Project Manager_Nineveh

Competencies and experience

Knowledge and experience:

• Minimum of bachelor’s degree in horticulture/agronomy, agricultural education or in relevant field (e.g. gender studies, social sciences or related discipline) or equivalent experience.
• Minimum three (3) years of work experience working in the humanitarian or development sector in a similar position.
• Experience in working with an (I)NGO, especially in project implementation, monitoring, and evaluation.
• Experience of working in livelihoods interventions like enterprise development, business management training, youth, and women economic empowerment program.
• Demonstrated understanding and experience in Cash and Voucher Programming in a humanitarian & development context.
• Previous experience in ToTs in agriculture-related topics.
• Experience in engagement with the private sector, market actors, and business support services providers.
• An understanding of gender, protection and diversity issues in livelihoods and economic development programs.
• Experience and skills in playing a supportive role, demonstrating the ability to support field teams’ members to deliver results for operational work.
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills, community mobilization experience and ability to work in teams.
• Able to communicate fluently in English and Arabic.
• Able to work on a high level with Word, PowerPoint, and Excel.
• Excellent reporting skills.
• A good understanding of the Iraqi/Kurdish context and cultures.
• Ability to travel and to the field locations and to work in difficult circumstances.

Skills and attitude:

• Excellent interpersonal skills and ability to work in a multi-cultural environment
• Result-oriented in a team approach
• Service and participatory attitude
• Communicative, open, and decisive
• Self-motivated, committed, honest, and eager to learn
• Proactive and focussed
• Stress resilient and able to meet deadlines in time

Introduction

ZOA Iraq supports vulnerable conflict-affected people with social reconstruction activities, livelihood assistance, and psychosocial support in order to establish stable and peaceful communities with hope for the future.

Purpose of the position

The Project Manager will be responsible for the implementation of livelihood projects in the field of agriculture, livestock and horticulture, and business development. He/she will manage the project activities throughout the project cycle, including budget management (expenditure planning and expenditure monitoring), directly lead in preparing and developing high-quality project plans, including Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning (MEAL) and procurement plans, progress, and donor reports, ensure appropriate monitoring and project quality, and enhance internal and external learning and representation.

Furthermore, the Project Manager will directly support the project field coordinator and/or officers and trainers in the Nineveh governorate. He/she will work closely with agriculture and business experts in developing training courses, training experts, rolling out training, monitoring of technical parts of training, business plan development and developing linkages with market actors. He/she will lead effective management and relationships with relevant internal and external stakeholders at the local level, especially with the government line departments.  

Overall objective

Improving the living conditions of IDPs, returnees and host community members in the Nineveh governorate through the implementation of Cash for Work activities, business management training, business grants and agricultural techniques and advanced methodologies.

Task and responsibilities

1. Project delivery and coordination
   1. Work closely with relevant government departments, especially at the Nineveh Directorate level, in the overall implementation of project activities. This will include regular meetings with line departments to agree on work plans, technical assessments, and establishing cooperation relations.
   2. Maintain good working relationships with relevant government departments, private sector actors, and other key project stakeholders and ensure ZOA interest is presented at all levels.
   3. Take overall project management leadership and be responsible to carry out the implementation of project activities within approved project plans, budget, and duration.
   4. Provide project management and operational support to the project team to run the project activities effectively and efficiently.
   5. Ensure project deliverables are achieved as stipulated in project design maintaining the ZOA’s program quality standards and expectations of relevant stakeholders.
   6. Work closely with the technical team to clearly define the project scope of work (SoW) and further translation of SoW into a detailed implementation plan with regular review to ensure project scope remains relevant to contextual changes.
   7. Develop overall project documents including detailed implementation plans, budget and spending plans, Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning (MEAL) plans, procurement plans and ensure the implementation of these plans.
   8. Keep tracking of project progress against approved implementation plan and update management about progress, bottlenecks causing delays in delivery challenges encountered and suggested solutions.
   9. Work closely with the Programme Manager and Jr. Programme Manager Livelihoods, as well as support staff for guidance and managerial support to implement the project in line with the approved project objectives.
   10. Conduct a detailed review of BVA on regular basis and advise on budget and implementation plans’ adjustment accordingly.
   11. Participate and represent ZOA in monthly and quarterly area coordination meetings, including emergency livelihood sub-cluster (ELC) in Nineveh, Food Security Cluster, and Cash Working Group.
   12. Work with the MEAL team for monitoring and evaluating the project regularly, ensuring community participation as appropriate, as well as accountability towards communities.
   13. Follow up on MEAL activities and findings ensuring that learning from monitoring and evaluation is included and strategies and program implementation are adapted accordingly.
   14. Ensure that risk management and contingency planning is included at all stages of the program.

2. Reporting
   1. Develop project progress reports for the donor in collaboration with project staff and support teams. Ensure narrative reporting meet ZOA and donor’s requirements.
   2. Ensure that budgets are drawn up for all activities and that activities costs are kept within budgets.
   3. Prepare monthly situation reports updating management on program progress achieved, program plans, changes in direction and challenges encountered.
   4. Ensure that program staff provide an appropriate level of accurate progress reports and conduct detailed revision to ensure accuracy before sending them for sign-off of management.
   5. Support and assist project staff in the implementation of appropriate monitoring systems and procedures for measuring both progress and impact.

3. Support implementation of project-related activities in the field
   1. Supervise data surveys in the target regions, taking into account the project-specific target groups.
   2. Plan, implement, and coordinate activities defined in project proposals.
   3. Develop individual/community based agricultural concepts, innovative ideas and opportunities to further support the rural population to improve their living and income conditions by implementing improved production, post-harvest, marketing approaches, taking into account and assessing existing practices
   4. Implementation of activities and organizing project distributions in the field.
   5. Prepare weekly/monthly activities and report on them to the line manager.
   6. Introduction/promotion village-based peer educator (lead farmers) systems where applicable.
   7. Plan, organise and conduct agricultural-related training activities (workshops, seminars, training courses) for targeted beneficiaries.
   8. Initiate demonstrations, exchange visits among producer groups at the project level.
   9. Contribute relevant details to reports to the country office as well as to donors.

4. Administrative and representative tasks related to the position
   1. Make sure that local decision-makers are informed/ involved in project activities and maintain cooperative contact with officials.
   2. Cooperate with other NGOs working in the geographical area and field of livelihoods.
   3. Prepares field data for transfer to the internal M&E system to enable the project a timely and quality/quantity related documentation of project progress. This includes comprehensive field data, pictures, quantities as well as success stories.
   4. Any other additional responsibility, in coordination and in agreement with the supervisor.
   5. In addition to the above-related responsibilities, the Project Manager may be asked to carry out other duties as requested by the Programme Manager.

Only Qualified candidates with previous experience in project management, may send their CV and CL to the e-mail address: 

[email protected]  

As the subject title of the e-mail, please insert it exactly as;

Project Manager_Nineveh

The applications should be submitted on or before Oct. 5^th 2021.

• Your CV & CL must be uploaded in PDF format.

• Only short-listed candidates will be contacted.

• ZOA Iraq is reviewing applications on a rolling basis, the vacancy might be filled before the closing date.

“Please note that the preference will be given to qualified candidates that are from the recruitment area”