Associate Director- Food Security, Resilience Livelihoods

With over 70 years of experience, our focus is on helping the most vulnerable children overcome poverty and experience fullness of life. We help children of all backgrounds, even in the most dangerous places, inspired by our Christian faith.

Come join our 33,000+ staff working in nearly 100 countries and share the joy of transforming vulnerable children’s life stories!

Employee Contract Type:

International Assignment - Fixed Term (Fixed Term)Job Description:

Purpose of the position.

The Food Security, Resilience, and Livelihoods Associate Director will be responsible for setting the strategic direction, growth, technical leadership, and coordination of World Visions Afghanistan’s Food Security, Resilience, and Livelihood programmatic to strategically tackle the root causes of poverty, vulnerability, and hunger in Afghanistan. This includes economic recovery, climate adaptation and resilience, food security and livelihoods, social protection, shock-responsive safety nets, and CBDRM/DRR. This position has overall responsibility for providing technical and operational oversight of the FSL program in Afghanistan to achieve program objectives and for program management and deliverables. Serves as the point of contact for donor(s), the different sectoral ministries in Afghanistan, and other key stakeholders on both program management and grant issues.

Major responsibilities

Strategic Programming

• Provide overall leadership for the strategic development and quality implementation of the FSL &Resilience programs, including development of strategic plans and supporting a portfolio of projects, research and initiatives required to achieve of strategic objectives.
• Prepare high quality thematic technical briefs for internal and external uses.
• Lead the thematic strategic planning, tracking and reporting processes of the sector.
• Support Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning (MEAL) for the documentation of program achievements
• Communicate program achievements against agreed strategic objectives and milestones, and any emerging new evidence for a wide range of internal and external audiences.
• Actively communicate and coordinate with the other Thematic sector leads, relevant technical specialists and project managers to ensure synergy and integrated approaches across themes that consider current good practices.
• Develop and maintain strong external relations with key stakeholders in particular donors, relevant Government offices at National/Regional level, clusters and coordination forums
• Ensure a deep understanding of needs and priorities; communicate these to his/her team and relevant Program Operations team; and use these for program development and implementation.
• Proactively establish, maintain and cultivate key external relationships including with the GOE, donors, multi-lateral organizations, and INGOs
• Regularly coordinate with member technical staff. Identify technical support requirements, inclusive of field visits, as and when necessary.
• Serve as the senior representative for all relevant external representation opportunities

Resource Mobilization and Proposal Development Support

• Contribute to the development and regular updating of a WV Afghanistan's fundraising opportunities matrix.
• Identify and present innovative and technically sound project ideas, approaches and methodologies that can WV Afghanistan effectively achieve its strategic breakthrough goals in collaboration with the Programs Team including possible funding opportunities.
• Work proactively by engaging with the resource mobilization team in identifying funding opportunities through presenting and marketing of technically viable ideas
• Support pre-positioning for identified opportunities including understanding government and donor priorities, and identifying partners
• Present compelling FSL& Resilience business cases through analytical assessment of donor and Afghanistan’s priorities in the sector
• Develop and maintain contacts with current and potential donors, potential partners and key technical agencies, in coordination with the Program Development Unit.

• Attend relevant donor meetings and visits.

• Program Planning and Management

• Head the implementation of all components of the Food Security and Livelihood Program at the field level, ensuring that the programmer’s ultimate, intermediate and immediate Outcomes are achieved.
• Coordinate and manage all Program implementation (activities, budget and Program documentation) in line with proposals, strategies and donor requirements.
• Lead Program sub-grantee (partner) agencies and stakeholders in participatory planning of Program activity implementation, ensuring adherence to technical standards, best practices and donor guidelines.
• Provide timely input and contribution to the completion of annual work plans, reports and ensure grant management compliance for Programs in alignment with donor and WV regulations.
• Maintain strong relations with government and other partners to ensure proper understanding and coordination of Program activities
• Provide Program team with standard documents/tools to ensure standardized approach to the operations.
• Design and implement strategies, to ensure Program activities and implementation strategies follow donor requirements. Ensure strong communication and coordination with all team members as a means to effectively achieve program
• Manage Program budget within approved spending levels and ensure accurate and timely financial reports to donors
• In conjunction with Finance Lead, ensure grant/Program compliance whereby Program expenditures are reasonable, allocable, and prudent and spent in accordance with donor rules and regulations to ensure compliance with external audit.
• Manage Program start-ups; Program close out and ensured Program deliverables achieved within time, cost and scope.
• Support in overseeing adherence to contractual agreements, recommend amendments and contract extensions, advise concerned parties with respect to contractual rights/obligations (be on top of what is happening in the sector, following up on the quality, escalate well in advance if things aren’t going well with the suppliers/contractor.
• Work with Zonal Teams to ensure timely submission of variance explanation upon receipt of monthly Program/sector financial report preparation and submission of accurate financial reports for the Program

