Organization Overview
The International Development Division focuses on improving the lives and economic well-being of people in lower and middle-income countries. We command technical expertise in health, agriculture, climate change, food security and governance—as well as in international evaluation. Our multi-layered health portfolio includes policy, health promotion and disease prevention, health finance, and health systems management. In partnership with government clients and local experts, our high-quality programs in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East are known for impact and innovation.

Job Summary
USAID’s Integrated Community Agriculture and Nutrition Activity (USAID ICAN) is a five-year project (July 2018-July 2023), whose objective is enhancing the resilience of vulnerable households in three regions, 8 districts of Uganda. Its main focus is increasing economic opportunities for poor households, improving nutrition for women and children, and strengthening local governance. USAID ICAN is implemented through local partners, with one partner in charge of a region. The regions are Karamoja (Kotido and Kabong), Kigezi (Kisoro, Kanungu and Rukungiri) and Acholi (Lamwo, Gulu and Nwoya).

Each partner is charged with the responsibility of recruiting project staff based on the organizational policies and procedures. The Implementing Partner (IP) staff is headed by a Project Coordinator. In a similar manner, Abt has a team of Regional Leads (RL) who are charged with the project oversight in any given region.

Key Roles and Responsibilities
Project oversight: The RL has the obligation to ensure that activities are implemented, in a timely manner, within budget and to the stipulated quality. This will be done by offering constant guidance to the partner, through joint planning starting from the Country office to the Partner level. Regular meetings with the IP Project coordinator, consultation with the technical teams, Provision of feedback and regular updates to the Field Director and DCOP.
Key Activities:
Joint weekly planning: RL holds team meetings on a weekly basis with ICAN partner staff, to ensure that everyone is clear about assignments: This meeting reviews the work plans, reviews targets for the week in line with the overall regional picture. As means of verification, minutes should be taken and filed with action points.

Has constant and timely communication with the partner teams, provides and documents key updates to the Executive Directors of the IP, on activities in the region, trainings, and any other broad item happening.

The RL is the overall manager of the Abt staff in the region. These include the Grants and Compliance Officer, the Driver and the Interns. While the Abt staff may have a dotted line to the technical director, the day-to-day role is supervised and approved by the RL. He approves both the travel and work plans as well as reports.

Monitoring and Quality assurance: The RL works with the FD, TLs and the M&E team to ensure that the partner staff are equipped with all tools, models and approaches that enable them to deliver, and their capacity is fully built. Carries out regular monitoring with other stake holders, identifies challenges and learnings and works with the FD and DCOP to identify solution and documents learnings. Ensure that all activities done have a means of verification as part of compliance.

Key Activities:
• Ensure that the IP teams are fully trained on the utilization of tools: Regular check of tools, functionality and utilization (with M&E team)
• Ensure the data depicts the right situation on ground—right data.—mini DQAs, all necessary data is collected on time—and confirming we are achieving our targets as agreed
• Ensure reports by IPs reflect the situation on ground
• Identify field challenges and bottlenecks in a timely manner, share with technical team to ensure that these are dealt with at different points of escalation.
• Review all activities being implemented and ensure that they are verifiable through the M&E system or with separate documents such as reports, membership lists, unique IDs of beneficiaries and learning stories.
• Review the quarterly partner reports before regular submission
• Relationship management: USAID-ICAN was designed to work with a number of partners and lays great emphasis on Partnerships, collaboration, layering and learning. It is therefore key that these relationships are natured by the RL as part of the implementation strategy.
Key Activities
• IP relationships are natured through planned implementation meetings, regular updates, shared work-plans and provision of key information from the country Office
• District Local government : Provide quarterly work plans and reports, participate in sector working group meetings ( Education, Production, Health and Protection) and other coordination meetings, timely updates to CAO and LC V on the ICAN progress. USAID funded programs and likeminded organizations
• Private Sector relations should also be natured by the RL through regular meetings and constant guidance on quality of activities and targets.
• Reporting Lines and Relationships

• The RLs report to the Field Director and have a close working relation with the technical team headed by Deputy Chief of Party. At the region they work with and supervise both the Grants and Compliance Officers, the Regional Drivers and Interns allocated to the regions. They also work very closely with the Project Co-coordinator from the IP side, of which the RL convenes weekly /by weekly planning meetings which inform the weekly activity and regular monitoring plans.

Deliverables
• Weekly and monthly Activity updates, which contribute to the Abt and USAID updates. ( These are highlights have what was done in the region, stating numbers, the what and contribution towards the set targets
• Bi-Weekly and quarterly work plans
• Weekly reporting providing highlights, achievements, challenges every week
• BI weekly plans with updates from the previous week and detailed plans for the coming two weeks with indicators
• Providing activity concept notes two weeks in advance
• Providing clear means of verification with every activity
• Working closely with the line department, meeting at least once a month and key action points are documented and shared at least once a month
• Participation in government department meetings and providing insights and reports on ICAN
• Regular insights on private sector performance.
• Participate in monthly briefing meetings in Kampala

Preferred Qualifications
• Bachelor’s Degree in management, agriculture, public health, or a related field and 8 years of program management experience focused on community development or 6+ years of experience and a Master’s degree. Experience linking farmers and communities to market opportunities preferred.

Minimum Qualifications
• Bachelor’s Degree + Nine years of relevant experience, or Master’s Degree + Seven years of relevant experience, or PhD + Four years of relevant experience
• Abt Associates is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity employer committed to fostering a diverse workforce. Abt Associates provides market-competitive salaries and comprehensive employee benefits. Local candidates strongly encouraged to apply.
Disclaimer: Abt Associates will never ask candidates for money in exchange for an offer of employment.