Head of Mission Yemen, based in Aden

Overall goal

Mehad is a French and international health and solidarity NGO established in 2011 by a group of doctors to address the urgent healthcare needs of populations affected by the war in Syria and neighbouring countries. In 2022, Mehad expanded to Ukraine in response to the Ukraine war. Recently, Mehad has included Palestine and Yemen in its areas of intervention.

In early 2024, Mehad conducted an exploratory mission to southern Yemen, led by two international humanitarian experts, to assess the humanitarian situation, particularly the health system’s needs and potential contributions to strengthening it. Based on the findings of this mission, Mehad will move from assessment to implementation by supporting a health project in Abyan Governorate. This project aims to enhance the resilience and stability of the people in northern Abyan by improving their access to quality healthcare services.

Position summary

Mehad is currently looking for Head of Mission to lead its activities in Yemen. S/he will be the leadership of MEHAD’s presence and operation in Yemen. The HoM will be primarly responsible to ensure quality programming and enhanced accountability in Mehad activities implementation, ensuring close coordination with different stakeholders (project team, support departments, partners). S/he will contribute to analyze the humanitarian situation on the ground and identify potential needs and area of intervention and formulate response strategies.

Roles and responsibilities :

Security Management

• Oversee security management of Mehad operations in Yemen
• Be accountable for day-to-day security related decision-making
• Coordinate with HQ on maintaining up to date situational analysis
• Lead on security assessments for new programming locations and coordinate with HQ in risks analysis and mitigation planning

Programme management and development

• Initiating and leading the mission-wide operational strategy; including country policy, annual plan, budget and policy frameworks. Leading the management team translating the strategic objectives into operational activities. Monitoring developments in Mehad’s general policies and strategies and adapting the annual plan of the mission accordingly.
• Define partnership strategy with national counterparts in Yemen (CBOs, NGOs, local authorities, etc)
• Lead the development of new concept notes and proposals for existing donors and seek new funding opportunities under the supervision of the CEO and supported by the development manager at HQ level
• Contribute to problem solving and give additional support for emerging issues in project implementation
• Ensure the activities are implemented properly, provide regular updates and reports, set and follow-up on deadlines
• Manage the mission’s budgets
• Define partnership strategy with national counterparts (CBOs, NGOs, local authorities, different line ministries, etc.) and

Human resources and management

• Plan for the future staffing needs and oversee the recruitment and orientation of the staff. Responsible for ensuring the correct organizational structure is in place and resourced
• Establish Human Resources guidelines for the mission, aligned with Mehad global policy as well as Yemeni labour law
• Leading the mission and its staff, providing a clear vision for the direction of the mission and bringing staff together across functional and geographical lines to achieve the mission’s objectives

Representation and compliance

• Represent Mehad in its relations with partners, donors, the media and different authorities

Qualifications, experience and skills :

Academic background

[Required] MA/ MSc / MBA Degree or Diploma in project management or HR management, development studies and other relevant humanities and/or social sciences

[Preferred] Academic background related to public-health and/or humanitarian/conflict management is an additional asset

Professional/Practical Experience

[Required] At least five years of senior leadership experience in complex humanitarian context

[Required] Proven experience in managing higher level institutional relations, strategic humanitarian and operational planning

[Required] Demonstrated experience in program design (including proposal development), implementation and evaluation

[Required] Demonstrated capacity to raise financial resources from range of donors

Skills and attitudes

• Strong drive to meet deadlines, organizational skills, and the ability to work under pressure
• Strong team leadership and communication skills
• Strong intercultural competence and emotional intelligence
• Sound understanding and devotion to professionalism, especially in front of an external audience and representatives of high-level institutions, partners and donors
• Excellent written and oral communication in English
• Detail-oriented approach with strong analytical and problem-solving abilities

Languages

Ability to read, write and communicate professionally in English is mandatory, Arabic language is an asset.