Regional Programme Coordinator ToGETHER Project (for consortium project) (100%) – Kenya

Regional Programme Coordinator ToGETHER Project (for consortium project) (100%)

Fixed-term contract until April 30, 2027

Duty station: Nairobi, Kenya with regular travel to the (eastern) Democratic Republic of Congo and Mogadishu, Somalia

Diakonie Disaster Relief

Diakonie Katastrophenhilfe is the aid organization of the Protestant churches in Germany, based in Berlin. It has regional offices in Asia, Africa and Latin America, as well as country offices that are responsible for coordinating aid programs in their priority countries. Diakonie Katastrophenhilfe’s business model is geared towards implementing projects exclusively through a network of local partner organizations. In the context of this job advertisement, Diakonie Katastrophenhilfe’s programs in Somalia and the Democratic Republic of Congo are of particular importance:

Diakonie Katastrophenhilfe has been active in Somalia since 1992 with its own offices in Nairobi and Mogadishu (since 2024 only in Mogadishu). Currently, eight staff members, including the country director and two vacancies, are responsible for the supervision and technical support of humanitarian and transitional aid measures implemented by local partner organizations. Project activities take place in several regions in south-central Somalia and interventions cover several sectors, such as water, sanitation, livelihoods, education in emergencies and camp management.

In the Democratic Republic of Congo, Diakonie Katastrophenhilfe has been carrying out humanitarian projects with local partner organizations for more than 20 years and has operated a country office in Goma since 2010 with currently nine employees. The main areas of operation are the provinces of North and South Kivu and the province of Ituri. The projects usually follow a multi-sectoral approach that includes water and sanitation and epidemic prevention, food security/nutrition, shelter/NFI and protective measures.

Program description

With the aim of supporting local actors in strengthening their capacities in the areas of humanitarian assistance, preparation, coordination and advocacy, four German humanitarian non-governmental organizations (Caritas Deutschland, Welthungerhilfe, Malteser International and Diakonie Katastrophenhilfe) have agreed to form a consortium and work together on a localization program. The program ToGETHER – For more effectiveness and timeliness in humanitarian emergency aid is largely funded by the Federal Foreign Office and aims to ensure that the programme’s local humanitarian partners (LHPs) assume responsibility and action within their countries’ humanitarian systems to ensure effective, timely, accountable and principled humanitarian assistance.

The first phase of the programme ran from March 2020 to April 2024. The development of ToGETHER 2.0 is the result of sustained progress building on the shared experiences from ToGETHER 1.0 at the Grand Bargain (GB) and localisation efforts, with a focus on contributing to Grand Bargain 3.0.

This new ToGETHER 2.0 emphasizes promoting local leadership, humanitarian approaches, supporting local humanitarian partners in strengthening their capacities, proactive humanitarian action, testing risk sharing and advocating for an efficient, effective and equitable humanitarian architecture.

Eight countries are involved in the initiative: Bangladesh, Colombia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Myanmar, Pakistan and Somalia. Each consortium member is in charge of operations in two of the participating countries. Diakonie Katastrophenhilfe is in charge of operations in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Somalia.

Diakonie Katastrophenhilfe is appointing a Regional Program Coordinator (RPC) to coordinate Diakonie Katastrophenhilfe’s ToGETHER 2.0 program activities in Somalia and the Democratic Republic of Congo and to integrate them into the overall program of the ToGETHER consortium.

Main responsibilities

Program Management

• Supervision and responsibility for timely and high-quality program implementation in accordance with the program proposal, the donor strategy and the regulations of the Federal Foreign Office (GFFO)/Federal Foreign Office-AA as well as the key humanitarian standards.
• Development and implementation of program work and MEAL plans for both countries (DR Congo and SOM)
• Coordinate the ToGETHERCountry project unit teams (Project Coordinator, Process and Finance Administrator and MEAL Advisor) in both Somalia and the Democratic Republic of Congo and manage their programmatic implementation as well as their links with the Diakonie Katastrophenhilfe mission heads and office teams in both Goma, Democratic Republic of Congo and Mogadishu/Nairobi for Somalia.
• Ensure that the programmatic and thematic priorities of the ToGETHER programme are understood and followed by the Country Project Units (CPUs) in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Somalia and local humanitarian partners.
• Link and refine the overall objectives and policies of ToGETHER 2.0 with civil society initiatives and networks in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Somalia, closely coordinate the country teams and LHPs in both the Democratic Republic of Congo and Somalia and ensure their involvement in the programme.
• Effective coordination with Welthungerhilfe’s Programme Management Unit (PMU) and other regional programme coordinators to align programme activities and maximise impact across the consortium.
• Close coordination with other regional and country programmes to ensure complementarity and synergies.
• Coordinate communication with GFFO and visibility with the Regional Liaison Manager Africa and the Berlin-based Project Officers for DRC & SOM.

