Program Coordinator- British Red Cross

Organizational Context

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC or “the Federation”) is the World’s largest volunteer-based humanitarian network. The Federation is a membership organization established by and comprised of its member National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. Along with National Societies and the

International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the Federation is part of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. The overall aim of the IFRC is” to inspire, encourage, facilitate, and promote at all times all forms of humanitarian activities by National Societies with a view to preventing and alleviating human suffering and thereby contributing to the maintenance and promotion of human dignity and peace in the world.” It works to meet the needs and improve the lives of vulnerable people before, during and after disasters, health emergencies and other crises.

The Federation is served by a Secretariat based in Geneva, with regional and country offices throughout the world. The Secretariat is led by the IFRC Secretary General and provides the central capacity of the International Federation to serve, connect, and represent National Societies. The Secretariat’s focus includes providing support to the IFRC governance mechanisms; setting norms and standards; providing guidance; ensuring consistency; coordination and accountability for performance; knowledge sharing; promoting collaboration within and respect for the RCRC Movement; and expanding engagement with partners. The Secretariat has five regional offices, a follows: Americas (Panama City); Africa (Nairobi); Asia/Pacific (Kuala Lumpur); Europe (Budapest); Middle East and North Africa (Beirut).

The IFRC office in Abuja is the hub to support the Red Cross National Societies of the West Coast Cluster and has a status agreement with Nigerian government. The West Coast cluster office delivers the IFRC mandate in the sub-region with a focus on Disaster Management, Capacity Building of the National Societies and Humanitarian Diplomacy.

The British Red Cross (BRC) opened an office in Abuja in January 2019. The focus of BRC activities are around strengthening the Nigeria Red Cross Society (NRCS) through capacity building in coordination with other movement partners. Programmatically, the focus of BRC work in Nigeria is the implementation of a disaster management programme in the states of Bauchi, Delta, FCT, Imo and Lagos (others to be added in future phases of programme expansion). Technically, the Disaster Management Programme covers the four component of the Disaster Management Cycle and also covers components around Food Security/ Livelihoods and WASH. Cash programming is an important tool used in the programme.

Job Purpose

• Under the direct supervision and the guidance of the British Red Cross Head of Country Cluster, the Programme Coordinator will ensure implementation of the BRC/ NRCS Disaster Management programme (and possibly additional programmes in future) in a timely, effective and efficient manner. He / she will be working closely with the National Society to build preparedness and response capacity in order to enable the Nigerian Red Cross improve their disaster management programming.
• He/she assures ongoing collaboration with all relevant partners in the region in the field of disaster risk management and will also work on further developing these relationships.
• He/ she will be responsible for managing a joint BRC/ NRCS programme team and lead staff in a way which ensures compliance with the red cross values and principles.
• The job will require travel to the project locations of about 50% of the total work hours. Work locations might change as the programme will be expanded over the coming years.

Job Duties and Responsibilities

• Build capacity and competencies in The Nigerian Red Cross Society on Disaster Management and support NRCS in becoming a relevant partner of State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) in the states where the programme will be implemented.
• Ensure effective working relationships with the relevant departments of NRCS as well as technical advisors and other counterparts of the British Red Cross headquarters.
• Build and maintain effective working relationships with the relevant NRCS branches and divisions
• Provide technical guidance and support on implementation of activities related to all phases of the Disaster Management Cycle.
• Provide technical guidance and support on the implementation of activities related to other technical areas of the project, mainly related to asset and fleet management, information management, CEA, PSEA, PGI, WASH, FSL and Health
• Conduct monitoring and supervisory visits to the DM programme activity sites in the field.
• Organize and facilitate training sessions for National Society technical staff and volunteers in various areas of disaster risk management.
• Coordinate with relevant Red Cross Movement partners, Governments, donors, NGOs and UN Agencies co-financing and implementing initiatives for disaster risk management.
• Develop and manage programme plan of action and budget
• Prepare proposals and presentations for fundraising initiatives
• Collect relevant communication pieces to be shared with different audiences including donors
• Effectively manage direct and indirect reports, including setting goals, performance objectives, staff evaluation, and provision of continued feedback on how performance can be improved
• Manage all BRC programme staff on deployment to Nigeria
• Create a positive team environment in which individuals can thrive and develop
• Perform other duties in addition to the above responsibilities, commensurate with background and experience as deemed necessary by the Supervisor; especially contributing to the development and management of additional programmes in future
• Perform any other work-related duties and responsibilities that may be assigned by the line manager

Education

• Master’s degree in development studies, International Studies, or relevant field.
• Certificate in Project Management or Programme Management  

Experience

• Experience of working for the Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement 
• At least 5 years of working for a humanitarian aid organisation
• Involvement in a response and/ or recovery operation
• Experience in Programme and Budget development, programme implementation, and reporting

Knowledge, Skills and Languages

• Knowledge of the Disaster Management Cycle
• Knowledge of relevant tools for Needs Assessment, Cash and Voucher Assistance (CVA), and Information Management
• Coordination and Planning
• Proven literacy in software relevant for Programme Management purposes: MS Project or similar project management software, Excel, PowerPoint, Word
• Operational management and reporting skills
• Excellent communication, interpersonal, and networking skills

Competencies, Values and Comments

• Accountability
• National Society Relations
• Teamwork- Interpersonal Skills
• Integrity and Personal Conduct
• Professionalism
• Initiative and direction.