Assistant Programme Manager (Agriculture/ Food Security and Economic Inclusion) - Aga Khan Foundation (India)

1. POSITION VACANT: Assistant Programme Manager (Agriculture/ Food Security and Economic Inclusion), Aga Khan Foundation (India), Bahraich, Uttar Pradesh

2. ORGANIZATION BACKGROUND:

The Aga Khan Foundation (India), AKF (India), an agency of the Aga Khan Development Network(AKDN), is a private, non-denominational development organisation established in 1967.

AKF (India) seeks the empowerment and transformation of marginalized communities through interventions that prioritize improvements to the quality of life, promote pluralism and inclusive development. The core strategy of AKF (India) is to create and build community institutions that actively participate in the development process across all programmes. In India, AKF (India) works in the areas of Agriculture and Food Security, Education, Early Childhood Development, Health and Nutrition, Economic Inclusion and Creation and Strengthening of Community Institutions.

AKF (India) commenced operations in the Bahraich and Shrawasti districts of Uttar Pradesh in 2010 and is implementing programmes in the thematic areas of Education, Agriculture Development and Livelihood Enhancement, Empowerment of Adolescent Girls and Women, Water and Sanitation and Support to Migrants. AKF (India) pursues a multi-input implementation strategy, which aims to improve the overall quality of life of marginalized communities. The organization is currently active in Shrawasti, Balrampur, Gonda, Lakhimpur Kheri and Barabanki districts of Uttar Pradesh. 

PURPOSE OF THE POST:

AKF (India) wishes to recruit an Assistant Programme Manager (APM) to lead interventions in the areas of Agriculture, Livelihood Development and Economic Inclusion in the state and develop the strategy and implementation plan, to ensure sustainable improvement in the livelihoods of communities in the programme area.

For more information about AKF (India), please visit https://www.akdn.org/

3. JOB DESCRIPTION/ RESPONSIBILITIES:

Reporting to the State Programme Manager, the APM shall be responsible for leading and overseeing a team of Project Coordinators in the areas of Adolescent Girls and Women Empowerment, Savings and Credit, Livelihood Enhancement and Migration Support, including liaising with other programme theme leads based at the Bahraich and Delhi Offices.

Key Roles and Responsibilities:

(1) Lead the design, development, effective delivery and impact monitoring of AKF’s Agriculture and Economic Inclusion portfolios in the state, ensuring the delivery of a high quality, community responsive and impactful programme;
(2) Oversee and monitor programme implementation, including regular field visits, providing strategic direction and leadership to implementation teams, institutional capacity building, technical advice, problem resolution and course corrections;
(3) Manage the development, implementation and tracking of appropriate monitoring and evaluation systems for the Agriculture and Economic Inclusion programmes;
(4) Ensure that programme implementation is in accordance with AKF’s implementation guidelines, including the global programme framework, AKF (India)’s three year road map, and donor guidelines and agreements;
(5) Develop annual work plans and detailed implementation plans, including field level implementation plans and budgets, in close collaboration with the field teams;
(6) Ensure that the implementation teams apply project/ programme plans, monitoring frameworks and other analytical tools. Undertake spot checks, field assessments and physical and financial reviews with the team on a regular basis, providing feedback for effective implementation and course correction, as necessary, based on field observations and findings;
(7) Scan and identify sector innovations and best practices for adoption in the programme area, to ensure the delivery of high quality programmes;
(8) Ensure regular documentation of project progress reports, analytical fact sheets and monitoring reports and case studies, for donors;
(9) Maintain a photo-bank of all programme interventions;
(10) Support the development of proposals and concept notes for resource mobilization and donor dialogue;
(11) Provide mentorship and guidance to the implementation team and support the resolution of field challenges and constraints including recruitment and induction of new team members, regular technical support, feedback and appraisal;
(12) Ensure regular dialogue with other sector leads to facilitate convergence of activities at the community level. Lead the identification and strengthening of collaboration with local NGOs/CSOs, Government Line Departments, Donors, Research/ Academic Institutions, Financial Institutions and other stakeholders at the district, division and state level, for effective delivery of projects, wider reach, information sharing and enhancing AKF’s visibility around both the agriculture and the economic inclusion portfolios. 
(13) Participate in donor and other stakeholder’s meetings;
(14) Support the organization of donor field visits (including the preparation of background documentation for the visits), visits by AKF units, and other partners/ stakeholders;
(15) Carry out any other additional duties and responsibilities, as may be assigned by the State Programme Manager from time to time.

4. QUALIFICATIONS, EXPERIENCE AND COMPETENCIES:

Qualifications:
Applicants must be post-graduates in Social Sciences, Agriculture, Rural Management, Rural Development, or related field.

Experience:
(1) Minimum 10 years of experience in the field of rural development, particularly in the implementation of agriculture, livelihood development and/ or economic inclusion interventions;
(2) Experience of leading and managing diverse implementation teams is desirable.

Essential Skills and Competencies:
(1) Ambitious, energetic and hard-working professional, committed to improving lives among India’s most marginalised communities. Must possess a sense of urgency about development;
(2) Exceptional analytical and communication skills: written, verbal, and presentation competencies:
(3) Fluency in Hindi and English (both spoken and written) is essential;
(4) Must enjoy working in horizontal, cross-functional teams across departments and institutions; Comfortable dealing with ambiguity, as well as situational authority and leadership;
(5) Should be capable of meeting short deadlines and producing quality materials with a fast turnaround;
(6) Solution-oriented, creative problem-solver, who can be versatile and willing to work around obstacles;
(7) Ability to work in teams is essential, as well as the ability to work independently and to
multi-task;
(8) Compliance with organizational norms, values, discipline, administrative and financial systems;
(9) High level of integrity along with the ability to be a role model to other team members.

5. COMPENSATION OFFERED:

Gross compensation budgeted for the position is Rs. 12 lacs per annum. The actual offer made to the selected candidate shall be commensurate with qualifications, experience and salary history.

6. LOCATION: Bahraich, Uttar Pradesh

7. REFERENCE: APM-AKF

8. CONTACT INFORMATION:

Team SAMS
Strategic Alliance Management Services P Ltd.
1/1B, Choudhary Hetram House, Bharat Nagar
New Friends Colony, New Delhi 110 025
Phone Nos.: 011- 2684 2162; 4165 3612
E-mail: apm-akf@sams.co.in

9. APPLICATION PROCESS:

Eligible candidates interested in this position are requested to urgently apply to apm-akf@sams.co.in, along with a cover letter highlighting their motivation to apply and suitability for the position, along with an updated resume including names and contact details of at least two referees, by or before September 25, 2018.