Job Description

Position Title: Country Manager, Central African Republic

Location: Bangui, Central African Republic

Band: D

FLSA: Exempt

Reports To: Regional Director – CARO

Background:

Since December 2013, civil war and sectarian violence in the Central African Republic (CAR) has affected at least half of the country’s population (3.8 million), resulting in the destruction of villages and towns and the displacement of 1 million people.

CRS/CAR is implementing two main programs: social cohesion in the southwest, west and in Bangui (see CIPP program described below), and emergency and early recovery programs for Internally Displaced Persons, Returnees and Host Community populations in CAR.

CRS is the lead agency implementing a five-year (January 2016 to January 2021), $10M USAID-funded Global Development Alliance (GDA) program to support civil society, government and private sector actors to promote peace in CAR through a project entitled ‘Central African Interreligious Peacebuilding Partnership’ (CIPP). CRS is working in consortium with World Vision, Aegis Trust, Islamic Relief Worldwide, and the Central African Interreligious Platform, designed to lead peacebuilding and recovery efforts in the Central African Republic.

Since the crisis, CRS in partnership with Caritas Bouar, Bossangoa and Mbaiki have demonstrated successful, effective and timely emergency and early recovery response in the northwest and southwest to support the return of displaced families and affected communities through funding from OFDA, CHF, BEKOU and Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Norway.

Primary Function:

With oversight from the Regional Director (RD) – Central Africa, the Country Manager will be responsible for overall representation, leadership and management of the CRS/CAR office, including management of programming, personnel, financial and material resources. The Country Manager will provide strategic representation for the country program with key stakeholders from the Government of CAR, the UN system, international donors and Church partners.

The Country Manager will also provide programmatic and management quality assurance and leadership in coordination with the Head of Programs (HoP), the Administration Manager and Head of Finance and will ensure adherence to CRS programmatic and operational/management standards and systems. The Country Manager is responsible for providing regular updates to the HOP, RD and Deputy Regional Directors on current situations, trends and perceived threats to the work environment, be they operational, security-related, programmatic, or representational. The Country Manager is responsible for strengthening existing relationships and developing new ones, where appropriate, with government stakeholders, donors and other INGOs. This includes assuring effective communication, collaboration and joint planning with Caritas Centrafrique at the national level and other Caritas Internationalis partners. Finally, the Country Manager serves as the primary security officer for CRS in CAR and will collaborate with the Regional Technical Advisor, Staff Safety and Security in the early identification of risks and the development of effective mitigation strategies.

Specific Responsibilities:

Program Quality

• Ensure high-level monitoring and support for all project activities (including regular field visits) in coordination with program staff.
• Ensure quality program development in line with Agency Strategy through timely communication and planning in consultation with HoP, program maangers (PMs) and regional program quality (PQ) staff.
• Assist programming staff to use appropriate project management tools to plan, review and track progress on project implementation, as well as the utilization of project resources.
• Coordinate with HoP to ensure adherence to CARO proposal development and review processes.
• Ensure all programs are implemented in line with CRS Program Quality Standards, donor regulations and sectoral best practices.

Management Quality/Operations

• Directly supervise all operations/support departments in the country program, including human resources, finance, administration, procurement, IT, logistics, etc. to achieve operational excellence.
• Promote operational efficiencies and good stewardship of resources through alignment of the country program’s operations policies, procedures and practices with CRS’ global Operations Excellence policies and standards and relevant laws/regulations of the Government of CAR.
• Attend relevant interagency, sector coordination, and representational meetings as required. Network with equivalent staff in colleague organizations.
• Actively participate in regional Operations Excellence events (i.e. monthly calls, annual 3D meeting, etc.).
• Develop and track adherence to an approved office operational budget; lead regular cost analytics exercises; and ensure timely resolution of identified issues.
• Ensure adherence to CRS/CAR human resources policies and procedures, as well as Agency-wide performance management system, with special emphasis on professional development of CRS staff.
• Ensure open communications and promote principles of a just workplace; maintain a healthy and empowering office environment that encourages honest communication between CRS staff and partners.
• Ensure timely completion of assessments and monitoring visits of sub-partners in line with the Sub-Recipient Financial Monitoring Policy.

Security

• Ensure effective safety and security standards and procedures are in place and are regularly reviewed/revised in line with evolution of security context in country.
• Support the Senior Security Officer in the regular updating and development of new security documentation and guidance, as appropriate.
• Maintain high awareness of the security situation in CAR and immediately report risks/security incidents to regional leadership and headquarters security team.
• Complete regular security updates and situation reports, as needed.
• In coordination with the regional office and headquarters security team, ensure staff are adequately trained in CRS safety and security policies/procedures.

Representation and Partnership

• Maintain and strengthen CRS’ relationships with key donors, partners and government, and stakeholders.
• Ensure CRS representation and active participation in key INGO and governmental coordination platforms, including but not limited to CCO, INSO, WFP, UNDP, etc.
• Collaborate and maintain good relationships with governmental and non-governmental agencies for effective program implementation and resource use, as well as general information-sharing.
• In coordination with the HOP, maintain strong relationship with the local Church at the national and diocesan level through regulation communication, meetings and participation in Church activities/fora.

Agency-wide Competencies (for all CRS staff):

These are rooted in the mission, values, and guiding principles of CRS and used by each staff member to fulfill his or her responsibilities and achieve the desired results.

• Serves with Integrity
• Models Stewardship
• Cultivates Constructive Relationships
• Promotes Learning

Supervisory Responsibilities:

Directly supervises the HOP, Finance Manager, Human Resources Officer, ICT Officer, Procurement Officer, Administration Manager and other Operations staff as appropriate.

External: Local Church and Caritas partners; Caritas Internationalis (CI) and CI partners; other INGOs; UN Agencies; Government of CAR.

Qualifications:

• Master’s degree in international development, business management, or related field.
• At least 7 years’ experience in managing high value overseas programming. Africa experience and experience in complex development settings preferred.
• Demonstrated effectiveness with short and long-term planning and with financial, human resources and program management.
• Understanding of and experience with faith-based organizations, local church structures, and accompaniment and capacity-building principles in local partnerships highly desired.
• Proven ability to be an effective supervisor of staff of varying levels of capacity.
• Exercises and demonstrates high levels of emotional intelligence.
• Ability to function effectively as part of a multi-cultural team.
• Ability to represent the Agency in high-level meetings with donors, local Church and local government.
• Excellent oral and written communication and interpersonal and networking skills.
• Fluency in spoken and written English and French required.
• Strong knowledge of US Government and other donor funding regulations and policies.
• Excellent interpersonal, oral and written communication skills with a demonstrated ability to lead and work effectively in team situations.

Physical Requirements/Environment:

• Normal office environment.
• Willingness to travel nationally/internationally, up to 30% time, sometimes in remote areas.

This job description is not an exhaustive list of the skills, efforts, duties, and responsibilities associated with the position.

EOE/M/F/D/V

About the Organization

Catholic Relief Services 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.