and financial organization.
- End-responsible for the Country Program and ensuring the partner’s quality in implementation standards, guidelines, and reporting.
- Responsible for the development and maintenance of efficient and effective operating systems, and ensuring compliance with all Help a Child Management Operating Standards and Standard Operating Procedures.
- Responsible for the overall HR cycle of staff, including the development of an organizational culture that reflects HaC’s values, promotes accountability and high performance, and frees up staff to deliver outstanding results for beneficiaries and donors.
Qualifications & Desired Skills
- This is an extraordinary opportunity for an ambitious, entrepreneurial, and high-energy professional with significant experience in (Program) Management and Fundraising to be part of a growing country office. Specific requirements include:
- Minimum of an Advanced Degree in a relevant field.
- 5+ years of relevant experience in a relief or early recovery setting, preferably in a similar position.
- Proven track record in identifying, creating, and capitalizing on funding opportunities.
- Demonstrated experience in building personal and professional networks at a senior level.
- Good knowledge of Protection, FSL, Education, and Community empowerment.
- Preferably experience working in consortia and with implementing partner organizations.
- Good understanding of program, financial and operational management processes.
- Good understanding of key trends in international and humanitarian development.
- Experience managing a growing team of staff.
- Experience working in a post-conflict, transitional and cross-cultural context, preferably in Burundi.
- Preferably experience in working with a Theory of Change as a framework.
- Experience in managing safety & security needs.
- Results-driven and motivated by a sense of performance excellence and urgency.
- Fluent in English and French with strong communication skills, both verbal and written (including presentation skills).
- Know how to drive and have a valid driver’s license of at least category B (for small cars and 4*4)
- Personal qualities of integrity, credibility, interpersonal and cross-cultural sensitivity.
- Being a Christian, adhering to the Christian identity of Help a Child, and experiencing communicating the Christian identity of Help a Child to team members.
- Full support for the vision and mission of Help a Child.
Value Proposition
Help a Child offers the opportunity to become part of an ambitious, child-centered, and Christian International NGO with a dedicated team of professionals motivated to maximize impact. Help a Child offers a fair pay and benefits package that is justifiable to our donors. Furthermore, you will be offered a fixed term two (2) year contract. Depending on funding, your performance, and fit with the staff, the contract will be extended.
How to Apply
Interested and qualified candidates are kindly invited to apply before 8 of September 2023 at 05 PM.
In your cover letter, please reflect on your motivation for wanting to become part of the Help a Child organization. This includes a reflection on Help a Child being a child-centered and Christian organization.
For more information about the position or the recruitment process, please contact our CEO Andries Schuttinga by emailing his assistent at guido.lemmert@redeenkind.nl. Due to the urgency to fill this role, applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. We reserve the right to close this advert before the confirmed closing date when we are in receipt of sufficient applications. Should you wish to apply for this post you are kindly advised to submit your application as soon as possible. A DISC assessment will be part of the selection process.
The interviews will be at our office in Bujumbura.
Help a Child is committed to keeping children safe. All staff is required to sign and adhere to the Help a Child’s Integrity Policy. Recruitment is subject to the successful completion of all applicable background checks, including criminal record checks. In this recruitment process, we ask the candidate for consent for obtaining the Statement of Conduct. Hereby we inform you that we participate in the SCHR Misconduct Disclosure Scheme.