South Sudan: Health and WASH Program Manager

Oct 21, 2019 | Catholic Relief Services
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Catholic Relief Services (CRS) carries out the commitment of the Bishops of the United States to assist the poor and vulnerable overseas. Our Catholic identity is at the heart of our mission and operations. We welcome as a part of our staff, and as partners, people of all faiths and secular traditions who share our values and our commitment to serving those in need. CRS has been operational in South Sudan since 1983, focusing on community-based food and livelihood security through agriculture, health, peacebuilding, WASH, emergency relief, and savings and lending activities.

Background

As the newest country in the world, South Sudan continues to struggle amidst the challenges that accompany the complex process of nation-building. While the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (2005) and subsequent Referendum for Self Determination in 2011 helped establish South Sudan as a sovereign state, they only established a framework for dealing with one of South Sudan's numerous conflicts and development issues. The 2018 Peace Agreement has brought hope that South Sudan will transition from a protracted crisis to long-term development programming, but the implementation of the agreement has been slow. CRS has a critical role to help the country move forward given its history in the country since 1983 and amidst an environment where the Church enjoys high regard among its citizens and Government. The Country Program currently manages a total programming budget of $62 million, the largest program being a Title II food security program in Jonglei State. Other donors include WFP, USAID, the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office, and emergency funding from CRS, LDS, and other Caritas private donors. Key programing sectors include Food Security, Livelihoods, Nutrition, WASH, Emergency Response, Education, Health, Peacebuilding and Microfinance.

Job Summary

The Health and WASH Program Manager will be responsible for overseeing the management of the 4Children and Emergency WASH programming in South Sudan. He/ she will supervise key project staff, provide technical support to project partners and ensure all the project activities are implemented, while developing strong partnership and networks. The Health and WASH Program Manager will also take the lead in strengthening and reinforcing the managerial and technical capacity of the project team, in project implementation, monitoring, learning, reporting, and financial management. In addition, the Health and WASH Program Manager will proactively seek new health and WASH funding opportunities for the country program.

Currently under the WASH and Health Programming portfolio, CRS implements two projects: 4Children and Emergency WASH. The Coordinating Comprehensive Care for Children (4Children) is a 5 year USAID-funded project designed to improve health and wellbeing outcomes for Orphans and Vulnerable Children (OVC) affected by HIV and AIDS and other adversities. Emergency WASH is a privately funded project while drills and rehabilitates boreholes, training water user committees and pump mechanics, and provides hygiene promotion to hard to reach rural villages.

Specific Responsibilities

Leadership and Representation

  • Provide strategic vision and leadership to project teams (4Children and Emergency WASH)
  • Represent CRS and the project teams at all relevant donor and stakeholder meetings
  • Participate in all strategic planning meetings and activities;
  • Provide regular updates to partners, country program leadership, and government and non-government coordination bodies as requested;
  • Establish and maintain good working relations with external agencies and organizations, local partner organizations, and provincial and local government offices; facilitate exchange of information and experiences.

Program Quality and Management

  • Oversee the planning and implementation of all project activities and set high quality performance targets ensuring adherence to technical standards, best practices and donor guidelines.
  • In collaboration with the MEAL Manager, direct the measurement, documentation, analysis and reporting of project performance and outcomes; ensure implementation of strong M&E systems using CRS tools and resources to maximize project impact on beneficiaries.
  • Coordinate the development of narrative reports, M&E plans and annual workplans and other reports as required by donor agreements.
  • Ensure documentation and sharing of lessons learned of the country program.
  • Ensure timely and efficient program reporting, as per CRS and donor requirements.
  • Work with program staff to ensure CRS interventions are integrated wherever appropriate to increase impact.
  • Increase and support intentional integration of conflict reduction, partnership and gender across all programs.
  • Ensure all project information is updated on Gateway.
  • Support the implementation and compliance of the CRS MEAL policies and procedures.

Budgeting, Financial Planning and Compliance

  • Ensure project compliance with the donor and CRS regulations.
  • With support from the Country Program finance team, prepare donor finance reports.
  • Approve project expenditures, carry out regular budget tracking and take the lead on official requests for modifications when needed.
  • Ensure projects adhere to the approved marketing and branding plan.

Partnership

  • Maintain and strengthen partner relations and engage in the identification of new potential partners (including private sector and other civil society organizations) with whom CRS has a common vision.
  • In collaboration with the Head of Programs, Deputy Head of Programs, and Project Managers, support effective, appropriate partner assessments, corrective action plans and follow-up.

Business Development

  • In collaboration with the Head of Programs, Deputy Head of Programs and Business Development Manager, identify and pre-position for new funding opportunities;
  • Support the development of high-quality proposals that follow Compass guidance and/or donor specific guidance. Support the review process of project proposals before submission to regional office and donors;
  • Provide direct planning and facilitation of critical processes including workshops for project development, Detailed Implementation Plan (DIP) development and MEAL plan development.

Supervision

  • Ensure annual performance planning and reviews of staff performance in keeping with CRS' performance management system. Mentor staff to ensure high levels of motivation, commitment, capacity and teamwork.
  • Ensure staff compliance with all CRS administrative and operational procedures and policies, as well as applicable donor regulations.
  • Identify training needs for team members under his/her supervision and support the development of PQ capacity building for team members and partners.

Typical Background, Experience & Requirements

Education and Experience

  • Master's degree in International Development, or other relevant degree.
  • Minimum of 3 years of experience in overseas relief and development, familiarity with WASH or Health programming a plus.
  • Experience working in emergency or conflict affected areas preferred; experience in South Sudan a plus.
  • Excellent leadership, budget/financial management, analytical, and communication skills.
  • Exceptional judgment and inter-personal skills and ability to build and motivate diverse and talented teams.
  • Experience with programming to address conflict sensitivity, gender mainstreaming, inclusion of people with disabilities, and youth.
  • Outstanding communication skills, including professional proficiency and excellent verbal and written communication skills in English.
  • Experience engaging with donors, peer organizations, and civil society partners.
  • Experience with program monitoring and evaluation.
  • Experience using MS Windows and MS Office packages (Excel, Word, PowerPoint), Web Conferencing Applications, information management systems, and budget management systems.

Personal Skills

  • Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with ability to make sound judgment and decisions and offer innovative solutions
  • Strong relations management abilities. Ability to relate to people at all levels internally and externally. Strategic in how you approach each relationship.
  • Team leadership abilities
  • Good presentation and facilitation skills
  • Proactive, resourceful, solutions-oriented and results-oriented
  • Ability to work and live in difficult conditions, including adhering to a curfew and limited movements.

Required Foreign Language: N/A

Required Travel: Willingness to travel 30% of the time to remote areas of the country