Mercy Corps is hiring a
**About Mercy Corps
**Mercy Corps is driven by the belief that a better world is possible. To that end, we know that our teams do their best work when they are diverse, and each team member has a sense of belonging. We welcome diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and skills to be stronger and make a long-term impact.
**The program / the department / the team
**Mercy Corps is an international humanitarian and development NGO whose mission is to alleviate suffering, poverty, and oppression by helping people build safe, productive communities around the world.
Mercy Corps has been operational in Burkina Faso since 2016 and works in the areas of food security, promotion of economic opportunities, including youth employment, livestock research, collaboration and learning for development assistance (CLA), peace and social cohesion. Mercy Corps' operations in Burkina Faso are part of an integrated mission with Niger, where much of the leadership is based. With a staff of approximately 70, Mercy Corps in Burkina Faso has multi-year funding with its country coordination office in Ouagadougou, its two operational bases in Fada and Ouahigouya, and its field sub-offices in Kaya, Gaoua, Po, and soon in Bobo.
**The position
**The DS2M Program Manager is a key position within Mercy Corps in Burkina Faso, responsible for the development of the maize market system. Reporting to the Country Coordinator, the DS2M Program Manager will oversee all aspects of the Market System Development (DS2M) program, including planning, organizing, staffing, directing, and implementing and monitoring program activities. The Program Manager will ensure the accountability of the DS2M program to program participants, our donors, and key stakeholders, including government authorities. The Program Manager is responsible for ensuring that the DS2M program is on time, on scope and on budget. The position will provide technical leadership in strategic development to ensure the quality and impact of the DS2M program. He/she will serve as the point person for market systems development aspects of Mercy Corps Niger and Burkina Faso.
The DS2M program has a 2-year duration and focuses on structuring the maize sector in Burkina Faso, with a sub-office in Bobo Dioulasso to serve the Hauts Bassins and Boucle du Mouhoun regions. The Program Manager will support the expansion of the DS2M program and manage additional DS2M projects in Burkina Faso and eventually in Niger. The DS2M Program Manager is part of the Country Coordination Team.
Essential Responsibilities
PROGRAM MANAGEMENT
TECHNICAL LEADERSHIP
TEAM MANAGEMENT
BUDGET MANAGEMENT
PROGRAM MONITORING, EVALUATION AND LEARNING
Supervisory Responsibility: The DS2M program team, under the supervision of the Program Manager, is composed of a social intermediation specialist, an agricultural economics and rural finance specialist, and a monitoring, evaluation and learning officer.
**Accountability:
**Reports directly to: Country Coordinator
Works directly with: Program Director, other department heads, other program managers, support staff (finance; operations, human resources, and administration); Mercy Corps Europe HQ Regional Program Team; Technical Support Unit (TSU); Resource Development Department.
Accountability to participants and stakeholders
Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts to be accountable, especially to our program participants, community partners, other stakeholders, and the international standards that guide international relief and development work. We are committed to actively involving communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects.
Minimum qualification and transferable skills
**Success factors
**The successful candidate is expected to be a strategic market development leader with a strong technical understanding of the MSD approach in fragile markets like Burkina. In addition, he/she must demonstrate performance in fast-paced project cycle management, MEL, quality assurance and team and budget management. The DS2M Program Manager will have excellent writing and analytical skills, as well as the ability to build these skills in country team members. The DS2M Program Manager will have an entrepreneurial attitude that allows him/her to take on challenges as they arise in a way that fully engages the entire team. He/she draws energy from solving program implementation problems. He/she has a strong ethic and commitment to protection. They will be influential and able to connect with a variety of audiences, from a small business start-up to a private sector employer, to a senior government official.
Living conditions / Environmental conditions The DS2M Program Manager is based in Ouagadougou or Bobo Dioulasso with frequent travel to the field. Housing is individual with unlimited freedom of movement beyond the home/office. Staff have good access to services, medical care, electricity, water, etc. This position requires up to 40% travel to field offices in secure environments. This position is not eligible for hardship and/or R&R benefits.
**Ongoing learning
**In support of our belief that learning organizations are more effective, efficient, and relevant to the communities we serve, we provide all team members with the opportunity to spend 5% of their time on learning activities that support their personal and/or professional growth and development.
**Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
**Achieving our mission begins with how we build our team and work together. Through our commitment to enriching our organization with people from different backgrounds, beliefs, backgrounds and ways of thinking, we are better able to leverage the collective power of our teams and solve the world's most complex challenges. We strive to build a culture of trust and respect, where everyone brings their own perspective and authenticity, realizes their potential as individuals and as a team, and collaborates to do the best work of their lives.
We recognize that diversity and inclusion is a journey, and we are committed to learning, listening and evolving to become more diverse, equitable and inclusive than we are today.
**Equal Employment Opportunity
**Mercy Corps is an equal opportunity employer and does not tolerate discrimination of any kind. We actively seek out diverse backgrounds, perspectives and skills in order to be collectively stronger and have a lasting global impact.
We are committed to providing an environment of respect and psychological safety where equal employment opportunity is available to all. We do not discriminate or tolerate discrimination on the basis of race, color, gender identity, gender expression, religion, age, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin, disability (including HIV/AIDS status), marital status, military veteran status, or any other protected group in the places where we work.
**Safeguarding and Ethics
**Mercy Corps is committed to ensuring that all persons with whom we come into contact in the course of our work, whether team members, community members, program participants or others, are treated with respect and dignity. We are committed to the core principles on the prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse set forth by the United Nations Secretary General and the IASC. We will not tolerate child abuse, sexual exploitation, abuse or harassment by or on behalf of our team members. As part of our commitment to a safe and inclusive work environment, team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner, respect local laws and customs, and adhere to the policies and values of the Mercy Corps Code of Conduct at all times. Team members are required to complete mandatory e-learning courses on the Code of Conduct upon hire and on an annual basis.