Job Details
The overall objective of the assignment is to facilitate the planning, implementation and monitoring of the ongoing projects to improve access, quality and transition of girls from primary to secondary grades. The Programme Manager will need to support in leading the ongoing Operation Come-to-School program that builds on UNICEF Kenya’s years of experience in scaling successful OOSC interventions that bring children back to school successfully.
Provide details/reference to RWP areas/UNDAF output covered:
Outcome 10: By 2018, children and adolescents in Kenya receive child-centred quality teaching learning with improved learning outcomes through evidence-based basic education plans and Child Friendly School standards that are implemented with full participation of parents, communities and county governments, including in emergencies, disadvantaged and vulnerable urban contexts
Output 10.2 – By 2018, boys and girls aged 6-18 years old have increased access to quality basic education, transition to secondary and alternative learning programs focusing on the most vulnerable children.
Output 10.3 – By 2018, government and partners have increased capacity to implement inclusive and innovative CFS minimum standards to promote retention, age-appropriate learning outcomes and improved teachers’ skills benefitting boys and girls including children with special needs.
Scope of Work
Goal and Objective: The Programme Manager will lead a consortium of implementing partners to reduce the national population of OOSC by 300,000 across the four dimensions of exclusion in six Kenyan ASAL counties, two urban counties, and one coastal island county. Under the overall supervision of the Chief of Education/Education Specialist and technical guidance of UNICEF’s communications and programme officers the Programme Manager will be required to carry out the monitoring and supervision of the ongoing implementation Operation Come-to-School program.
Activities and Tasks:
Programme Delivery
Through a seven-pronged approach, the successful Programme Manager will need to collaborate with a variety of educational stakeholders within Kenya to increase the levels of demand, supply, quality, access and gender equity in the provision of education for OOSC through school, sub-county, county and national-level interventions to bring 300,000 OOSC to school. Manging ongoing PCAs/ SSFA and support team in managing routine work in the ongoing EAC funded project such as DCT, liquidations, monitoring, support IPs on implementation strategies, review reports, etc. Increase the demand by OOSC to attend school by scaling county-level enrolment and attendance drives for out-of-school children through 9 county-level OOSC baselines and enrolment campaigns reaching 300,000 OOSC. Increase gender equity in the provision of education for OOSC by supporting girls’ schooling by expanding Mentorship, girls’ scholarship scheme and reading interventions.
Increase the capacity of governmental mechanisms for improved real-time monitoring and evaluation mechanisms for tracking OOSC overtime by expanding UNICEF Kenya’s innovation SMS/web-based-Digital Attendance dashboard for monitoring and evaluation system to better collect, analyze and act on real-time data about student access, and attendance for OOSC nationwide. The Programme Manager will be responsible for overseeing an implementing partner’s continued roll-out of a nationally integrated, real-time, SMS/Web-based information management dashboard operated by education stakeholders at the school, sub-county, county and national levels for tracking OOSC data about student access, learning and completion rates nationwide.
Programme Monitoring and Evaluation
The Programme Manager will be responsible for tracking and reporting program achievements and financial expenditures in three ways. First, he/she will need to coordinate UNICEF-Kenya’s field office personnel in Nairobi, Turkana and Garissa and encourage strategic on-the-ground program implementation in the six targeted ASAL counties, two urban counties, and one coastal island county. Second, he/she will need to effectively collaborate across UNICEF Kenya’s wide network of implementing partners to develop implementation plans and ensure monitoring and evaluation efforts meet international reporting standards while also utilizing local expertise, networks, and experience to deliver results for children. Third, the Programme Manager will need to apply his/her previous experience in educational management to oversee UNICEF Kenya’s implementing partner’s continued roll-out of an innovative online/SMS-based monitoring and evaluation system that enables UNICEF Kenya officials and beneficiaries to better collect, analyse, and act on OOSC data in a more cost-effective and real-time manner. Facilitate successful implementation of online-child monitoring tool through coordination and technical inputs among partners.
