Program Officer, East Africa

Position Location: Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Kampala, Uganda or Arusha, Tanzania

Reports to: Regional Program Manager

Start date: 04/April/2022

Farm Radio International is a Canadian organization that has been working since 1979 to harness the power of radio to meet the needs of small-scale farmers. We work with more than 1,000 radio organizations located in more than 40 African countries to fight poverty and food insecurity. With the benefit of FRI resources and training, our broadcasting partners deliver practical, relevant, and timely information to tens of millions of farmers, including women farmers. We also work with a range of funding partners to implement radio projects that address specific development challenges and community needs delivering results for farmers and other rural denizens.

FRI is currently looking for a dynamic individual to ensure quality project implementation in Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, by working closely with the country teams and providing support on knowledge management and program development in the region.

KEY AREAS OF RESPONSIBILITY

The Program Officer is responsible for the successful development and implementation of projects in the region, including

1) Project implementation (PI) and administration – 60%

2) Evaluation, learning and knowledge management – 15%

3) Program development (PD) – 25%

1) Project Implementation (PI) and Administration

Under the supervision of the Senior Program Officer and working closely with the country project teams, contribute to the effective implementation of current impact projects to the highest standards and to the satisfaction of all stakeholders. Specifically:

• Monitor funder documents and communications, ensuring that requirements are understood, all staff are clear on responsibilities and deadlines are met
• Coordinate the resolution of any contractual and / or budgetary issues with funders, including providing updates, approval requests and supporting documents;
• Ensure the development and implementation of project implementation plans in line with FRI procedures and templates
• Ensure compliance to FRI policies and procedures, including risk review, spending variance, documentation and archiving, etc.
• Working with Country Program and Finance Teams, oversee and monitor timely implementation of projects in line with annual work plans and spending plans
• Liaise with FRI Specialty Teams concerning project planning, implementation and reporting – Backstop country Program team in the execution of their duties, including project agreements, contracts and MOUs; management of sub-recipients; reporting, etc.
• Manage the report writing process (internal and external / for donors (progress reports, quarterly, annual, final) in order to synthesize activities, results, conclusions and lessons learned from projects, as well as others communication needs
• Ensure the achievement of results in relation to gender equality and inclusion ∙ promote the participation of women / girls in project activities, particularly in decision making, throughout the project cycle

∙ work with women’s organizations to promote women’s rights

2) Evaluation, learning and knowledge management

Under the supervision of the Knowledge Management Team Manager and the Senior Program Officer, the PO will have to contribute to monitoring and evaluation activities, including research, learning and knowledge sharing in the organization. More specifically, the tasks will be to :

• Contribute to the design of logic models and performance measurement frameworks and monitoring and evaluation plans
• Contribute to the design of survey, tools and other evaluation instruments
• Analyze data generated by surveys, interviews, qualitative evaluations, listeners’ responses to on-air / online surveys
• Write baseline, mid-term evaluation and evaluation reports, including final reports – Write project summaries (briefs) highlighting the results of the projects, the learnings and the implications in terms of best practices
• Organize or contribute to the capitalization process with the partners and stakeholders of the projects

3) Program Development (PD)

Under the supervision of the Senior Manager for Program Development, contribute to the effective implementation of all PD processes within the region to the highest standards and to the satisfaction of all stakeholders, specifically:

• Scan opportunities for new program (funding) opportunities in the region
• Analyze and present program opportunities to FRI program management in line with FRI’s PD systems
• Develop and maintain FRI relationships with existing and potential funding partners
• Prepare documentation in support of proposals, e.g. teaming agreements, contracts, etc.
• Plan, design and write concept notes and full proposals, including coordinating budget development, in response to funding opportunities
• Ensure compliance to FRI risk review, documentation and archiving procedures for proposals

QUALIFICATIONS

Experience, credentials and requirements

• 3-5 years experience in program management
• Degree/Diploma in Agriculture, Communication, International Development, Environmental Studies or related field, Masters degree preferred
• Fluent in English with strong written and oral communication skills; ability in other East African languages an asset
• Willingness to travel
• Experience in communication for development an asset
• Experience working and/or living in rural areas an asset
• Experience in seeking opportunities, writing proposals and leading teams to implement resource mobilization tasks

Knowledge

• Knowledge and experience of program development and project implementation, including project cycles and results-based management
• Knowledge of national/international funders and strategic/implementing partners in East Africa Skills and attributes
• Good research, evaluation, data analysis and writing skills
• Good proposal writing skills
• Excellent cross-cultural communication skills
• Good organizational and time-management skills; ability to work under pressure to meet deadlines
• Comfortable working under minimal supervision and with limited resources **