Program Director

Our client is an independent foundation that invests in developing countries to improve lives and to maximise demographic dividends for long term economic growth.   

They do this by partnering with visionary African governmental leaders to deliver on initiatives that have the potential to positively and dramatically enhance the life outcomes of their people and the trajectories of their countries.

Focusing on and supporting the efforts of their partners to aid success, our client has recently adopted a new strategy with a clear accountability target: Over the next five years, they want to have played an integral role in substantially and tangibly improving 23.5 million lives. 

The Role

We are seeking a Program Director/Labour Market Economist who can complement the existing team by virtue of their experience in labour market economics, value chain transformation, and/or the prioritization of public-sector investment in critical economic sectors.

Program Directors work with their government counterparts to design and support implementation of transformative programs, and many of their government counterparts are prioritizing youth employment.

Program Directors are accountable to the CEO and are responsible for ensuring quality execution of programs; strengthening routine monitoring systems; leading evidence-based decision-making; and driving highly leveraged outcomes. Each Program Director will work on a variety of matters related to human capital development and contribute to programs in different African geographies.

You can expect a dynamic environment and a culture of collaboration, innovation, and drive for highly leveraged outcomes.

Experience

To be successful you will need extensive experience with complex and large-scale program ideation and implementation, related to labour market interventions, value chain transformation, and public-sector investment, ideally in Sub-Saharan African countries.

You are most likely an economist, will have a good understanding of how governmental departments work (ideally with direct experience working within government) and have had significant interactions at high policy levels within governments, with proven experience in managing complex and politically sensitive relationships with different stakeholders. You will support the ambition of policy champions at national level.

Able to demonstrate methodical program oversight and management, you will need an exemplary work ethic with a drive for achieving concrete results from often complex environments. 

Knowledge wise we are looking for strong understanding of labour markets and development economics; excellent data analysis skills; project finance/private sector experience could be advantageous.

This role will suit someone who is used to working at the most senior levels and brings excellent people skills and highly developed communication, presentation, negotiation and influencing skills. Fluency in French and/or widely spoken African languages is desirable.

Successful candidates will be required to complete an enhanced DBS check.

CV’s are being assessed and sent to the client on a rolling basis so early application is advised. Interviews likely to be held early September.  Please apply directly through our website, sending your CV and a covering letter.