Job Opportunity in Abuja for Program Director

The Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health Center for Communication Programs (JHU-CCP) seeks for experienced and qualified candidates to work for the following position for the USAID-funded Health Communication Capacity Collaborative (HC3)-Nigeria project.

The overall goal of HC3-Nigeria is to support the Government of Nigeria (GoN), US government (USG) implementing partners, and local communication and behavior change professionals to design, produce and implement high quality, impactful social and behavior change communication (SBCC) interventions for malaria. In particular, HC3 is responsible for three key technical areas;
1.) Increasing capacity of the National Malaria Elimination Program (NMEP) Advocacy, Communication, Social Mobilization (ACSM) unit to provide technical leadership in SBCC,
2.) Increasing capacity of State ACSM units to provide technical leadership in SBCC in two or more states (Akwa Ibom and Kebbi, initially), and
3.) Contributing to increased practice of key malaria preventive and treatment behaviors among caregivers of children under live, pregnant women, and the general population. In particular, HC3 will develop GoN structures that support effective SBCC through knowledge sharing, coordination, and technical leadership, while cultivating the capacity of local researchers and implementers to meet GoN needs in designing, production, implementation, and evaluation.

JHU-CCP is recruiting to fill the position of:

Job Title: Program Director

Job Location: Abuja
Duration: One year with possible extension
Terms of Employment: Contract

Job Description

• The Program Director (PD) will provide overall project management and leadership for the United States Agency for International Development(USAID) funded HC3 project in Nigeria.
• The PD will liaise with the National Malaria Elimination Program (NMEP) Advocacy, Communication and Social Mobilization(ACSM) counterparts as wet as other implementing partners and donors focused on social and behavior change communication (SBCC) and malaria.
• The PD will oversee all field operations of the HC3 program in Nigeria, managing several staff and country offices. The PD is responsible for the overall direction. coordination, and evaluation of the HC3 program field operations, finance, and technical units.
• This position reports directly to the JHUCCP HC3 Malaria Advisor based in Baltimore and requires a local Nigerian with strong leadership, supervision and managerial skills, a high level of independent action, and a focus on innovation and strategic direction in capacity building, social and behavior change communication and malaria.

Specific Responsibilities

• Provide strategic leadership and vision for the HC3 project in Nigeria.
• Start up program offices in Abuja, as well as sub office in Kebbi and Akwa Ibom states. including recruitment of appropriate staff, identify office space, and establish on-the ground operations.
• Oversee efficient, yet rigorous formative research, monitoring, and evaluation components to ensure the development of an evidence-based program, including the completion of a rapid formative assessment in two states to finalize the HC3 work plan and identify partners and subcontractors.
• Provide administrative, programmatic, and managerial oversight to all aspects of the program; coordinate effective implementation of program activities, including development of work plans and facilitation of timely implementation; develop annual program implementation budgets and monitor budget expenditures; manage and supervise local staff including non-Johns Hopkins University Center for Communication Programs (JHU-CCP) program partners.
• Develop appropriate capacity building initiative for NMEP ASCM Units at the national and state level, as well as program partners and other malaria stakeholders as needed.
• Oversee the creation of quality SBCC campaigns at the state level, as well as the development of national malaria SBCC materials and guidelines as applicable.
• Consult with HC3 Technical Advisor on an on-going basis.
• Make programmatic decisions and trouble-shoot implementation challenges; oversee program data quality compliance, including developing data tractring systems and monitoring records to ensure program meets USAID audit standards; approve local financial transactions and manage and authorize expenditures from local bank accounts; supervise and approve all aspects of project procurement and logistics, including office infrastructure and vehicles; sub grant development, including compliance with programmatic objectives and Johns Hopkins University (JHU) /USAID financial and administrative regulations.
• Submit timely program reports to USAID and JHU-CCP Headquarters on a quarterly, semi-annual and annual basis; disseminate program success stories and share information.
• Serve as a spokesperson and advocate, represent JHU-CCP and the HC3 project to USAID, donors, Government of Nigeria, Cooperating Agencies, and others; and develop new business opportunities for JHU-CCP as appropriate.
• Manage 2-4 senior level managers and advisors who oversee a total project team of approximately 10-20 employees in 3-5 offices.
• Carry out supervisory responsibilities in accordance with the organization's policies and applicable laws. Responsibilities include interviewing, hiring, and training employees; planning, assigning, and directing work; appraising performance; rewarding and disciplining employees; addressing complaints and resolving problems.
• Represent the HC3 Project and JHUCCP in technical working group meetings and national forums as relevant.
• Perform other related duties as necessary.

Management and Supervision:

• Provide technical support and oversight to all employees and consultants/contractors working on the above.
• Supervise and provide technical assistance, mentoring and skills building to local staff and key local counterparts.
• Identity learning needs and coordinate learning sessions for program staff and local counterparts.
• Conduct staff appraisals and other staff management duties as assigned.

Requirements

• Master's degree required. Additional relevant experience and/or training may substitute for some education.
• Ten years senior-level field-based health development program management experience, or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• In-depth program experience in Nigeria and experience in technical, financial and administrative oversight.
• Extensive experience in capacity building for health programming in Nigeria.
• Extensive experience in managing social and behavior change communication programs.
• At least five years' experience working on malaria programs.
• Solid understanding of M&E for SBCC and use of data to develop evidence based programming.
• Skilled manager with ability to oversee and motivate staff for sound, effective, evidence and results based programming.
• Previous experience working with USAID funded projects.
• Familiarity with USAID policies and procedures.
• Ability to effectively present information to top management, public, and/or donors.
• Ability to work with and understand foreign currency exchanges.
• Ability to apply principles of logical or scientific thinking to a wide range of intellectual and practical problem.
• Ability to deal with a variety of abstract and concrete variables.
• Ability to work in fast-paced dynamic environment with multiple partners.
• Flexible and independent.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.

APPLY HERE


Closing Date: 1st April, 2014