Vacancy No: 17864
Section/Unit: Programme Development, Quality and Impact
Grade Level: Executive
Supervisor: Country Director
No. of Post: 1
Duty Station: Khartoum
Duration: 12 Months with Possibility of Extension
Closing Date: 17 Oct 2026

Background

The Deputy Country Director: Program Development, Quality & Impact shares in the overall responsibility for the direction and coordination of the Country Office program. As a member of the Senior Leadership Team (SLT) in Sudan, the Deputy Country Director of Program Development, Quality & Impact is responsible for overseeing and ensuring the development of high quality, innovative programs that deliver immediate and lasting change for children. The DCD PDQI is responsible for overseeing the development and implementation of robust Monitoring, Accountability and Learning system that can ensure programme quality across the country programme and generate evidence for programme improvement. 

In addition, the DCD PDQI takes a leading role in operationalizing an effective Research, Evaluation and Policy system within the Country Office that can produce research and evaluation outputs/results to inform the Country Office’s programming knowledge, practices and advocacy actions. The DCD PDQI leads technical aspects of the Country Office within the themes of Learn (education), Protect (child protection, child rights governance), Survive (child poverty, health, nutrition, WASH) and as such ensures that the Country Office develops and implements high quality programmes in the sectors through building high organisational technical competence and provision of quality technical assistance. DCD PDQI also oversees the COs engagement with Donors and Clusters including co-leadership of Clusters as relevant. 

In the event of a major humanitarian emergency, the role holder will be expected to work outside the normal role profile and to vary working hours.

Duties and responsibilities

KEY AREAS OF ACCOUNTABILITY: 

As a member of the Senior Management Team, contribute to: 

• Leadership of the Sudan Country Office 
• Support the development of an organisational culture that reflects SC mandate and values; our full spectrum work from Humanitarian to Development; promotes accountability and high performance; encourages a team culture of learning, creativity and innovation; and, frees up our people to deliver outstanding results for children and excellent customer service for our members and donors 
• Help design and implement a coherent organizational structure that is consistent with agency practices and appropriate to programme needs 
• Help establish, maintain, and improve active and regular working relationships with: government authorities, partner agencies including humanitarian and development donors, and local and international NGOs 
• Ensure the Sudan Country Office complies with all Save the Children Management Operating Standards, Standard Operating Procedures and Child Safeguarding and antiharassment policies 
• Ensure that all required support is provided promptly, at scale and in line with the rules and principles by working closely with the Regional Management and technical advisers. 

Strategic Planning + Strategic Reporting 

• Provide strategic vision and direction to the Save the Children Sudan program in line with Breakthroughs, Program Quality Framework and Global Results Framework 
• Take a lead role in developing program strategies and annual plans ensuring coordination of all technical input to country strategy, proposals and country annual and strategic reports 
• Participate in conceptualizing and designing cost effective, innovative and high quality programs to serve difficult to reach children 
• Ensure that programs are relevant to children in Sudan and to the global program and advocacy objectives of the Save the Children members 

Program Development 

• Ensure the design and development of child focused humanitarian and development programs of a high quality that contribute to the Country Office’s strategies and plans, informed by child participation where possible 
• Oversee proposal development process, ensuring that technical directors and advisors provide input into proposals and proactively and regularly communicate planned requirements for program design and implementation to relevant CO departments/functions 
• Support the DCD of Program Operations in ensuring adequate resources are secured for program activities from both grants and the private funds of Save the Children members, including identifying strategic leads and concepts 

Quality and Technical Excellence 

• Attain and maintain Green Status for all programme quality KPIs 
• Ensure that the Sudan Country Office has a first class, multi-sectoral and dual mandate program reflecting all priority technical and sector aspects of the Save the Children global strategy 
• Support the DCD Program Operations in the implementation and monitoring of all longer-term technical goals, objectives and policies 
• Ensure that the different technical sectors of the Country Office are coordinated, integrated and support each other to optimize programs and projects 
• Ensure that all sectors apply a risk lens to program design and implementation in line with the Save the Children policy on Disaster Risk Reduction and Child Safeguarding 
• Ensure appropriate levels of technical assistance and capacity building is provided to Programme Operations team and partners 
• Work with Members and Regional Office to seek the involvement of member and regional technical assistance
• Ensure excellent coordination and cooperation with incoming technical advisors as well as surge teams during emergencies 
• Oversee technical competency in cross cutting themes including Gender, Disability and Resilience 

Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning (MEAL) 

• Ensure a robust Monitoring, Accountability and Learning system to measure progress and achievement toward program goals and results is developed and implemented 
• Ensure the regular improvement and roll out Quality Benchmarks and Tools for regularly measure progress and achievements across all sectors of the Country Office 
• Ensure that Monitoring Accountability and Learning findings/results are regularly produced systematically, disseminated and actions are taken to improve programme quality 
• Ensure that programme development actions are informed by lessons generated from programme monitoring and accountability results. 
• Ensure the research, evaluation and policy work of the country office contributes to generation of evidences for sound decision making and policy influencing within and outside the Country Office and development and implementation of impactful and innovative programmes for children 
• Lead on the application of SCI Theory of Changes with particular reference to innovations through development and provision of evidence-based, replicable breakthrough solutions to the problems facing children in general and three breakthroughs of Save the children: No child dies from preventable causes before the age of fifth birth day, All children learn from a quality basic education and Violence against children is no longer tolerated. 

