Project Manager (TAGE) - ActionAid Ghana

ActionAid Ghana seeks to engage a highly motivated individual who will be responsible for the overall management, accountability and coordination of the Transformative Action for Gender Equality (TAGE) project in line with donor contract to achieve the stated results of the project.

As the Project Manager, you will be responsible for the overall management and coordination of the project aimed at improving gender equality and achieving a long-term reduction in the prevalence of violence against women and girls across generations in Ghana.

Key Responsibilities:

• Work with relevant international, national and local partners, stakeholders and collaborators to ensure project takeaways influences inter-agency cooperation on transforming actions for gender equality.
• Develop annual critical pathways to ensure that project implementation plan leads to expected project outcomes and consistent with the Priorities and Key Result Areas of the ActionAid Ghana (AAG) Country Strategy Plan (CSP).
• Develop elaborate project strategies to enhance effective implementation towards achievement of stated project results.
• Work closely with National and Regional Programmes and Advocacy Teams to ensure that project takeaways are mainstreamed into programme work before project completion.
• Anticipate project risks and take steps to mitigate them.
• Coordinate project activities and liaise with relevant Ministries, agencies, local partners, communities, project beneficiaries and other stakeholders to ensure effective project delivery and attainment of stated project results.
• Develop TORs, concept notes, and briefs for project research, reviews and evaluation exercises.

Operational Responsibilities

• Facilitate periodic reviews, reflections and planning meetings with communities, NGO partners and other stakeholders to inform project strategies and plans.
• Lead in the development of tools, manuals and training resources needed to ensure successful project implementation.
• Lead project teams to conduct and validate pre-intervention assessments in target communities.
• Coordinate and supervise the implementation of all project activities to achieve their outputs, as indicated in the approved project document.
• Conduct relevant research to inform project implementation and disseminate relevant information to relevant stakeholders.
• Actively participate in the Annual Planning and Budgeting process of ActionAid Ghana.
• Convene, document and follow up on the outcome of monthly project accountability meetings.
• Monitor compliance of project implementation in all regions and at the national level in line with the donor regulations and conditions of the contract including budget limits

Staff and Resource Management

Responsibilities

• Support to translate and communicate project standards and performance to staff and partners to improve programme quality and performance.
• Liaise with the finance unit to develop and institute cost-effective strategies and systems to ensure optimum efficiency and effectiveness.
• Facilitate effectiveness and efficiency in the use of project financial resources in compliance with value for money principles, ActionAid’s Financial Policy and Procedures Manual and the donor’s financial guidelines.
• Collate and file relevant project documents on shared folders for future reference.

Fundraising responsibilities

• Identify emerging issues from project implementation and package them into concept notes for possible partnership funding.
• Develop documentation highlighting the challenges and lessons learned from the project and disseminate widely to position AAG as a learning organisation.

Partnership and Coalitions

• Sustain positive partnership and networking relationships with institutional partners in all the implementing districts in the four (4) regions (Northern, Upper East, Volta and Greater Accra regions) and other key stakeholders on the project.
• Provide strategic support to increase understanding and appreciation of changes in project agreements and direction.
• Monitor project partners’ activities and relationships to ensure compliance with set agreements.
• Raise AAG’s profile by highlighting best practices that emerged from projects at fora and other public events.

M&E

• Work with the Manager, Quality and Knowledge Management to develop M&E plan, design and implement monitoring and evaluation systems to document the output indicators of the project log frame.
• Support to undertake monitoring and evaluation of project activities.
• Prepare annual, quarterly, and monthly plans for effective execution of the project activities as stipulated in approved project documents.
• Work with the Quality and Knowledge Management Manager to plan and coordinate project impact assessments or surveys.

Donor reporting

• Prepare comprehensive quarterly reports (narrative and financial) for management information and decision.
• Actively participate in donor review and reflection meetings, and highlight project successes, challenges, and mitigating measure to overcome challenges.
• Maintain positive relationships with the donor – European Commission Delegation Ghana at all times.
• Prepare and liaise with the Fundraising unit to ensure that quality narrative, financial and forecast reports of the project are timely submitted to donor organizations as per the contract specification and deadlines.

Senior Management Activities

• Provide relevant information for the formulation/update of AAG‘s strategy, policies and procedures.
• Attend Senior Management Meetings and contribute to making strategic decisions, particularly in relation to projects and fundraising.

Responsibilities towards safeguarding policies and feminist principles

• Be abreast with ActionAid’s safeguarding policies (Child Protection Policy; Preventing Sexual Exploitation and Abuse; Anti Sexual Harassment Policy etc.) and feminist principles and ensure full compliance with their provisions.
• Educate staff, beneficiaries and other stakeholders on the safeguarding policies and other regulatory frameworks of ActionAid Ghana.

Qualification Required & Experience

• The Candidate must hold at least a master’s degree in project management or relevant field with at least 5 years’ experience in the development sector and in a senior management position.
• The candidate should have extensive experience in managing donor-funded projects strictly adhering to donor requirements and an interest in working with women and girls across generations in Ghana

TECHNICAL (State core job knowledge/skills required for successful execution of the job)

• Knowledge and proven experience in project management, especially related to violence against women and gender equality.
• Current knowledge of factors underlying violence against women in Ghana and measures to prevent or eliminate them.
• Advanced skills in lobbying, advocacy and campaign initiatives
• Knowledge of Human Rights Based Approach to project implementation.
• Knowledge of strategic management principles
• Strong knowledge in women’s rights issues in Ghana
• Strong knowledge of gender issues and power dynamics
• Knowledge of developing concept notes and proposal
• Knowledge of contract management principles
• Strong knowledge of training models and principles
• Advanced skills in writing quality reports
• Knowledge of M&E principles
• Knowledge of management principles and planning processes
• Knowledge of Micro-Soft Office applications and social media

MANAGERIAL (State core managerial knowledge/skills required for successful execution of the job)

• Ability and confidence to engage higher levels of external stakeholders such as government ministries, agencies, CSOs, donor organisations and local government structures.
• Ability to identify and evaluate alternative solutions to problems.
• Ability to take timely decisions.
• Ability to develop shared plans and monitor for achieving targets.
• Ability to motivate and provide coaching and technical support to team members when needed.
• Ability to make effective verbal and written presentations.
• Ability to write quality reports.
• Ability to facilitate meetings, focus group discussions and training sessions

PERSONALITY (State core personal attributes required for successful execution of the job)

• Tact:
• Analytical Ability
• Tenacity
• Sensitivity
• Judgment
• Initiative
• Relationships building
• Integrity
• Reaction time
• Coping with pressure
• Collaboration
• Team player
• Quality of output

Location: Accra