West Africa Deputy Country Director

C-Quest Capital LLC (CQC) is a leading global carbon project developer, social impact investor, and climate finance specialist. Our mission is to transform the lives of families in the poorest communities in developing countries by providing access to clean and sustainable energy solutions and improving the health and well-being of women and children. We do this through making investments in carbon reduction and removal programs, which provide clean and efficient energy appliances, small-scale agriculture, and forestry services to the rural poor. We generate carbon credits from our projects and generate revenue from the sale of these credits through our dedicated Commercial division.

CQC’s carbon programs have improved the lives of over 20 million people in Africa, India, Southeast Asia, and Central America. Our ambition is to reach over 175 million people by 2035. We have successfully raised substantial funding to be able to make our ambition a reality.

CQC is headquartered in Washington DC, USA, with subsidiaries in India, Malaysia, Singapore, Cambodia, and Australia.

Background

CQC is rapidly expanding its investment in cleaner cooking services across its core geographies. In West Africa, we have launched multiple million household investment program across 6 counties with pilot activities in discussion with several other West African countries.

The Role

The Deputy Country Director of West Africa will report to the Regional Director of West Africa and compile, track, and manage project data across CQC’s West Africa portfolio. This position offers the opportunity to learn a great deal about the carbon market and contributes to the effective delivery of high value mitigation outcomes.

Core Tasks

Under the guidance and supervision of the Regional Director – West Africa, the Deputy Country Director would support the success of day-to-day operations including:

• CQC’s clean cooking and sustainable energy businesses, especially the rural cookstove program, and the holistic smallholder farming model that includes nature-based solutions.
• Take responsibility over time for specific projects and/or country operations and/or manage special projects to quantify and verify co-benefits and additional projects to enhance sustainable development impacts.
• Support management of shipment, international supply chain, and logistics.
• Contribute to specialized projects focused on enhancing sustainable development outcomes.
• Occasional travel to project countries to supervise teams, partner organizations, and projects in West African countries.
• Liaise between CQC teams to improve efficiency of operations program delivery and management.
• Support Government Relations and networking for launching of Article 6 trades.
• Support CQC’s outreach and information programs for investors and stakeholders on its investments
• Develop and implement policies, procedures, and programs to ensure effective and efficient program operations

Location: Location is flexible, but the Deputy Country Director must reside in West Africa.

Supervision: The position will report to the Regional Director of Operations – West Africa and work closely with Senior Managers as needed.

Travel: expected to travel up to 10 times a year for up to one week, as needed. Pandemic risks are measured locally, and travel does not occur if risks are not deemed manageable and if staff is not vaccinated against COVID-19.

Qualifications or specialized knowledge/experience required:

1. Masters's degree required, preferably focused on social science, public health, environment, climate change, and/or international relations/development.
2. A minimum of 5+ years of work experience.
3. Project management experience at the country level.
4. Experience working in the Global South, especially West Africa is required.
5. Understanding of local language and customs in countries of operation is essential.
6. Proficiency in budget management and financial analysis.
7. French & English fluency (written, verbal) is required.
8. Familiarity and competence in Microsoft Suite.
9. Experience in technical, grant, and proposal writing.
10. High-level written and verbal communication skills with commitment to working in a global team environment and/or with hard or soft climate technologies an advantage.
11. Candidates must have be eligible to work in a West African country.
12. Must be able to commence work on or around the October 1st.

Preferred experience:

1. Experience developing training materials for non-expert and rural audiences is preferred.
2. Practiced inter-organization coordination and support is an advantage.
3. Excellent leadership and management skills, with the ability to motivate and develop a diverse team.
4. Experience with programs that require high quality and compliance measures.
5. Experience with Data Analysis.

N.B CQC relies heavily on home-based team members and the use of video conferencing technology to connect with global teams. The preferred candidate must have regular and stable access to a good internet connection.