PLAY International is looking for its future Head of Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The appointment is scheduled for February 2025.
Duty station: Kinshasa, DRC.
PLAY International
PLAY International is a French NGO founded in 1999 on a conviction: sport is a source of solutions to meet our societal challenges. PLAY International’s main mission is to design and implement education and inclusion projects for children and young people in vulnerable situations, using sports as an educational tool. The NGO works in particular on issues such as access to and retention in school, gender equality, community reconciliation, health prevention – eating well – moving well – sleeping well – using screens well, changing the way we look at disability, etc. Since its creation, PLAY International has implemented educational and humanitarian projects in France and internationally in more than 25 countries for the benefit of nearly 1 million children. Today, the association relies on 6 missions in Burundi, Rwanda, France, Kosovo, the Comoros and Senegal. PLAY International is a member of the SOS Group.
SOS Group
The SOS Group is an associative group, leader in social entrepreneurship in Europe. Without shareholders, non-profit, the SOS Group operates in France and in more than 40 countries around the world.
Responsibilities and missions
The Head of Mission is directly responsible for strategic planning, finance, human resources, programme design and implementation, programme support operations, administration, safety and security, monitoring and evaluation, expansion/development and NGO representation required for the successful delivery of PLAY operations in the country. The Head of Mission plays a leading role through a high level of strategic leadership and effective advocacy. He/she is ultimately responsible for all aspects of country projects and ensures that the organisational structure is appropriate to the operational context.
The position is part of an office opening as part of a 2-year project, 100% funded by Expertise France and taking place in Kinshasa. The position involves the direct management of 2 employees (1 international, 1 local) and indirect management of 2 additional local employees. The institutional and legal anchoring of PLAY in the DRC as well as the visibility of the association in the ecosystem will be a major challenge of the position.
The Head of Mission works under the responsibility of the Director of Operations of the NGO, based in Paris, the headquarters of the organization. The missions of the CDM are as follows:
Strategy and mission development
- Analyze the context and development needs in the country and propose new programs and partnerships, consistent with the national and global strategy.
- Ensure the external representation and strategic positioning of PLAY with local and international interlocutors (institutional actors, donors, NGOs and CSOs, etc.);
- Identify potential relevant local and/or international partners and ensure that each partnership contributes to achieving PLAY’s global, regional and national strategy.
- Define partnership elements with educational and sports institutions and monitor the signing of conventional documents;
- Identify calls for proposals, seek funding opportunities, and lead the mission’s responses to these opportunities.
Operations
- Ensure that administrative, accounting and financial procedures are respected and in accordance with the PLAY procedures manual and donor requirements.
- Oversee the implementation of projects and their activities, in accordance with commitments to donors and lenders.
- Ensure the inclusion of PLAY’s technical expertise in the implementation of activities, by facilitating technical coordination between the mission’s Educational Coordinator and the Technical Advisor at headquarters;
- Support the capitalization and integration of monitoring and evaluation measures into the country’s strategies, frameworks, policies and plans.
Human Resources Management
- Supervise the mission team, their evaluation and capacity building.
- Facilitate internal coordination and communication within country team offices and with other PLAY offices internationally and at headquarters.
- Participate in global community life.
Safety and security
- Carry out constant risk monitoring and document information relating to local security (social and political context, external actors, economy, etc.), and communicate it to headquarters.
Required skills
- Excellent communication, diplomacy and negotiation skills with institutions and donors
- Excellent writing skills
- Good financial management and administrative skills
- Strong organizational and planning skills
- Interest in developing new projects, identifying new opportunities and contributing to the development of PLAY’s mission in the region
- Leadership, taste for working in a multicultural team
- Interest in development issues, including child protection and education, sport as an educational tool.
- Stress and Priority Management
- Adaptability, flexibility
- Fluency in French is required. Fluency in English is an asset. Fluency in local languages (eg. Lingala) is also an asset.
Training
- Master II in International Relations, Project Management, Political Science, or equivalent.
Experiences
- At least 5 years of experience in the International Cooperation, Humanitarian and/or Development sector.
- Previous experience as head of mission or in a position of equivalent responsibility in an NGO/cooperation
- Proven experience in fundraising, drafting projects in response to donor opportunities in accordance with their requirements. Knowledge of public and international donors such as AFD or the EU is an asset.
- Experience in financial management is an asset
- Partnership management experience is an asset
- Proven experience in managing national and international teams
- Knowledge of the country is an asset
Terms
- Contract + duration: 12-month fixed-term contract (renewable)
- Salary: according to the PLAY salary scale
- Benefits: per diem, return flight, health insurance and repatriation.
- Location: Kinshasa, DRC
- Start date: February 2025
How to apply
Send a CV and cover letter to [email protected]
Specify “CDM RDC” (in the title of the email).
Closing date for applications: January 19, 2025 – applications will be analyzed on a rolling basis. PLAY reserves the right to close the offer before the closing date. Candidates are therefore invited to submit their applications before the closing date.
