Deputy Country Director – Programs

ORGANIZATION AND ROLE BACKGROUND

Solidarités International is an international humanitarian organization assisting people affected by conflict and natural disasters. Its Nigeria mission has operated since 2016 in the Northeast and since 2020 in the Northwest, delivering WASH, food-security and livelihoods, shelter and emergency assistance. The mission has approximately 160 personnel, an annual volume of USD 6–7 million and coordination in Abuja with regional operations in Borno, Zamfara and Kebbi.

ROLE PURPOSE

The Deputy Country Director – Programs will lead strategic programming and strengthen programme development, quality and accountability. The post will ensure that programmes are needs-led, evidence-based, conflict-sensitive, responsive to contextual change, closely monitored and appropriately resourced. The role reports to the Country Director, leads the FSL, WASH and MEAL coordinators and works closely with Grants and Partnerships, Field Coordinators, Project Managers and headquarters teams.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Provide leadership and management for SI Nigeria’s strategic programming and ensure coherence across programme activities.
• Lead the programme coordination team and promote technical quality, accountability and evidence-based decision-making.
• Support development of the 2027–2029 programme strategy and implementation of PROG 2027.
• Review evaluations, lead or support needs assessments and define intervention logic for new project development.
• Monitor project implementation against deadlines, quality standards and programme procedures, including cash and rapid-response modalities.
• Strengthen programme-quality monitoring, remote monitoring and means of verification in insecure or hard-to-access areas.
• Coordinate with Field Coordinators and support departments to address operational constraints.
• Lead institutional workstreams and cross-cutting frameworks concerning gender, protection, environment and climate adaptation.
• Support external representation and strengthen SI’s strategic positioning during a period of declining humanitarian funding.
• Monitor partnerships, localization approaches and partner-capacity plans with Grants and Partnerships and other relevant departments.
• Ensure programmes remain adaptable, conflict-sensitive and aligned with needs across Northeast and Northwest Nigeria.

QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE

• Master’s degree in Humanitarian Affairs, Programming, International Affairs or a closely related field.
• At least five years of humanitarian-sector experience.
• Three to four years of experience in a comparable senior programme-leadership position.
• Experience managing programmes in insecure or remote environments.
• Experience in partnership mapping, development and localization.

SKILLS AND COMPETENCIES

• Extensive knowledge of project-cycle management and monitoring tools.
• Operational monitoring and improvement of programme delivery in insecure and remote areas.
• Knowledge of cross-cutting issues including climate adaptation, gender and protection mainstreaming.
• Knowledge of WASH, food security and livelihoods, cash modalities and shelter is an advantage.
• Leadership, team management, autonomy, prioritization and self-organization.
• Solution-oriented thinking, external representation, training and capacity strengthening.
• English is mandatory; Hausa is a strong asset and French is an asset.

CONTRACT OR ASSIGNMENT DETAILS

• Status: Salaried employee/mission position.
• Reference: SRH06746.
• Duty station: Abuja, with frequent field travel.
• Desired start date: 1 October 2026.
• Duration: Six months.
• Salary: Starting from EUR 3,080 gross per month, including base salary and monthly annual-leave allowance.
• Per diem: USD 750 per month.
• Benefits include accommodation, travel from country of origin, regular break allowance, additional rest days, medical and repatriation insurance, and coverage for essential vaccination and antimalarial treatment.
• The security policy includes movement restrictions and varying security levels across field bases.

SAFEGUARDING AND EQUAL OPPORTUNITY

Solidarités International applies zero tolerance to exploitation, abuse and sexual harassment, fraud, corruption, conflicts of interest, violations involving people or property and financing harmful to human rights. SI is an equal-opportunity employer, opposes discrimination and never charges candidates to participate in recruitment.

APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS

Apply through Solidarités International’s official recruitment form. A curriculum vitae and cover letter are required; CV-only applications will not be considered. SI states that the vacancy may close before the announced deadline.