IMPACT AND ITS INITIATIVES
IMPACT Initiatives is a humanitarian NGO based in Geneva, Switzerland. The organisation manages several initiatives: REACH, AGORA and PANDA. The IMPACT team is made up of specialists in the collection, management and analysis of data and GIS. IMPACT was launched at the initiative of ACTED, an international NGO based in Paris and present in some thirty countries. The two organizations have a strong complementarity formalized in a global partnership, allowing IMPACT to benefit from the operational support of ACTED on its areas of intervention.
The REACH initiative was created in 2010 as a joint initiative of two international NGOs (IMPACT Initiatives and ACTED) and’UNOSAT. The objective of REACH is to promote and facilitate the development of information products that enhance the decision-making and planning capacity of the humanitarian community in emergency contexts, including, of reconstruction and development. AGORA is a joint initiative of ACTED and IMPACT Initiatives, founded in 2016 that promotes effective, inclusive and integrated local planning, response to aid and service delivery in crisis contexts by applying territory-based processes and tools. AGORA allows answers from’more effective and responsive assistance to support the recovery and stabilization of crisis-affected communities, including, while promoting the restoration of local services and supporting the actors of local governance. PANDA is the IMPACT operational programme that aims to improve the effectiveness of humanitarian and development interventions, informing the entire programme cycle of partners.
COUNTRY AND MISSION PROFILE
The DRC has been facing an acute and complex humanitarian crisis for decades. Recurrent conflicts in the provinces of Kivus and Ituri, health shocks and natural disasters, and, as well as the chronic poverty suffered by a large part of the population, these are reasons for the high level of humanitarian needs. According to the 2024 humanitarian needs overview, 25.6 million people (including 5.5 million displaced people) in DRC are in need of humanitarian assistance. The country also hosts more than 570,000 refugees from neighbouring countries, a particularly vulnerable population. Many parts of the country also remain affected by multiple epidemics, including measles, cholera, malaria and Ebola virus disease (EVD). Humanitarian aid’emergency and recovery suffer from many challenges both in a general plan of needs much higher than the available funding that requires reasoned prioritization, and, and on a more micro level with a lack of harmonization, localization and sensitivity to conlfits, and to take into account the voice of the affected populations in their will and local knowledge.
Since 2016, IMPACT Initiatives DRC – with teams currently present in Kinshasa, Goma, Bukavu and Kalemie – provides evaluation services, including, information management and mapping with the aim of’inform humanitarian planning in the DRC. Since 2020, REACH conducts cross-sectoral research and public health cycles in the provinces of North Kivu, South Kivu, Maniema, Tanganyika and’Ituri, with a recent development towards the northwestern provinces. Since 2021, REACH has been conducting a multisectoral needs assessment (MSNA) with the aim of’ informing the humanitarian programming cycle in the DRC. For the first time in 2023 through a technical partnership with WFP, the MSNA has gained a national reach and will have as its main objective in 2024 to’concretely inform the new humanitarian programming cycle based on JIAF 2.0. All products of the IMPACT mission in DRC are accessible here.
Since 2021, the PANDA and AGORA initiatives are also deployed in the DRC with a strategic partnership for the PANDA initiative to implement independent monitoring (third-party monitoring) of’ emergency programs funded by the donor british FCDO ; and with an innovative pilot for the’initiative of participatory and local research and planning in the province of Tanganyika with the aim of developing a local development plan and thus promoting the’ triple approach Nexus for the benefit of the activities of’Acted and the actors of’aide in general. Since end 2023, the local and territorial approach is also based on environmental analyses aimed at strengthening emergency preparedness and anticipatory action processes in several regions (east and north-west) of the country.The IMPACT RDC mission is thus developed until’in early 2024, requiring an experienced profile for the general management of the mission and its external representation, and, strengthening internal coordination and operations management teams. The person sought will be at the head of a mission of more than 2M USD / year with a team of 40 staffs spread over 4 bases in the country for activities covering at least 7 provinces.
Mission
We are currently looking for a country representative to support our IMPACT team in the DRC.
