Job Title:                           Area Coordinator

Reports to:                       Country Director

Terms:                               Fixed Term, Full time, Unaccompanied

Location:                          Koupela, Centre-Est, Burkina Faso

Salary:                               Pay Band 4 (€45,457 - €50,509)

Requirements:                Up to 20% to Ouagadougou.

About Concern:             

Established in 1968, Concern is a non-profit, non-governmental humanitarian organisation, dedicated to the reduction of suffering and the ultimate elimination of extreme poverty in the world’s poorest countries.

Concern’s vision, our mission and our work are all defined by one goal – ending extreme poverty, whatever it takes. Concern strives for a world free from poverty, fear and oppression.

Our culture is values driven and we believe that our people are central to all that we do and are key to delivering on our goal of Reaching the Furthest Behind First. We are committed to ensuring a workplace where everybody feels valued and are enabled to succeed in their work and contribute to delivering on our mission.

Role Purpose:  

The main responsibility for this role is the management and strategic oversight of all programs run out of the Koupela office. This includes health, nutrition, livelihoods and rapid response mechanisms across the Centre-Est. Irish Aid supports an integrated health, nutrition and livelihoods project in the Centre-Est while BHA provides funding for food assistance, early recovery and rapid response activities. In addition, multiple smaller scale donors contribute co-funding or one-off projects, which also requires the attention of the Area Coordinator. The Area Coordinator’s responsibility will be to balance the management of ALL programs with support from the Programmes Director and other relevant technical advisors. In addition to programme management, the Area Coordinator is also tasked with day-to-day management of operations. This will include overseeing effective and efficient support functions of logistics, finance and administration. This will be done in close coordination with the Operations Director, Country Finance Manager and HR Manager.

Responsibilities:

Key Responsibilities:

• Contribute to development and execution of Concern’s Country Strategic Plan in the Centre-Est.
• Monitor the humanitarian situation within Centre-Est and make recommendations to the CMT for action.
• Monitor the security situation and lead the Security Management Group in making recommendations for adapting Concern’s programming to changes in the security context
• Represent Concern with government departments, UN agencies, private sector partners and national and international NGO/Associations.
• Ensure the smooth functioning of supporting administration, logistics, HR and finance services in the Centre-Est
• Line-manage two Programme Managers, Senior Base Manager, Programme and Partnership Accountant, Gender and Protection Agent and MEAL Agent.
• Any other relevant duties as may reasonably be requested by the Country Director (CD).
• All managers are responsible for upholding and promoting Concern’s values, demonstrating leadership on workplace equality, diversity and inclusion, and role modelling a positive safeguarding ethos.
• All managers are required to actively participate in any emergency response as and when required.

Specific Responsibilities:

Ensure the implementation of quality programmes including strong learning components

• Support the development, implementation, monitoring and reporting for all active programmes funded in the Centre-Est in conjunction with the relevant Programme Managers in a timely manner.
• Through the PD, liaise with the Nutrition, Health, Livelihoods, M&E and other Head office technical advisors to ensure the team in Centre-Est receive sufficient technical support.
• Support programme staff and the M&E unit in the implementation of the M&E systems and the regular review of information to enable programme decisions and ensure continuous learning.
• Undertake regular monitoring and support visits to programme sites, providing feedback to managers and staff and closely follow-up on recommendations.
• Facilitate programme planning annually and quarterly; support the development of work plans and ensure both output databases and work plans are regularly updated.
• Work with the Grants Coordinator to ensure that regular updates, monthly and annual reports and donor reports are submitted on time and in the correct format.
• Ensure cross-cutting themes are mainstreamed appropriately across Concern’s Centre-Est programme.
• Contribute to the development of organisational learning through information sharing with other Concern fields and SAL where applicable.
• Support the documentation of success cases and disseminate learning within the country programme and organisation.

Ensure quality financial management of programmes

• In consultation with the CD, PD, OD and Finance Team, lead the preparation of the program and administrative budget collaboratively with program, operations and finance staff.
• Track and manage project budgets and ensure expenditure is in line with agreed project plans and budget and submit budget revisions on time.
• Review the management accounts and donor allocations and respond to Finance team within the set deadlines.

