Head of Program Development Verified listing

Job Summary: The position is required to lead the multidisciplinary Programme Development Department of WWF-Pakistan, which includes the programme development team, the monitoring & evaluation unit, and staff for functions such as policy and advocacy, environment and social safeguards compliance, governance and social development, knowledge management, project administration, progress review, and performance reporting.

Duties and Responsibilities: The Head of Programme Development will be responsible for:

1. Planning and Development

• Lead strategic planning and prioritization of conservation issues, developing conservation strategies (e.g. WWF-Pakistan's 5 Year Strategic Plan), and their alignment with WWF's Global Practices.

• Lead programme development, including development of detailed proposals, log frames, work plans, and budgets, in collaboration with programme and support departments' teams.

• Collaborate with WWF-Pakistan's Water, Forest, Climate & Energy, Wildlife, Oceans, Food & Agriculture, Markets, Communications, Finance, and other teams, for planning & development, projects review, progress monitoring, and communicating impacts (e.g. in Annual Report).

• Facilitate mainstreaming of WWF Network's Programme Management Standards, Social Policies, and other standards in WWF-Pakistan's projects and programmes, and build capacity of staff in applying these standards for development initiatives.

• Collaborate with Government bodies, bilaterals, multilaterals, local NGOs, academia, local stakeholders, etc. for joint project design, funding applications, and implementation.

• Support WWF-Pakistan programme teams with review and feedback on policy and position papers.

2. Development Sector Partnerships

• Liaise and maintain active relationships with key national and international Development Sector institutions, including bilateral and multilateral public sector agencies, financial institutions, and international organizations.

• Coordinate engagement events and exposure visits to project sites for partners with WWF's regional and programme teams.

• Explore partnership and funding opportunities for priority conservation initiatives with key development sector institutions and stakeholders.

• Coordinate with the WWF's PSP and sustainable finance communities, especially on Network strategies for public sector engagement and financing.

• Ensure programme alignment with partners' priorities where appropriate, e.g. in country partnership strategies of bilateral and multilateral agencies.

3. Project Administration, Progress Review, and Knowledge Management

• Supervise Project Administration and Knowledge Management functions, for centralized records of all contracts, MoUs, reports, project completion certificates, and other documentation.

• Supervise the Project Review Committee (PRC) process for progress reporting and documentation.

• Coordinate the process of WWF-Pakistan's data collation and reporting for WWF's annual Network Performance Overview through the WWF INSIGHT databases.

• Facilitate third party institutional assessments during partners' and donors' vetting processes.

4. Social Policies, Safeguards, and Governance Practice

• Supervise WWF-Pakistan's Environmental and Social Safeguards (ESS) team's functions, and coordination with the WWF Network's various working groups on ESS and gender policies and standards.

• Coordinate with regional teams for landscape screenings and ESS and Grievance Redressal Mechanism roll out in Pakistan.

• Represent WWF-Pakistan on the WWF Network's Governance Practice, Sustainable Development for Conservation team, and other global communities.

• Coordinate with priority WWF communities to collaborate on inclusive conservation, SDGs, sustainable infrastructure, gender mainstreaming, sustainable livelihoods.

5. Monitoring and Evaluation

• Supervise WWF-Pakistan's internal Monitoring & Evaluation Unit's functions, including regular M&E of projects and facilitation of external monitoring missions.

• Support programme and regional teams in annual planning and monitoring in line with the 5 Year Strategic Plan and project workplans.

• Facilitate project planning and inception, baselines and research, risk assessment and management, social mobilization and community engagement, implementation, and safeguards support.

6. Sustainable Finance

• Explore new funding avenues and mechanisms, e.g. impact investment for conservation, green bonds, voluntary carbon markets, etc.

• Catalyze private sector and blended financing and develop bankable conservation projects through collaborations with sustainable finance labs and communities in the WWF Network and externally.

• Engage with financial institutions for advocating green financing for priority sectors.

• Facilitate national fundraising by building linkages and developing concepts in collaboration with the programme teams for priority areas.

Education, Experience & Working Knowledge

• Master's degree or higher relevant to International Development, Economics, Public Policy, Climate Finance, Sustainability.

• Preferred 10 years of relevant professional experience in the development sector.

• Expertise in projects development and financing, including preparing proposals, log frames, work plans, monitoring frameworks, budgets etc., established through relevant work experience.

• Experience of working in a multicultural/multinational environment.

• Ability to supervise, mobilize, train, and coordinate national and international staff.

• Experience in Project Cycle Management approach, project administration, and M&E.

• Excellent knowledge of global and regional conservation arena, key players, and policy processes.

• Familiarity with the WWF Network's practices and conservation work is a plus.