Knowledge Management 

• Ensure learning by the country program from relevant best practice internally and externally both nationally and globally and make learning from Sudan available for other programs. 
• Ensure timely utilisation of online systems that enable SC staff to access a centralized data and information system 
• Ensure that findings, lessons and good practices generated through evaluations are effectively disseminated and utilised to programme development, implementation and advocacy actions of the Country Office. 

Strategic Partnerships & Cross Cutting themes 

• Support the establishment and management of strategic partnerships 
• Engage in relevant national and global networks 
• Oversee the work of the CO on Gender, Migration, Disability and other cross cutting themes 

Staff Management, Mentorship, and Development 

• Ensure appropriate staffing within Program Development and Quality Team
• Ensure that all staff understand and are able to perform their role in full spectrum programming 
• Ensure the recruitment, training, and promotion of staff as appropriate and ensure availability of appropriate professional development opportunities for staff including coaching and mentorship
• Oversee that all technical sector staff proactively build and maintain technical skills and competencies required for leading and/or advising first class programs – both development and emergency programs 
• Effectively use the Performance Management System including the establishment of clear, measurable objectives, ongoing feedback, periodic reviews and fair and unbiased evaluations; 
• Recognize outstanding performance; 

SC Movement Facing 

• As and when required, engage with and participate in relevant Groups and Committees set up to advance the work of Save the Children regionally and globally.

 BEHAVIOURS (Values in Practice)

Accountability:

• holds self-accountable for making decisions, managing resources efficiently, achieving and role modelling Save the Children values; 
• holds the team and partners accountable to deliver on their responsibilities - giving them the freedom to deliver in the best way they see fit, providing the necessary development to improve performance and applying appropriate consequences when results are not achieved; 

Ambition:

• sets ambitious and challenging goals for themselves and their team, takes responsibility for their own personal development and encourages their team to do the same; 
• widely shares their personal vision for Save the Children, engages and motivates others
• future orientated, thinks strategically and on a global scale;

Collaboration:

• builds and maintains effective relationships, with their team, colleagues, Members and external partners and supporters; 
• values diversity, sees it as a source of competitive strength; 
• approachable, good listener, easy to talk to; 

Creativity:

• develops and encourages new and innovative solutions;
• willing to take disciplined risks;

Integrity:

• honest, encourages openness and transparency; demonstrates highest levels of integrity;

Additional job responsibilities

The duties and responsibilities as set out above are not exhaustive and the role holder may be required to carry out additional duties within reasonableness of their level of skills and experience.

Equal Opportunities 

The role holder is required to carry out the duties in accordance with the SCI Equal Opportunities and Diversity policies and procedures;

Child Safeguarding:

We need to keep children safe so our selection process, which includes rigorous background checks, reflects our commitment to the protection of children from abuse.

Safeguarding our Staff:

The post holder is required to carry out the duties in accordance with the SCI anti-harassment policy

Health and Safety

The role holder is required to carry out the duties in accordance with SCI Health and Safety policies and procedures

Minimum Qualification, Skills and Experience Required

QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE

Essential 

• Recommended a minimum of 12 years’ management experience in an international development environment, including working in range of different cultures, experience directing and implementing programs for children in both emergency and development contexts, preferably with solid experience in more than one of the Save the Children priority sectors: education, protection, rights governance, HIV/AIDs, health and nutrition, and emergencies 
• Recognized leadership role in relevant technical areas at both field and country level 
• A general appreciation of the issues concerning the NGO sector, both development and humanitarian issues 
• Solid experience of developing and managing monitoring and learning systems 
• Good analytical skills. Effective negotiator, with the ability to positively influence cross departmental and cross sector working 
• Credibility to lobby, influence and represent Save the Children at all levels 
• Fluency in written and spoken English

Desirable 

• Resource management, training, capacity building, coaching, and mentoring skills 
• Ability and willingness to dramatically change work practices and hours, and work with incoming teams, in emergencies 
• Ability and willingness to conduct regular visits to field locations within Sudan
• Commitment to and understanding of Save the Children’s aims, values and principles including rights-based approaches