Deputy Director, Programs

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) responds to the world’s worst humanitarian crises, helping to restore health, safety, education, economic wellbeing, and power to people devastated by conflict and disaster. Founded in 1933 at the call of Albert Einstein, the IRC is one of the world’s largest international humanitarian non-governmental organizations (INGO), at work in more than 40 countries and 29 U.S. cities helping people to survive, reclaim control of their future and strengthen their communities. A force for humanity, IRC employees deliver lasting impact by restoring safety, dignity and hope to millions. If you’re a solutions-driven, passionate change-maker, come join us in positively impacting the lives of millions of people world-wide for a better future.

The IRC started operations in Chad in 2004 to respond to the humanitarian crisis caused by the influx of refugees from Darfur to eastern Chad, with intervention in the Ouré Cassoni refugee camp. Assistance to Sudanese refugees has now expanded to the management of the ten camps in the East and one camp in the West with assistance to refugees and local communities in health, nutrition and water, hygiene and sanitation. In 2012, to respond to drought and food insecurity, IRC expanded its geographic coverage in the Guéra region. IRC is currently working in three health districts Mongo, Mangalmé and Melfi and is providing prevention and treatment of malnutrition to the local population. In May 2016, IRC opened an office in the Lac region to respond to the Boko Haram crisis. IRC implements assistance projects in health, nutrition as well as protection and response to gender-based violence. Since April 2023, IRC responds to major crisis that erupted after War in Sudan. IRC Chad portfolio is currently over 30 million USD with more than 400 staff implementing 16 projects.

Scope of work

The major role Deputy Director in charge of the Program (DDP), is to ensure the strategic and operational leadership and management of the Program, focusing on its development, quality, advocacy and influence at the national level. Member of the country senior management team (SMT) and under the supervision of the Country Director, he/she assumes direct responsibility for the effectiveness and efficiency of support to all units of the Program Team both in N’Djamena and in the field. He/she has overall responsibility for the direction and coordination of the Program, ensuring the development of high quality, innovative programs and projects that deliver rapid and sustainable results/impacts for the benefit of the people we serve. He/she oversees the quality of program/project implementation and provides substantive technical support for the appropriate learning, monitoring, evaluation and reporting of programs/projects. He/she supervises directly and indirectly the international and national staff of the Program team, including the technical coordination teams (in particular Health, Nutrition, WPE/GBV, Livelihoods / ERD), grants and management teams of the program team (funding, research , compliance management and reporting), monitoring and evaluation teams, and learning, partnership team and the senior program coordinator providing support for quality project implementation. In support of the Country Director, he/she assumes a high-level internal and external representation role with donors, partners, state actors, civil society, the private sector and other key stakeholders in Chad and/or in the region.

Main Responsibilities:

Human Resources – Development and Team Management

• Staffing: In coordination with the Human Resources management team, ensure that the IRC Chad Program team is composed of quality staff, living the values of the organization. He/she participates in the recruitment, development and retention of qualified individuals in all necessary positions of the Program to support effective, efficient and high quality programs/projects;

• Team building: he/she ensures that the Program team is consistent and that colleagues work in good collaboration with each other, with an excellent understanding of mutual expectations; and that support for field teams is prioritized. He / she establishes and evaluates performance standards / objectives and the behaviors of team members.

• Individual Development and Performance Management: He/she manages and develops the performance of Program teams across the country to ensure the quality of the Program. This includes monitoring and evaluation of individual performance and professional development plans in accordance with the organization’s standards.

Strategic and operational management

• Coordination: Coordinate the development, formulation and writing of project ideas, concept notes and proposals in collaboration and coordination with national and regional technical teams.

• Effectiveness: ensure the effective and qualitative management of the IRC Chad program cycle and ensure programmatic learning between programs / projects.

• Leadership: take leadership on strategic development, action plans with clear objectives and clear outcomes, evaluation steps, long-term and short-term priorities, implementation plans; financial projections as well as evaluation tools.

• Support: Work with country technical teams and field coordinators to ensure that adequate support is provided to program / project delivery staff.

• Participation: formulate and develop programs that promote beneficiary/clients participation, capacity building, partnership, and advocacy.

• Opportunities: to ensure the development of new opportunities related to the IRC Mission Statement and the Strategic Action Plan of Chad.

• Policy: ensure that all interventions in Chad comply with IRC policies, donor specificities and generally accepted standards in the field of Humanitarian / National Development and Protocols

• Data: Assist teams in the collection, analysis, presentation and retention of data and the achievement of expected indicators of different programs / projects as well as in the use of the analyzed data in programmatic decision-making.

Compliance and risk management

• Budgeting: he/she oversees the coordination of the preparation, consolidation, analysis and submission of program/project budgets according to the instructions and guidelines of IRC and donors.

• Reports: he/she coordinates quality reporting and preparation process, especially program / project reports, as well as other IRC internal reports, including timely submission and monitoring the implementation of the actions and recommendations from those reports.

• Grants: Regularly provide input into the grant management process and comply with internal rules and requirements of IRC, and donors.

• Budget: monitor all grant budgets to ensure that the rules and specificities of the donors are followed; review budget realignment requests and extension requests; develop budgets for new proposals in collaboration with the teams; monitor expenses to ensure they comply with the rules and be accountable for all reports. Contribute, from a programmatic point of view, to the formulation of the operational budget.

• Rules: ensure compliance with the programmatic rules; ensure that the project cycle meetings (PCM) are organized for any program/project, and that significant Action Plans are developed and implemented by the teams.

• Risks: Ensure that systems and processes are in place to identify and manage programmatic risks – identification, assessment, mitigation.

Qualifications:

• Master’s degree/3rd cycle in Program Management and / or in a field related to the position.

• At least ten years (10+) of international experience in humanitarian / development, with an excellent understanding of the West and Central Africa environment.

• Knowledge of Chad and experience in transition contexts would be an advantage.

• Strong knowledge and practical experience of the main donors of IRC, Americans (BPRM, USAID, OFDA), Europeans (ECHO, EuropeAid, DFID, AFD) and United Nations Agencies (UNHCR, UNICEF, WFP, WHO).

• Strong team management, excellent leadership, excellent communication and interpersonal skills, independent work skills, and solid experience in managing your own time.

• Willingness to travel in the field and work in sometimes remote corners and / or with relative safety and minimal living conditions.

Language Skills: Excellent written and oral French and English skills.

Specific security situation/housing

Deputy Director of Programs will be based in Ndjamena with travel throughout the country. The security situation in Chad continues to be volatile [in the NE with the security at phase yellow]. This is a accompanied position. He/she will live in individual housing.