Regional Director- Africa

ABOUT ISRAAID

IsraAID is an international humanitarian NGO headquartered in Israel. Founded in 2001, our teams have worked in emergency and long-term development settings in 60+ countries, mobilizing quickly to help communities affected by crises — from hurricanes to refugee crises to pandemics — rebuild toward self-reliance.

IsraAID has operated in Africa since 2011. The Africa Regional Desk oversees Country Offices in Kenya, Malawi, Uganda, and South Sudan, with programming grounded in a community resilience framework.

ABOUT THE POSITION

The Director of Africa Region is the primary regional authority for IsraAID's Africa portfolio, holding full line management responsibility for Country Directors across the region. Working closely with the Senior Director RRP and Senior Management Team, the Director leads the regional desk team (including the SPO, Africa Region), drives Country Office performance, and serves as the key management interface between HQ departments and Country Directors in Malawi, Uganda, Kenya, and South Sudan — leading the regional team through a matrix structure while ensuring operational needs on the ground are fully supported.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Line Management & People Leadership

• Hold formal line management of all Africa CDs and the Africa SPO — setting objectives, performance expectations, and conducting reviews
• Mentor and coach CDs, building leadership capacity and addressing leadership gaps/transitions
• Lead and coordinate the regional desk team under the matrix structure
• Represent country realities in HQ strategic conversations and represent the region externally

Country Office Performance, Risk & Stabilization

• Own overall performance, stability, and risk profile of all Africa COs
• Identify operational, financial, reputational, and contextual risks early; oversee stabilization/performance-improvement plans
• Provide decisive leadership during crises, transitions, or CO instability

Strategic Execution & Programme Quality

• Guide country strategies and workplans in line with global strategy and the resilience framework
• Ensure programmatic quality standards across the portfolio, partnering with the Technical Unit
• Integrate resilience, sustainability, MEAL, safeguarding, and inclusion into programme design
• Ensure learning and evidence inform decisions at CO, regional, and HQ levels

HQ Coordination & Regional Team Management

• Lead the Africa regional team, ensuring coherent, prioritized HQ support to COs
• Coordinate HQ technical/operational/enabling functions for consistent guidance
• Prevent CO overload by prioritizing HQ requests and escalating competing demands
• Support and empower the SPO, Africa Region

Partnerships, Fundraising & Local Donor Engagement

• Support CDs in cultivating partnerships and donor relationships, in coordination with DevComs
• Maintain institutional relationships with regional/country partners, ensuring continuity
• Lead regional donor positioning and identify strategic funding opportunities with the Senior Director RRP and DevComs

Safeguarding & Organizational Values

• Champion safeguarding standards across the Africa portfolio
• Ensure CDs and regional team are trained to identify, report, and respond to safeguarding concerns
• Act as a senior representative for accountability, ethics, and IsraAID's values: Professionalism, Humanity, Collaboration, Flexibility, Adaptability

ESSENTIAL SKILLS, KNOWLEDGE & COMPETENCIES

Education

Master's degree in International Development, Project Management, Social Sciences, Humanitarian Affairs, or related field.

Experience

• 10+ years of progressive leadership/management in humanitarian/development settings internationally, including 5+ years in sub-Saharan Africa (required)
• Proven direct line management of Country Directors or equivalent senior managers across multiple contexts
• Experience in CO oversight, risk management, and performance management in fragile/complex environments
• Programme quality oversight across Education, Health & Nutrition, Protection, WASH; strong grasp of results-based management and resilience approaches
• Financial management of significant multi-country budgets
• Donor engagement and resource mobilization with institutional donors (UN agencies, foundations, bilateral donors)
• Experience managing matrix structures and multi-disciplinary HQ support teams

Leadership & Management

• Exceptional people leadership; able to hold accountability while coaching and developing others
• Strong crisis management and stabilization skills; decisive under pressure and ambiguity
• Ability to align diverse, multi-stakeholder teams toward common goals
• High independence, initiative, and sound judgment
• Strong organizational skills managing competing priorities and deadlines

Technical & Programme Skills

• Deep understanding of programme design, implementation, M&E, and learning in humanitarian/resilience contexts
• Familiarity with IASC guidelines and international humanitarian coordination structures
• Strong analytical and strategic planning skills
• Understanding of safeguarding and ethical/compliance frameworks

Interpersonal & Communication

• Strong interpersonal, communication, and negotiation skills; ability to influence and coach across roles/levels
• Demonstrated cultural competency across diverse contexts and organizational cultures
• Commitment to IsraAID's values

IT & Languages

• Proficient in Microsoft Office and collaboration platforms (Teams, Zoom)
• Fluent English required; French or other regional languages an advantage
• Able to travel to Africa Country Offices and HQ on short notice

ETHICAL STANDARDS

IsraAID has zero tolerance for misconduct and Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (SEA). Recruitment includes candidate declarations and reference checks focused on misconduct and SEA.

EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES

IsraAID is an equal opportunity employer. All applicants are considered without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, or disability status..