Creative Associates International seeks to recruit a Senior Program Development Officer, Maroua, Cameroon

Position Summary:

The Senior Program Development Officer (SPDO) is responsible for facilitating the grass-roots development of project concepts and activity submissions. The SPDO will work in conjunction with the Chief of Party (COP) and Grants and Activity Cycle Manager (GACM) to build capacity and assist the entire technical team, including grants, procurement and Monitoring & Evaluation (M&E). The SPDO will partner with the GACM to manage the development of activity ideas and summaries, refine project concepts, assist in the creation and negotiation of budgets and will oversee implementation of activities in the field. This project is fast paced, challenging, and encourages creativity and innovation across the entire team. It is at the forefront of an evolving regional conflict, and the entire staff has a very close working relationship with USAID. The SPDO position offers the chance for professional growth for a motivated person.

This location has been designated as an unaccompanied post.

Reporting & Supervision:

The SPDO reports to the COP. The project activity managers and M&E staff report to the SPDO.

Expected Outcomes:

• Ensure coordination with technical team staff for timely delivery of activities
• Increased activity level and quality through the end of the project
• Guiding the team towards achieving strategic goals and feeding into overall programmatic strategy design
• Ensure program learning throughout the entire implementation process

Primary Responsibilities:

• Under the COP’s leadership, and in partnership with the GACM, coordinate, sequence, and prioritize work and tasks of the activity team;
• Develop and monitor bi-weekly work target plans for the activity team;
• Work with the COP, GACM activity team to develop cleared activities through submission and clearance;
• Provide feedback and guidance during activity idea creation to ensure all activates are relevant, thought through, realistic, have correct budgets and timelines, and are actionable;
• Participate in regular PAIC concept and implementation meetings with activity team and senior management team to discuss activity ideas and report on the progress of activity implementation;
• Provide guidance and feedback on Activity Note submission in the OTI database;
• Assist activity team with the closeout of completed activities;
• Oversee and mentor M&E staff and provide guidance on Final Evaluation Report (FER) writing and submission;
• Help M&E track overall project development and identify trends to document ‘success stories’ and ‘lessons learned’;
• Along with GACM and M&E, ensure that learning from ongoing and completed activities is fed back into new activity design on a continual, rolling basis; and
• Any other duties and tasks as needed and assigned.

Required Skills & Qualifications:

• Relevant work experience, including experience with OTI programs;
• A minimum of two (2) years of experience working in complex, high-speed and challenging field operations in developing countries;
• Experience with programs that provide quick delivery of assistance in response to emerging windows of opportunity;
• Demonstrated ability managing grants, preferably in-kind and small grants;
• Experience working in developing countries is required, preferably in a fragile or transitional state environment;
• Experience working with M&E and report writing;
• Demonstrated ability managing finance, including budgeting; financial management (tracking, reporting and accounting); and procurement desired;
• Demonstrated ability to design, develop and implement activities;
• Demonstrated ability to manage and mentor local staff while building their capacity; and
• Demonstrated working proficiency in English and French is required, and fluency is preferred.

Local and regional candidates strongly encouraged to apply.

Position contingent upon donor funding.