Chief of Party (Project/Program Director), USDA Food for Progress Program — Malawi

Overview

Location: Lilongwe, Malawi

Please Note: This position is contingent upon award and USDA approval with an anticipated start date of September 2022.

Global Communities works at the intersection of humanitarian assistance, sustainable development, and financial inclusion to save lives, advance equity and secure strong futures. We support communities at the forefront of their own development in more than 35 countries, partnering with local leaders, governments, civil society and the private sector to achieve a shared vision of a more just, prosperous and equitable global community. We work with government, non-government, private sector, and community stakeholders to promote transparency, foster accountability, and access the channels they need to make their voices heard, promote change, and realize their full potential.

Global Communities is seeking a Chief of Party (COP) for the anticipated U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) McGovern-Dole Food for Progress (FFPr) Program. This five-year, (up to) $24M program will support sustainably and scalable Climate Smart Agriculture (CSA) practices and technologies in crop diversification to address food security, including expansion of tree crops production and drought tolerant crops. The project will also address improvements in water management based on end market opportunities. This program has two principal objectives: to improve agricultural productivity and to expand trade of agricultural products. The candidate will ensure the U.S. agricultural commodities which are donated to the country are sold on the local market and the proceeds are used to support agricultural, economic, or infrastructure development within the program.

The COP will lead and oversee the overall implementation of the program, including technical strategy, financial and operational leadership, and human resources. We are looking for passionate, dedicated professionals to help us build the world we envision: one of expanded opportunity, where crises give way to resilience and all people thrive.

Responsibilities

The COP is responsible for overall program implementation, strategic vision, and outcome achievement. The COP provides an integrated vision for the program and will manage a team of senior staff to ensure the quality, timeliness, and efficiency of all products and activities generated under the project. S/he will utilize the principles of adaptive management to maximize impact and facilitate innovation. Finally, the COP will be responsible for communications with USDA, for publicly representing the project, and for liaising with Government of Malawi (GOM) and other institutions/stakeholders.

Specific responsibilities include the following:

• Provide program leadership, direction, and supervision, including oversight of staff, consultants, and partners, monitoring and evaluation, and program implementation.
• Ensure implementation of technical interventions, resulting in concrete and specific outcomes.
• Lead regular work plan, budget, and implementation reviews to facilitate the cost-effective and timely achievement of contract deliverables.
• Manage team members, including highly specialized technical staff, to deliver against the annual workplan.
• Ensure project activities maximize impact and are completed in compliance with Global Communities, USDA rules and regulations, local laws, and donor agreement requirements.
• Lead in adaptive management, achieving peak performance and facilitate innovation.
• Wherever possible, identify opportunities to engage partners and create growth, and connect actors to find mutual opportunity and benefit.
• Oversee the production and submission of timely activity and financial reports to USDA, effectively and accurately communicating project progress, achievements, challenges, and utilization of funds.
• Meet program targets, as well as fiscal integrity of the use of program funds.
• Ensure establishment and maintenance of systems for project operations.
• Act as primary point of contact with USDA, GOM counterparts, and other critical in-country stakeholders.
• Provide inputs and quality control for written reports and oral presentations on the program.
• Represent Global Communities and overall program interests as necessary and appropriate.
• Build and maintain strong working relations with key internal and external stakeholders, beneficiaries, prime and subcontractors, suppliers, and partners. Provide effective and timely responses to inquiries and concerns.
• Foster good working relationships with other agencies working on similar or complimentary projects, maximizing visibility and learning.
• Be the principal point of contact with other agencies and individuals working on related projects and activities.
• Ensure that lessons learned are disseminated and applied.
• Liaise with Global Communities colleagues to coordinate the inputs of gender and inclusion, monitoring and evaluation and other advisory inputs to provide cross-cutting support.

Qualifications

• Master’s degree (or equivalent) in a discipline related to international development, agriculture, nutrition, natural resource management, or food security with a minimum of 10 years of experience managing multi-sectoral projects with increasing responsibilities and duties; or,
• Bachelor’s degree in a discipline related to international development, agriculture, nutrition, natural resource management, or food security with a minimum of 12 years of experience managing multi-sectoral projects with increasing responsibilities and duties.
• Five (5) years’ experience as Chief of Party, senior management position, or equivalent, leading implementation of large international donor programs particularly related to climate smart agriculture and food security.
• Experience in east or southern Africa, with preference for recent work in Malawi.
• Proven experience in a leadership position involving the administration of similarly sized, international donor-supported programs with skills in strategic planning, management, supervision, and budgeting is strongly preferred.
• High level of interpersonal, technical, and analytical skills, including a demonstrated ability to interact effectively and collaborate with a broad range of public and private sector counterparts and other key stakeholders.
• Demonstrated knowledge and application of USDA and relevant USG donor policies and strategies.
• Ability to develop effective working relationships with government officials, civil society organizations, private sector actors, implementing partners, international donors, and other stakeholders.
• Knowledge/experience with USG rules and regulations required; experience managing USDA projects preferred.
• Demonstrated experience and understanding of relevant local laws, regulations and policies is required.
• Management/supervisory experience is required.
• Ability to travel to field sites frequently.
• Proven ability to communicate a common vision among diverse partners and the ability to lead multi-disciplinary teams is desired.
• Evidence of effective communication skills, both oral and written, to fulfill the diverse technical and managerial requirements of the agreement is desired.
• Full Professional Proficiency in spoken and written English.
• A passion for the mission and values of Global Communities.

Global Communities positively welcomes and seeks applications from all sections of society. We are committed to a work environment that respects the dignity and worth of everyone and offers equal opportunity. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment.