Senior Programme Lead, Food Fortification at Grand Africa Initiative

Grand Africa Initiative (GAIN) is a Pan-African Non-governmental organization helping African young men and women, between 15 and 35 years, develop and harness their unique ideas, talents and abilities for success in education, entrepreneurship, innovation and employment. We train, mentor and empower African youth with digital, leadership, employability and entrepreneurial skills for self-sustenance and professional growth.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Senior Programme Lead, Food Fortification - SYS-1038

Location: Abuja (FCT)
Contract Type: Permanent
Duration: Indefinite
Hybrid Working:Yes

About the Role

• We are seeking a Senior Programme Lead, Food Fortification to lead the combined micronutrients interventions portfolio and to maintain and enhance GAIN’s strong track record in the field of food fortification. This role will be on a permanent contract basis, subject to availability of funding. This position is open to GAIN’s country offices in London, Utrecht, Washington D.C., Nairobi and Abuja.
• Reporting to the Deputy Director, Programme Service Team (PST), you will work with the broader Programme Services Team (PST), senior leaders in GAIN country offices, Knowledge Leadership (KL), and Finance team and to support and line manage the Lead, Nutrient Enriched Crops and Lead, Large Scale Food Fortification.
• In addition, you will work closely with external partners and stakeholders to ensure that fortification is optimised as a public health strategy to reduce micronutrient deficiencies.
• Internally, you will support the design, resourcing and implementation of programmes and projects which are technically sound, aligned with GAIN’s corporate strategy, and meet the needs of vulnerable populations.
• Externally, you will act as GAIN ambassador to partners, donors and beneficiaries, representing excellence in GAIN programming.
• You will help galvanize donor support and provide a critical link between country operations and programming on resource mobilization.
• The role will also link food fortification to other key food systems interventions, building a strong team with strategic partnership with many different stakeholders.

Key Responsibilities

• Engaging with the thematic leads in UN agencies and major donors, contributing strategic direction and good practice to build evidence-based innovations leading to Large Scale Food Fortification (LSFF) and nutrient enriched programmes that address challenges and fill gaps in food systems
• Developing and managing relationships with other organisations active in the LSFF and biofortification space, identifying technical networks, strategic partnerships, forums etc., where GAIN needs to play a strategic role
• Supporting the delivery of the programme’s dissemination and visibility plan including by leading on dissemination workshops, manuscripts, publications, blogs, white papers, articles, factsheets, brief
• Providing technical support to Development Office on major bids for multi-country / multi-sectoral proposals and strategic donors
• Identifying new and existing donors and regularly meeting with them to canvass for new business and report back on existing funded work
• Developing a new approach to food fortification, taking full advantage of technical, systems, data and policy innovations in the field and piloting new business models
• Supporting the design process and providing technical know-how to deliver strategically relevant, sound and feasible project design through leading on implement country level activities and projects in non-GAIN office countries and support for GAIN office countries
• Mentoring and coaching Programme Leads and other senior professional staff and ensuring they are growing into leaders within the organisation and externally

About You

• A Postgraduate Degree in Agricultural Science, Food Science, Public Health, Nutrition, Economics, Business Administration or related field is preferable.
• The ideal candidate will have substantial leadership and programme management experience in a relevant field at a strategic management level, with experience in designing, resourcing and implementing large scale programmes and projects which are technically sound.
• In addition to this, you will possess fluent written and spoken English, candidates' with proficiency in French will be an additional advantage.
• You will also have strong experience with Large Scale Food Fortification work with a broad understanding of the nutrition-food systems nexus, public health, and community development, as well as a demonstrable understanding of the key trends in international and humanitarian development.
• Experience in agricultural value chains is desirable.
• You will have solid experience in working with key donors, government, internal and external stakeholders and a demonstrable track record in fundraising and business development is required.
• Candidates’ with extensive experience working in the public and private sector is preferred.
• The postholder will also posess a successful track record of designing and managing multi-million-dollar, donor-funded projects and managing (directly and indirectly) extended multi-disciplinary project teams, technical advisers and consultants.
• You will have excellent communication skills and must be willing to work in multicultural and multi-lingual environments as well having a demonstrated ability to present to large audiences with authorities.
• Also, you will be highly flexible and be willing to travel in-country and overseas when required.

About our Offer

• The starting salary for each office is from N22,303,884 - N 25,498,788 (gross) per annum depending on experience
• GAIN has a fair and competitive salary structure that allows for annual progression subject to good performance. In addition, GAIN offers a total of 37 days holiday per year (including annual leave, public holidays and additional office closure days), an attractive pension scheme and competitive insurance cover including health, travel and life assurance.
• We are committed to the health of our staff, especially in these challenging times, and have developed a programme of wellbeing that includes flexible working, additional leave allowances, wellbeing days, mindfulness coaching and access to independent and confidential counselling.
• GAIN also has a strong commitment to professional development. We will support you to grow in your career through both formal and informal training, and are committed to providing opportunities through internal recruitment, secondments and promotion. All of this is delivered in a supportive and collaborative environment.

How to Apply
Interested and qualified candidates should:
Click here to apply

Application Deadline 20th August, 2023.