District Programme Officer
Mott MacDonald
Freetown, Sierra Leone
Posted on Mar 25, 2025
Location
Freetown, Sierra Leone
Country
Sierra Leone
Contract type
Contract
Work pattern
Full Time
Market
Various
Discipline
International development, Education
Job ref
7958
Recruiter contact
Shailesh Chougule
Job Description:
Summary of the Functions:
- Lead the technical delivery of the programme in the districts.
- Provide support and capacity development to enhance system strengthening to improve the performance of District Education Offices (DEOs).
- Engage school level structures to promote safe and effective learning environments.
- Support DEOs to integrate girls and disability into their core functions of improving safe and effective learning.
- Support DEOs and principals to continue generating meaningful data through Tangerine to be analysed and utilised for decision-making
- Be the focal point of the programme in the district and be flexible to undertake additional or alternative activities as required.
- The specification and requirement for services may shift in response to changes in the scope and needs of the wider programme.
- Other duties as may be assigned from time to time by the Team Leader.
Note: This job description reflects the present requirements of the post. As duties and responsibilities change and develop the job description will be reviewed and be subject to amendment in consultation with the post holder and line manager.
Work location: Kambia District.
Candidate’s Specification:
Experience:
- Capacity development and systems strengthening for DEOs.
- Continuous engagement with school level structures to promote safe and effective learning environments.
- Maintaining good relationship with DEOs, education and social welfare sectors, and schools.
- Monitoring and mentoring.
- Working with data collection.
- Experience working with the Education stake holders in the districts
Mindset:
- Independent and proactive.
- Keenness to bring about positive change.
- Collaborative and respectful of others.
- Problem solving and troubleshooting
- Willingness to travel regularly to remote schools.
Commitment to:
- Gender and disability inclusion, including child protection and safeguarding.
- Support to raising student learning outcomes.
- Working with and through others.
- Respecting and meeting deadlines.
- Continuous improvement.
Language
- English (professional proficiency).
- Krio (fluent spoken).
Qualifications
Relevant university degree.
Project Description:
FCDO awarded Mott MacDonald to lead the implementation of the Sierra Leone Secondary Education Improvement Programme (SSEIP) 2, which builds on the work of the first phase: Sierra Leone Secondary Education Improvement Programme (SSEIP), also called Leh Wi Lan (Krio for “Let’s Learn”).
The programme will support the Ministry of Basic and Senior Secondary Education (MBSSE) to improve learning outcomes for boys and girls at the secondary level and to increase the enrolment, retention and well-being of girls and children with disabilities in school.
We expect that the programme will work at a national scale to deliver outputs including:
- Improvement of the secondary education system in Sierra Leone and to create safer and more enabling environments for girls, boys, and all children with disabilities to access education and achieve learning results.
- Overall systems strengthening to improve areas such as teaching and learning including teacher capacity building, school leadership, data systems for decision-making, PFM, and systemic approaches to supporting girls (e.g., CSE, GBV)
- Supporting the implementation of recent major policies (Free Quality School Education and Radical Inclusion) and supporting policy development in new areas, potentially including pre-service, teacher allocation, distance to school and COVID-19 resilience.
- Gender and Disability inclusion (linked to the national policy for Radical Inclusion), with improved access and results for girls, pregnant girls in particular, students with disabilities, and other vulnerable students.
- Community engagement and community messaging to challenge social norms, improve links to good healthcare for girls, improve access to services, and build positive messages for education of girls, boys, and individuals with disability.
- Using data, research, and adaptive management to identify what works and inform programme direction.
The team will consist different technical and programme support leads who work together closely to ensure coordinated and streamlined delivery as one programme team under the overall direction of the Team Leader.
It is expected to be a fulltime in-country role preferably for someone who has lived and worked in Sierra Leone for the past 5 years.
The position is expected to sit in the Mott MacDonald District Education Office in the assigned district and will require periodic travels to support project implementation.
Equality, diversity and inclusion
We put equality, diversity and inclusion at the heart of our business, seeking to promote fair employment procedures and practices to ensure equal opportunities for all. We encourage individual expression in our workplace and are committed to creating an inclusive environment where everyone feels they have the opportunity to contribute.
Agile working
At Mott MacDonald, we believe it makes business sense for you and your manager to choose how you can work most effectively to meet your client, team and personal commitments. We embrace agility, flexibility and trust.
