Deputy Country Director

Duty Station: Kabul Management Office (KMO), Kabul, Afghanistan
Reporting to: Country Director
Immediate subordinates: Head of PMERU, Head of Grants Unit, Head of Advocacy Unit, Head of Communications Unit.

Swedish Committee for Afghanistan (SCA) has been working in Afghanistan since 1982 and is presently managing development programmes linked to the Strategic Intervention Areas of Health, Education, Rural Development and Public Commitment, with a total annual budget of roughly USD 50 million. The total number of staff is around 8,000, of whom 19 are expatriates. SCAs office presence in Afghanistan consists of the Kabul Management Office (KMO) and five Regional Offices. In Sweden, SCA has 20 staff working at the Stockholm Management Office (SMO) and around 4 000 members organized in local chapters across the country.

In the last decade, SCA has undertaken a change process moving from a primarily humanitarian service delivery approach towards more of a developmental role, putting increasing emphasis on capacity development, rights-based programming and outcome orientation. The mission of SCA is to empower individuals, communities and local organizations, primarily in rural areas and with particular focus on women, girls, boys and vulnerable groups such as people with disabilities, so that they may participate fully in society and influence their own development.

Operations in Afghanistan are led by the Country Director (CD), ensuring that policies, the strategic plan, annual work plans and budgets and donor obligations are implemented and adhered to. The CD also ensures that relations with authorities, partners, donors and other stakeholders are maintained, and that a healthy collaboration and internal communication is ensured within the organization in Afghanistan as well as with the office in Stockholm.

Scope of Work

The dedicated Deputy Country Director is based at KMO and reports to the Country Director. S/he works closely with the CD and the senior management, including Finance Director, Administration Director, HR Director and Programme Director/ Deputy Country Director. The position is part of the Country Management Team, as well as the Senior Management Team.

The role of the dedicated Deputy CD is largely framed by shared and delegated responsibilities of the CD, and plays a key role in overall planning, accountability, policy development, and quality-assurance. The role furthermore  entails direct supervision of the Planning, Monitoring, Evaluation and Reporting Unit, Grants Unit, and the Advocacy and Communication units. A more detailed outline of responsibilities and tasks is elaborated and agreed upon once the dedicated deputy CD is in place. 

Entry Requirements

Qualifications

• Academic degree, or equivalent, in relevant professional fields such as Political Sciences, Development Studies, Social Sciences, International Relations or Management.

A minimum ten-year record of progressively responsible experience within international development management, of which at least seven years on senior positions.

Essential competence

• Strong interpersonal skills with a proven track record of sound leadership/management style.
• Good understanding of programme, financial and operational management processes.
• A solid understanding of rights-based approach, results-based management, and strategic planning and reporting.
• A proven track-record within resource mobilization, internal communication, policy-development and strategic communication.
• Experience from international assignments in development countries.
• Experience of building personal networks at a senior level, resulting in securing new opportunities for the organization.
• An interest and grasp of international development trends in the non-governmental sector
• Aptitude to promote an organizational culture of trust, transparency, respect, partnership, gender equality and diversity.
• Ability to work well in volatile contexts
• Excellent command of spoken and written English and Swedish

Desirable competence

• Experience of large-scale development programming
• Experience from Afghanistan or similar conflict/post-conflict environments

Please note that the Swedish Committee for Afghanistan has retained Impactpool to manage this recruitment.