Closing date:

Chief of party - pending funding

City/location:
Guatemala City
Organization:
Project Concern International

This job posting has closed

Background

Founded in 1961, PCI is an international development and humanitarian assistance organization dedicated to promoting community health and integrated development worldwide. PCI is headquartered in San Diego, CA, and currently operates in 16 countries in Asia, Africa, and the Americas. Sectoral focus areas include humanitarian assistance and disaster risk management; health and nutrition; water and sanitation; food and livelihood security; and disease prevention and mitigation. With a FY11 operating budget of $34 million, PCI serves nearly 5 million people annually.

Job summary (pending funding)

PCI is currently seeking a Chief of Party for a proposed 24-month USAID / Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA) project in Guatemala. The Barrio Mío (“My Neighborhood”) project aims to develop and pilot a scalable model that transforms high risk, urban neighborhoods into resilient, safe and productive communities through the following objectives: (1) redesigning and redeveloping unsafe settlements and upgrading houses in close consultation with local communities and public and private agencies; (2) increasing access to clean water and reducing environmental contamination through improved systems for water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH); and (3) reducing economic vulnerability through improved household assets.

The Chief of Party will be based in Guatemala City and responsible for supervising a multi-disciplinary team of international and national staff. S/he will report directly to the PCI-Guatemala Country Director.

Pending the availability of funds, the position would have an expected start date of August 2012.

Duties/responsibilities

The Chief of Party will be responsible for ensuring the overall success of the Barrio Mío project through the following responsibilities:

Oversee high-quality project implementation and the achievement of stated goals and objectives through providing day-to-day oversight and technical leadership to team members.
Facilitate close partnerships with key stakeholders with a role in urban upgrading and disaster risk management, including: national and municipal government agencies, local universities, research institutes, private sector partners, and community based organizations.
Lead the involvement of an integrated Senior Management Team (including the Finance and Administration Director, Livelihoods Coordinator, Shelter and Settlement Coordinator and Program Quality Manager) in strategic planning and direction setting for the project.
Lead the preparation of quarterly work plans and budgets, and assure that activities are properly implemented and benchmarks met within the approved budgets and timelines.
Ensure compliance with agreements/grants/contracts; make recommendations for improving the overall effectiveness of the project; and facilitate the input of USAID/OFDA in the development and implementation of the model, in close collaboration with the PCI-Guatemala Country Director and the Director of Humanitarian Assistance in Washington, DC.
Lead project staff in rigorous monitoring, evaluation, research and learning to assure continual quality improvement, resource mobilization and advocacy based the Barrio Mío framework for “demonstration, replication and dissemination.”
Document best practices and replicable approaches for disaster risk reduction in urban areas, and prepare communications for different audiences including donors, Guatemalan authorities, general public, and other national and international actors.
Oversee the reports preparation process, and ensure all donor requirements are met and high quality deliverables prepared and submitted on a timely basis.
Regularly report to PCI-Guatemala Country Director on programmatic and financial progress, challenges and opportunities for innovation.

Technical oversight

Undertake the technical planning, development and oversight of construction of urban infrastructure and related services (water supply, wastewater, sanitation, solid waste management, environmental health).
Coordinate the state of the art technologies into a “neighborhood approach” for urban reconstruction, including integration of hazard resistant shelter design and construction, WASH systems and adaptive water management, disaster risk reduction, reforestation and environmental mitigation, economic development and assets protection, behavior change and community mobilization strategies.
Integrate national policies, programs, and guidelines in the design and implementation of infrastructure activities and wherever possible, reinforce linkages with national systems for sustainability and replicability.
Contribute to advocacy, dissemination and knowledge building activities around urban development and risk mitigation.

Qualifications/requirements

Advanced Degree in architecture/ engineering / urban planning or related field, with a minimum of 8 years relevant professional experience working in complex and vulnerable settings.
A strong background in sustainable urbanization, strengthening the delivery and utilization of public services, housing development and urban livelihoods.
Proven track record in implementing urban infrastructure projects and formulating models for sustainable urban development, with strong knowledge of international and national building standards, urban development policies, land use and property rights, and other legal and regulatory frameworks (in Latin America strongly preferred).
Strong understanding of disaster risk reduction and strategies for mitigating social, political, economic and environmental risks in urban settings.
Extensive field experience in mobilizing communities and in particular, inclusion of vulnerable groups (e.g. women, youth) in development projects, with demonstrated success in participatory techniques, consultative planning and other community-led processes.
Prior experience in managing USAID and/or World Bank projects, and demonstrated abilities in NGO reporting, budgeting, procurement and project management.
Considerable work experience and capacity to integrate partners at multiple levels, including from community, government, academic, public and private sectors.
Exceptional networking and verbal and written communication skills in English and Spanish, including in representation, facilitation, negotiation and conflict management.

Reminder: This position is pending funding. You will be contacted if the funding is approved and you are found to be a qualified match.

Share this

Is this page useful?

Yes No Report an issue on this page

Thank you. If you have 2 minutes, we would benefit from additional feedback (link opens in a new window).