About the job
Porticus is seeking a Senior Programme Manager to support and monitor the development and management of strategic programmes within the Strengthening our Societies Sector (SoS). Specific priority will lie under the People on the Move Challenge. Regional and international travel will be required for this position (up to 30% of the working time).
Strengthening our Societies Sector Vision
Our vision is a just society that promotes equality, human rights and human dignity – where all people have the agency to lead self-determined lives.
What we do?
• We promote participation, transparency, accountability and human rights to influence institutions of power to power to work more effectively for the common good.
• We support and collaborate with civil society, social investments and constituent-led organisations.
• We advance equity within our work in recognition that historical and systemic discrimination, exclusion and exploitation mean that not all people are starting from the same place.
• We commit to apply a gender equality and social inclusion lens and to ensure the meaningful participation of the people we serve in all we do.
Within Porticus’ thematic priority of Strengthening our Societies are two challenges Criminal Justice and People on the Move. In this role specific priority will lie under the People on the Move Challenge.
People on the Move Challenge
The goal for the People on the Move challenge is that throughout their migratory journey, migrants, in particular the most vulnerable, have their human and labour rights fulfilled. They can meaningfully participate, collectively and individually in planning and implementation of policies, programmes and other matters that affect their lives.
Porticus Africa – People on the Move
Porticus has been working in Africa for over four decades. From its base in Nairobi, Porticus’ main efforts focus on Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Zimbabwe and South Africa. Our People on the Move work is situated in South Africa which is one of the major destination countries for refugees, asylum seekers and migrants in Africa. South Africa hosts more than 4 million refugees, asylum seekers and migrants from across the Africa continent. Grant making under the People on the MOVE Challenge is delivered in South Africa through two global programmes: MOVE and Immigration detention (provisional title).
The MOVE programme focuses primarily on collaborating with people with lived experience of migration as leaders and change-makers. The rationale for this is that they are effective in making change, have moral authority, legitimacy and because their lived experience means they are well-placed to design interventions that work best for them. We regard this target group as key drivers of change in terms of creating just and equitable migration patterns. It is important to note that there is not one migrant movement to speak of but globally spread emerging initiatives at various levels (global, regional, local). Our 10-year system change goal is that lived experience leaders shape migration agendas (policies and practices and resource flows) and change power imbalances in migration systems influencing the conditions and needs of people on the move.
The Immigration Detention programme supports partners to reduce the use of arbitrary and inhumane detention through strategic promotion of alternatives. In our pursuit for system change we centre lived experience, applying a participatory approach that contributes to Porticus’ daring goal of meaningful participation. In our 5-10 year outlook our investments will contribute to three outcome areas:
• People who are undocumented, refugees, people seeking asylum, and communities affected by immigration detention exercise their agency and organise to influence detention policies and practices.
• Immigration detention Institutions operate transparently to reduce harm and allow access to justice, in line with international standards.
• States use alternatives to detention as more humane and rights-respecting approaches to addressing migration management.
Job Description
As part of the People on the Move Challenge team member and member of the Porticus Africa Team key responsibilities will entail:
1. Leadership
- Contribute to thought leadership in the region and globally to influence and push the field towards higher impact and systemic change.
- Work closely with other regional Programme Managers in the Africa region and in the People on the Move teams to implement well-coordinated global programmes, promote innovative and equitable grant-making practices and encourage learning.
2. Exploration in Africa
- Identify opportunities for strategy-aligned projects and programmes and manage regional exploration grants in Africa and where possible contribute to aligned sectors with clear attention to the learning cycle within which these ideas are developing.
- Contribute to interregional engagement and collaboration by actively supporting Porticus as a Learning organisation, by sharing knowledge, experiences across the matrix and sectors.
3. Contextualisation
- In collaboration with the Porticus Africa Regional Director, enable sense making when it comes to strategic decisions related to a challenge, programme challenge-related work or the sector.
- Internally and externally represent the region, demonstrating knowledge of the region and context within which we work and identify possibilities for sectoral/cross thematic work, in shaping discourse within the ecosystem.
- Continuously analyse and monitor developments in the field to identify emerging trends, needs, gaps and opportunities in the region and/or challenge related topics.
4. Programme Design and implementation under the People on the Move Challenge
- Lead on the management and implementation of the MOVE and Immigration Detention Programmes in South Africa, in collaboration and consultation with equivalent post holders in other regions and with the Portfolio Manager/Challenge Lead.
- Provide co-leadership with the Europe Programme Manager for the MOVE programme.
- Contribute to increased evidence and learning about current practices in raising the quality and effectiveness of our work by supporting programmatic research and analysis, programmatic evaluations and share results and learnings internally and externally.
- Identify opportunities for innovative, data driven, contextualised programmatic strategies that contribute to field building, (pushing the thematic discourse further), nurturing networks (outside of grants, with funders, thought leaders, practitioners and other system stakeholders), creating platforms and drawing in lessons and learnings (beyond reporting).
- Identify and develop partnerships that aim for systemic and lasting changes in alignment with challenge strategies and lead the implementation of these programmes, including but not limited to:
- Applying meaningful participation approach to the extent possible in all stages of the programme grant making from co-developing applications with partners to accompanying the implementing and closing.
- Convening programme partners and other key stakeholders.
- Applying sophisticated safeguarding and GESI lenses to programme development and management.
5. Storytelling
- Contribute to the knowledge base of Porticus by regularly sharing insights and knowledge coming out of the programmatic work internally and externally.
- Provide inputs to meetings with the Society Investment Committee as required.
- Engage in relevant fora and champion the work of partners.
- Prepare communication material in collaboration with communication colleagues.
6. Building and Maintaining Relationships
- Develop, strengthen and maintain strategic partnerships, in close cooperation with the Porticus Africa Regional Director and Challenge Leads.
- Build and manage trust-based strategic partnerships and engage in strategic dialogue on emerging and critical issues with diverse networks in Africa and globally.
- Understands the role and value of partners as contributing to the overall strategic intent.
- As part of the Challenge team, contribute to regular meetings, the organisation’s annual reflection learning cycles with input, discussion and apply learning for course-correction and future programming.
- Contribute and integrate non-financial contribution to partners such as capacity building on fundraising and identifying co-funders in grant management.
Qualifications
- Minimum of a Master’s Degree in a relevant discipline.
- At least 10 years of programme professional experience within philanthropy or international development sectors at the international or regional level. Experience working in South Africa is an added advantage.
- Strong and relevant networks and contacts within the Society sector in Africa with an emphasis on East and Southern Africa.
- Experience of and commitment to, working with and through partners and contributing to partnership strategies.
- A broad background with comprehensive understanding of programme design, development and implementation as well as systems change, networking and community change.
- Experience with strategy, monitoring, evaluation and learning (SMEL) and working with other technical advisors and research teams to establish effective monitoring systems in relation to programme activities.
Additional Information
- We will screen all applications on an ongoing basis.
- An (online) assessment can be part of the recruitment process
- Reference checks are part of the final hiring procedure
- We are an equal opportunity employer. We believe that having a staff with diverse personal and professional backgrounds and lived experiences enhances our ability to meet our mission. All applicants will be considered for employment without attention to race, colour, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, prior justice system involvement, veteran, or disability status.
