Programme Manager – Resilience

Concern Worldwide is a non-governmental, international, humanitarian organisation dedicated to the reduction of suffering and working towards the ultimate elimination of extreme poverty in the world’s poorest countries

Founded in 1968, Concern Worldwide works in 25 countries in Africa, Asia and the Caribbean with its headquarters in Ireland. Active in Malawi since 2002, Concern’s vision, our mission and our work are all defined by one goal – ending extreme poverty, whatever it takes. Concern strives for a world free from poverty, fear and oppression. Our culture is values driven and we believe that our people are central to all that we do and are key to delivering on our goal of Reaching the Furthest Behind First. We are committed to ensuring a workplace where everybody feels valued and are enabled to succeed in their work and contribute to delivering on our mission.

Concern invites applications from interested candidates qualified for the following temporary position:

Programme Manager – Resilience (1 Vacancy)

Contract Type: Six (6) Months Temporary Contract 

Duty Station: Chikwawa

Job Summary

Reporting to the Programme Coordinator and managing Programme Officers and operations staff, the Programme Manager will lead the planning, implementation and oversight of the resilience and climate adaptation programme which includes scaling up the Community Disaster Fund model, distributing climate-resilience agricultural inputs, supervising the rehabilitation of small-scale irrigation schemes and promoting the Build Back Better (BBB) approach within Chikwawa district. The role also involves ensuring high quality, timely and coordinated delivery of the programme by establishing and maintaining positive and productive relationships with all stakeholders and coordinating with them to assess resource needs and meet programme objectives; ensuring adherence to technical and operational standards; managing day-to-day implementation; overseeing monitoring and reporting and ensuring compliant logistics, administration and finance processes.

Responsibilities and Tasks

Planning, Implementation Monitoring and Reporting

• Lead the implementation of climate resilience and adaptation interventions, ensuring alignment with project objectives and adherence to quality standards across all programme districts and with all partners.
• Develop and manage detailed work plans, budgets, and activity schedules to ensure timely and effective delivery of project components.
• Oversee the integration and implementation of sustainable agriculture practices, including the procurement and distribution of climate-resilient agricultural inputs such as drought-tolerant seeds.
• Provide technical oversight for the rehabilitation and strengthening of small-scale irrigation schemes, ensuring adherence to technical standards.
• Coordinate the scaling up of community-led disaster risk reduction initiatives, including the Community Disaster Fund (CDF) and other climate financing mechanisms.
• Lead implementation of Build Back Better (BBB) strategies that promote sustainable, resilient reconstruction following shocks.
• Establish and maintain strong partnerships with key stakeholders, including government departments, NGOs, and private sector actors at district and national levels.
• Track project progress using appropriate monitoring tools and frameworks and evaluate the effectiveness of resilience interventions.
• Produce high-quality reports, including monthly, quarterly, annual, and donor-specific progress reports, ensuring timely and accurate documentation of project results.
• Ensure that all resilience activities, particularly related to irrigation, meet technical quality standards and donor compliance requirements.

 Technical Leadership and Capacity Building

• Provide technical leadership and guidance in the design and delivery of all resilience and climate adaptation interventions, including local partners.
• Support internal learning and capacity building by offering technical advice and mentoring to programme staff and partners.
• Represent Concern Worldwide in key coordination platforms such as the District Disaster Risk Management Coordination Committee and District Agriculture Extension Coordination Committee working groups.

 Community Engagement and Accountability

• Facilitate participatory processes to engage communities in identifying climate risks, resilience priorities, and locally appropriate adaptation solutions.
• Oversee the establishment and effective operation of community-level Complaints and Feedback Response Mechanisms, ensuring timely resolution and escalation of issues in line with Concern’s accountability standards.

Finance and Administration 

• Monitor expenditure ensuring cost-effectiveness and compliance with donor regulations.
• Oversee procurement planning and logistics, ensuring timely availability of supplies and services.
• Ensure compliance with Concern’s policies on finance, logistics, transport and security.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in social work, environmental science, agriculture, community development, disaster risk reduction, natural resource management, development studies, project management or relevant field
• At least five years of similar work experience in programme management, climate change and adaptation and staff and financial management
• Proven experience in managing multi-agency and multi-stakeholder collaborative projects and collaborating with local government institutions and structures
• Experience working in Chikwawa or Nsanje Districts or other similar contexts is an added advantage
• Strong programme management, coordination and communication with extensive experience in building the resilience of vulnerable communities to climate change.
• Skills in developing and implementing programmes that focus on irrigation, community disaster funds, and build back better initiatives.
• Skills in reporting, monitoring and evaluation and financial management
• Strong skills in inter-personal communications, able to work effectively with multiple stakeholders in a complex, multi-actor environment.
• Sensitivity to cultural differences and the ability to work effectively across a wide variety of cultural contexts.
• Strong team player, able to develop and maintain effective working relationships within a distributed and dynamic team.
• Flexible, creative and solution-oriented approach in an innovative environment
• Strong skills in partnership building, influencing, and negotiating with a diverse range of actors, including governments, UN agencies, networks, donors, national/local NGOs, and community groups.
• Strong understanding of humanitarian codes and standards, including the Common Humanitarian Standard, SPHERE, People in Aid Code, and HAP, along with their practical application.
• Competence with MS Office applications, including Word, Excel and Outlook

How To Apply

Interested candidates, who meet the above qualifications, should send their CV (Maximum 3 pages and including three professional referees) and Cover Letter to malawi.hr@concern.net with the subject of the email as “Programme Manager – Resilience – Chikwawa“. The deadline for applications is Sunday, 7^th September 2025. Only short-listed candidates will be contacted for interview.

Due to the urgency to fill this position, applications will be shortlisted on a regular basis, interviews conducted on a rolling basis and we may offer the position before the closing date. Any offer shall be subject to donor funding confirmation.

Concern is an equal opportunities employer. Qualified women are particularly encouraged to apply.

Concern does not charge for any kind of recruitment