Chief of Party, USDA Food for Progress (FFPr)

Summary

Save the Children is seeking a Chief of Party (COP) for an anticipated five-year FY2024 Food for Progress (FFPr) program funded by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). The FFPr program helps developing countries and emerging democracies modernize and strengthen their agricultural sectors. This project is expected to build the capacity to work with the federal, provincial, and local government authorities to support efficient agriculture standards and practices throughout the value chain.

Through the FFPr program, USDA will continue its work in improving agricultural productivity and trade by assisting farmers to increase their income through diversification, stronger market linkages, and adoption of exceptional agricultural practices. The overall goal is to address agricultural development through improvements in the relevant value chain by 1) incorporating climate-smart technologies, 2) improving end-market linkages and income for farmers, 3) increasing access to finance for farmers to expand trade of agricultural products, and 4) strengthen the public and private sector markets.

This senior leadership position will provide overall strategic direction in the design, management, implementation, and overall quality assurance of the project. The COP will collaborate closely with relevant government line ministries and other critical partners to provide high-level support for effective cooperation at the national and local levels. The COP will oversee a team of technical experts and support staff, prepare reports and annual operating plans, align project initiatives with in-country priorities, and ensure the program is compliant with USDA and Save the Children’s regulations. The COP is ultimately accountable for quality and timely program implementation based on an effective and adaptive management approach and constructive relationships with a range of stakeholders and consortium members. The position will be based in South Asia, pending USAID’s final confirmation of the exact location.

This position is contingent upon donor approval.

What You’ll Be Doing (Essential Duties)

• Lead the management of the program in line with USDA guidelines to achieve project objectives.
• Lead overall program planning, putting in place team structures, technical and operational approaches, infrastructure, monitoring, and evaluation (M&E), and feedback loops required for program delivery and success.
• Lead partnerships within the program consortium, as well as with external stakeholders as needed, to foster the teamwork required for program success.
• Represent the program to donor officials, host government officials, partner representatives, local stakeholders, and team members.
• Lead annual planning processes and associated donor resource requests, monitoring implementation progress as compared to these plans.
• Ensure the quality of all program deliverables, inclusive of activities, outputs, documentation, and reporting.
• Ensure sound program financial management, logistical and operational structures and management, and reporting.
• Ensure compliance with donors, host government, and Save the Children policies and procedures.
• Recruit, develop, and manage the program team, ensuring that adequate and appropriate capacity-building plans are in place and that human resources policies are appropriate for team retention and high performance.
• Establish effective communication and coordination with USDA, government stakeholders, and the country office team.
• Create and sustain a work environment of mutual respect where the project team strives to achieve excellence.
• Participate as part of the Country Office Senior Management team contributing to country strategic plans and reporting.
• Incorporate Save the Children’s vision and values and full adherence to Code of Conduct principles.
• Closely monitor security dynamics in the project areas and report to the Country Director on significant changes in the security context.

Required Qualifications

• Post-graduate education (master’s or higher) in development studies, international relations, agriculture, nutrition, business administration, or a related field.
• Minimum of seven years of experience with increasing management responsibility in international development projects in Sri Lanka or the region, including experience with adaptive management.
• Proven leadership skills in managing projects of a similar size and scope in developing countries facing complex, volatile, and uncertain contexts.
• Demonstrated experience in managing program implementation, financial reporting, reporting procedures and systems, and staff.
• Experience in recruiting and strengthening the capacity of national program staff.
• Familiarity with the social, political, economic, and cultural landscape of South Asia.
• Ability to build and maintain relationships with host governments, donors, private sectors, and other stakeholders.
• Proven success serving in a leadership role for a project addressing issues related to trade, nutrition, resilience, agriculture production and value chain development, natural resource management, livelihoods, or similar, preferably in South Asia.
• Previous experience in market system development, agriculture growth, private sector engagement/partnership, and value chain traceability. In-depth knowledge of USDA’s Food for Progress (FFPr) approaches and regulations is required, and experience with USDA policies and regulations is preferred. Familiarity with food aid programming and logistics is a plus.
• Prior experience as Chief of Party, Deputy Chief of Party, or Project Director for multi-sectoral US Government or USDA-funded projects in the field of agriculture, agribusiness, or similar field.
• Creative problem-solving skills with the ability to work effectively in resource-constrained environments is important.
• Demonstrated ability to communicate and collaborate effectively with individuals and teams at all levels, both internally and externally.
• Ability to implement the “Theory of Change” in project design, development, and implementation.
• Professional proficiency in spoken and written English, and fluency in a language spoken in South Asia (Hindi, Urdu, Sinhala, Tamil, Bengali, etc.) is desired.

Why you should join the Save the Children Team…

Save the Children US offers outstanding benefits that include health, dental, vision and life insurance, pet insurance, short-term and long-term disability coverage, an Employee Assistance Program, 403(b), generous vacation, personal sick leave, family leaves, parental/adoption leave, commuter benefits, dress for your day, and much more.

Click here to learn more about how Save the Children US will invest in YOU!

About Save the Children:

No matter your role, when you join Save the Children, every day you will challenge yourself to devote your skills, talent, and expertise to changing the world for kids. It’s an ambitious goal, and a meaningful one no matter how you see yourself professionally: an accountant, a writer, a data analyst, a teacher, a driver, a designer, or any one of the hundreds of dozens of roles we’re looking to fill every day.

You see, Save the Children believes every child deserves a future. In the United States and around the world, we give children a healthy start in life, the opportunity to learn, and protection from harm. We do whatever it takes for children – every day and in times of crisis – to transform their lives and the future we share.

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