Project Director – Faith and Community Initiative Project (FCI)

Locations: Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Organization: World Vision International

Deadline: August 29, 2026

Job Description

Employee Contract Type: Local – Fixed Term Employee (Fixed Term)

Key Responsibilities

30% In-Country Leadership and Program Management

Provide overall leadership and management of the FCI country program, responsible for the achievement of country goals, objectives, and results in a timely and cost-effective manner.
Lead country-level planning, adapting guidelines provided by the Global Management Team to the local context, and translating them into country work plans and performance targets.
Implement the global strategy, standards, and performance expectations at country level, ensuring adherence to technical standards, best practices, and donor guidelines.
Uphold the 80/20 efficiency commitment and drive the country transition and sustainability roadmap toward government and faith-based ownership.

30% External Relations: Embassy, Government, Christian Health Association, Faith Based Organizations Networks and other Partners

Serve as the principal in-country point of contact and FCI representative to the U.S. Embassy and GHSD country team, keeping them informed of major program developments.
Manage relationships with host-government counterparts, including the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Finance, and other relevant ministries and sub-national government authorities.
Build, manage and maintain strong partnerships with Christian Health Associations (CHAs), faith-based organizations networks (FBOs), and other strategic partners to support the delivery of integrated health services and advance country ownership goals.
Represent FCI on the national steering committee (or existing coordinating body) chaired by the host government, ensuring alignment with the country MOU and national health strategies.
Cultivate and manage relationships with local implementing and sub-partners, faith-based and community health networks, and other partners and organizations, including the Global Fund, its principal recipients and sub-recipients, and other GHSD and bilateral partners.
Coordinate with other PEPFAR/GHSD programs and partners so that FCI activities complement ongoing initiatives and adhere to country and global standards, avoiding duplication.

10% Transition to Government Ownership and Sustainability

In close collaboration with the US Embassy, lead high-level negotiations with the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Finance, and other government authorities to secure the progressive transition and absorption of FCI-supported activities, health workers, facilities, commodities, and data systems into government ownership and domestic financing.
Develop, negotiate, and steward a country-specific sustainability and transition plan with clear benchmarks, milestones, and timelines, jointly owned with the host government and endorsed by the national steering committee.
Secure government commitments and co-investment (including budget lines and payroll absorption) for the continued financing of frontline health workers, hubs, spokes, and community platforms beyond the life of the award.
Advocate with government and faith-based service providers to formalize the integration of faith-based facilities and staff into national health plans, payroll, supply chain, and information systems.
Track and report on transition progress against agreed benchmarks, escalating risks to government absorption in a timely manner and adjusting the roadmap in coordination with the Global Project Director and the national steering committee.

20% Staff, Consortium, and Operations Management

Lead, supervise, and motivate the country team of technical and program-management staff, ensuring strong communication and coordination across the team.
Manage in-country consortium and sub-partners, establishing and maintaining strong lines of communication and collaboration.
Oversee country office operations, logistics, procurement, and administration in line with World Vision and donor policies and country laws.
Directly supervise the Country Technical Director, Finance and Compliance Manager, and MEL Manager, setting performance expectations and supporting staff development.

10% Grant, Fiscal, Compliance, and Risk Management

Hold overall accountability for country-level administration, fiscal management, and grant and contract management, ensuring all program goals are met on time and within budget.
Oversee country programmatic and financial reporting, ensuring compliance with donor regulations, World Vision policies, and country statutory requirements.
In coordination with the Finance and Compliance Manager, ensure expenses are reasonable, allocable, and compliant for clean audits.
Identify country-level risks – programmatic, financial, safeguarding, security, and reputational – in a timely manner and lead mitigation, escalating to the Global Project Director as needed.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILL AND EXPERIENCE

Required Education, training, license, registration, and/or Certification

Academic Qualifications

Master’s degree required in public health, international development, business/public administration, or a related field.
Demonstrated experience representing programs to U.S. Embassies/USG, national governments, the Global Fund, and other partners, and negotiating the transition or absorption of program activities into government systems and financing. Proven experience ensuring compliance and clean audits on donor-funded awards.
Sufficient technical familiarity with integrated health programming (HIV, TB, malaria, MCH, and nutrition) to provide credible leadership. Excellent verbal and written communication skills in English; proficiency in the national/local language(s) strongly preferred.
Demonstrated experience working with the Federal Ministry of Health, Regional Health Bureaus, government technical structures, technical working groups, donors, implementing partners, FBOs, and local organizations.
Proven experience providing technical oversight and capacity strengthening to multiple implementing partners, sub-awardees, local organizations, and FBOs across geographically dispersed areas.
Demonstrated experience using MEL data, evidence, research, assessments, and learning to improve technical performance and guide adaptive programming.
Proven experience in health systems strengthening, localization, government ownership, sustainability, institutionalization, and transition.
Experience working in complex, fragile, humanitarian, conflict-affected, or resource-constrained environments is highly desirable.

Preferred Specialized Training / Certifications

Preference will be given to candidates with specialized training or certification in PEPFAR Program Management and Technical Programming
U.S. Government/USAID Award and Program Management
HIV/AIDS and PEPFAR Technical Programming
TB/HIV Collaborative Programming
MNCH and Integrated Primary Health Care
Nutrition Programming and Nutrition-Sensitive Health Systems
Health Systems Strengthening
Quality Improvement / Continuous Quality Improvement (QI/CQI)
Monitoring, Evaluation, Research and Learning (MERL)
Data Use, DHIS2, Digital Health, and Health Information Systems
Results-Based Management and Adaptive Management
Project/Program Management: PMP, PRINCE2, or equivalent
Leadership and Senior Management
Localization, Partnership Management, and Organizational Capacity Strengthening
Safeguarding, PSEA, Gender, Disability Inclusion, and Protection
Humanitarian Health, Emergency Preparedness, and Outbreak Response, particularly relevant to the Ethiopian context.

