Food Security and Resilience Consortium Manager

17-July-2024

About Action Against Hunger 

Action Against Hunger is an international, non-governmental humanitarian organization that takes decisive action against the causes and effects of hunger through implementing relief and development programs in different countries of the world.

Action Against Hunger was established in 1979 and has led the global fight against hunger for more than 40 years in over 50 countries, saving the lives of children and working with communities before and after disasters to enable people provide for themselves, see their children grow up strong and build prosperous communities. Working with communities in such humanitarian context, we recognize that our programs and operations put out teams in contact with children and vulnerable adults who may be particularly at risk of harm and abuse.

About the Country Program in Ethiopia

Action Against Hunger’s Ethiopia country office was established in 1985 in response to severe drought and subsequent famine, implementing relief and development projects in Tigray, Amhara and Oromia regions. Action against Hunger currently operates in six regions of Ethiopia (Amhara, Benishangul Gumuz, Gambella, Somali, Oromia and Tigray) and in Addis Ababa city administration responding to different crisis and building people’s resilience through a multi-sectoral strategy where nutrition, Food Security and Livelihoods, WASH, and Mental Health and Psychosocial Support activities are integrated to have a meaningful impact on people’s resilience.

With more than 8,900+staff in over 50 countries, last year, we helped 28 million children and their families across 55 countries. We have a country team of over 900 staff in 17 regional and satellite offices. Our main donors in Ethiopia in 2023/24 are BHA, ECHO, EU RESET, UNHCR, UNICEF, GAC, GFFO, BPRM, SIDA, EHF, FAO, WFP, CIAA, Dutch Government and others.

Summary of position 

Action Against Hunger in Ethiopia is looking for experienced, energetic, communicative and results-oriented Food Security and Resilience Consortium Manager  who will be responsible for managing  funded multiyear resilience project (HDP) implemented by consortium, which is made of Action Against Hunger (Lead), IRC and DRC (Consortium members). The Consortium manager coordinates and manages the overall consortium level operational and programmatic planning, coordination, execution, monitoring and reporting functions. 

The Consortium manager is expected to adopt the Nutrition Centric Humanitarian Development Peace Nexus (NC-HDP -TN) Operational Guideline (OG) and Implementation Road map (IRM) principles and approaches are integrated into the project implementation modalities. The consortium manager is required to ensure formation of a multi stakeholder Project Steering Committees (PSC-higher Governance structure) and ensures development and application of PSC TOR at the startup period of the project roll out! The position holder ensures preparation and review of Project Annual operation plans, budget (cash forecasts), donor & Gov reports, and Audit and evaluation tasks. He/She also facilitates endorsement of such Consortium project plan and reports during annual PSC meetings.  He/she is expected serve as a bridge between Consortium members, PSCs, grant focal points, project partners, and external project stakeholders. He/she will work with Project/consortium technical area leads (TWGs) and support teams to ensure that IPs are working toward the same goals and objectives, and project implementation approaches are harmonized, sequenced and integrated across sectors/themes, geographies and partners. 

To achieve the positions performance objective, the consortium manager must have strong leadership skills, with qualities of planning, problem solving, and networking as well as proven ability to motivate and build strong teamwork across diverse group of consortium employees/Focal points and project stakeholders. 

Food Security and Resilience Consortium Manager:  Purpose, Engagement and Delivery:

Purposes 1: Management and Coordination of the Consortium

• Organize kick off meeting- including involvement from project, technical, finance, logistics and human resource departments as appropriate.

• Coordinate formation of a multi stakeholder Project Steering Committees (PSC-higher Governance structure) and ensures development and application of PSC TOR at the startup period of the project!

• Facilitate development and application Consortium coordination and Management MOU/TOR  and Organogram

• Lead preparation, submission and review of Project Annual Operation Plans, budget (cash forecasts), and reports, per the time line and frequency indicated on the project document

• Facilitate endorsement of consortium project plan and reports during annual PSC meetings. 

• Serve as a bridge between Consortium Members, PSCs, grant focal points, project partners, and external project stakeholders

• Closely work with Project/consortium technical area leads (TWGs) and support teams to ensure that IPs are working toward the same goals and objectives

• He/she ensures project implementation approaches are harmonized, sequenced and integrated across sectors/themes, geographies and collaborators.

• Organizes and chair quarterly consortium steering committee meetings to discuss pertinent programme and financial issues and disseminate minutes and follow up on action points

• Ensure Project Procurement Plan is developed and followed up across IPs

• Ensure Project progress and Performance trackers area developed and applied across IPs

• Ensure that /donor rules and procedures are understood and respected by all Implementing partners through sharing information and conducting orientation training if required on proposed systems and processes for consortium management

• Oversee and proactively engage in the implementation of key recommendations from /donors and consortium steering committee (PSC)

• Maintain oversight of the technical and support team coordination across consortium members.   

• Ensure that implementation activities conform to the Plan and Budget of each consortium member as well as, as a whole, per the final approved consortium proposal, donor agreement and sub grant agreement conditions

• Coordinate the internal/ consortium audit/expenditure verification –and provide guidance to consortium partners on requirements as outlined in the project documents.

Purpose 2: Manage and ensure timely reporting 

• Ensure reporting across the consortium members is prepared, reviewed and validated per the donor requirements and agreed deadlines

• Develop a reporting schedule that is agreed by all consortium members which adequately feeds into the donor and government body requirements and deadlines 

• Ensure development and application of common MEAL tools and SoPs across consortium IPs (APRs, IPTT/ITTs)

• Coordinate preparation, review and and compilation financial and narrative reports from consortium members, for internal monitoring, performance review as well for external use 

• Organize and consolidate project performance narrative and financial reports including- interim (yearly), and final as per the donor and external/Gov requirements.   

