Country Director Zambia (full time)

We are looking for an experienced development professional to lead our passionate team and manage the portfolio of projects aimed at strengthening health care systems in Zambia.

Country Director Zambia (full time)

Contract Type
Fixed term appointment (minimum 3 years)

Place of Assignment
Lusaka, Zambia

Start of Contract
January 2025

The Role

SolidarMed is looking for a dynamic, energetic, and well-connected country director who can motivate a core team to effectively support the Ministry of Health to address key systems strengthening and improved health outcomes. The successful candidate will have a proven track record and have a solid understanding of trends and needs for increased localisation of development aid in the next few years.

The Country Director is responsible for the strategic leadership and oversight of SolidarMed operations in Zambia; including programme direction and quality, country strategy development, innovation, and impact; as well as human resource management and talent development, financial stewardship, resource acquisition, and administrative operations.

Programme Zambia

SolidarMed Zambia provides key health systems strengthening support focusing on health worker training, human resources for health, and access to care in rural areas. SolidarMed has long-standing partnerships with the Zambian Mistry of Health, Nursing and Midwifery Council of Zambia, and both nursing colleges and tertiary training institutions, to ensure improved quality of education across all ten provinces.

Additionally, SolidarMed Zambia implements innovative solutions to improve infrastructure and housing solutions for training institutions, health workers, and nursing students to ensure increased health worker numbers and improved staff retention in rural areas.

Key responsibilities as Country Director

• Lead the development and execution of a high-quality country strategic plan relevant to the local context and reflecting the global priorities
• Oversee the recruitment, orientation, performance, and development of staff; demonstrating healthy engagement, a culture of innovation, and effective talent management
• Provide leadership in the development or change management of transformative initiatives in the country to enable continuous evolution of the projects and their delivery models
• Oversee programme quality in the country; ensuring quality execution of the programme strategy, and timely and quality completion of all monitoring, evaluation, and reporting processes
• Optimise financial, human, and physical resource allocation, management, and quality standards to ensure successful implementation of the country’s strategic plan and mission
• Coordinate and link with national and international partners, technical workgroups, donors, and stakeholders; proactively seeking potential new collaborations
• Contribute to programme- and project development; actively promote generation of new project ideas, and generation of evidence through implementation research
• Initiates, leads, and oversees the grants acquisition and management effort in the country ensuring long-term health of the portfolio and achievement of annual targets
• Budget control and safeguarding of the internal controlling system
• Ensure the delivery of timely, high-quality programme and project reports

Your profile

• Medical degree, Business Administration, or development specialist; ideally combined with a degree and work experience in Public Health
• Experienced professional with at least 8 years working experience in a senior management position in international development and health programmes
• Extensive practical experience and contextual understanding of the eastern and southern Africa landscape
• Outstanding written and oral communication skills in English
• Ability to pragmatically solve problems, plan a course of action using analytical, conceptual, strategic, and forward-thinking skills to achieve an effective resolution
• Demonstrated experience in the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of development and health programmes (including demonstrated experience with implementation research)
• Proven track record, and innovative approaches to, implementing organisational change management
• Robust and proven experience in management, administration, and specifically financial administration
• Demonstrated high-level interpersonal and cross-cultural skills including the ability to build collaborative relationships internally and externally with sensitivity to cultural, ethnic, social, and political issues
• Experience in effectively dealing with institutional donors and government officials
• Coalition building capabilities, external networking, and experience in developing strategic partnerships
• Self-motivated, energetic, hard-working, entrepreneurial, and service-orientated

We offer

• An attractive benefit package, professional development opportunities and stimulating linkages with competence networks
• Existing links with international research institutions, possibilities to participate in research, and contribute to scientific publications