Program Manager at African Population And Health Research Center (APHRC)

JOB DESCRIPTION
The APHRC seeks to recruit a Program Manager to work in the Research Capacity Strengthening (RCS) Division. The Program Manager will lead a large–scale initiative whose goals are to transform the (Research and Development) R&D ecosystem in Africa by:

1. Designing and running a matching service between universities/research institutes based in all the regions of Africa and funding agencies for R&D.
2. Configuring and running Africa–wide platform–based capacity building for universities/research institutes based in all of Africa’s regions, to increase their capabilities to do more and perform better on a sustained basis along the spectrum of implementation research.
3. Designing and developing prototypes in selected countries, to link country decision–making systems with national research systems for adoption/scale–up of R&D innovations.
4. Strengthening the African innovation–research ecosystem by developing and deploying connectors – platforms that have cross–cutting benefits to researchers and decision makers.

Responsibilities

1. Build and manage relationships with African universities and research institutes across the continent to enhance their readiness for large–scale funding from R&D funding agencies;
2. Build and manage relationships with multiple stakeholders in the Africa R&D ecosystem to create buy–in into the initiative and incorporate it into appropriate decision making mechanisms at national, regional and continental level;
3. Lead the assessment of individual and institutional capacities, categorize institutions based on their research capacity strengths and needs, and develop a capacity development plan in response to the needs assessments;
4. Oversee the execution of assigned research capacity strengthening and evaluation projects to ensure timely and efficient implementation of activities;
5. Enhance performance management and accountability of delivery systems in institutions selected for support;
6. Secure and manage the necessary human, financial and material resources in the program. This includes sourcing consultants and overseeing their work as well as overseeing a large project team;
7. Develop and roll out work plans, including tracking project implementation and expenditure plans and reporting schedules;
8. Provide leadership in specific project activities including desk reviews, in depth analysis, partner mapping and capacity assessments;
9. Produce technical reports from the various activities;
10. Lead outreach efforts to various funding agencies, and create buy–in into the initiative;
11. Represent the Center in high – level national, regional, continental and international forums including relevant technical working groups and expert committees on implementation research and research capacity strengthening;
12. Lead in proposal development and fundraising for the program; and
13. Lead efforts to publicize the initiative to relevant audiences.

Qualifications and Desirable Experience

1. PhD in Public Health, Public Policy, Health Systems or related field.
2. 6–10 years’ post–doctoral experience in developing and managing research capacity strengthening programs or knowledge translation and advocacy programs or in commercialization of innovations.
3. Experience managing large–scale (multi–year, multi–team, multi–country) projects in a leadership or senior management role.
4. Good understanding of the Higher Education/ R&D/ Policy landscape in sub–Saharan Africa.
5. Experience working in a research or academic institution conducting implementation research.
6. Experience engaging policy makers at national, regional, continental or global levels.
7. Excellent written communication and presentation skills.
8. Strong grant writing skills and track record of winning grants.
9. Bilingual language skills will be an added advantage.