Project Director, Health Unit -3 (European Union)

Job Description

About the Job: IMA World Health is seeking a Project Director to provide overall technical leadership and operational oversight for the European Union funded project operating in seven health zones in the provinces of North Kivu and Ituri. S/he will serve as the primary liaison with the European Union, Democratic Republic of Congo provincial government, technical partners within our consortia, and other development partners/stakeholders working in the DRC as well as with IMA World Health’s national office based in Kinshasa and the headquarters based in Washington DC. S/he will liaise with these organizations to ensure coordination and harmonization with other nutrition and health-related activities in Democratic Republic of Congo. The project director will ensure that the project’s goals, objectives, and strategy are achieved and that contractual requirements are met on time and within budget for the three objectives listed below:

• Improve access to healthcare for the Congolese population, particularly women, children, and internally displaced persons.
• Strengthen the management and governance of the healthcare system and support healthcare system reforms.
• Improve/strengthen the quality of care and take into account health determinants.

S/he will be responsible for leading the project team with an integrated vision, demonstrating effective leadership and strategic planning skills, management experience, excellent interpersonal skills, and strong written and oral communication skills. The Project Director is also responsible for ensuring compliance with IMA World Health’s policies and procedures and European Union’s rules and regulations, including ensuring subcontractor compliance and monitoring the quality of program implementation.

The position will be based in Goma, Democratic Republic of Congo and will report to the Country Director and the Director of Program Development and Quality based in IMA World Health’s national office in Kinshasa. The project manager defines his/her priorities and validates them with his/her supervisor in the annual performance planning process. He/she may propose initiatives aimed at strengthening the capacities of project stakeholders. He/she is accountable for the smooth running of project activities and the achievement of assigned objectives. He/she maintains functional relationships with senior project staff. Actual hiring is contingent upon signed agreement and European Union’s approval.

Key Responsibilities:

Role 1: Develop program plans and budgets to guide implementation in accordance with the funder’s regulations and in line with IMA World Health regulations. (20% of time).

• Provide leadership for the planning (start-up, implementation, and closure) and budgeting processes for project activities in accordance with the IMA World Health and European Union’s regulations.
• Ensure that field operations comply with all financial and administrative requirements, as well as IMA World Health and European Union’s regulations.
• Organize and coordinate project activities in collaboration with all stakeholders (technical partners, political and administrative authorities, and communities).
• Ensure that the proposed activities are consistent with the achievement of both the strategic objectives and the intermediate results of the project.
• Ensure correlation between the proposed budget and planned activities.
• Actively manage the field operations budget, including providing regular budget projections for field costs.
• Review and validate periodic (annual, quarterly, and monthly) action plans, budget plans, and project staff action plans.
• Represent the project in technical meetings with the European Union, conferences, and other steering meetings organized by the Ministry of Health at the provincial levels.
• Represent the project in strategic meetings, clusters, working groups, and other task forces at all levels.

Role 2: Ensure the quality, efficiency, effectiveness, and monitoring of project implementation (30% of time).

• Lead project staff in collaboration with other IMA World Health departments (finance, logistics, procurement, etc.) and implementing partners (technical partners and stakeholders) to ensure that program tasks and deliverables are completed and responsibilities are fulfilled.
• Evaluate program implementation progress on a monthly, quarterly, semi-annual, and annual basis and report on the implementation of the various action plans developed.
• Draft and submit activity reports in accordance with the donor’s schedule (start-up report, monthly, quarterly, semi-annual, annual work plan, annual report, final report) for the project.
• Organize periodic field visits to assess the implementation of planned activities.
• Monitor budget utilization to ensure a reasonable consumption rate in accordance with CORUS and donor instructions.
• Actively participate in the preparation of monthly and/or quarterly expenditure forecasts and their monthly updates to facilitate the preparation of the monthly request for funds to be submitted to headquarters.
• Organize periodic meetings with implementing partners and ensure that everyone is working towards the achievement of objectives.
• Identify potential risks of mismanagement at budgetary and programmatic levels in a timely manner and take appropriate measures to correct deviations.
• In collaboration with the M&E/HMIS manager, supervise technical results in the field and facilitate work planning as well as the collection, analysis, and dissemination of project data.

Role 3: Provide supervision of technical staff. (30% of time).

• Ensure good collaboration with team members and communicate transparently and effectively while maintaining a calm working environment.
• Develop job descriptions for staff under your supervision, as needed.
• Validate performance objectives and annual evaluations of supervised staff.
• Oversee the recruitment and hiring of staff and consultants.
• Support the performance management and professional development of direct reports, including feedback, coaching, and career support.
• Establish the organization’s culture within the project.
• Oversee the final signing of terms of reference for training and supervision visits with regard to field implementation.

Role 4: Define innovative implementation strategies and ensure learning and reporting on project activities. (15% of time).

• Ensure the development and quality of all project reports.
• Propose innovative strategies to ensure consistent performance in project implementation.
• Capitalize on and promote all these strategies through technical notes in order to improve the level of learning among project stakeholders.
• Participate in various project meetings as well as meetings with the donor.

Role 5: Other responsibilities. (5% of time).

• Perform any other tasks related to (their position) not specifically mentioned in this job description.
• In all of their duties, the project manager must understand and demonstrate their commitment to upholding the organization’s core values.
• Undertake any other tasks assigned by the supervisor of this position to ensure the achievement of project objectives.
  

Qualifications:

• Postgraduate degree (Master’s degree in a relevant field (nutrition and/or public health and/or project management, MBA in sociology or equivalent).
• At least 10 years of experience in development project management, preferably in African countries, with a strong focus on field implementation. Previous experience in a leadership or management position in an EU-funded project is highly desirable.
• Experience in managing behavior change projects would be an asset.
• Proven technical expertise in large-scale projects in the public health sector, including at least eight years of experience as a senior manager in projects funded by international donors.
• Proven leadership qualities, including technical expertise, management, and evaluation of complex programs in resource-limited countries; previous experience as a project director or deputy project director is required.
• Proven experience in developing and maintaining strong relationships with government agencies, international donor agencies (EU, WB, USG, FCDO, UN agencies, GF).
• Experience collaborating and coordinating with local and national host government agencies and aligning program activities and results with national strategies.
• In-depth knowledge of the political, social, and economic context of the Democratic Republic of Congo required, with preferably experience working in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
• Strong staff supervision skills and proven ability to coordinate programs with partners from diverse backgrounds and experiences.
• Proven ability to lead multidisciplinary teams.
• Strong communication skills, including written and oral presentation skills; proven ability to develop and communicate a shared vision among various public and private partners.
• Strong communication skills (oral and written) in French and English.
• Preferred Regional Experience: Relevant professional experience in the DRC or other post-conflict countries.

About the Organization

About Corus: Corus International is the parent of a family of world-class social impact organizations that collaborate in the world's most vulnerable communities to deliver the holistic and sustainable solutions needed to address the interconnected challenges of poverty, access to healthcare, and climate change. Corus is a new model in the international space, creating a consortium of specialized nonprofit and for-profit entities for greater impact.

Corus combines more than 150 years of experience from our nonprofit and for-profit affiliates-IMA World Health, Lutheran World Relief, CGA Technologies, Ground Up Investing, and LWR Farmers Market. Together, these organizations take a systematic approach to developing rural economies, eliminating extreme poverty, ensuring access to quality healthcare, and responding to urgent humanitarian needs in fragile contexts.

Further details about the organization can be found at: https://corusinternational.org