CARE Ghana Recruits Chief of Party (COP)

CARE seeks a Chief of Party (COP) for an upcoming, four (4) year program in Ghana. This project has a heavy focus on providing technical expertise to the Ghana Education Service in early grade literacy and numeracy for primary school students. The project aims to improve reading skills in 2 million primary students by 2016.

SUMMARY
The COP will be the technical and administrative supervisor of all project activities and will be the senior in-country project representative with overall responsibility for supervising project staff, and managing relations with partners and sub-grantees (both international and local). The COP will coordinate program activities among a diverse group of stakeholders and beneficiaries, especially school officials, District Education Offices, Ministry of Education, the Ghana Education Service and USAID personnel. The COP will ensure timely project implementation and technical reliability, monitor project activities, and ensure quality. The COP has ultimate responsibility for financial accountability and reporting to USAID and the CARE home office. The Chief of Party will be based in Accra, Ghana.

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES:
Responsible for overall technical and financial performance of the agreement
Manages/leads in-country staff to ensure that the project is achieving all deliverables;
Ensures that technical, financial, and administrative activities are carried out according to USAID and CARE’s policies and procedures;
Engages in frequent, routine communication with the Home Office so that the Project Director is aware of both progress and potential issues, and solicits assistance and input as needed to ensure that performance meets or exceeds technical and financial contractual requirements;
Responsible for maintaining and nurturing CARE’s relationship with USAID, communicating at a minimum on a weekly basis;
Responsible for successfully managing the project’s relationship with local governments/ministries and other stakeholders;
Prepares quarterly and annual reports;
Oversees creation and implementation of project monitoring and evaluation activities;
Produces brochures, success stories, and other materials to promote the program’s successes within USAID and the broader development community;
Maintains a working knowledge of project financials, working with and supporting the Finance Manager to ensure that appropriate systems and procedures are in place and being followed.
The preceding job description has been designed to indicate the general nature and level of work performed by employees with this classification. It is not designed to contain or be interpreted as a comprehensive inventory of all duties, responsibilities and qualifications required of employees assigned to this job.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS:
Master‘s degree and eight years of relevant experience post degree, including four years of relevant experience in developing countries; or a PhD/EdD degree
Previous COP/DCOP experience
In-depth knowledge of USAID regulations, systems and procedures for managing complex grants programs with many partners and customers is mandatory.
Strong people management skills with the ability to provide guidance and support.
Strong communication, both oral and written, strong interpersonal skills, and the ability to develop excellent relations with donor officials and key local stakeholders. Demonstrated knowledge of Ghana’s education sector structure, planning, and management. Technical experience in areas such as teacher training and support supervision, primary education, early grade reading and literacy, local language mapping, pedagogical frameworks, education systems and community mobilization;
Knowledge and experience in education and development in West Africa;
Organizational acumen and cultural sensitivity;
Demonstrated exemplary diplomatic, communication and interpersonal skills;
Excellent oral and written communication skills in English.

DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS:

PhD/EdD degree preferred;
Familiarity with Ghanian local language preferred.

POSITION SPECIFICS:
Number of Positions: 1
Location: Accra Ghana
Expected Travel Percentage: 40%
Schedule: Full-time
Status: Accompanied
Anticipated start date: October 2012

Our diversity is our strength; we encourage people from all backgrounds and experiences, particularly women, to apply.

Apply on-line today at: https://tbe.taleo.net/NA5/ats/careers/requisition.jsp?org=CAREUSA&cws=1&rid=1607