SPRING Chief of Party

Established in 1915 with Helen Keller as a founding trustee, Helen Keller International ****(HKI)**** is dedicated to saving the sight and lives of the most vulnerable and disadvantaged. Headquartered in New York City, HKI currently conducts programs in 21 countries in Africa and Asia, as well as in the United States. Renowned for its reliability, efficiency and high level of technical expertise, HKI promotes the development of sustainable, large-scale programs that deliver effective preventative and curative services for nutrition, eye health and neglected tropical diseases. The hallmark of the organization’s work is its proven success in developing, testing and scaling-up nutrition specific and nutrition sensitive interventions and integrating them within government and community structures to support and build local capacity and sustainable solutions.

Strengthening Partnerships, Results and Innovations in Nutrition ****(****SPRING) is a five-year cooperative agreement funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to provide state-of-the-art technical support and facilitate country-led, regional, and global programs to improve the nutritional status of women and children, with a special emphasis on resilience through the prevention and treatment of under-nutrition targeting the first 1000 days. The SPRING implementation team consists of JSI Research & Training Institute, Inc., Helen Keller International (HKI), the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), Save the Children (SC), and The Manoff Group (TMG).

****Background****

Beginning in Mali in 1999, HKI supports the government’s efforts in the fight against malnutrition by implementing a wide range of activities including: Vitamin A supplementation, food fortification, essential nutrition actions and community-based management of acute malnutrition (CMAM). We have experience with enhanced homestead food production, a nutrition sensitive approach that combines nutrition education and behavior change with horticulture and small livestock production, targeting women of reproductive age. HKI Mali also supports the Ministry of Health’s programs to control neglected tropical diseases.

The SPRING project was funded by USAID/Mali to provide support in achieving their goal to improve nutritional status of women and children, with a special emphasis on building resilience through prevention and treatment of under-nutrition while targeting the first 1000 days through a multi-sectoral approach that includes three main categories of intervention:

1. Increase access to and consumption of diverse and quality foods;
2. Improve nutrition and hygiene-related behaviors; and
3. Increase demand for key agriculture, nutrition and WASH related practices and services.

SPRING/Mali’s approach to achieving these objectives is strategically built on integrating activities that will strengthen agricultural production, agricultural income, and women’s empowerment pathways, with health, nutrition, and WASH interventions.

HKI is seeking a seasoned program manager, with experience in nutrition and/or food security as well as a deep understanding of the West Africa (Sahel) context. The position may be based in in the HKI-Mali office in Bamako (with substantial travel to Mopti region) or in the SPRING project office in Sevaré (with regular trips to Bamako).

Planned as a five year, $10m program, SPRING started in Mali in November 2014. Funds have been committed through September 2016 and additional funding through September 2019 is anticipated.

Scope of the Position

The Chief of Party is the SPRING project’s highest level representative in Mali. The incumbent will be responsible for defining the strategic direction for SPRING Mali, and will oversee implementation of the program. S/he will supervise a team of national staff, coordinate and oversee the technical support provided by SPRING Washington, and serve as the primary point of communication with USAID Mali. The Chief of Party will be formally supervised by HKI Mali’s country director, but will also report to the SPRING country support team lead in Arlington, VA.

Specific Responsibilities

1. Define strategic leadership and direction for SPRING/Mali. Identify opportunities for project growth and development as well as collaboration with other projects/programs in Mopti region
2. Develop and oversee all aspects of the SPRING/Mali project.
3. Strengthen relationships and ensure regular communication with counterparts in the Government of Mali, HKI, SPRING partners, SPRING/HQ, USAID and other key stakeholders at country level.
4. Lead development of work plans, scopes of work, and budgets. Secure approval from SPRING HQ and USAID/Mali as needed
5. Prepare project budgets and monitor expenses. Supervise a team of high performing national technical and operations staff.
6. Oversee implementation of all project activities, and ensure performance of the project team against targets. Take corrective action where necessary.
7. Ensure the technical integrity of the project. Identify technical assistance (TA) needs, and work with SPRING Washington to identify appropriate TA providers.
8. Develop and oversee project monitoring and evaluation in collaboration with the project’s M&E officer. Ensure use of data for decision making, and ensure timely quality reporting to SPRING HQ, USAID/Mali and USAID/Washington.
9. Ensure compliance with HKI and SPRING policies and procedures, as well as USAID rules and regulations related to finance and administration, sub-awards and grant compliance. Comply with Malian laws and regulations.
10. Represent SPRING in national and regional forums. Document program successes and serve as an advocate for SPRING/Mali.
11. Represent SPRING global program interests at country level, and contribute to SPRING global success at global level.
12. Travel domestically and internationally as needed; may be up to 50%.

Qualifications

• Master’s degree in nutrition, public health, agriculture, social sciences, international development, or a related field, plus at least 8 years of experience leading, managing and implementing large international development projects in nutrition, public health, WASH, behavior change communication, community development, agriculture, food security, or a related field, or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Demonstrated success across the whole range of project management responsibilities: strategic program planning; work planning and budgeting; financial, administrative, contractual management and oversight; relationship management with multiple clients; oversight of program monitoring and evaluation; and documentation of results for USAID-funded programs.
• Superior leadership, management and communication skills, including demonstrated experience interacting with U.S. Government agencies, host country governments and other relevant stakeholders.
• Excellent English language skills, both written and spoken, with strong presentation skills. Able to prepare reports with appropriate content requiring little to no editing and to prepare and disseminate project findings, success stories and other documents effectively.
• Fluent in French, both oral and written. Able to read, analyze and interpret complex documents.
• Proficient at word processing, spreadsheets, and exploiting the Internet.
• Strong interpersonal skills in dealing with external contacts, as well as internal colleagues; demonstrated capacity to network and to develop and maintain productive relationships.
• Demonstrated successful experience in managing teams for high productivity.
• Willingness and ability to travel, as required.

HOW TO APPLY:

Qualified candidates should submit a cover letter and resume to HKI.Recruitment@hki.org noting the job title in the subject line. Applications will be accepted until the position is filled.