Executive Director – Jambo For Development

 About Jambo for Development 

Jambo for Development (JFD) works with schools, children, parents, institutions and local and central government officials to further its mission to use creative sports and games to empower children and youth in Kagera Region,Tanzania to achieve improved education, health (HIV/AIDS awareness and water and sanitation) and gender equality outcomes. The JFD programmes focus on training teachers, organising sports competitions for children and improving existing infrastructure. JFD’s innovative “Life Skills Games” concept offers children a unique ‘learning by doing’ experience and imparts a range of essential skills that include interpersonal, decision-making, critical thinking and self-management skills creating increased awareness and confidence. The teacher training component of the programme imparts teachers with knowledge and tools to help raise awareness about gender equality and health issues and further develop the pupils’ social and physical skills. JFD and its pre-cursor and founding organisation Jambo Bukoba, based in Germany, have reached more than 500,000 children between 2017 and 2020 generating improvements in school examination results that contributed to moving the Kagera Region ranking to top 5 countrywide, as per recent National Examination Council of Tanzania reports.

The Opportunity

Jambo for Development is embarking on ‘a journey to independence and sustainability’ and is pursuing an ambitious 5 year vision that will see it expand and scale its programmes significantly. To drive the anticipated growth and expansion and keep pace with client and stakeholder requirements, JFD is looking for a visionary Executive Director with a successful track record of leading an organisation and a passion for working in a social organisation. The successful candidate will be hired on a performance contract which shall be subject to renewal based on his/her successful performance.

Reporting Relationships

The Executive Director reports to the Board of Directors and Board Chairperson directly. Members of management and all other team Members and volunteers report directly or indirectly to the Executive Director.

The Ideal Candidate

The Executive Director will set the strategy, vision and mission and build the JFD culture in consultation and agreement with the Board. S/he will lead the management team members, allocate resources appropriately, and he will set important goals for the organisation and work systematically to meet them.

The Executive Director will define the JFD priorities and direction. S/he will assesss and evaluate strategies, decide how the organisation will differentiate itself from peer organisations, and will hire team members, set budgets, forge alliances and build partnerships to further the JFD goals. The Executive Director will play a formative role in building the culture of JFD around its 5 core values of professionalism, inclusive empowerment, transparency, capacity building and impact to attract and retain the best talent. The Executive Director will ensure the team receives appropriate training, mentoring and capacity building. S/he will actively promote JFD to build its financial reserves and goodwill. S/he will secure resources, budget and allocate resources appropriately and be accountable for the financial health of the organisation.

Main Job Responsibilities

The Executive Director will be based in Bukoba, Kagera Region of Tanzania. S/he will hold the following responsibilities:

• Provide managerial, strategic and technical leadership of the organisation.
• Define overall strategy and work plan, in collaboration with the Board. Work closely with the Board of Directors and committees, informing, assessing, and addressing issues that affect the organisation.
• Communicate vision, mission and strategy internally and externally to stakeholders.
• Provide financial and programmatic oversight, including partner and donor deliverables, reporting, work plans, budgets and auditing.
• Manage the relationship with main strategic and funding partner Jambo Bukoba Germany ensuring alignment of agreed priorities and work plans.
• Manage JFD’s budget and ensure that it is a financially viable, sustainable organisation with the resources to meet current and projected programme growth.
• Engage personally in fundraising and developing revenue streams.
• Serve as project management champion with overall responsibility for projects.
• Ensure preparation of effective, high quality periodic reports and proposals.
• Build and maintain a strong brand and positive image ensuring the mission, programmes and services are presented in a consistent and strong manner to relevant stakeholders
• Build a high-performing management team and play an active role in attracting, retaining and developing high-caliber staff.
• Ensure compliance with all requirements defined/established by Governement regulators, oversight bodies and partners.

Qualifications and skills

• A track record of successfully generating new revenue streams and improving financial results.
• Excellent donor relations skills and understanding of the local and international funding community.
• Previous success in establishing relationships with individuals and organisations of influence including funders, partner agencies.
• Organisational skills including planning, delegating, programme development and task facilitation.
• Ability to build and maintain effective relationships and influence and persuade others.
• Excellent communication skills in written and spoken Kiswahili and English.
• Ethical, compliant and transparent leadership behaviour.
• Leadership and people management skills.
• Relevant computer skills, at minimum MS Word, PowerPoint and Excel.

Education, experience and other eligibility requirements

• University degree (masters degree or equivalent preferred) in development studies, social sciences, international development, public or business administration or related field.
• At least 5 years of progressively responsible experience in business, project or development  management, administration or related area.
• Experience leading organisations, programmes and projects.
• Experience working across multiple sectors, including nonprofit, public and corporate environments.
• Experience working with Governenent of Tanzania, NGOs/CSOs, private and public sector and other stakeholders.
• Tanzanian citizenship.