Deputy Country Director/Sector Leader Agri-Food

Company Description

Who we are

SNV is a global development partner, deeply rooted in the countries where we operate. We are driven by a vision of a better world: A world where across every society all people live with dignity and have equitable opportunities to thrive sustainably. To make this vision a reality, we need transformations in vital agri-food, energy, and water systems. SNV contributes by strengthening capacities and catalysing partnerships in these sectors. We help strengthen institutions and effective governance, reduce gender inequalities and barriers to social inclusion, and enable adaptation and mitigation to the climate and biodiversity crises.

Building on 60 years of experience we support our partners with our technical and process expertise and methodological rigour. We do this in more than 20 countries in Africa and Asia with a team of approximately 1,600 colleagues. By being adaptable and tailoring our approaches to these different contexts, we can contribute to impact at scale, resulting in more equitable lives for all.

We are currently looking for a Deputy Country Director/Sector Leader Agri-Food:

• Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso
• Full-time
• Contract type: National employment contract
• Open to nationals of Burkina Faso or other nationalities from the West African region

SNV in Burkina Faso implements programs that are supported by various international donors. Implementation of these programs is currently active in 11 regions, with the Country Office in Ouagadougou, and field offices in Bobo Dioulasso, Kaya, Dedougou and Ouahigouya.

Job Description

The person

If you are an impact-driven agri-food leader, SNV Burkina Faso will be keen to recruit you in the role of a Deputy Country Director (DCD) / Sector Leader (SL). In this role you are pivotal to grow and enhance the Agri-food portfolio, you are representing SNV towards (potential) donors and you ensure the quality of the Agri-food expertise with and through our programs and projects. Next to this you will be deputy to the Country Director and take part in the Country Management Team that is jointly heading the Burkina Faso team of about 80 people across 5 locations.

As Deputy Country Director/Sector Leader Agri-food:

You are working with more than 5 project managers of our Agri-food teams and partners across our portfolio to deliver impact. You drive the national community of practice, and you ensure the use of our MEL frameworks to generate learning and insights across the diverse teams. You will oversee all projects within the Agri-food system to ensure implementation and together with the project manager improve the quality of the overall sector performance at country level. 

You play an important role in Business Development, instigating, developing, and translating opportunities into sound project proposals, connecting with Global Expertise teams and partners. You maintain close relations with relevant stakeholders, keeping the pulse of the development sector in country, representing SNV to remain strategically targeted and responsive to potential stakeholder needs. 

In your role as DCD you are expected to represent the CD in their absence or otherwise needed, in all related matters such as; stakeholder management, country performance and compliance and decision making. You might be asked to take on specific general management tasks, pending your experience. You are a champion on SNV culture, representing our values and encouraging a team culture of learning, creativity, and innovation.

Duties and responsibilities:

The selected candidate will be responsible for the following tasks:

Strategic Leadership

• Providing innovative leadership and encouraging people to take an active role in programme design and proposal development and ensuring quality and implementation in line with the strategic directions within the annual Plan of Burkina Faso.
• As a key member of the Country Management Team (CMT), responsible for enabling and supporting the CMT uphold the highest standards of behaviour embracing diversity and inclusion across teams, maintaining SNV code of conduct and intentionally radiating SNV culture statements.
• Drive Agri-food systems impact via programme and project delivery, actively promoting reflections and learning based upon SNV MEL framework and ensure continuous development of practice standards across projects.

People leadership

• Providing leadership, coaching and technical support to teams
• Driving the community of practice within the country
• Growing and nurturing talent, actively looking at opportunities to build diverse experience across teams.
• Directly leading a team of project managers in the Agri-Food sector, instilling adaptive leadership with people centricity across the respective teams.

Collaboration and consultation

• Participating in global Agri-Food community of practice and meetings to ensure impactful steering of the sector.

Representation

• Building, maintaining, and expanding relationships with donors and other partners (government, local partners, national and international NGOs and bilateral and multilateral agencies, private sector), for a high level of visibility by actively participating in external and internal networks and events.

Project/program delivery

• Driving data-based reflections and decision-making at all levels, with a specific focus on ensuring that the agri-food systems programs are designed and implemented in quality.
• Contributing to the development of the country strategic and annual plans and budgets and reports on progress/ performance against targets, within the requirements of the corporate planning process.
• Ensuring effective and efficient project/programme delivery in compliance with donor reporting and to promote cross-sectoral learning.

Business Development

• Supporting Business Development (BD) by developing proposals to secure funding for innovative Agri-Food programs and may also support business development for Energy and Water sectors.
• Supporting the country program to pursue and track business opportunities for new projects and programmes.

Your profile:

You will have innate passion for people; you believe that experience and growth can be transferred to others and you have a strong technical background in the Agri-food sector. You are an experience project manager with a passion to design and enable sound theories of change that drive systems impact. Whilst being rooted in science, you adapt to context, and you inspire people from diverse backgrounds to join our cause. You are experienced with MEL frameworks, and you actively promote learning against insights generated from our field work. You are ensuring project reflections feed into practitioner learning cycles.

Qualifications

Required Experience and Qualifications

• Master’s degree in agriculture related discipline (or equivalent).
• Minimum 10 years relevant experience in the design and management of large complex agriculture/agri-food projects in Burkina Faso and in multi country context(s).
• Extensive, minimum 5 years, experience in working in/with international NGO’s, bilateral and multilateral organizations.
• Experience in pastoralism, agri-food value chains, market-based approaches, climate smart agriculture.
• Experience in systems transformation, good governance practices and approaches that are responsive to gender considerations, social inclusion, and empowerment principles.
• Experience with project planning, monitoring, evaluation, reporting and financial management, including conflict sensitive project management and working in regions with high insecurity.
• Proven track record in program design, compelling proposal writing, business development and resource mobilization; international donor relationship management.
• Excellent people leader used to providing clear direction and guidance to a group of people and encourage cooperation among team members to achieve goals.
• Self-motivated with excellent intercultural leadership, teamwork, coaching, communication, networking, and organizational skills.
• Excellent communication, reporting and presentation skills in French and English (SNV corporate language).

Additional Information

• Application Deadline: 30th of Seotember 2024.
• Contract Duration: 2 years, with possibilities for extension.
• Contract Type: Local contract, only open for Burkinabe nationals.

How to Apply 

If you believe that your credentials meet the above profile, we invite you to apply by submitting your CV with a motivation letter in English by 30th of September 2024.

Working at SNV

SNV offers a competitive salary and comprehensive benefits package. We offer an exciting work environment with opportunities to lead and innovate, and a commitment to growing your skills in a fulfilling and diverse working space. Our staff benefit from, and contribute to, an internal global network of experts. For more information, please visit our website: snv.org/careers.

At SNV, inclusivity is at the heart of our ethos. We celebrate the diversity of our workforce and uphold a policy of non-discrimination based on factors such as disability status, religion, ethnic origin, gender, sexual orientation, and more.

Reference & vetting check

We will require that you provide us with the full details of three people who are willing to act as a reference. We will not contact these referees without your explicit permission.

SNV carries out rigorous background and reference checks concerning possible safeguarding incidents for all candidates applying for International determined positions. As SNV participates in the Inter-Agency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme, all reference checks include a request to past employers to fill in a questionnaire regarding Misconduct (sexual exploitation, sexual abuse, or sexual harassment), the “Statement of Conduct”. This Statement of Conduct adopts the definitions used in the Scheme. 

• We do not appreciate third-party mediation based on this advertisement.

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