Afghanistan: Deputy Country Director Afghanistan

Oxfam is a world-wide development organization that mobilizes the power of people against poverty.

We are looking for a ****Deputy Country Director Afghanistan**** (with frequent travel) Unaccompanied posting for 1 year

As the Executing Affiliate (EA) for Oxfam in Afghanistan, Oxfam Novib (ON) is responsible for leading humanitarian preparedness and response; directing advocacy, lobby and campaigning; supporting country office operations and managing security. In collaboration with local partners and other Oxfam affiliates, Oxfam implements an integrated development, humanitarian and advocacy program, which is currently undergoing significant restructuring and expansion.

The Deputy Country Director, in collaboration with the Country Director, is responsible for the ongoing programme planning and development, donor representation, and daily oversight and management of Oxfam programmes. The position is based in Kabul with travel to programme sites. The Deputy Country Director reports to the Oxfam International- Country Director.

The Deputy Country Director- DCD will provide results-based strategic guidance, leadership, management and capacity building support to the programme team, specifically, and to the broader Afghanistan team.

****Core responsibilities****

• Deliver Oxfam Afghanistan Programme Pillar’s (Pillar=Women and Youth Rights, Economic Justice and Humanitarian) strategic objectives as outlined in the Oxfam Country Strategy (OCS);


• Work closely with the Afghanistan Programme security focal points and managers to strengthen Oxfam and Partner organisation security management capacity and the impact security can have on programming, particularly its influence on programme cycle management processes in areas of limited access;


• Monitor development and humanitarian programme needs in Afghanistan, identifying gaps and planning appropriate timely action using a rights-based approach to programming;


• Ensure timely, efficient, effective and accountable Humanitarian response, with local partners, to survivors of Category 3 and 2 natural and/or humanly induced disasters, increasingly in a complex environment;


• Develop the capacity of Afghanistan Country Programme’s Humanitarian and Support teams to attain Oxfam’s Aim 3 Humanitarian vision of having in-country capacity to respond to Cat –2 level disasters;


• Integrate Gender, Womens Rights, Conflict Transformation, Advocacy/Influencing elements, Resilience, Disaster Risk Reduction strategies into our “one programme” approach so that we may better address chronic and acute vulnerability to disasters, particularly through our Disaster Risk Reduction, gender equality, Ending Violence Against Women (EVAW) and Economic justice work;


• Build an internal development and humanitarian leadership capable of drawing on each Oxfam International affiliates organisational expertise to deliver high quality programmmes and contribute to the development of the ‘One Oxfam thinking’ in Afghanistan;


• Team building and development of team capacity, with particular focus on developing skills, knowledge and capacity relevant to attaining the Country Programmes objectives.

Essential skills and experience

• Education to a Masters degree level preferably in social sciences;


• At least 8-10 years of management experience in development and humanitarian sector;


• Proven skills in managing staff; excellent coordination skills;


• Proven programme & project cycle management skills – proposal and report writing skills; monitoring and evaluation skills and experience;


• Demonstrated understanding and daily application of gender sensitive behaviour


• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, Fluent written and spoken English;


• Knowledge and experience of emergency and development issues; deep understanding of designing development and of emergency programming and links with policy;


• Ability to link with other players in the development and humanitarian arena and represent Oxfam effectively;


• Ability to analyse and communicate complex information to a wide audience;


• Proven knowledge of computerised system; high degree of computer literacy and word processing and spreadsheet skills essential;


• Ability to work under pressure, prioritise well and meet deadlines;


• Ability to travel, especially to remote areas (depending on security clearance);


• Experience working in Afghanistan is an advantage;


• Proven experience to train, coach, mentor team members;


• Commitment to the aims and objectives of Oxfam.

We offer

Oxfam Novib is committed to providing a competitive, fair and comprehensive pay and benefits package that is justifiable to our donors. The position is new and not yet formally characterized and graded. The provisional classification salary is between € 3,269 and € 5,031 gross per month based on 40 hours a week. Additional allowances include 8% holiday, hardship allowance, rest and recuperation, annual leave, flights home, accommodation, pension, medical plan, and comprehensive insurance.