Grants Coordinator

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) responds to the world’s worst humanitarian crises and helps people to survive and rebuild their lives. Founded in 1933 at the request of Albert Einstein, the IRC offers lifesaving care and life-changing assistance to refugees forced to flee from war or disaster. At work today in over 40 countries and 22 U.S. cities, we restore safety, dignity and hope to millions who are uprooted and struggling to endure. The IRC leads the way from harm to home.

On December 16, 2013, heavy military exchanges occurred between rival SPLA factions in Juba (Central Equatoria State). The fighting and violence quickly spread to other states in South Sudan, trapping thousands of civilians in Unity, Lakes, Upper Nile, and Jonglei States in UN bases or makeshift IDP settlements. Despite the signing of a cessation of hostilities agreement, fighting has continued between Government and opposition forces, resulting in mass displacement. OCHA estimates that 1.3 million South Sudanese have been displaced due to insecurity, of whom 950,000 are internally displaced. It is estimated that around 87,000 IDPs are being sheltered in UN bases around the country.

Job Overview/Summary: The Grants Coordinator will provide strategic direction to the unit’s work in terms of managing the grants team, facilitating the proposal development process to ensure high quality submissions, contributing to program development strategy, ensuring quality grants management including oversight of proposal budget development, budget revisions and spending issues, assessing needs and developing grants management capacity of the field-based teams as needed, strengthening the donor base, ensuring compliance with donor requirements and quality information management related to grants.

Major Responsibilities:

• Provide oversight and coordinate the South Sudan grant portfolio;
• Manage, provide support to and build capacity of the grants unit staff;
• Organize and facilitate grants review meetings and monthly budget versus actual review meetings;
• Review and advise on partnership agreements;
• Monitor and facilitate compliance of programs with donor and IRC commitments and requirements and raise issues affecting external/internal compliance to DDP;
• Lead proposal development coordination, including programmatic as well as budgetary content;
• Represent IRC to donors in coordination with DDP;
• Support DDP in strategic analysis for funding opportunities;
• Ensure team works to build grant management capacity of field staff with training in compliance, report writing, proposal development and other topics relevant to donor compliance;
• Review agreements and provide recommendations and concerns to the SMT;
• Coordinate modifications to any agreements (grants, contracts, or partnership MoUs).

Job Requirements:

• Masters degree, preferably in international relations, or a social science field, or comparable experience; background in project management is an asset;
• At least 5 years of international NGO field experience in a similar position: grants management, proposal and budget development and donor reporting;
• Previous experience managing staff;
• Knowledge of USG (USAID/OFDA/BPRM), European (ECHO, SV, Danida, SIDA), DFID and UN donor regulations, procedures and requirements;
• Proven ability to facilitate the development of winning proposals to public and private sector donors;
• Excellent written English skills and familiarity with budgeting using MS Excel;
• Excellent computer skills and competency in Word, Excel and PowerPoint;
• Excellent organizational skills and ability to determine priorities and meet multiple deadlines;
• Detail-oriented with good multi-tasking abilities and communication skills, both oral and written;
• Able to work well both within a team and independently, in a challenging and fast-moving multicultural environment;

Working Environment:  

• The IRC and IRC workers must adhere to the values and principles outlined in IRC Way - Standards for Professional Conduct.  These are Integrity, Service, and Accountability.  In accordance with these values, the IRC operates and enforces policies on Beneficiary Protection from Exploitation and Abuse, Child Safeguarding, Anti Workplace Harassment, Fiscal Integrity, and Anti-Retaliation.

WORK ENVIRONMENT:

• Security level orange/ red. The situation in Juba is calm at the moment but remains tense and unpredictable; concerns include criminality, presence of armed troops, and looting. There is active conflict in many parts of the country and a possibility for further expansion of the conflict and violence into other areas and other states.

HOUSING:

• . Shared housing is provided in Juba with rooms that are self contained.