In partnership with the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, the Programme Manager will need to ensure that programme data about the progress of reducing the number of out-of-school children remains accessible, understandable, and meaningful for stakeholders at the school, sub-county, county, national, and international levels.
Programme Sustainability
The Programme Manager will need to work in close partnership with the MOEST, bi-lateral donors, multi-lateral donors, private sectors, quasi-governmental organizations, research institutions, academia and local implementing partners to scale and sustain the seven-pronged approach for reducing the number of OOSC nationwide. Whereas the current programme seeks to increase access to education for 300,000 OOSC, the long-term goal for UNICEF Kenya and its partnering institution, Qatar’s Education Above All Foundation, is to reduce the number of OOSC to zero. The Programme Manager will need to quickly identify strengths and weaknesses across the programme to ensure long-term sustainability and scalability of the programme to increase access to quality education for all.
Work relationships: The Programme Manager need to work closely with UNICEF field and country office education team, Implementing partners along with UNICEF Cross sectoral.
Outputs/Deliverables:
Programme Delivery – Provide senior-level overall programme management and coordination to ensure the successful design, effective implementation strategy, and relevant monitoring and evaluation scheme for the roll-out of UNICEF Kenya’s Operation Come-to-School programme, funded by Qatar’s Education Above All Foundation. Bi-weekly reporting of budgetary allocations and programme delivery across all implementing partners will be provided to UNICEF Kenya’s Education Specialist, Quality / Chief of Education for review and action.
Programme Monitoring and Evaluation – Coordinate and compile end line data for OOSC in the targeted 9 counties to measure the progress of programme deliverables, specifically as they relate to effective strategies for enrolling out-of-school children and retaining newly enrolled pupils in school. Monthly reporting of how well implementing partners are progressing towards reaching 300,000 OOSC will be provided to UNICEF Kenya’s Education Specialist, Quality / Chief of Education for review and action.
Programme Sustainability – Develop and support new innovative educational partnerships, policies and research across all programme stakeholders and beneficiaries to enable future programmatic sustainability and scalability nationwide. Quarterly reporting of overall programme innovation, successes, and limitations and donor reports with case studies will be provided to UNICEF Kenya’s Education Specialist, Quality / Chief of Education for review, action, and presentation to donor audiences. Identify and explore for new partnership to implement girl’s education project.
Programme Advocacy – Represent UNICEF Kenya and the interests of all of Kenya’s out-of-school children at high-level and grass root level educational forums to influence more effective educational policy, research and practice for reducing the number of OOSC nationwide. Bi-monthly and annual advocacy and documentation materials about how to influence government and non-government policies and practices for reducing the number of OOSC will be provided to UNICEF Kenya’s Education Specialist, Quality / Chief of Education for review, action and presentation to donor audiences.
Required qualifications, desired competencies, technical background and experience
Education: The successful candidate will demonstrate the following qualifications for the duties of the post:
Masters in relevant academic field (international education, international development, project management, education)
Relevant knowledge of Child-Friendly Schools, Girls’ Education Scholarship Schemes, Nomadic Education, Alternative Basic Education, and School Improvement/School Effectiveness
More than 5 years of experience in managing large-scale, high-impact educational programme delivery schemes for improving quality education for the most marginalized populations, particularly in low/middle income countries for bringing out-of-school children to school
Proficient in EMIS data collection, analysis and dissemination methods, particularly for OOSC.
Demonstrated application of innovative approaches to educational policy reform, research and practice, especially for improving quality education for out-of-school children and girls education is critical.
Years of experience: Minimum 5 years working experience on the same field.
Competencies:
Core Values (Required)
Commitment
Diversity and inclusion
Integrity
Core Competencies (Required)
Communication – II
Working with people – II
Drive for Result – II
Functional Competencies (Required)
Leading and Supervising – I
Formulating Strategies – II
Analyzing – III
Relating and networking – II
Deciding and Initiating Action – II
Applying technical expertise- III
Languages required: Fluency in English and knowledge on Kiswahili is an added advantage.
