Created in 1993, ACTED is an international non-governmental organization pursuing a dual mandate of emergency response and development interventions in 40 of some of the world’s most vulnerable countries affected by conflicts, disasters, or socio-economic hardship. With a team of 7,000 national staff and 400 international staff, ACTED implements 500 projects a year to support more than 20 million beneficiaries, notably in hard-to-reach areas.

ACTED goes to the last mile through programs and approaches that look beyond the immediate emergency towards opportunities for longer-term livelihood reconstruction and sustainable development. Guided by the motto “Think Local, Act Global” and its 3Zero –Zero Exclusion, Zero Carbon, and Zero Poverty – strategy, ACTED puts local territories at the center and provides tailored support to local needs.

ACTED Afghanistan:

ACTED is working in 20 provinces in Afghanistan around the country. These provinces are affected by natural and man-made disasters. ACTED provides relief and emergency assistance to vulnerable populations affected by displacements, conflicts, or natural disasters, in the fields of agriculture, shelter, wash, and food security.

Job Purpose:

ACTED is seeking an experienced Consortium Manager (CM), with excellent coordination and time management skills to manage a REACH-led consortium, consisting of three INGO partners, including REACH, ACTED and NRC.

The CM is responsible for the overall coordination, implementation, reporting, and operational oversight of the consortium in compliance with REACH finance and accounting policies. In addition, s/he is overall responsible for the delivery of commitments and reporting to donors and maintains close coordination with the consortium project focal points representing REACH/ ACTED and NRC.

The CM will be responsible for both the (i) strategic direction of the consortium, through regular check ins with the Consortium Steering Committee (CSC) (consisting of CDs representing each partner), and (ii) the day-to-day implementation and reporting of activities by the consortium through the Project Advisory Unit (PAU) consisting of consortium partners (representative project implementation focal points).

The CM will also be responsible for the overall project management of the consortium. This includes (i) ensuring that donor and M&E targets for the project are met, (ii) supporting with troubleshooting, and (iii) coordinating with consortium partners to ensure that activities are implemented in line with the project proposal and are designed to meet reporting and finance requirements.

The CM will manage the consortium and oversee implementation of project activities (multi sectoral emergency response) in four areas across Afghanistan: Balkh, Herat, Kunduz, and Nangarhar. Additionally, as the project centres on research driven implementation, in which data collected by REACH in detailed, area-based assessments will be used to inform the implementation by two other consortium partners (ACTED and NRC); the CM will need to ensure the linkage between the data collected in assessments and the subsequent implementation by other consortium partners, in line with project objectives.

Duties and  responsibilities:                          

Under the line-management of the REACH Country Coordinator and strategic direction from the Consortium Steering committee, the CM will fulfill the following functions:

1. Consortium governance:

• • Coordinate quarterly (more often if needed) Steering Committee meetings.
  • Lead the steering committee in establishing consensus and decision making for any programmatic or strategic decisions made by the consortium.

2. Partner coordination communication
   • Primary contact for consortium partners during the life of the grant period.
   • Responsible for handling reporting of partners, ensuring overall quality of the consortium is being upheld.
   • Flag issues to REACH Country Coordinator and consortium steering committee as required.
   • Enable information sharing and partner communication in a spirit of collaboration.
   • Build and foster healthy working relationships with consortium partner staff.

3. Grant management
   • Monitor progress of consortium towards achieving project targets, flagging any concerns to the consortium steering committee.
   • Monitor consortium expenditure and forecasting, liaising with partners on under/overspend as required.
   • Compile and synthesise reports from all consortium partners to produce timely and accurate donor reporting.                                                                                               
4. Project/research cycle management

• • Ensure the review and timely dissemination of high quality, analytical reports:
• Quality check and monitoring in line with the commonly agreed M&E framework (standards and designs, monitoring tools, beneficiary selection and integration and counting);
• Ensures harmonization of consortium partners’ activities across programs, and across sectors wherever feasible;
• Reviews all documents to be released to partners e.g. MOU/ Data sharing agreements etc. and consolidates all comments, prepares final draft and follow-through until acceptance/ signing, as applicable.
  • As Chair of the Project Advisory Unit (PAU) the CM will be responsible for ensuring the activities of the consortium are closely followed and are meeting the project deadlines and project indicators set by the project goals in the proposal.
  • Ensure that the research and implementation portions of the consortium project are coordinated and that research informs the implementation as clarified in the project ToRs.
  • Develop a coordinated work plan between consortium members at national and field level to follow and ensure that monitoring activities by consortium members match their distribution cycles.
  • Monitor project timelines for delays or changes in deadlines for specific deliverables.
  • Proactively report any potential delays or impediments to programme implementation to the CSC for resolution, and, if needed, to the donor, as well as managing and overseeing their resolution.
  • Resolve disagreements that may arise between members of the consortium within the PAU and at field level.
  • Provide monthly programme updates to line manager using internal project management and monitoring framework tools.

5- Donor relations and representation

• In coordination with the REACH Country Coordinator and CSC, represent the consortium at national level with project donor.
• Coordinate with the HCT-endorsed Area Based Response (ABR) Initiative at national level to share lessons learned and best practices.
• Support field-level teams in relevant external engagement with key stakeholders, including with international and national NGOs, UN agencies, development actors, and local government.
• Ensure coordination with key stakeholders at both national and local level, as well as seeking out relevant partners to be included in and made aware of project activities.
• Act as primary contact for BHA for consortium-related matters.
• Flag concerns from donor to County Coordinator / Country Director / Head of Country Programmes/ Programme Funding Manager.
• Maintain REACH reputation throughout the grant.
• Help form follow on projects and partnerships.

The Consortium Manager will maintain the strictest confidentiality on all data collected and related processes. S/he will actively take measures to prevent the unauthorized sharing of any information and data belonging to REACH and its partners, or collected during his/her assignment with REACH.

• At least 3 years’ experience managing consortia projects
• Excellent academic qualifications, including a Master degree in relevant discipline;
• At least 5 years of relevant working experience in a humanitarian setting, such as program management, evaluation and assessments;
• Demonstrated management of project totalling 2 million USD or more;
• Demonstrated team management skills;
• Experience in donor reporting, budget management, and donor engagement required;
• Experience in high-level coordination with country grants and finance departments required;
• Demonstrated ability to engage with donors and senior coordination-level partners;
• Excellent verbal and written communication and drafting skills for effective reporting;
• Excellent ability to operate Microsoft Word, Excel and Project Management Software;
• Ability to operate in a complex and challenging security environment;
• Willingness to travel to the four bases of implementation (Mazar, Herat, Kunduz, and Jalalabad);
• Professional fluency in Dari and English; Pashto considered an asset;
• Strong leadership skills.

Those who fulfill the above-mentioned criteria should send their updated CVs to the below submission email:

Kindly mention the Vacancy number, and position title in the subject line or your application may not be considered.

Please do not send heavy size documents (i.e., Tazkira, Education documents, work certificates)

Only shortlisted candidates will be called for the next stage of recruitment.

No CV will be considered after the closing date.

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ACTED is an equal opportunity employer and does not charge a fee at any stage of the recruitment process. All applications are free for all candidates, and no one should require any payment or compensation during the recruitment process.