Country Director / Yemen

The Opportunity

In the MENAEE Region, Save the Children currently operates a significant portfolio of programmes across 14 countries in Middle East, North Africa, and Eastern Europe. It has a workforce of over 2,700 staff and a portfolio of awards and opportunities currently valued at USD 1B, and an annual budget of over USD 400M. A large portion of these programmes consist of responses to large humanitarian emergencies (Yemen, Ukraine, Türkiye, and Syria). We also work in countries with chronic humanitarian situations (Lebanon, oPt, Iraq) as well as regular, smaller emergencies (Bosnia Herzegovina, Greece, and the refugee and migration influx into Türkiye and Europe).

The Yemen Country Director will lead Save the Children’s programmes in Yemen based out of Sana’a and Aden, reporting to the Middle East North Africa, and Eastern Europe Regional Director. The Yemen Country Director will provide strategic direction to the programme. The post holder is responsible for identifying needs and resources and elaborating programme recommendations in line with Save the Children national and global priorities. The post-holder will ensure that all relevant Save the Children policies and procedures with respect to child safeguarding, safety and security, code of conduct, equal opportunities and other relevant policies are in place. The Country Director is accountable for appropriate fiscal management of the Yemen Country Office and ensuring strong management of risks, including key legal and regulatory risks.

The post holder will play a strategic role in the effective management of Save the Children programmes across Yemen, including scale up and scale down as appropriate, to increase impact and enable positive change for children. The post holder will be the primary Save the Children representative with local authorities, donor representatives, peer agencies and communities.

As a member of the Middle East, North Africa, & Eastern Europe Regional Leadership Team, they will have also shared accountability for Save the Children’s international development and emergency programming in the region. To achieve our ambitious goals and breakthroughs for children, the leadership team will, in collaboration with Save the Children Members and in conjunction with the other regional organisations, aim to drive strategy, compliance and quality across the region.

Reports to: Regional Director, Middle East, North Africa, and Eastern Europe

Number of direct reports: 8: Country Office Senior Management Team (excluding Deputy Director of programme Operations, Humanitarian Director – all reporting to the DCD): Deputy Country Director – Programme Operations; Director of Finance and Support Services, Director of Human Resources, Director of Safety & Security and Government Liaison, Director of Programme Development and Quality; Director of Advocacy, Media and Communications; Director Risk and Compliance and Director of Strategic Portfolio, Partnership and Awards.

Dimensions: The Save the Children International (SCI) Yemen Country Office (CO) has an annual budget of around USD 75 – USD 100 million making it the largest INGO working in Yemen. SCI is working mainly on the humanitarian response (child protection, education, food security & livelihoods, WASH, health, and nutrition) to the ongoing conflict and its impact on communities including IDPs; but also has Child Rights Governance work and large long term education programs. With the progress on peace process, SCI Yemen is also focussed on transition, development program planning and nexus work. The CO has over 800 national and around 30 international staff and 3,700 volunteers and works in ten governorates in the north, centre and south of the country through nine field/sub-offices in addition to the main office in Sana’a. Advocacy is an integrated and critical part of our work in Yemen, with the need to ensure humanitarian access, increased international visibility and donor interest in the crises, protection of children from grave violations and international efforts to end the conflict. CO is also committed to further the Localisation Strategy and has a well-defined plan for 2023-2024.

KEY AREAS OF ACCOUNTABILITY:

Strategic Leadership

• Provide vision and direction for the country programme as well as humanitarian response programming in neighboring countries as required.
• Effectively lead a high performing Senior Management Team (SMT) to deliver against strategy and to model behaviours and values expected of staff.
• Take responsibility for the effective leadership and management of staff and programme.
• Ensure ongoing, current analysis of the national socio-economic, security and political situation in country.
• Develop the Country Strategy (as required) and ensure ongoing review progress against key country and organisational level objectives, indicators, and targets.
• Ensuring that the focus of the organisation remains on the rights and needs of children.
• Contribute to regional and global knowledge and learning.

People and organisation

• Ensure that Save the Children attracts and retains high calibre staff.
• Pro-actively develop and coach staff to optimise their potential in pursuit of Save the Children’s objectives, ensuring talent development and management.
• Ensure effective implementation of HR policies and procedures at country level, in line with HR policies, procedures and guidelines and local labour law.
• Ensure consistent implementation of strong performance management systems throughout the country team.
• Foster a collegial, supportive, and respectful culture within the team and with colleagues from the Regional, Centre and Member offices.

Programme Development and Management

• Ensure programme interventions are in line with technical best practice and emerging national policies as well as with country and strategic objectives, strategies, policies, and approaches. This includes our ambition for localisation, child participation and civil society strengthening.
• Ensure that effective monitoring and evaluation systems are implemented in line with policies, systems, and guidelines.
• Ensure that programme learning is effectively captured and communicated.
• Preparing for and implementing rapid and effective responses to major emergencies affecting children, including building relationships with key humanitarian and development decision-makers and partners in-country. Also, given the changes in the context, position Save the Children as a preferred partner for the long-term development and nexus programming.

