IRI is the premier international democracy-development organization. Our nonpartisan, nongovernmental Institute has performed high-impact work in more than 100 countries since 1983-in Africa, Asia, Eurasia, Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean, and the Middle East and North Africa-and currently has offices in 40 countries worldwide.

Summary

The Senior Program Associate (SPA) will support the development and implementation of IRI programs in Kenya, focusing on a political development program that seeks to deepen issue based political parties, political participation and electoral representation of women, youth, and people with disabilities. The Senior Program Associate will work as part of IRI’s program team and support the Program Officer in developing program strategy, drafting program proposals and reports, organizing and implementing program activities, assisting in program monitoring and evaluation, and overseeing program budgets. The Senior Program Associate will report directly to the Resident Program Director (RPD) and is supervised on a daily basis by the Program Officer.

To apply, please submit your resume and cover letter on or before October 27 th , 2023.

Responsibilities:

• Research, write and edit time-sensitive program documents and budgets, activity reports, funding proposals, and training materials;
• Provide efficient and timely action administrative and accounting matters, written assignments and submission of reports;
• Assist the Program Officer with monitoring budgets and expenditures for assigned program areas, and negotiating and preparing contracts, sub-grants and other financial and project implementation documents;
• Design, develop and assist the Senior Program Associate with the management of program areas to ensure that reporting requirements are met, projects remain with budget, and program objectives are completed on schedule;
• Update and maintain program resource files and contacts for purposes of monitoring and evaluation and internal reporting;
• Support the Program Officer to monitor and evaluate the performance of IRI and its partner organization’s program activities, identifying successes and failures and recommending program adjustments accordingly;
• Assist the Program Officer in managing team projects and objectives, and assist in the planning and implementation of program activities in collaboration with other staff;
• Travel from time-to-time, independently and/or as part of a team, to various locations throughout Kenya to support IRI’s programmatic objectives; and
• Perform any other duties as assigned by the Resident Program Director or his/her immediate supervisor.

Position Requirements:

• Undergraduate degree in political science, international relations or related field;
• Two to three years professional experience in international development programming in the areas of democratic governance and politics;
• Experience working directly with political parties, civil society organizations/NGOs and/or legislative bodies, and/or marginalized groups;
• Working knowledge of the politics, economics, history and culture of Kenya
• Strong written and oral communication and presentation skills;
• Demonstrated experience working with USG funded projects and familiarity with USG regulations and processes, especially USAID and U.S Department of State;
• Ability to work independently and as a member of a team to coordinate and lead the efforts of other staff to effectively meet program goals.

Qualifications

Education

Required : Bachelors or better in Political Science or related field.

Experience

Required : 2-3 years: Undergraduate degree in political science, international relations or related field; Two to three years professional experience in international development programming in the areas of democratic governance and politics; Experience working directly with political parties, civil society organizations/NGOs and/or legislative bodies, and/or marginalized groups; Working knowledge of the politics, economics, history and culture of Kenya