Programme Manager, WASH Systems Strengthening at Self Help Africa (SHA)

Self Help Africa (SHA) is an international development organisation headquartered in Dublin, Ireland and dedicated to the vision of 'Sustainable livelihoods and healthy lives for all in a changing climate'. We have almost 50 years of experience working in Africa, including over 20 years in Nigeria (as United Purpose and Concern Universal).

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Programme Manager, WASH Systems Strengthening

Job ID.: 52372
Location: Abuja
Employment Type: Full Time
Reports to: Head of WASH Programmes

Job Purpose

• SHA is looking for a dynamic WASH professional with significant programme management and system strengthening expertise to lead the programme in Nigeria while promoting the organisation’s mission and vision and deepening our impact through delivery of high-quality intervention.
• The Programme Manager will be responsible for providing overall leadership, technical and strategic management to the programme team in Nigeria.
• S/he will ensure effective and efficient planning, implementation, monitoring, evaluation and learning.
• S/he will manage staff, partners, resources, and interface with external stakeholders to achieve the programme’s targets, and objectives on time, within scope and budget in compliance with donor requirements.
• The post-holder will be responsible for providing strategic direction for the programme’s technical and administrative components, and will work closely with SHA’s Nigeria and Global WASH team.

Key Responsibilities
Strategic Leadership and Programme Management:

• Develop overall strategic plan for the programme, in collaboration with government and partners.
• Lead programme implementation, and work closely with the Head of WASH programmes and Global WASH Advisor on the overall programme strategy. The overall programme approach is systems strengthening, utilising sustainable models of market-based approach, systems analysis, resilience and permanent systems change.
• Develop, implement, monitor and evaluate innovative strategies for increased effectiveness of WASH Systems.
• Ensure high level of accountability to participants, stakeholders and donor ensuring effective feedback mechanism, regular communication, timely production and submission of plans, reports and assessment.
• Ensure security of project team and resources in compliance with contract management procedures and systems. Communicate with relevant programme actors in the field and provide timely report/alert to the Senior Management on changing contexts in safety and security across programme locations.
• Ensure compliance with security procedures and policies as determined by country leadership.
• Proactively ensure that team members operate in a secure environment and familiar with the organization’s policies.
• Effective Implementation and Programme Quality
• Ensure programme quality assurance and oversight, which includes regular field visits in Nigeria.
• Oversee effective implementation of Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning framework for the programme.
• Ensure monitoring and evaluation, including climate resilience, WASH access surveys, service delivery model assessments, feeding information into costed plans, and strengthening of monitoring processes. Particular focus will be on climate resilience and generation of data to inform routine programme decision-making while also capturing results at the impact level.
• Ensure learning and knowledge sharing are central to the programme – facilitating capacities and resources well channelled and integrated to a circle of reflection, adaptation and actions across the programme.
• Establish and manage robust programme management systems that integrate Value for Money (VFM) and enable adaptive management based on field level monitoring and feedback.
• Monitor risks that arise in the course of project implementation, and implement rapid risk mitigation measures including effective communication to all stakeholders.
• Representation, Networking and advocacy
• In collaboration with Head of WASH Programmes and MEAL team, conduct participatory WASH systems analysis and identify specific areas of sector strengthening support required to improve WASH delivery at federal and state levels; and use the evidence from this analysis to shape influencing and advocacy activities targeting diverse sector actors.
• Establish and maintain strong relationships, and regular communication with multiple stakeholders in Nigeria through co-planning and co-delivery of activities with the permanent actors of the system (government, civil society, private sector), to the full extent possible, maximising ownership.
• Represent the Programme and where needed SHA more broadly, at national networks and events; NTGS, CNC Technical meetings as well as state and regional clusters – with INGOs, UNICEF, World Bank and other relevant stakeholders at both national and state levels and provide necessary information to support external representations.
• Ensure a good coordination between sub-grant partners in terms of programme delivery and coherence of implementation outputs.
• Animating a regular communication between partners to raise and follow key issues, strategic development and ensure integration across partners and within the sector.
• Support networks and clusters of operational independence in strengthening systemic accountability, including CSO network partners who will operate as critical partners to the government of Nigeria.

Finance and Compliance Management:

• Ensure compliance with donor and SHA’s policies and procedures related to programme implementation.
• Draft and/or review scope of work for hiring and management of technical consultants, including review for technical efficacy and contract budget.
• Ensure consistency between programme budgetary and operational planning, aligning budgetary compliance with grant agreement and SHA financial policies and procedures.
• Lead on programme budget amendment/realignment by closely working with the finance and operations teams.
• Employ the highest standards of openness, transparency and accountability to ensure good financial management in line with SHA’s zero-tolerance approach to fraud, bribery and corruption.
• Control the quality of the overall administrative and financial monitoring of the project and regularly reviewing the commitments, disbursements and budget forecasts.
• Team Management and Safeguarding
• Provide team members with information, tools and other resources to improve performance and reach objectives.
• Manage the performance of line-managed staff through objective setting, regular performance review, managing feedbacks and regularly monitoring performance development plans.
• Support the continual growth and professional development of all line-managed staff, ensuring that appropriate support and development mechanisms are in place.
• Promote accountability, communicate expectations and provide constructive feedback via regular performance reviews.
• Demonstrate experience in and commitment to safeguarding, protection, gender mainstreaming and inclusion of vulnerable population including people with disabilities.
• Establish feedback, complaints and response mechanism across communities of implementation to ensure programmatic and operational decisions are informed by local perspectives and priorities, and contribute to the protection of program participants.

Key Relationships:

• Internal: Head of WASH Programmes, sub-grant partners, Global WASH team, Programme, MEAL, Operations, Finance & Compliance and Security teams.
• External: Consortia members, Ministry of Water Resources & Sanitation, Ministry of Budget & Planning, State Governments, development partners and professional networks.

Knowledge, Experience and Other Requirements
Education and other qualifications:

• Tertiary qualification, preferably at Master’s degree, in Engineering, social science, public health or related field.
• ICT operation, and proficiency in MS Office.

Experience:

• At least 8 years’ working experience with INGO/NGO in the WASH sector or equivalent position.
• Demonstrated experience in successfully managing large and complex programs in the WASH sector.
• Experience and conceptual understanding in systems strengthening, market-based sanitation, government planning and budgeting, accountability and advocacy, resilience and community-led approaches.
• Experience coordinating and leading sub-grant partners and working with multiple partners.
• Experience working collaboratively with state, local, and ideally national government in Nigeria.
• Experience in development of high standard advocacy briefs, learning products, and quality donor reporting.
• Strong grasp of MEAL, and using monitoring and learning information to adapt programmes for maximising efficiency and effectiveness.
• Experience in Government engagement and policy coordination especially empowerment and capacity building of systems.
• Experience working with culturally diverse teams.

Skills:

• Project management and implementation
• Excellent leadership and coordination skills (and ability to coordinate several tasks at once and managing priorities)
• Effective communication, problem solving and decision-making skills and diplomacy in communication
• Respect for cultural diversity and gender sensitivity
• Team leadership and mentoring
• Monitoring, evaluation and learning
• Communication, networking, facilitation and mobilisation
• Organisational developmentReporting and documentation.

Application Closing Date
13th February, 2024.