A humanitarian program coordinator in Angola

International development is as much a business as it is a labor of love, and chances are you won’t choose your next assignment based on the money. That said, compensation is an important part of human resources management, and comprehensive data on salaries and benefits is hard to come by. That’s why Devex is shedding light on the salaries and work of those holding jobs that international development organizations commonly hire for. It’s part of our mission to help aid professionals do good and make informed decisions about their careers. Today’s spotlight is on a humanitarian program coordinator, an international hire, working for an international nongovernmental organization in Angola. - Position title: humanitarian program coordinator - Seniority: senior-level - Position type: full-time - Year: 2013 - Salary: roughly $37,000 per year - Benefits: $12,000 per year - Sample tasks: monitor and evaluate the humanitarian situation in Angola, promote collaboration among major actors in the country’s humanitarian sector, develop and implement a plan to build the capacity of partner organizations to respond to emergencies, oversee campaigns to increase the public understanding of humanitarian issues and of the organization’s work - Key qualifications for the job: master’s degree in political science, international relations, social sciences or a related discipline, specific courses on disaster risk reduction Angola’s foreign aid job market Angola is one of the world’s fastest-rising economies, thanks largely to its booming oil and gas industry. The African Development Bank projects that this year, Angola’s economic growth rate would hit 8.2 percent and next year 7.8 percent. Since the end of civil strife in 2002, the country has made economic and political progress. Development challenges, though, remain “massive,” and these include diversifying the economy, rebuilding infrastructure and improving institutional capacity, governance, public financial management, human development and people’s living conditions, according to the World Bank. Based on ads posted on Devex.com, aid groups active in Angola are keen to hire people for program administration posts at country and regional levels. Check out the Devex jobs board for more vacancies in Angola and for humanitarian aid experts. Compensation isn’t everything The details provided in this article were derived from a survey of select development workers stationed in various parts of the globe. Due to the sensitivity of the information, we are keeping the respondents’ identities and organizations confidential. Compensation varies greatly from one job, country or organization to another. Even for the same position, differences in remuneration occur based on educational background, experience and an applicant’s most recent salary, an organization’s need and the sector it operates in, as well as whether it is hiring locally or internationally. Also, some organizations offer more generous benefit packages than others, or they offer perks such as regular travel, training or other career development services that should not be discounted. For senior-level international hires, in particular, benefits such as housing and education allowances often amount to tens of thousands of dollars per year. At the end of the day, aid workers tell us that the chance to help alleviate suffering and lift people out of poverty are well worth any pay cut they may have encountered switching from the private sector. Read more Devex Salary Spotlights!