• Manage and negotiate any budget changes in accordance with donor and SGA conditions

Purpose 3: Manage Communication Channels for Consortium and ACF 

• Provide regular/monthly project updates/reports to ACF Program director

• Provide Quarterly Update to donor project Focal Points, Consortium steering committee, key contact points through quarterly progress review meetings as indicated on the project agreement. 

• Establish norms and clear practices and channels of communication across consortium working groups, focal points and donor contact points

• Proactively seek feedback and input from consortium partners on challenges or risks to funds and negative impacts on programme activities. 

• Carry out regular communication and updates on consortium management, consortium partner performance and provide timely alerts of key challenges to ACF Program implementation director 

Purpose 4: Consortium Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning

• Ensure that each consortium members own policies and compliance are in accordance with all ACF financial, monitoring and evaluation policies and that these are shared with consortium members.

• Consolidate and review the Monitoring Evaluation and Learning plan of the program in collaboration with the MEAL HoD and technical working groups FPs

• Coordinate and Carry out programme monitoring visits at least once per Quarter – with each agency receiving at least two visits per year.

• Convene and chair technical coordination meetings to share good practice and lessons learnt

• Coordinate with MEAL Leads for development of Evaluation ToRs  and facilitate endorsement by Donor per the conditions stated on the donor agreement

• Similar facilitate development of Annual Audit TORs and endorsement by the donor per the project agreement

• Provide management support for planned project monitoring surveys, and interim and final evaluations

• Coordinate “lessons learned” workshop based on the findings of Evaluation and collective outcome related activities as stated on the project work plan.

Purpose 5: Consortium Visibility and communication

• Ensure that consortium communication and visibility plan is developed and implemented accordingly.

Supervisory Responsibilities

• Directly manage Consortium MEAL Manager Position

• Oversight Annual Performance Goal setting and review Process in coordination with HR FPs and Program director

Gender Equality Commitments  

• Foster an environment that supports values of women and men, and equal access to information across the consortium management spectrum.
• Promote a work environment where women and men must be evaluated and promoted based on their skills and performance.
• Respect beneficiaries’ women, men, and children (boys and girls) regardless of gender, sex orientation, disability, or religion, race, color, ancestry, national origin, age, or marital status. 
• Value and respect all cultures. 

Fiscal Responsibility

• Directly responsible for management of budget allocated for Consortium coordination and Management under the approved project budget plan (2%)

• Responsible for Budget follow-up (BFU) review while ensuring the utilization of allocated budget in a timely manner by enabling accurate and effective budget planning and use of funds in compliance with the donor and Action Against Hunger regulations as set on signed SGA

• Lead and coordinate timely variance analysis and action plan development based on BFU review

• Generate and share routine PFU,SFU and Warehouse stock inventories to respective bases and program units to take timely remedial action

• Ensure timely submission of cash/treasury forecast and disbursement/remittance of cash to base secondary bank accounts

• Coordinate Audit and Compliance Review and application of Audit Action plan across consortium partners 

Physical Demands 

• While performing the duties of this job, the employee is required to sit for long periods and to concentrate on work, including typing, and turn out heavy volumes of work accurately, within short time frames under stressful situations in the context of a moderately noisy office with many interruptions. Must be able to proofread own work accurately so that only minor corrections are needed on an infrequent basis.

• The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Working Conditions, Travel and Environment

• The duties of the job require regular job attendance at least five days per week. Must be available to work outside normal office hours or on the weekends as required

• Must be able to travel regularly for standard domestic and international business purposes 

• While performing the duties of this job in the field, the employee may be exposed to precarious settings under high-security risks and/or very basic living conditions and outside weather conditions, as well as to infectious diseases.   

Required Qualifications and Professional Experience

• Bachelor' or MA degree in the Field of Food Security, Livelihood, Public health or Nutrition or related fields

• At least 3 years of direct experience in the Consortium Management in the context of humanitarian and development programs [NGO setting]

• A proven track record in humanitarian – development peace nexus  programming or work experience in technical areas like CSA,NSA Livelihood and NRM/DRR sectors

Required Skills & Competencies

• Excellent capacity for strategic humanitarian  development and Peace context analysis

• Proven record of project management in post-crisis, recovery and resilience programing context

• Strong management and leadership skills, in diverse and complex work setting

• Strong communication, networking, and representation skills and experience

• Basic knowledge of ACF programs and procedures is advantageous

• Good team worker, facilitator, and mediator

• Fluency in written and spoken English is required

How To Apply

         APPLICATION PROCEDURE

If you are interested, please send your application composed of nonreturnable CV, a Covering Letter with “Food Security and Resilience Consortium Manager-Addis Ababa” written in the subject line, and three references, applicants to the following addresses:

Through www.ethiojobs.net 

Deadline: Friday 26-July-2024

NB: Only shortlisted applicants will be communicated, and the selection process includes a 

technical test and an interview.

Action Against Hunger-USA provides all staff with an _attractive salary & benefits package. We provide equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees & qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, ancestry, national origin, age, handicap, disability, marital status, or status as a veteran. Action Against Hunger-USA complies with all applicable laws governing nondiscrimination in employment