Burkina Faso: Proposed Chief of Party

Feb 20, 2022 | Shelter For Life International
View Original

Shelter For Life International (SFL) is an international faith-based relief and development organization with over 30 years’ experience in providing sustainable development and humanitarian assistance to post conflict countries around the world. We are currently operational in Afghanistan, Liberia, and Senegal, with Headquarters located in Minnetonka, MN, USA. Our team provides support and assistance in the following areas:

  1. Population Movement and Settlement
  2. Public Infrastructure Reconstruction
  3. Economic and Social Development

Our mission is to demonstrate God’s love by enabling people affected by conflict and disaster to restore their lives and rebuild their communities. To learn more about us, please head to www.shelter.org

Position Summary:

Under USDA/FAS Food for Progress (FFPr), SFL is anticipating a multi-year program in Burkina Faso with a focus on assisting local agriculture producers to develop sustainable climate-smart farming methods. The goal of the program is to collaborate with local farming communities to design and implement interventions to address specific local challenges of climate change, including improving crop, soil, and natural resource management, water conservation, agroforestry, and other conservation agriculture measures, to make farms more resilient and improve farmers’ productivity and livelihoods.

We are currently seeking a Chief of Party (COP) to lead the anticipated FFPr program in Burkina Faso. The COP will be responsible for the overall implementation, and oversight, and results of the project. The COP will provide quality assurance and control of all program deliverables as we well as provide leadership, supervision, and direction to the project’s field staff and operations.

Areas of Responsibility:

Strategic Leadership

  • Provide supervision, support, and direction to field staff in Burkina Faso
  • Lead a multi-national, multi-lingual, and multi-skilled group of professionals
  • Establish relationships with various partners and stakeholders, such as the donor organization, national, regional and local authorities and farmers, and represent SFL at key meetings
  • Bring focus and determination to the project staff to ensure high quality results, and prioritize the achievement of the program’s goals

Quality Program Management

  • Develop and oversee detailed regular, periodic work plans and ensure the project meets all deliverables
  • Provide quality reports on project progress to SFL headquarters and the project donor
  • Carefully monitor project performance and document progress on project indicators
  • Provide oversight and guidance to project’s finance department to maintain adherence to the program’s budget and financial plans in accordance with donor requirements and SFL’s internal controls
  • Coordinate and communicate activities with SFL HQ, USDA, the U.S. Embassy, and local government officials
  • Implement and enforce procedures that ensure compliance with U.S. Government rules and regulations
  • Enforce SFL’s internal control procedures, outlined by the Field Operations Manual, Employee Handbook and the Who we Are, What we Believe, and How we Serve documents

Technical Oversight

  • Responsible for strategy, technical oversight and guidance of project components
  • Provide overall responsibility for all data collection, monitoring and evaluation, and learning sharing
  • Oversee a range of activities for coherence and reinforcement of impact, to ensure that components and activities harmoniously work together

Education and Experience Requirements:

  • Master’s degree in Business Administration, International Development, Corporate Finance, Agriculture or Natural Resources Management, or related field
  • A minimum of eight (8) years of relevant professional experience in designing and implementing donor-funding development projects in the following technical sectors: agriculture/agribusiness, food security, conservation agriculture, livelihoods and resilience, natural resource management, or climate change adaptation
  • A minimum of 5 years of work experience as Chief of Party or a similar level managing large, complex agribusiness or agricultural development programs
  • Prior work experience with an international NGO and/or relevant experience with USDA or similar international donor-funded programs
  • Industry knowledge and experience in the field of climate-smart agriculture
  • Demonstrated experience in reporting project progress and adhering to donor guidelines
  • Strong leadership and administrative skills, management ability in a cross-cultural environment
  • Strong communications and interpersonal skills with evidence of ability to productively interact with a variety of stakeholders and organizations (for example, government, private sector, NGOs)
  • Prior work experience in Africa required; specific experience in Burkina Faso or Sahel countries preferred

Personal Skills & Abilities:

  • Proven leadership skills with ability to maintain a positive work environment with professionalism
  • Strong teamwork and listening skills combined with excellent interpersonal skills and cross-cultural sensitivity
  • Ability to research, analyze, coordinate, and plan, both strategically and innovatively
  • Ability to quickly assess complex programs and situations and form accurate opinions
  • Ability to respond practically, using adaptive management to operate successfully in difficult field conditions
  • Willingness to adopt the use of locally appropriate technologies
  • Ability to be flexible, persistent, and diplomatic and to gain respect among staff, diverse stakeholders including local community leaders, governmental ministries, and the donor organization
  • Proficiency in written and spoken French and written and spoken English required
  • SFL is interested in applicants whose professional ethics, values, and determination to achieve impact are evident and aligned with organizational priorities.

Additional notes:

  • A minimum of 12 months commitment to live and work in Burkina Faso is required
  • Applicant must be comfortable with frequent travel, particularly within Burkina Faso and West Africa
  • Competitive pay and generous benefits including six weeks of paid time off, two weeks of R&R, ACA compliant health insurance, and allowances for housing, food, and communication

How to apply:

Please send your resume and cover letter to info@shelter.org with the subject line: “Chief of Party – Burkina Faso” Applications must be in English. Please include your name in the title of all attached documents. In your resume, the work experience should be presented chronologically and should contain sufficient details to enable the review team to evaluate your qualifications and experience. Your cover letter should describe your vision for implementing climate-smart agriculture to communities facing climate challenges, including a brief description of strategies for achieving ambitious program targets (no more than two pages). The CV/resume should include the name, telephone number, and email of at least two references who do not work for the applicant’s current employer.