External Engagement, Donor Relations and Advocacy

• In coordination with the Programme Director, Operations Director and National Director, establish and maintain liaison with relevant government departments.
• Represent World Vision on Clusters and working groups, in donor meetings, private sector engagements and at conferences and prepare monthly external engagement reports
• Work with Advocacy Manager to develop and maintain relationships and networks with the relevant national institutions and other key stakeholders.
• Use credible and validated evidence from programming to inform policy dialogue and policy recommendations
• Represent World Vision in local coordination forums and liaise with government officials and donors, UN-bodies and other partners wherever appropriate and required.
• Effectively represent WV operations and mission when accompanying visitors, e.g. donor and/or Government representatives, journalists and other delegations to project sites

Monitoring, Reporting, Documentation & Knowledge Management

• Maintain effective Program quality assurance mechanisms, including monitoring system for tracking of Program progress against indicators, activities and key Program milestones, reporting, evaluation, and communication systems.
• Develop Standard Operating Procedures for monitoring, reporting, documentation and knowledge management, including establishment of standard tools and systems for documentation and information sharing of Program progress, best practices, lessons learnt and success stories.
• Maintain strong data management system to ensure that Program reports are accurate and submitted in a timely manner
• Track Program deliverables using appropriate Program management tools
• Conduct routine visits to Program / implementing partner Program sites for purposes of monitoring and operational support.
• Ensure staff submit timely accurate and quality reports that meet donor requirements.
• Constantly monitor and report on progress of the Program to all stakeholders
• Identify and document best practices, lessons learnt and relevant human-interest stories for publication and dissemination
• Work closely with the communications and advocacy team on providing Program content for all media publications and to develop and disseminate technical-advocacy pieces to donors and external stakeholders
• Organize quarterly Program review meetings, in coordination with the M&E team, to review progress against planning, adapt strategy and share learning.

*Staff Supervision and Management*****:

• Supervise a team of all Program implementation staff
• Ensure competent and motivated staff are hired in time and retained.
• Conduct quarterly reviews of staff performance in line with WV Afghanistan performance management system, ensuring opportunities for staff feedback.
• Ensure proper technical capacity of staff through training and performance management to Program staff
• Direct and motivate the Program team(s) to achieve the desired results, often using matrix management, and ensure effective communication is maintained throughout the Program.
• Manage staff performance through regular appraisals, performance reviews and clear with objectives.

Required Professional Experience

• At least 8 years’ experience in Food security, resilience and livelihood programming (i.e. TVET, value chain evaluation and strengthening, social enterprise, social protection, graduation models, agriculture, climate change adaptation, cash transfers, agricultural revival, market systems development, etc.) in humanitarian and development settings.
• High proficiency in project cycle management; good leadership skills, demonstrated experience in planning, reporting and leading teams in order to implement complex livelihood programs, good understanding of monitoring, evaluation and learning
• Experience in partnership building and coordination with the donors, private sector, NGO and local community organizations.
• Proven experience in proposal writing and Program reporting
• Experience in Fragile contexts is an added advantage

Required Education, training, license, registration, and certification

• Master's degree in agricultural sciences, development economics, labour economics, social science, development studies, OR proven equivalent experience
• Specific trainings on donor requirements e.g. DEC, g2g, GoG Training, Europe Aid training and Security training

Preferred Knowledge and Qualifications

• Knowledge of household economy in rural and urban contexts, income-generating activities and small business management
• Skills in market research (tenders) and cash transfers
• Skills in the distribution mechanism for food-related goods and services in volatile contexts
• Skills in assessing/diagnosing vulnerabilities and food security
• Knowledge of protection (Do No Harm, social cohesion)
• Knowledge of analytical tools in sociology and/or anthropology, as well as in malnutrition, is an advantage
• Excellent communication and analytical skills; ability to handle multiple tasks; proven self-initiative and problem-solving abilities

Application deadline: 30th May 2024

Applicant Types Accepted:

Local and International Applicants (IA's) Accepted