Chief Executive Officer at University of Nairobi

AD/7/108/24 -1 POST

The Project

The University of Nairobi as legal host of the African Higher Education in Emergencies Network (AHEEN) is implementing a grant in support of refugees and displaced persons in five African countries to ensure their access and completion of higher education degrees courses and their transition to the labour market.

The Person

• A suitable candidate must have a minimum of a Master’s degree in any discipline relevant to AHEEN, a PhD degree is preferred.
• Candidates must possess significant executive leadership experience and a proven record of achievement in Education in Emergencies (EiE) and Higher Education in Emergencies (HEiE).
• Alongside experience of leading a complex network of implementing AHEEN members, suitable candidates must bring demonstrable experience to successfully lead the RDP Pathways Program through its launch phase. Experience working at the interface of academe and the humanitarian sector and demonstrated competence in implementing programs in emergency contexts respecting Core Humanitarian Standards HS and the INEE Minimum Standards is a requirement.
• The successful candidate has the capacity to critically assess evolving fragile contexts and creatively adapt programming in collaboration with AHEEN RDP Pathways implementing members.
• In addition, the successful candidate must have excellent communication and interpersonal skills and demonstrable ability to develop effective working relationships with a diverse set of members and stakeholders in the HEiE sector. The appointee must also demonstrate a clear commitment to Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion in relation to every aspect of AHEEN’s activity and more widely as a leader in HEiE on the continent.
• The applicant must have demonstrated language competence in English, working proficiency in Kiswahili would represent a clear advantage, with additional language proficiency in another African Union working language (Arabic, French, and Portuguese) desirable.

The Position

• The Chief Executive Officer will provide leadership and direction for the AHEEN RDP Pathways Project and head the AHEEN RDP Pathways secretariat. The CEO will work closely with implementing members and the AHEEN network as a whole to advocate for the right to education of refugees and displaced persons, develop and monitor high quality programmes, ensure effective implementation of the AHEEN RDP Pathways strategy, drive implementation and manage all aspects of regular grant narrative and financial reporting for the grant holder as well as review reporting from implementing members.

Duties and Responsibilities

Overall responsibility for program management, implementation, communications, evaluation and safeguarding (in coordination with the AHEEN Steering Committee and the AHEEN Advisory Board)

• Implement the AHEEN RDP Pathways vision across 10 implementation sites in 5 African countries
• Act as liaison with the University of Nairobi leadership, programme coordinators in 10 implementation sites, the AHEEN network coordinator and the programme donor
• Operate as a positive role model for the culture of the AHEEN RDP Pathways organization; be principled, inspirational and act with integrity
• Develop a highly performing collaborative team; provide the project stakeholders with trusted feedback and advice, be creative in working in low-resource environments and willing to take measured risks.

Qualifications

• The suitable candidate must have a minimum of a Master’s degree in any discipline relevant to the objectives of AHEEN, a PhD degree is preferred, and
• Minimum five (5) years’ experience in humanitarian work and donor compliance/grants management, preferably related to EiE and HEiE;
• Demonstrated competence with MS Word, Excel and any other Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software; mastery of responsible monitoring and evaluation (M&E) approaches and tools for fragile contexts, familiarity with learning management systems and EdTech for humanitarian contexts present an important added advantage;
• Demonstrated knowledge and experience working within the humanitariandevelopment-peace nexus and the Global Compact on Refugees.
• Experience working with a whole-of-society network will be an added advantage.

Terms of Appointment

• This is a 3-year contract appointment, renewable based on performance evaluation as standard procedure at the University of Nairobi. We offer a competitive salary along with the benefits afforded to University employees in similar grades.