LINK COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT MALAWI

VACANCY –PROJECT MANAGER

Link Community Development Malawi (aka Link Malawi) is a non-governmental organization (NGO) that works in partnership with the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MoEST) to support objectives and to influence the implementation of Government policies as enshrined in the National Education Sector Plan and other MoEST key policy documents. Link has nine years of practical experience in designing and implementing community participation strategies which enable meaningful involvement of parents and communities in school improvement and early grade literacy. For more information visit

Link Malawi in collaboration with Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MoEST) will implement the Integrated School Performance, Improvement, Review and Engagement (INSPIRE) project, which is a 3-year project aimed at improving the performance of Malawian schools through integrated planning, multi-stakeholder accountability and provision of effective support.The project aims to demonstrate an integrated system for understanding how schools are performing against the National Educational Standards and planning for improvement at school, district and central levels. The project activities will be developed and demonstrated in Mchinji and Dedza districts. At the end of the project all 217 primary and secondary schools in Mchinji District will be achieving School Improvement Plan targets which align with the National Education Standards.Link Malawi seeks to recruit a Project Manager to oversee implementation of the INSPIRE Project in Mchinji district.

Job Title: Project Manager

Purpose of the job:

To lead the implementation of INSPIRE in Mchinji District, working in close partnership with Ministry of Education Science and Technology at district, division and central levels. Specific duties include capacity development of MoEST staff on the use of the National Education Standards and school performance data to improve school performance; setting up and training MoEST staff to use solar-powered IT equipment for recording, analysing and sharing data about school performance; facilitating community participation in assessing and understanding school performance and planning for school improvement; building school management capacity at school level; and facilitating connections between accurate information on school performance and effective improvement planning at school, zone, district and national levels.

Job Location: Mchinji District

Reporting To: Programme Director

The Project Manager will be exclusively responsible for the management of the project in Mchinji and will work with the Project Manager in Dedza to deliver relevant aspects of the project in Dedza district. Specifically she/he will lead in project activity planning including budgeting and resource scheduling; overseeing implementation of activities on the ground; building effective relationships with other stakeholders for effective project delivery; facilitating capacity building of project technical staff members and other stakeholders; and project reporting.

Key areas of responsibility

  • To professionally engage with MoEST departments (DIAS, Basic, Planning, Secondary and Teacher Education) to drive fully integrated central-district-school level educational planning to support systemic change in Mchinji District
  • To facilitate the operationalisation of a system for sharing accurate school performance data at community, school, zone, district, and central (MoEST) levels, including professional development and training in IT skills for MoEST staff
  • To facilitate the use of a School Report Card for every school in Mchinji (based on school performance data collected and analysed by stakeholders)
  • To facilitate production of effective, relevant, realistic School Improvmeent Plans (SIPs) by all schools in Mchinji
  • To facilitate the mobilisation of communities in Mchinji to hold schools and districts accountable for delivering effective education through achievement of SIP targets
  • To ensure that fully integrated (central-division-district-school) improvement plans are developed byMoEST

Programme Development

  1. Contribute to the development and updating of the annual Operational Plan and budget.
  2. Actively participate in monthly management meetings.
  3. Contribute to the development of new projects and funding proposals.
  4. Document and share success stories and learning from the project.
  5. Compile and submit reports for INSPIRE in Mchinji and Dedza monthly, quarterly and biennially.

Staff Management

  1. Line manage Project Officer for INSPIRE (based in Mchinji)
  2. Oversee work planning and delivery of all line managed staff.
  3. Carry out end of probation reviews and annual appraisals with line managed staff.

Other responsibilities

  1. Represent Link Malawiat all events and meetings as required.
  2. Any other tasks as required by the Programme Director and Dedza Office Manager.

Person specifications

Applicants should be mature education professionalswith a high level of understanding of project cycle management approaches, project appraisal, monitoring and evaluation, and partners’ capacity building in education. The candidate must have an ability to work independently while at the same demonstrating good interpersonal and team building competencies. Previous experience in working in an NGO settingis essential.

Qualifications, Skills and Experience:

  • Bachelors or Masters Degree in Education
  • Teaching experience for at least three years in primary or secondary schools
  • Demonstrable knowledge of the challenges and policies underpinning educational development and management in Malawi
  • Proven track record of building working relationships with MoEST partners at district, division and central level.
  • Experience of delivering training and the ability to adapt training materials.
  • Knowledge of school improvement planning and processes at school, community, district, division and central levels.
  • Knowledge and experience of gathering, managing and using data about school performance to bring about school improvement.
  • Experience of community awareness-raising and mobilization
  • Proven ability to motivate, provide technical support and guidance to a diverse team of staff and partners
  • Considerable experience in budgeting and financial procedures
  • Proficiency in computer packages especially MS Word, outlook and excel and other related packages and ability to train others in these skills.
  • High level of integrity and other standards of personal conduct
  • Possession of SADC Class ‘B’ Driver’s License.

Interested candidates should complete an Application Form which can be downloaded at Link Community Development’s website:

Closing date: Friday, 26th February, 2016

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