Department :IMPACT – Coordination
Title : Country representative
Duration of the contract : 24 Months
**Place of work :**Goma, Democratic Republic of Congo (with occasional trips on the ground and other bases)
Date of commencement : October 2024
JOB PROFILE
Under the supervision of the regional coordinator – Africa based at HQ IMPACT in Geneva, the IMPACT Country Representative will have 3 main objectives to achieve to advance and promote IMPACT and its initiatives in the DRC :
- External representation & advocacy :The IMPACT Country Representative is the main contact person in relations with current and prospective donors of the mission (including but not limited to USAID/BHA, FCDO, UNICEF, Chemonics/Fewsnet or targeted donors such as ECHO, SDC, AIDS, UNHCR, etc.). The IMPACT Country Representative must not only communicate around the development of projects or the management of existing grants but create a relationship of trust and develop the reputation of IMPACT by using the analyses produced for advocacy points. This communication objective also extends to all the coordination platforms with which the Representative is involved, such as (not exhaustive) the Country Humanitarian Team, the National Intercluster, the relevant Working Groups, etc,the NGO Forum, the management of UN agencies and other organizations, national institutional key players, provincial coordination platforms when relevant, etc.
- Programmatic supervision of research units :The IMPACT Country Representative supervises the research leaders of the 3 research units developed within the mission: humanitarian/intersectoral programming cycle unit, public health unit, etc, (depending on the profile of the Deputy Country Coordinator) the accountability and resilience unit. The main objectives of this supervision include monitoring the main objectives of this supervision include compliance with the activities of the units for the various grants, including, compliance with the activities of the units for the various grants, compliance with the organizational guidelines for these units ; the development of these units within the Country Strategy in constant contact with the senior management team (SMT) of the mission.
- Supervision of support, quality and mission operations : The IMPACT Country Representative will be responsible for monitoring the financial health of the mission; monitoring, continuous improvement of human resources conditions, etc, the nationalization of certain positions; joint development with the Acted partner of the security procedures of the mission; and in connection with the Deputy Country Coordinator, or, continuous improvement of quality monitoring processes and efficient organization of operations in all areas of implementation of activities.
FUNCTIONS
- Development and implementation of the country strategy :
- Analyze the socio-economic situation of the country, the’impact of’a crisis and the situation of’aid /humanitarian ;
- Understand the mechanisms of humanitarian coordination, as well as the main actors ;
- Develop and oversee the implementation of’a country strategy in line with headquarters priorities :
- Consolidate and strengthen ongoing programming and operations ;
- Ensure that IMPACT activities are relevant and have an impact on the humanitarian response ;
- Identify new areas in which IMPACT can add value to the humanitarian response; Organize cross-cutting internal monitoring : Organize for the purpose of monitoring the strategy of the mission internal monitoring documents of strategic’ objectives, but also of’ other regular follow-ups such as on HR points (tracking of movements/leave) or research (research trackers), … ;
- External representation and engagement :
- Establish, maintain and improve relations with key partners (including donors, coordination actors, national institutional actors, etc.) ;
- Promote IMPACT and its programmes in key decision-making forums ;
- Ensure IMPACT participation in the main humanitarian coordination forums ;
- Directing the dissemination of’information and’analysis products ;
- Collection of funds :
- Communicate with existing donors and approach new donors to identify funding to support IMPACT programmes ;
- Oversee the conceptualization of project proposals in line with the national strategy ;
- Oversee budget design, in close consultation with ACTED, and IMPACT HQ ;
- Negotiate proposals and /or contracts with donors.
- Programmatic management of research units :
- Hierarchical management of the 3 research leaders for the programmatic units of the DRC mission ;
- Ensure that synergies are established and implemented between the different IMPACT programme units in the country, and establish links with other IMPACT countries where appropriate ;
- Keep track of the progress and delays in any implementation of the program. Ensure that any delays or problems identified for specific programmes are reported to headquarters.
- Project cycle management :
- Ensure the timely organization of the project launch, review /update and end of project meetings ;
- Ensure that contractual obligations are met in terms of deliverables as well as narrative and financial reporting requirements ;
- Anticipate financial risks and funding shortfalls ;
- Control project budgets to avoid insufficient /excessive expenditure, in connection with the finance departments of’IMPACT HQ and (if applicable) of’ACTED ;
- Ensure accurate and timely financial reporting in relation to IMPACT HQ and (if applicable)’ACTED finance ;
- Support the preparation of internal /external audits in close collaboration with HQ Finance and Compliance.
- Leadership and management of’teams :
- Provide leadership throughout the mission, as well as within the country’s senior management team (SMT) ;
- Transmit the values and vision of’IMPACT and their declension at the national level, and help managers and all staff to do the same ;
- Ensure that all staff have clear mandates, work plans and key performance indicators ; ensure regular performance reviews ; and ;
- Supervise and support the team to build capacity, improve efficiency and performance, and monitor staff career management;
- Promote the growth and development of staff within the organization, by establishing active links with headquarters to provide feedback and support retention and internal mobility ;
- Develop and update the organizational chart of the country and the staff recruitment plan ;
- Regularly submit HR reports to IMPACT headquarters; report any HR issues.