Representation, Coordination, Advocacy and Partnerships

• Regularly undertake high-level representation at a national, regional, and international level with Government partners, media as well as donor representatives and NGO counterparts.
• Develop the capacity of senior national staff to ensure they can represent the agency in different forums and meetings.
• Identify opportunities and materials to contribute to effective communication and media to promote Save the Children programs.
• Establish effective networks with donors, civil society, and government in country to increase the impact and sustainability of Save the Children’s work across Yemen.
• Help shape broader sector strategies through influencing the inter-agency coordination forums, ensuring that the specific needs of children are being addressed.
• Ensure that partners’ and Save the Children’s work is coordinated with efforts of other agencies and maintain strong relationships with authorities at all levels to ensure Save the Children has unhindered access to communities and children.
• Collaborate with the colleagues in the region to deliver regional and sub-regional programmes and advocacy.
• Ensure strong coordination and collaboration with the MENAEE regional office across all key functional areas.
• Ensure Save the Children is part of the coordination mechanisms in the country such as the HCT, TMG, Security Management Team, YHF Advisory Board and Advocacy working group and that SCI is leading to ensure national actors and children have spaces at key tables/platforms and their voices are heard.
• Ensuring child rights are part of all debates within the country and at relevant global platforms.

Financial and Admin Management

• Ensure effective financial budgeting and management systems, processes and controls are in place and are fully compliant with operating standards and local legal requirements.
• Ensure effective Save the Children and donor compliant procurement and asset management systems, processes and controls are in place.
• Ensure that partner organisations are assessed in relation to financial management and governance standards and are supported to address capacity weaknesses.

Audit and Corporate Governance compliance

• Ensure compliance with all host government requirements in relation to registration, taxation, labour law, auditing, fraud etc.
• Ensure that internal and external audits are undertaken in a timely and efficient manner in line with policy and back donor and host government requirements.
• Ensure follow-up on recommendations arising out of audits of operations and take appropriate actions where necessary.

Fundraising

• Lead the team in responding to the new business opportunities; ensure development of high-quality concept notes and proposals in line with the approved humanitarian response plan.
• Ensure effective collaboration with members to preposition the CO for upcoming funding opportunities.
• Ensure donor landscape assessment and in coordination with members develop and implement donor engagement strategy and plans.
• Network with donors in the country and represent Save the Children at donor events.

Safety & Security Management

• Develop, establish, and manage Yemen programme security plans and procedures in line with policies, systems, and guidelines.
• Maintain, document, and communicate up to date analyses of the changing security context.
• Ensure all staff adhere to security guidelines.

Other

• Any other duties as assigned by the Regional Director

In order to be successful you will bring/have:

Essential:

• Extensive senior leadership and management experience in the sector with strong record of effective team management in both humanitarian response and development contexts.

• Substantial experience of building, leading, and developing a diverse team of senior staff to deliver on both development and humanitarian programs.

• Good understanding of key trends in international and humanitarian development and good understanding of the humanitarian architecture.

• Representational, political awareness and proven advocacy skills; able to serve as strong internal and external spokesperson. Good interpersonal skills and ability to communicate at all levels.

• Strong networking and influencing skills, experience in building effective personal networks at senior levels; national/international level representation with media and key stakeholders, and co-ordination with other NGOs and UN.

• Excellent understanding and experience of risk, programme, financial and operational management processes.

• Proven experience in growing, innovative country programmes.

• Experience working with large, complex donors to secure and/or manage new large-scale and/or competitive funding.

• Experience of managing crisis situations requiring quick changes to priorities and rapid action to respond.

• Experience of solving complex issues through analysis, definition of a clear way forward and ensuring buy-in.

• Experience of working with partners and a participatory approach.

• Experience leading change in an organisation which has led to measurable results for the organisation and its stakeholders.

• Experience of managing security in a complex and rapidly changing environment.

• Fluency in written and spoken English.

• Ability to speak and read Arabic (highly desirable – functional spoken Arabic would be a plus).

• Commitment to and understanding of Save the Children’s aims, values and principles. A good understanding of the Save the Children’s mandate and child focus and an ability to ensure this continues to underpin our programmes.

Preferred:

• Experience of Yemen with sound knowledge of the country context and key government and civil society stakeholders.

• Experience of working for an international membership organisation or similar.

The Organisation

We employ approximately 25,000 people across the globe and work on the ground in over 100 countries to help children affected by crises, or those that need better healthcare, education and child protection. We also campaign and advocate at the highest levels to realise the right of children and to ensure their voices are heard.

We are working towards three breakthroughs in how the world treats children by 2030:

• No child dies from preventable causes before their 5th birthday
• All children learn from a quality basic education and that,
• Violence against children is no longer tolerated

We know that great people make a great organization, and that our employees play a crucial role in helping us achieve our ambitions for children. We value our people and offer a meaningful and rewarding career, along with a collaborative and inclusive environment where ambition, creativity, and integrity are highly valued.