A joint venture by Pratham and J-PAL, the TaRL Africa team supports partners working to address the learning crisis in primary schools in Africa through the evidence-based TaRL approach.

Responsibilities

Regional strategy (15%) 

• Strategic Program Development: Identify and cultivate opportunities to expand TaRL programming in Western and Central Africa, including potential new countries;
• Cross-Country Coordination: Facilitate communication and collaboration between TaRL Africa Country Offices, Central Content and Training (C&T), Monitoring, Learning and Evaluation (MLE), and Programs and Partnerships (P&P) teams. Facilitate better coordination, learning and programming.
• Donor and Partner Relations: Act as the primary liaison for cross-country initiatives with donors, partners, and researchers. Support donor management and reporting for the region
• Work plans and Budgets: Lead the development of regional work plans and budgets to ensure effective program execution.

Program and Partnership Support (50%)

• Technical knowledge of the program: develop sound understanding and expertise on the Teaching at the Right Level (TaRL) approach, working with government and scaling-up programs; share technical recommendations with teams and support technical decision making
• Fundraising: Collaborate with the Associate Director of Programs, Country Directors, and the Senior Fundraising Manager to support and enhance fundraising efforts. Identify and recommend new funding opportunities aligned with TaRL Africa’s strategy.
• Quality Assurance: Provide strategic and quality assurance support to country offices regarding financial health, operational effectiveness, program delivery, and sustainability.
• Program Development: Oversee the creation and management of new programs and partnerships, ensuring alignment with TaRL Africa’s mission and proper planning and budgeting.
• Program Strengthening: Support and guide Country Programs with program review, annual objectives and annual planning.
• Partner Management: Build and maintain relationships with regional partners, ensuring consistent, high-quality support. Support training and outreach as required.

Support to TaRL Ecosystem  (20%)

• Evidence on TaRL: Engage in education evidence and experiences to strengthen TaRL Africa work
• Tools and Processes: Create and review tools and processes for more efficient and effective management of partnerships and programs
• Special projects: Promote high-quality programming through special projects that could include:
• Supporting the incubation of innovations
• Analysing weaknesses in programming and identifying ways in which programs or processes could be strengthened in collaboration with other teams
• Ensuring adoption of best practices across country programs and partnerships.

Team Leadership and Management (15%)

• Team Oversight: Lead, motivate, and support a Program Coordinator; with potential for the team to grow.
• Goal Setting and Monitoring: Set clear objectives, conduct regular meetings, and provide performance assessments and feedback.
• Development and Training: Implement development plans, foster a culture of continuous learning, and ensure ongoing training opportunities for team members. Ensure the team is empowered and confident on the TaRL approach.
• Country Team Support: Support Country Directors to identify team needs and support team recruitment and training, as and when required.

Minimum Requirements 

• Master’s degree in Public Policy, International Development, Education, or a related field (MPA, MPP, etc.).
• 8 to 12 years experience of coordinating and managing medium to large-scale programs
• Capacity and experience to transmit relevant technical knowledge to team members; experience mentoring and coaching team members to ensure their professional development and empowerment
• Experience advising others on how to approach complicated management, human resource, financial, and logistical challenges.
• Experience working with donors, government agencies, policymakers, and researchers.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills in both English and French
• Ability to communicate technical research to policymakers in a non-technical manner.
• Proven ability to handle multiple diverse assignments at one time, successfully complete assigned tasks and meet deadlines while conducting high-quality work.
• Ability and willingness to travel internationally frequently and flexibly (at least 30-40%) to support program outreach, scoping research and training events. Most travel will be in sub-Saharan Africa.
• Ability to coordinate with cross-functional teams at a variety of levels.
• Ability to deal with ambiguity, cope with change, and comfortably handle risk and uncertainty.
• Strong skills in Excel, Word and PowerPoint
• Honesty to handle cash or finances
• Passion for education
• Experience working in the Education sector
• Experience working in West and/or Central Africa
• Experience developing/managing education programs