- Internal coordination & with Acted :
- Ensure the establishment of regular internal team meetings ;
- Regularly submit reports to headquarters, including the monthly coordination report ;
- Coordinate regularly with the Country Director or Director of’ACTED through weekly meetings ;
- Ensure regular coordination with the development of ACTED projects and FLATS departments (finance, logistics, administration, transparency, etc, security) at all stages of the development and implementation of the project ; and ;
- To ensure compliance of all IMPACT personnel with the ACTED FLAT and safety procedures. Facilitate coordination between the IMPACT programmes and the ACTED area coordinators, as appropriate.
As part of its mission, the assistant country coordinator will be welcomed by ACTED and will be the responsibility of the country director of ACTED and its delegate.es. He or she will fully comply with the ACTED rules on security, human resources, administration and logistics.
CONFIDENTIALNESS
The country or country representative must maintain the highest level of confidentiality of the data collected by IMPACT DRC and ensure the’adherence to the global personal data protection processes. She or he’assured to implement mechanisms to avoid the unauthorized sharing of information collected during his mission in collaboration with the headquarters in Geneva.
ACCOUNTABILITY TO THE COMMUNITIES AND BENEFICIARIES
The country or country representative, like any other staff member of’IMPACT, shall, is responsible for ensuring that relationships with the communities in which IMPACT and its partners work are conducted in a respectful and consultative manner. Particular attention must be paid to ensuring that communities are properly consulted and informed of the objectives, activities, and methodologies of’IMPACT projects.
PROFILE OF THE CANDIDATE
- Academic level : Excellent academic qualifications, including degree in a relevant discipline (international relations, political science, social research, economics, development studies or similar).
- Previous experiences : Experience in a senior management role in an ONGI/foundation/rehcerche centre/UN in the field. Successful experience in managing international and national teams in humanitarian contexts.
- Years of experience : At least 5 years of relevant external professional experience or proven progression within IMPACT. Previous experience in the region (Central Africa, Great Lakes region) is desirable.
- Language skills : Mandatory French, desirable English, regional language (lingala/swahili) an asset.
- The working environment : Ability to work in an intercultural environment that requires flexibility and complex security.
- Key skills :
- Leadership, communication and advocacy : Excellent communication and writing skills for effective reporting, including proven experience contributing to high-level presentations /briefings.
- Research /technical : Excellent research skills and analytical mindset is an asset. Experience in monitoring and evaluation. Experience in field research is an asset. Knowledge of analysis software and computer coding language may be an asset. Microsoft 365 Suite Knowledge (Teams/Sharepoint included).
- Autonomy and multitasking : Autonomous person with a proven ability to work independently ; ability to perform multiple tasks in tight deadlines, over many research cycles in a complex environment.
REMUNERATION & BENEFITS
- For this position, the salary is between CHF 4’200 and CHF 4’560 per month (before income tax) with a monthly living allowance of USD 500. NB – IMPACT salaries are strictly determined by our salary grid according to the grade of the position and the level of education of the staff. A security adjustment and/or location-dependent isolation is then applied to take into account the fact that some staff members have to work in difficult places where living and working conditions are much more difficult elsewhere.
- Accommodation and food in a guest house. Depending on the security situation in certain areas and Acted’s current HR policies, a personal housing contribution of up to 75% an amount determined by a benchmark may be applied instead. NB – IMPACT is hosted by ACTED in this country. This base is not a family duty station.
- Membership of a Swiss private pension fund (Swisslife – about 9.975% of the gross salary of staff), health insurance, life insurance and repatriation assistance.
- Airline tickets every 6 months and visa fees covered (in-country travel and business expenses are fully covered).
- Contribution to the transport of luggage : between 20 and 100 kg, depending on the duration of the contract (+ luggage and personal property insurance).
- Annual leave of 36 days per year. Public holidays of the country of assignment. Leave for family or compassionate reasons, if applicable.
- Initiation before departure – 3 days at IMPACT Initiatives headquarters in Geneva + one week of training before departure at ACTED headquarters in Paris, France, including 4-day in situ safety training.
- Registration for the IMPACT Initiatives Research Foundational Learning Programme within the first 3 months after the start of the contract.
- IMPACT prioritizes the psychological safety of its staff and the health insurance provided covers, among other things, up to 1000 € per year of psychosocial counseling costs.
