Deputy Landscape Manager Bouba Ndjidda-Bénoué

Position: Deputy Landscape Manager Bouba Ndjidda-Bénoué

Supervisor: Landscape Manager

Location: Garoua (North, Cameroon)

Start date: June 2024

Job type: International (1-year fixed-term contract, possibly renewable)

Application deadline: May 18, 2024

Internal collaboration: Various departments of the WCS North Cameroon program, various WCS Cameroon offices, Mbam and Djerem National Park, WCS Regional Team.

Expected travel: Regular travel in and around Bénoué and Bouba-Ndjidda National Parks.

Wildlife Conservation’s mission is to preserve the world’s wildlife and wild spaces through science, conservation measures, awareness-raising and by encouraging people to respect nature. WCS has been present in Cameroon since 1988, and since then has worked with the Cameroon government to create several protected areas and train numerous conservationists. Currently, the WCS Cameroon program works on three main landscapes, namely Takamanda-Mone, Mbam et Djerem National Park, and the Bouba Ndjidda- Bénoué landscape, which includes the Bénoué and Bouba Ndjidda national parks, working in close collaboration with the WCS Chad program in the Sena Oura Park.

In northern Cameroon, under an MoU with the Ministry of Forests and Fauna (MINFOF), WCS is implementing activities aimed at conservation, stability and sustainable development in and around the landscape, including the Technical and Operational Units (UTO) of Bénoué and Bouba-Ndjida national parks. The program, which is part of WCS’s long-term intervention, aims to promote an integrated approach to good land-use governance that balances human use and exploitation of natural resources with wildlife protection needs, including the management of protected areas. The program also aims to protect and secure wildlife within the protected areas of national parks and their peripheral zones, including Hunting Concessions (ZIC). The Deputy Landscape Manager Bouba Ndjidda- Bénoué will be based in Garoua to support WCS’s North Cameroon program.

Responsibilities

• Contribute to the development, implementation and monitoring of the landscape strategy.
• Oversee the production and submission of periodic activity reports to donors and other stakeholders according to contractual requirements.
• Ensure that WCS internal stakeholders are kept regularly informed of landscape activities, deliverables and events.
• Participate in the design of new projects integrated into the landscape strategy.
• Ensure the supervision and coordination of partners and consultants working in various fields and sectors within the Landscape.
• Implement a capacity-building plan to support teams, particularly in the areas of results-based management, activity planning, budgeting, report writing, learning and communication adaptation.
• Oversee the implementation of project management tools and procedures
• Work closely with department heads to monitor and evaluate ongoing activities as part of a participatory approach.
• Work closely with teams to develop annual work plans and budgets aligned with the overall landscape implementation strategy.
• Oversee the management and archiving of project documents
• Support landscape staff recruitment processes, including drafting terms of reference, interviewing, selecting candidates and integrating new staff.
• Establish and maintain constructive relationships, under the direction of the Landscape Manager, with government officials, project partners, area managers, donors and other collaborators.
• Represent WCS to donors and stakeholders.

Qualifications

• Master’s degree or higher in project management, conservation, development, social sciences or similar.
• Field experience of at least 5 years in a relevant role in natural resource management, conservation, development, social sciences or similar.
• Experience working in project/program cycles of design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation, reporting, work planning, budgeting, with knowledge of the European Union or other bilateral donors.
• Experience of working, coordinating and collaborating with diverse stakeholders such as local NGOs, government representatives, donors and the private sector.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills in French and English.
• Demonstrated experience of working in remote areas under difficult conditions and as a member of a multicultural team, with experience in Sudan-Sahel or Central Africa an asset.
• Proactive, responsible, flexible, adaptable, creative, ambitious and committed.
• Interest in conservation and commitment to WCS mission