1) General Statement of Purpose of the Contract.
The Project Management Specialist (Basic Education) position is located in the USAID/Uganda Office of Education, Youth, and Child Development (EYCD) and provides program management and technical support for USAID basic education programs in Uganda.
The Specialist works closely with other education, youth/workforce development, and child protection team members to design and manage basic education programs to improve the quality of education services and learning outcomes in Uganda. The Specialist works with the Basic Education Unit to strategically adapt
USAID/Uganda’s basic education efforts to reach the goals of USAID/Uganda’s Country Development Coordination Strategy (CDCS) and the Government of Uganda (GOU)’s objectives in basic education. The
Specialist provides education sector expertise on education policy reform, education management, and effective strategies for sustainable improvements in basic education outcomes. The Specialist leads efforts to monitor and evaluate all Mission activities contributing toward improvements in basic education services and serves as a liaison on technical issues between USAID/Uganda, Ugandan government counterparts, other U.S. government agencies, and education development partners. The Specialist guides, coordinates, manages, and monitors basic education programs and advises the Senior Basic Education Specialist and EYCD leadership on direction of the basic education portfolio.
The Specialist reports to the Senior Project Management Specialist (Basic Education), and has frequent, direct contact with EYCD staff, EYCD implementing partners (IPs), GOU counterparts, and USAID/Washington regarding EYCD and basic education activities. The Specialist performs at least quarterly work-related travel within Uganda (up to 25% travel) to conduct site visits to monitor basic education activities.
Statement of duties to be performed.
Program Management – 50 %
• The Specialist oversees implementation of basic education activities and provides leadership and expert guidance to the Senior Basic Education Specialist to improve basic education services in Uganda. The BES works with GOU counterparts and education development partners to ensure that USAID/Uganda’s basic education portfolio is aligned with USAID and GOU objectives. Specifically:
• Serves as AOR/COR, Alternate, or Activity Manager for activities in the EYCD portfolio, providing technical guidance and oversight to implementing partners. Advises on workplans and other required reporting and strategic documents to ensure that activities achieve desired results.
• Supports the design and implementation of basic education programs and activities with the goal of ensuring that program design and implementation will achieve planned results and USAID goals.
• Works with the basic education team and EYCD Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) Specialist to develop MEL plans for basic education and other EYCD activities and contributes to data collection, analysis, and reporting.
• Supports learning and adaptation by conducting regular monitoring and evaluation of basic education activities.
• Contributes to USAID planning and reporting at various points in the project cycle and supports the implementation of USAID/Uganda’s CDCS.
• Ensures basic education activities achieve planned results by documenting successes and challenges and resolving implementation issues in an efficient and professional manner.
Program Policy Guidance (25%)
• The Specialist provides EYCD and USAID/Uganda with expert guidance on education sector reform, education sector financing, and education administration. Specifically:
• Works closely with the EYCD Senior Basic Education Specialist to develop strategies for education sector support and engagement in Uganda. Provides input based on activity monitoring and field work, as well as document review and consultation with the GOU and the wider donor community.
• Works closely with colleagues outside of basic education to ensure that, when appropriate, cross-sectoral linkages are made, maintained, and evaluated, in furtherance of EYCD’s commitment to address the needs of “the whole person” in programming and strategy.
• Advises the EYCD team on Ugandan education sector policy and results of education activities to inform program design and development of strategy papers and reporting documents.
• Supports the basic education team to analyze and disseminate information on challenges and accomplishments in the education sector in Uganda to USAID mission staff, USAID/Washington, and Uganda stakeholders.
Representation to the Government of Uganda, Other Donors, and Stakeholders (25%)
• The Specialist establishes and maintains strong collaborative relationships with GOU counterparts, education development partners, and other key stakeholders within the sector. The BES will work in tandem with the Senior Basic Education Specialist to ensure that USAID programs and priorities are consistently and accurately represented in various education sector forums. Specifically:
• Provides briefings to USAID, other USG agencies, the GOU, and education partners on USAID’s basic education portfolio and USG education policies and strategies.
• Develops, maintains, and strengthens working relationships with partners, including GOU, education development partners, private sector, and other education sector stakeholders to provide information on USAID programs and to identify synergies across programs and partners.
• Provides technical input to program and strategy design and planning based on knowledge of international best practice and Uganda-specific constraints and opportunities.
• Provides support in defining the type of assistance needed by the Mission and facilitates discussions with basic education implementing partners to ensure effective delivery of planned activities and results.
MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS REQUIRED FOR THIS POSITION
• Offers will be initially screened for compliance with application instructions and eligibility in accordance with the minimum qualification criteria listed below. To ensure compliance with the entire set of this solicitation instructions (please see page 6 to 8 –
Education:
• Bachelor’s degree in education, child development, or social science is required.
Prior Work Experience:
• Minimum of five (5) years of progressively responsible professional experience with implementing and managing programs supporting education sector development is required.
• Demonstrated experience working with the Ministry of Education and Sports (MOES) and in the education system in Uganda is required.
• Experience working in a cross-sectoral team and making linkages between basic education and other sectors is required.
Language Proficiency:
• Excellent command of written and spoken English, Level IV (fluent). Language competence may be tested.
Job Knowledge:
• Demonstrated knowledge of state-of-the-art and international best practices in the areas of education policy, administration and financing, programming, and/or evaluation is required.
• Demonstrated knowledge of the education sector in sub-Saharan Africa, including the range of issues and challenges impeding access to quality basic education is required.
• Demonstrated knowledge in the historical development of education in Uganda, including conditions in primary schools; familiarity with MOES and its affiliated institutions (e.g., the Uganda National Examinations Board, National Curriculum Development Center, etc.); and knowledge of Ugandan basic education systems (e.g., curriculum design, teacher training, classroom effectiveness, educational management, literacy development and testing/evaluation, etc.) is required.
• Substantive skill and experience with designing and applying quantitative and qualitative methods for measuring basic education outcomes is required.
• Familiarity with education financing models and public education sector initiatives, including multi-donor sector investment programs, and knowledge of and/or previous experience with early grade reading pedagogy and assessment, including instruction in local languages with a later transition to English.
Skills and Abilities:
• Demonstrated skills in conceptualizing programs, policies, and plans and developing strategies for their implementation, as well as a high degree of program management skill (e.g., technical, and financial oversight) is required.
• Strong negotiation skills are required.
• Demonstrated ability to obtain, analyze, and evaluate a variety of data and information to prepare precise, concise, and accurate factual and analytical reports and to make meaningful recommendations is required.
• Demonstrated ability to develop and maintain a wide range of contacts in the public and private sectors, at both senior and working levels, is required.
• Demonstrated ability to work on a team and to form positive, productive working relationships at all levels is required.
• Excellent written and oral communications skills, as well as proficiency in Windows applications (Word, Excel, PowerPoint) are required.
• Ability and willingness for at least quarterly travel within Uganda (up to 25%) is required.
Job application procedure
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- Address Kampala, Uganda, East Africa