Required Professional Experience

Minimum 10 years’ experience managing donor-funded health programs, including senior management and staff supervision, with a strong track record engaging institutional donors, host governments (including Ministries of Health and Finance), and multi-organization consortia; prior Chief of Party, Deputy Chief of Party, or senior country program management experience strongly preferred.
Demonstrated substantial technical expertise in at least one core FCI technical area, such as HIV, TB, MNCH, nutrition, community health, primary health care, or health systems strengthening, combined with proven experience providing strategic technical oversight across integrated health programs.
Proven ability to integrate multiple technical areas into a single coherent program strategy, implementation model, service-delivery approach, performance framework, and health systems strengthening agenda, rather than managing technical components as separate vertical programs.
Strong senior-level experience working with Ministries of Health, Regional Health Bureaus, government technical structures, technical working groups, implementing partners, local organizations, FBOs, and donor technical counterparts. Direct experience with Ethiopia’s Federal Ministry of Health and Regional Health Bureaus is highly desirable.
Demonstrated experience in technical quality assurance, quality improvement, integrated service delivery, supportive supervision, mentorship, capacity strengthening, evidence-based programming, data use, performance management, and adaptive management, with a proven ability to identify technical gaps and lead corrective actions.
Demonstrated experience using program data, evidence, assessments, learning, and performance information to guide technical decisions, adapt implementation strategies, improve service quality, and demonstrate measurable program results.
Proven experience contributing to health systems strengthening, government ownership, localization, sustainability, institutionalization, and transition, including strengthening government and local partner technical capacity and integrating project-supported approaches into existing health systems.
Demonstrated experience working effectively in complex, fragile, humanitarian, conflict-affected, or rapidly changing environments, with the ability to adapt technical approaches while maintaining quality and alignment with national and donor requirements.
Proven ability to build consensus among diverse technical stakeholders, manage competing technical priorities, resolve complex implementation challenges, and maintain technical quality and consistency across multiple partners, regions, and technical areas.
Strong track record of providing strategic technical leadership while remaining sufficiently operational to guide implementation teams, partners, health facilities, community platforms, and local organizations toward measurable program results.

Required Language(s)

Fluent English and other local languages

Required travel and/or work environment accommodations

Country office environment with regular in-country travel to implementation regions, districts, and field sites (typically up to 40% of the time). May require travel to insecure or hazardous locations. Occasional international/regional travel for consortium and donor engagements.

Position’s physical requirements

Addis Ababa, WV head office

Preferred Experience, Knowledge and/or key competencies

Advanced knowledge of integrated public health programming, with demonstrated ability to link HIV, TB, MNCH, nutrition, community health, primary health care, and health systems strengthening within a unified program model.
Strong knowledge of Ethiopia’s health system, national health policies, strategies, guidelines, service-delivery platforms, and decentralized health structures, including the Federal Ministry of Health, Regional Health Bureaus, Zonal Health Departments, and Woreda Health Offices/DHMTs.
Strong understanding of U.S. Government and PEPFAR technical requirements, including technical performance frameworks, quality standards, reporting requirements, data use, accountability, and evidence-based programming.
Demonstrated knowledge of health systems strengthening integrated service delivery, quality improvement, supportive supervision, mentorship, capacity strengthening, and institutionalization of technical interventions.
Strong knowledge of HIV and TB programming, including prevention, testing, linkage to care, treatment, retention, viral suppression, TB case finding, TB/HIV integration, and community-facility linkages.
Good understanding of MNCH, nutrition, community health, PHC, and health-system interventions, including their integration with HIV and TB programming.
Strong knowledge of Monitoring, Evaluation, Research and Learning (MERL) and the practical use of program data, DHIS2, routine health information, assessments, and evidence to improve technical performance.
Knowledge of quality assurance, continuous quality improvement, adaptive management, and evidence-to-action approaches, with the ability to translate performance findings into practical corrective actions.
Strong understanding of localization, government ownership, partner capacity strengthening, sustainability, institutionalization, and transition of externally supported health programs.
Knowledge of faith-based and community-based health programming, including community engagement, demand creation, referral systems, community accountability, and linkages between community and facility services.
Knowledge of digital health and health information systems, including DHIS2, eCHIS, digital data collection, dashboards, and technology-enabled service monitoring, is desirable.
Knowledge of gender, disability inclusion, safeguarding, PSEA, equity, and rights-based approaches in health programming.
Understanding of humanitarian health, outbreak preparedness and response, conflict-sensitive programming, and service continuity in fragile settings is highly desirable.
Demonstrated ability to interpret complex technical evidence and translate it into strategic decisions, practical implementation guidance, policies, standards, and scalable program models.
Strong strategic leadership, technical judgment, analytical thinking, problem-solving, negotiation, facilitation, and consensus-building skills, with the ability to engage senior government, donor, technical, and implementing-partner stakeholders.
Excellent technical writing, presentation, communication, knowledge-management, and learning dissemination skills.
Strong professional command of English; Amharic fluency is highly desirable, with additional Ethiopian language skills considered an advantage.

World Vision is a child-focused organization that is committed to safeguarding all children as well as adult beneficiaries, and has zero tolerance for incidents of violence or abuse against children or adults, including sexual exploitation or abuse, committed either by employees or others affiliated with our work. Therefore, World Vision does not hire staff whose background is not suitable for working with children or vulnerable adults, even if their role does not interact directly with them.

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Applicant Types Accepted:

Local Applicants Only