Consortium Coordinator (Fluency in English & French) At MENTOR Initiative

Country: Central African Republic
Base: Bangui with regular travels to field locations
Duration: 1 year
Start Date: 1st September 2023

Closing date of applications: 06/07/2023

Reporting to: Country Director and HQ Consortium Manager

MENTOR is Lead Agency of a FCDO funded consortium of NGOs focused on improving healthcare delivery at community, health facility and hospital level in four prefectures of CAR.

The Consortium Coordinator will act as the focal point for the Consortium of NGO’s delivering essential health care. She/he acts as lead representative for the consortium as a whole and as required at humanitarian coordination meetings and meetings involving relevant Ministries, UN agencies and INGO’s coordination bodies. She/he acts as a liaison for donor, government authorities and partners in-country.

This Consortium Team consists of the Consortium Coordinator and the Consortium Finance Coordinator supported by the MENTOR in-country team. At HQ level there is the Consortium Manager as well as the network of support provided by HQ. The Consortium Team supports and collaborates with a Steering Committee comprising of the Country Directors of Consortium partner organizations as well as technical working groups made up of focal points from each partner agency. The Consortium Coordination team is responsible for the overall implementation of the grant and its technical veracity, whilst ensuring compliance and best practice in safeguarding and donor guidelines. The Consortium Coordination team will be responsible for ensuring that the project is implemented according to the approved proposal in an impactful and effective manner and that data and reporting is on time and to the required standard.

Country: Central African Republic

City: Bangui with regular travels to field locations

Career category: Program/Project Management

Years of experience: 5-9 years

Theme: Health

Tasks and responsibilities:

Consortium oversight:

• Ensure that all aspects of the project are implemented effectively, according to the donor proposal and taking into account the key needs and wants of all involved stakeholders the development of the country programme strategy in line with MENTOR’s country statement and the national policy in CAR.
• Create an effectively working relationship between the Consortium Coordination Team and the Consortium Steering Committee, ensuring joined up thinking and a harmonized approach to programme strategy and delivery of quality healthcare across CAR through regularly meetings (which the Consortium Coordinator will chair), involving the Ministry of Health and other stakeholders where necessary.
• Ensure workplans are being followed and epidemiological data is collected, processed and reported appropriately.
• Work to ensure that FCDO principles are used throughout the consortium’s implementation, including but not limited to their Value for Money framework and their Smart Rules.
• Work with the consortium partners and Consortium Manager to ensure compliance to the FCDO, organisational and international standards on safeguarding and PSEAH working with partners to ensure that a safeguarding culture becomes normalised.
• Ensure complainants from within or outside the partner organisations are enabled to easily and anonymously if wished, escalate issues and are provided appropriate support, with timely and appropriate feedback.
• Ensure that all issues or suspected issues are reported on time and investigated appropriately.
• Ensure that Safeguarding is a standing agenda item on regular meetings at all levels.
• Ensure all partners comply with appropriate measures for all staff and beneficiaries to receive regular training and sensitisation regarding safeguarding and whistleblowing and appropriate policies are in place to reach all levels.
• Support the oversight of the financial aspects of the programme, including monitoring the overall budget. Cooperate with the Consortium Finance Coordinator and the HQ based Consortium Finance & Compliance Manager to ensure that the programme stays as per designed budget and that partner finance teams understand the consortium’s finance requirements.
• Conduct regular field visits (at least one every 2 months) to consortium partner field locations.

Consortium technical support:

• Monitors high quality technical inputs throughout the consortium implementation process, including but not limited to programme design, programme implementation and monitoring & evaluation.
• Work to ensure the sharing of knowledge and best practice across the consortium, ensuring that the consortium makes the most out of each partner’s areas of expertise and that synergies are applied as planned in the grant.
• Ensure that all internal and external reporting requirements are clear as per the established work-plan, and that they are consistently met in line with required FCDO / MENTOR formats. This includes required input from HQ level within the partner organisations.
• With direct support from the in-country and HQ team, encourage capacity building across the consortium, particularly trying to upskill members of national employees.
• Develop a programme risk register, updating where new risks emerge and work with the Consortium Coordination Team and the Consortium Steering Committee to ensure that risks are mitigated as much as possible.
• Create a framework for the constant monitoring of programme progress through regular, harmonized data collection and analysis of key indicators ; ensuring that processes and results are properly documented.
• Support shared and constant lesson learning processes across the consortium and throughout the consortium project period.

Consortium reporting:

• Coordinate the preparation of the programme monthly, quarterly and annual reporting to the donor, other consortium members and any other stakeholders as required through liaison with partners.
• Ensure the reports are of high quality, in English and within the Consortium Coordination Team to produce high-quality reports in English to schedule. This will involve the building of working relationships with partners’ focal points and creating a collaborative atmosphere.
• Collect and prepare any documentation required for any programme amendments, extensions, etc for FCDO or government approval.
• Responsible for timely and detailed communication of all security incidents within the operational area of the consortium to the Mentor HQ Consortium Manager.
• Responsible for timely and detailed communication of all Safeguarding and aid diversion incidents with consortium partners, ensuring that appropriate and timely reports are made to FCDO via the HQ Consortium Manager and advise and support partners on appropriate actions and investigations as necessary.
• Support and, as appropriate, lead the development of future proposals to enable continuation of the programme.

Support to the Mentor in-country programme team:

• As required, represent the consortium and Mentor Initiative at external meetings.
• As required, stand in for the Mentor Country Director or the Technical Programme Coordinator when they are unavailable.

Job requirements:

– Master’s in public health, epidemiology or equivalent

– At least 5 years’ experience in health programme implementation

– Experienced with NGO working environments and standard procedures and ideally with NGO consortium

– Solid prior experience working in complicated security contexts

– Operational programme management skills in budget, asset management and compliance specifically with regard to Safeguarding

– Excellent diplomatic, communication, analytic and writing skills

– Fluency in English and French is compulsory

How to apply

The Mentor Initiative applies a zero-tolerance approach to sexual exploitation, abuse, mistreatment or harassment, and other types of unethical behaviour including fraud. The Mentor Initiative will contact previous employers of applicants to determine if they have any history of violating international standards and codes of conduct relating to such matters.

To apply, please send, in English, your CV, letter of motivation and details of three referees (including your most recent employer) to: [email protected]