Ensure quality coordination with partners and accountability towards communities

• Support field staff to actively manage on-going relations with project participants and address any potential constraints in a timely manner.
• Roll out downward accountability systems including a complaints response mechanism, across all the Centre-Est programme locations.
• Identify and develop strategies for working with local community-based organisations (CBOs).
• Participate proactively in relevant coordination, sectoral meetings and continuously engage with UN, NGOs and other key actors while sharing information on Concern activities and intervention to promote good relations and collaboration with other actors.
• Engage with the line Ministries in the Centre-Est in programme monitoring and coordination

Staff management

• In consultation with HR, ensure sufficient human resources for the program and support in recruitment, retention and succession planning.
• Ensure team members are aware of core Concern policies and procedures relevant to their work, and with the support of others, carry out regular briefings on these policies, including the P4, accountability etc.
• Conduct performance development reviews for staff under supervision in a timely manner.
• Monitor direct report performance based on agreed job descriptions and ensure their compliance with all Concern policies.
• Identify training and capacity-building needs for staff and provide the training necessary for the delivery of a high-quality integrated programme through technical support training and advice.
• Ensure the staff in Centre-Est develop and maintain capacity to respond to emergencies.

Logistics, administration and security management

• Oversee compliance to Concern and donor policies, procedures and procurements requirements.
• Assume overall responsibility of managing the Koupela office and any temporary or permanent sub-offices opened in the region.
• In conjunction with the PD and CD, explore opportunities to expand funding to reach more vulnerable populations.
• Monitor the security situation and lead the Security Management Group in making recommendations for adapting Concern’s programming to changes in the security context

Role Holder Requirements:

Skills and Experience Required:

• Degree in Development related discipline.
• At least 5 years’ experience in NGO development work, at least 2 of which in a similar management level position.
• Specific expertise in at least two of the following areas: community development, climate resilience, food security, Health and Nutrition, natural resource management, community-based disaster management/risk reduction, capacity building, working with partners
• Experience of budget development and financial management
• Proven track record to mentor, support and up-skill staff
• A proven track record in Participatory Programme Cycle Management Systems (PCMS) or similar
• Familiar with logistics, HR, Finance, and administrative processes.
• Experience of working in an insecure environment
• Good negotiation skills and ability to interact with government/other authorities at all levels
• Fluency in French, spoken and written
• Working proficiency level of English
• Excellent report and proposal writing skills
• Flexibility
• Ability to motivate a team, get on with people and get the best out of them.
• Facilitation and interpersonal skills
• Analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to work both as part of a team and on own initiative, be a self-starter, and work with minimal supervision.
• Ability to organize and prioritize workload, using initiative when appropriate.

Desirable: 

• Management qualification.
• Knowledge of Burkina Faso/Centre-Est.
• M&E knowledge and experience.
• Knowledge of Concern internal systems.

To apply:  CVs should be submitted through our website at https://jobs.concern.net by the closing date.

Due to the urgency of this position, applications will be shortlisted on a regular basis and we may offer posts before the closing date. 

If you have any concerns about our recruitment process and need particular assistance - for example if you have a visual impairment or are neurodivergent - please let us know and we will do our best to accommodate you. 

Concern has an organizational Code of Conduct (CCoC) with three Associated Policies; the Programme Participant Protection Policy (P4), the Child Safeguarding Policy and the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Policy accessible here. These have been developed to ensure the maximum protection of programme participants from exploitation, and to clarify the responsibilities of Concern staff, consultants, visitors to the programme and partner organization, and the standards of behavior expected of them. In this context, staff have a responsibility to the organization to strive for, and maintain, the highest standards in the day-to-day conduct in their workplace in accordance with Concern’s core values and mission. Any candidate offered a job with Concern Worldwide will be expected to sign the Concern Staff Code of Conduct and Associated Policies as an appendix to their contract of employment. By signing the Concern Code of Conduct, candidates acknowledge that they have understood the content of both the Concern Code of Conduct and the Associated Policies and agree to conduct themselves in accordance with the provisions of these policies. Additionally, Concern is committed to the safeguarding and protection of vulnerable adults and children in our work. We will do everything possible to ensure that only those who are suitable to work or volunteer with vulnerable adults and children are recruited by us for such roles. Subsequently, working or volunteering with Concern is subject to a range of vetting checks, including criminal background checking. 

Your Personal Data 

During this job application, you will provide Concern with your personal data. Concern takes its responsibilities towards this personal data very seriously and is committed to complying with all relevant data protection legislation. 

For additional information please consult our web site or contact the Human Resource Division in our Head Office. 

You have certain rights under data protection legislation. For more information on how to exercise those rights please visit www.concern.net/about/privacy 

Concern Worldwide is an Irish-based non-governmental, international, humanitarian organisation dedicated to the reduction of suffering and working towards the ultimate elimination of extreme poverty in the world’s poorest countries.