British High Commission Programme Manager - Skills for Prosperity Programme South Africa Jobs
British High Commission Programme Manager - Skills for Prosperity Programme South Africa Jobs
Job Category Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Policy & Political roles)
Job Subcategory
Economic and Prosperity
Main purpose of job:
This is a great opportunity to deliver a key component of the £1.2bn cross-government Prosperity Fund. New and innovative, the Fund represents a step change in the UK Government’s (HMG) approach to promoting economic development and prosperity overseas.
Your job will be to help define and implement a circa £5-7m multi-year Prosperity Fund programme supporting the development of Higher Education (HE) and Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) in South Africa, which:
Reduces poverty and stimulates inclusive, sustainable economic growth
Addresses skills gaps and opens new markets for international businesses, including UK companies
Is aligned with equivalent UK programmes in other middle-income ODA-eligible countries
Is coherent with wider High Commission/HMG efforts to build education links with the UK
Has impact in South Africa and is good value for money
Roles and responsibilities:
Help finalise a global Business Case and input into the programme’s design
Provide strategic advice to design and oversee small-scale transition activity
Contribute to a London-led procurement exercise to contract lead global implementers, highlighting any local risks or issues
Build a strong network for the High Commission amongst education stakeholders in Government, civil society and business
Develop strong relations with education leads in London and other priority Prosperity Fund countries
Use this network and knowledge to refine a cross-cutting High Commission Education Strategy into which the Prosperity Fund programme will feed
Connect the global programme implementers with the right organisations in South Africa and robustly represent cross HMG interests
Ensure that the programme is de-conflicted with other UK Government and donor work in South Africa
Secure UK credit in working up the programme details with beneficiaries.
Ensure that the programme is run effectively and that risks are mitigated appropriately
Monitoring: sign off delivery partner milestones and report to central programme team
Continue de-conflicting the programme with other UK-funded work in South Africa
Ensure that the UK gets due credit for successes, and that South Africa’s contribution to the overall programme’s annual reviews has impact
Deploy High Commission’s diplomatic levers to support the programme’s primary aim of reducing poverty
Deploy High Commission’s commercial levers to support the programme’s secondary aim of opening new markets
Ensure the South African programme complies with the International
Development Act, including the International Development (Gender Equality) Act 2014; meets the OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC)’s criteria; is untied; meets UK government transparency commitments on ODA spend; and complies with HMG audit requirements.
Identify and manage risks to successful programme implementation.
Keep abreast of education policy developments in South Africa and the UK, using this knowledge to spot opportunities for programme interventions which support better education in South Africa.
Support gender equality act compliance and support PF’s policy and guidance on gender equality, women’s economic empowerment and inclusive growth.
Build links across the High Commission and participate in Cross-Government initiatives consisting of programme, policy and commercial colleagues in Pretoria, Johannesburg and Cape Town.
Deepen the High Commission’s education engagement in South Africa’s TVET sector (this will involve regional travel around South Africa).
Maintain a strong network with your colleagues in the UK, and counterparts in Africa and other priority Prosperity Fund countries, adapting the programme on the basis of lessons learnt (this may involve international travel).
Support the wider Prosperity team, and take on High Commission corporate roles.
Oversee a small non-ODA fund to build UK/South Africa trade/investment links in education.
Resources managed (staff and expenditure):
Small-scale transition projects in 2018
Programme manager for large-scale multi-year contracts from 2019-21 (circa £5-7m)
Essential qualifications, skills and experience
We are looking for a proactive, creative self-starter who can prioritise to operate in a fast-paced environment, largely unsupervised, delivering to deadlines.
S/he will need excellent interpersonal and communications skills to build strong relations within the High Commission; in South Africa; and with stakeholders in the UK.
Graduate with a university degree
Knowledge of the education sector in South Africa from having worked in the public/private sectors
Passion for education and a desire to improve education in South Africa
Experience in developing policy advice/analysis and delivering successful programmes
Minimum 5 years experience in programme management, ideally in a development context
A strong understanding of gender issues
Computer literate, working with Microsoft Windows and able to manage information effectively with available computer systems
Desirable qualifications, skills and experience
Experience of managing budgets
Required competencies
Seeing the Big Picture, Leading and Communicating, Collaborating and Partnering, Delivering Value for Money
How to Apply
Interested candidates should apply online by 4 December 2018
For more information and job application details, see; British High Commission Programme Manager - Skills for Prosperity Programme South Africa Jobs
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