Job Vacancy @ Education Partnerships Group – Programme Manager

Position : Programme Manager

Education Partnerships Group 

Location: Freetown, Sierra Leone

Salary details: Competitive, localized.

Contract: 12 months (with possible extension subject to funding and performance) Closing date: Applications will be considered on a rolling basis

Overview of the project :

Education Partnerships Group (EPG) is a non-profit consultancy that supports governments  in low and middle-income countries to shape and strengthen their education systems. EPG  partners with governments to enable their decisions by generating and using research to  ensure policy is informed by evidence, facilitating the design and effective implementation of  policy, and advising on the piloting and scaling of new policy reforms.

EPG, in collaboration with the Education Workforce Initiative (EWI), have been supporting  the Ministry of Basic and Senior Secondary Education (MBSSE) in Sierra Leone with their  policy reform agenda for over two years. Working closely with the Ministry’s Operations  Policy and Planning Pillar, the consortium focuses on strengthening the policy development  process by ensuring compliance and coherence to standards and supporting the drafting and  implementation of policies.

About the role :

EPG is looking for a highly motivated candidate, with Programme management and  communication skills to drive the planning, execution, and monitoring of our projects to  support the ongoing development of policies and guidelines, as well as the implementation  of policies recently promulgated.

The candidate will support EPG work alongside the MBSSE to ensure that policies are  carefully and thoughtfully developed and implemented across the country. This will require  the ability to oversee, and quality assure the development of policy and policy guidelines  and develop templates and training tools to roll out implementation, in consultation with  the MBSSE.

The right candidate will be passionate about the role education plays in transforming lives  and see this role as an opportunity to support the MBSSE strengthen the policy environment  to ensure the delivery of free quality education to all children in Sierra Leone. This role is  based in the Ministry of Basic and Senior Secondary Education and will also require helping  the Ministry coordinate with relevant Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) and  development partners (World Bank, FCDO, etc).

Indicative responsibilities: 

• Cultivate and maintain trusted relationships with MBSSE, maintaining regular contact  and check-ins through in-person visits, meetings, workshops, and electronic  communication.
• Cultivate and maintain trusted relationships with key stakeholders and development  partners, including but not limited to major bilateral and multilateral donors, UN  agencies, donor implementing partners and consultancies, national NGOs, advocacy  groups.
• Work directly with senior officials in MBSSE and/or related agencies to design and  deliver policy-related technical assistance aimed at shaping and strengthening the  education system.
• Support policy development, delivery and/or monitoring systems within ministries of  education, including support of coordination structures, decision making and project  monitoring systems and problem-solving interventions.
• Contribute to the design, delivery, or commissioning of a range of policy-related work  including the revision of existing policies, drafting of new policies, policy guidelines  and standard operating procedures, including effective stakeholder management.
• Where required, oversee qualitative research projects, and coordinate commissioned  quantitative research, support associated analysis, development of policy  recommendations and devise strategies to support MBSSE partners to ensure such  evidence is used to inform policy change and education service delivery.
• Where required, oversee the design and delivery of policy pilots, collaborating with  ministry officials and other partners such as evaluation partners who may be  commissioned by EPG or by other development partners.
• Regularly review and update the project workplans and monitoring frameworks, to  ensure projects stay on track and on budget.
• Support the financial management of project delivery and contribute to funder  reporting.

Candidate requirements: 

• Preferably a Master’s degree in Social Sciences (Law, Public Administration,  Economics, Education, or related field)
• 5+ years of professional experience
• A commitment to improving education quality for all children
• Considerable professional experience in the public policy process in low- and  middle-income countries, including policy analysis, review, design and  implementation
• A track record of building relationships with leaders in government and non government institutions
• Attention to detail and considerable professional experience in the design and  delivery of policy-related projects
• Strong written communications and presentation skills in English.
•  Experience with the professional use of the Microsoft Office Suite (i.e. Word,

PowerPoint, Excel, Outlook)

• Experience in analyzing and interpreting data, including familiarity with research and  evaluation methodologies
• Experience with project management tools and approaches
• Strong interpersonal skills with a sense of humility and willingness to work with  diverse team members, often remotely
• Commitment to EPG’s core values

o Responsive | we start from a place of “yes”

o Accountable | we accept ownership and healthy conflict

o Rigorous | we create and meet high expectations

o Inclusive | we seek diversity of perspectives and experiences

o Respectful | we are quick to listen and empathize

• Candidates with French language skills are also encouraged to apply, though this is  not required of all roles.

Send all Applications and CV to the Email Address Below:

admin@epg.org.uk