Reporting and Finance

• Ensure that timely and high-quality reports and financial statements are submitted to the Consortium Leader at Welthungerhilfe. This includes compiling, coordinating and reviewing reports and financial statements submitted by the CPU in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Somalia.

• Ensure timely and donor-compliant transfer of funds to CPUs and local humanitarian partners in the program.

• Monitor project progress against the master log framework and work plan and share continuous learnings from implementation.

• Ensure that technical quality and standards are considered and maintained during project implementation.

• Conduct inspection visits in cooperation with the country offices and prepare on-site inspections together with the Finance Officer.

• Review and identify, together with the AA Financial Officer, discrepancies between financial progress and programme progress and provide remedial measures to implementing partners through country offices.

  Capacity building and partnership

• Provide technical input to capacity building, participation, MEAL and financial activities for country project units and local humanitarian partners

• Promote the greatest possible participation and ownership of local humanitarian partners in the programme by ensuring that all in-country processes are participatory.

communication

• Collaborate with Diakonie Katastrophenhilfe technical advisors and the Partnership and Learning Coordinator (Regional Office) in discussions on principled humanitarian assistance, localization, Grand Bargain and Charter for Change (e.g. DRR, CVA, Compliance/CRM) for relevant program activities
• Collaboration with Diakonie Katastrophenhilfe’s programme standards and quality assurance managers in the East and South Africa and West, Central and Caribbean regions and the Partnership and Learning Coordinator (Regional Office) to create opportunities for exchange of experience and learning
• Ensure that programme knowledge and best practices are shared with other humanitarian actors in programme countries and beyond
• Ensure that Diakonie Katastrophenhilfe contributes to and is visible in ToGETHER’s communication outputs, media reports and learning events.
• Ensure regular communication on the progress of the program with the Diakonie Katastrophenhilfe offices in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Somalia, the Regional Hub for West and Central Africa in Dakar, as well as the Berlin office and staff in other project countries.
• Stay updated on the localization agenda and initiatives in the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Africa, as well as other major regions, particularly West and Central Africa.

Reporting and communication channels

Line management:

The RPC is part of the RO’s Programme Support Unit and reports to the Regional Director in Nairobi. Technical supervision is the responsibility of the two Regional Directors of the hubs in Dakar for West and Central Africa and in Nairobi for East and Southern Africa.

Directly reporting to the RPC: /

Technical supervision:

The RPC coordinates the members of the CPU in both the Democratic Republic of Congo and Somalia and manages their programmatic performance

Coordination:

The RPC works closely with the Diakonie Katastrophenhilfe office in Berlin (mainly the project managers for the Democratic Republic of Congo and Somalia and the Regional Liaison Manager), the country representatives in the offices in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Somalia and the regional coordinators of other consortium partners as well as the PMU.

Professional qualifications

• At least five years of project management experience, preferably in a humanitarian context. Previous knowledge of human resources, financial management and MEAL is a must
• Proven professional experience in localization, Charter4Change, #ShiftingThePower
• Familiarity with the Together Consortium and project
• Good understanding of global localization and participation debates
• Experience in designing, implementing and monitoring capacity building and exchange activities
• Proven work experience in Africa
• In-depth knowledge of civil society networks and current humanitarian developments in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Somalia
• Proven and strong communication and coordination skills
• Proven experience in managing cross-border consortium projects
• Experience working on a humanitarian innovation project is an advantage
• Ability to work remotely and build trust between intercultural project teams
• Willingness and ability to travel at least 50% of working time (place of work will be announced)
• Experience working with a partnership-oriented NGO is desirable.
• Fluent French and English (oral and written) is a must, knowledge of German is a plus.