Position description
Job Function: International
Department: Central & West Africa
Location: Guinea
Resident Director -- Central and West Africa - Guinea
Position Summary
The National Democratic Institute (NDI) seeks a Resident Director with strong political acumen and management skills for its offices in Guinea-Conakry and several satellite offices around the country. Operating in the fluid context of a democratic transition leading up to elections, the successful candidate will have strong civic participation, elections and governance experience, including youth participation and the inclusion of marginalized groups, to provide direction and oversee the implementation of NDI's multi-donor democracy support programs in Guinea. The ideal candidate should have the proven capacity to build and maintain donor and partner relations. The resident director in Guinea reports to NDI's senior regional director for Central and West Africa (CEWA). This position is based in Conakry, Guinea, and will require travel elsewhere within the country. This position is contingent upon donor approval of key personnel.
The director will provide leadership and oversight to a diverse team of talented and experienced national staff in the capital, Conakry, and offices in other parts of the country. S/he will be NDI's principal liaison with the donor community, representatives from the Guinean transitional authorities and elected officials (post elections), local political and civil society organizations, and the international diplomatic and donor community. The director will be responsible for overall office management, including financial and human resource management, as well as supervisory responsibility for the design, implementation, and evaluation of all NDI-Guinea programs. Close coordination will also be expected with NDI-Washington, including frequent communication with the Washington-based staff.
Primary Responsibilities
- Provide overall leadership and vision for the design and implementation of NDI's programs in Guinea with the support of resident national staff and in coordination with NDI staff in Washington, DC;
- Establish and maintain strong working relations with the donor and diplomatic communities, international organizations, and in-country partners, including the transitional authorities, political and elected officials and local civic organizations;
- Manage frequent external and internal communication to produce high-quality program reports and effectively coordinate program activities;
- Oversee the successful implementation of NDI program activities, including evaluation and reporting;
- Lead donor engagement and fundraising efforts for new programs;
- Oversee the proper accounting, management, and planning of budget funds in coordination with the local accounting and NDI/Washington staff;
- Manage local employees, including hiring, performance reviews, staff development, program implementation, and adherence to human resource policies;
- Coordinate, with NDI/Washington, timetables and staff assignments for developing proposals, budgets, work plans, and reports and ensure documents reflect NDI priorities, strategy, needs, and objectives;
- Coordinate regular informal and formal communication with NDI/Washington on program and political developments, including regular program and financial reports;
- Provide, as needed, skills-building training and informal consultations for NDI staff, political, elected, and civic leaders.
Qualifications/Requirements
- Bachelor's degree, preferably in Political Science, International Relations, Public Policy, Public Administration, or related subject;
- A minimum of ten (10) years of experience in democracy and governance, civic participation, inclusion, and elections programming.
- Highly developed political analysis skills in complex environments. Experience living and working on the African continent strongly preferred.
- Proven track record of implementing U.S. government-funded programs; familiarity and experience with European donor agencies, the United Nations System and/or other bi- and multilateral funding mechanisms are a plus.
- Proven capacity to meet program goals while managing financial, administrative, and security responsibilities;
- Proven ability to effectively communicate skills and experiences to others as a mentor, advisor and/or trainer;
- Demonstrated ability to conduct and apply sophisticated political analysis to political developments and programmatic activities;
- Demonstrated ability to work effectively with senior political and civic leaders as well as members of the donor and diplomatic community;
- Demonstrated experience in navigating and ensuring compliance with host country legal and reporting requirements;
- Excellent managerial, interpersonal, and networking skills, as well as the ability to establish and maintain professional political relationships;
- Strong oral and written communication skills in French and English required;
- Demonstrated leadership capacity and ability to work as a member of a team;
- Experience with Google Apps (Gmail, Calendar, Google Drive, G+, etc.) strongly desired.
Accompaniment
Fully Accompanied - A staff member on overseas assignment may bring his/her dependents to the country of assignment and NDI will provide the travel, housing and education (K-12 only per U.S. State Department) allowances to accommodate the presence of accompanied dependents.
Comments
NDI is an equal opportunity employer (EOE). As such, NDI makes employment decisions and provides equal employment opportunity without regard to an applicant's or employee's race, religion, color, sex (including pregnancy, sexual orientation, or gender identity), national origin, age, disability, veteran status, or any other basis protected by federal, state and local laws. If you need reasonable accommodation in the application or hiring process, please notify NDI's Human Resources department.
To apply please click below.
If you had an account previously but don't receive a password reset, please contact [email protected] and your account can be reactivated and a password reset sent to you.
Apply Here
PI214439596
Application instructions
Apply Online
