Position Title: Country Director, Democratic Republic of the Congo

Start Date: As soon as possible

Location: Kinshasa, with regular travel to Eastern DRC

Contract: Two years renewable

Background:

War Child Canada is a registered Canadian charity based in Toronto that works with war-affected communities to help children reclaim their childhood through access to education, opportunity and justice. War Child Canada has worked in communities in conflict and post-conflict zones since 1999. All work is

implemented in direct partnership with local communities, local NGOs and other stakeholders using a child-centered approach. War Child Canada also works in Afghanistan, Iraq, Uganda, Sudan, South Sudan and Jordan.

Context

War Child Canada is operational in the Uvira district of South Kivu with programming that focuses on increasing access to education, particularly for conflict affected girls. War Child Canada has been active in South Kivu since 2007 working in both education and the prevention and response to sexual and gender based violence. War Child Canada in the DRC is entering a new phase of work which will see a scale up of its innovate approach to reaching hard to reach conflict affected girls and boys in remote settings. This will see substantive engage with the Ministry of Education in Kinshasa to support this expansion of secondary education accelerated learning provision, for conflict affected girls and boys who have previously been unable to complete their secondary education. We are looking for a Country Director to lead a small, focussed and innovative program to its next phase, while also aiming to expand geographically and establish complementary programming. War Child Canada has not previously had a permanent presence in Kinshasa, therefore the Country Director will be tasked with establishing a Kinshasa Country Office with a reporting line to our existing Uvira office and operations.

Position summary:

The Country Director has overall responsibility for leading and managing War Child Canada’s strategy in DRC, providing directional oversight of programs and operations. The Country Director will actively seek opportunities for fund development and representation among key networks in Kinshasa to ensure the sustainability of the program and broaden the thematic focus of the country

program.

Responsibilities Leadership and Management of the country program (30%)

Lead the scaling up of War Child Canada’s DRC program.
Develop annual plans and provide support and direction for implementation and oversight of service delivery.
Oversee the fulfillment and contractual obligations of all narrative and financial reporting requirements.
Oversee the development and implementation of its Country Strategic Plan, in close collaboration with Head Office and field staff.

Fundraising (30%)

Build War Child Canada’s program through donor engagement, project design and proposal development, in collaboration with HQ.
Responsibility for in-country fundraising with institutional donors.

Financial Management (15%)

Overall responsibility for in-country budget and financial management, including reporting to Head Office.
Maintain efficient financial controls, accountability standards, procedures and records.
Prepare country budgets, oversee project budgets and monitor budget spending.

Maintain network of contacts and representation (10%)

Initiate and engage in collaboration and consultation with local and central authorities, INGOs, national NGOs and local communities.
Ensure appropriate communications, information exchange and sharing with local partners and with HQ.
Represent War Child Canada in meetings and coordination platforms in Kinshasa and in Eastern DRC.

Human Resource Management (10%)

Responsible for the oversight of all War Child Canada staff in DRC.
Oversees the recruitment of local staff as necessary.

Security Management (5%)

Maintain internal and external contacts with relevant parties and authorities related to security
Monitor the security context of the country to manage and mitigate security risks.
Regularly update and implement War Child Canada’s security procedures and plans in coordination with HQ.

Qualifications

Knowledge:

Master’s Degree or equivalent in International Development, Social Sciences, Education, or related subject
Minimum of 5 years senior management experience including experience in strategic planning processes.
Knowledge of at least one of War Child Canada’s programming focal areas.
Demonstrated track record in successful fundraising and donor engagement and development strategies.
Experience in project, financial and HR management, including mentoring of national and international staff.
Experience managing security in a conflict affected environment.
Previous experience in DRC is highly desirable.

Skills and abilities:

Fluency in written and verbal English and French.
Demonstrated leadership abilities.
Detail oriented, strong organizational, analytical and strategic planning skills.
Effective time-management skills with the ability to multi-task and manage multiple time-sensitive priorities.
Self-starter, able to work with a high degree of initiative and highly resilient
Team oriented with strong interpersonal skills and ability to work with individuals from a range of backgrounds.
Strong writing and project management skills.
Able to work sensitively in challenging and insecure environments.

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Country Director

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