Engineering coordinator

General Description of GOAL Programme:

GOAL has been operational in Malawi since 2002 and currently has programmes in HIV/AIDS, WASH, livelihoods, food security and disaster risk reduction.

GOAL Malawi has a liaison office in the capital city, Lilongwe, where the Country Director and HR Manager are based. The rest of the GOAL Malawi team is based in the town of Nsanje, in the far south of Malawi, implementing programmes in the surrounding district. The Nsanje office houses the Head of Programmes, Financial Controller, Logistics Coordinator and their respective teams.

General Description of the Role:

The Engineering Coordinator will be responsible for devising and guiding the overall approach for engineering projects in Malawi and will be expected to lead the process of developing and refining GOAL Malawi’s engineering approach, especially as related to watershed flood mitigation/protection works. The postholder will be responsible for designing and supervising execution of engineering plans, budgets and schedules.

Key Duties:

• Oversee the planning and development of all GOAL Malawi engineering activities, ensuring necessary documentation is in place – the current priority is flood mitigation works but further construction works may be started under WASH and education;
• Coordinate the preparation of plans, budgets, and schedules of the project teams, and ensure adherence to same, reporting on progress to the Programme Coordinator: Disaster Risk Reduction and Food Security;
• Assist the Programme Coordinator: Disaster Risk Reduction and Food Security in the compilation of donor reports, or attendance at donor meetings, as required;
• Guide the monitoring, evaluating and impact assessment of engineering activities;
• Coordinate all of GOAL Malawi’s engineering activities with relevant local authorities, ensuring work is done in compliance with existing regulations and guidelines of the relevant sectors (e.g. Education, Health, Public Works, Water Development, Agriculture);
• Maintain an overview of project finances for engineering activities, using information from the finance department to monitor spending levels and make sure they stay on course;
• Develop the capacity of the engineering team by mentoring staff and by identifying specific professional development needs and recommending relevant trainings;
• Provide quarterly engineering reports to GOAL Ireland;
• Carry out other reasonable tasks as requested by the Programme Coordinator: Disaster Risk Reduction and Food Security.

Person Specifications (Requirements):

• Degree level qualification in civil engineering.
• Minimum of five years work experience.
• Experience in managing teams and capacity building.
• Management experience in the construction sector.
• Experience in flood mitigation works, with understanding of fluid dynamics.
• Experience of water point and latrine design and construction.
• Experience in rural areas and community development programmes such as water / sanitation, housing, with physical works implementation.
• Familiarity with financial management systems.
• Proven ability in information management and report writing.
• Proven initiative in developing new programmes.
• Experience in multi-sectoral and multi-disciplinary teams and programmes.
• Computer skills.
• Analytical and strategic planning skills, creative approach to problem solving.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills. Fluent English.
• Commitment to beneficiary accountability and humanitarian ethics.
• Willingness and ability to live and work in a rural environment.