Job Description

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) is a leading humanitarian and development organization working in more than 40 countries to help people whose lives and livelihoods are shattered by conflict and disaster, including climate crisis, to survive, recover and gain control of their future.

Present in Somalia in since the 1980s, the IRC implements humanitarian and development programming across various regions in Somalia in sectors such as WASH, health, nutrition, protection and women’s empowerment. The IRC currently has headquarters in Mogadishu and field presence in Garowe, Galkacyo, Dhusamareb and Baidoa.

JOB AND PROJECT OVERVIEW

The IRC is seeking a qualified Program Manager to support the implementation of a project aimed at ensuring that GBV services are effectively integrated into the education system in Somalia. The role involves managing multi-sectoral teams, strengthening partnerships with stakeholders, and ensuring donor compliance.

SCOPE OF WORK: The Gender-Based Violence (GBV) Program Manager will provide overall leadership as well as strategic, technical, operational, administrative, and logistical oversight and management of the project. They will lead efforts to develop and implement strategies for GBV and child abuse prevention, response, and risk mitigation, ensuring that survivors—including children and adolescents—have access to safe, age appropriate, confidential, and high-quality services.

This position requires strong leadership, program management expertise, and an in-depth understanding of GBV, child protection, and broader protection frameworks in Somalia.

The position will be based in Mogadishu, with frequent travel to project sites. The GBV Program Manager will report to IRC Somalia’s Women’s Protection & Empowerment Coordinator.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Provide overall leadership, supervision, and technical guidance to the project team, fostering a strong team spirit, continuous learning, and leadership development, while closely collaborating with IRC Somalia country program teams.
• Serve as the primary point of contact between IRC and key stakeholders, ensuring effective engagement and alignment of project objectives.
• Oversee project planning, coordination, and monitoring for all project activities, including those undertaken by partners and/or sub-contractors, ensuring compliance with donor requirements and high-quality delivery.
• Lead the design, implementation, and coordination of GBV and child protection prevention and response activities across all program areas, ensuring alignment with donor priorities and international best practices.
• Oversee the development and execution of survivor and child centered GBV and child protection interventions, ensuring services are accessible, age-appropriate, high-quality, and culturally sensitive.
• Develop and maintain safe, confidential, and effective reporting and referral mechanisms for safeguarding issues, including GBV, SEAH (Sexual Exploitation, Abuse, and Harassment), and child protection concerns.
• Ensure child protection is integrated into case management and service delivery models, with particular attention to safe disclosure, psychosocial support, and family and community reintegration when appropriate.
• Develop and oversee robust monitoring and evaluation (M&E) systems, ensuring data collection, analysis, and reporting align with GBV Information Management System (GBVIMS) and child protection information management standards.
• Strengthen and maintain partnerships with government agencies, UN bodies, NGOs, donors, community leaders, and child-focused and women’s rights organizations to enhance GBV and child protection response mechanisms.
• Develop and deliver training sessions for program staff, government partners, and community stakeholders on GBV prevention, child protection, SEAH, case management, and survivor-centered responses.
• Provide close and direct technical assistance to relevant government ministry staff to support the integration of GBV into its systems, dedicating approximately 10–20% of time to capacity building and technical support efforts.
• Conduct periodic impact assessments to ensure the effectiveness of interventions and promote evidence-based learning and continuous program improvement.
• Represent the project in external forums, including coordination meetings, donor briefings, and technical working groups focused on GBV and child protection.
• Conduct ongoing assessments to identify gender and child protection-related needs in target communities, ensuring responsive and adaptive programming.
• Ensure full compliance with IRC and donor regulations, procedures, and guidelines across all areas of the project.

Experiences and Qualifications

• Education: Master’s degree in social sciences, Management, Development Studies, International Relations, Gender Development, Humanitarian Aid Management, Business Administration, Public Health Science, Economic Development, or Education.
• Minimum 10 years of professional experience in program management, coordination, proposal development, and report writing. ( 10 years would be looking for grade 6A ) Change the number of years to 5-7)
• Strong leadership and staff management experience.
• Extensive knowledge of GBV programming, GBV service provision, protection,child protection, and humanitarian response frameworks.
• Excellent communication, analytical, and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to work in complex emergency settings and manage multiple stakeholders.
• Demonstrated ability to cultivate relationships and collaborate with a variety of stakeholders including, Government departments, donors, the private sector, and community-based institutions.
• Excellent leadership and interpersonal skills including conflict resolution abilities.
• Excellent communication in both English and Somali.
• Excellent people management skills, interpersonal skills, cross-cultural communication and ease in managing a multi-cultural team.
• Strong understanding of operational management, fiduciary risk, attention to Value for Money and the importance of learning and continual improvement.
• Excellent IT skills (Word, Outlook, Excel, PowerPoint).
• Ability to manage a large and varied workload, work under pressure and meet deadlines.

Skills Required

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