REACH PROJECT MANAGER / MYANMAR COUNTRY REPRESENTATIVE (M/F)

Context

Created in 1976, Geres is an international development NGO which works to improve living conditions and fight against climate change and its impacts. As a field player, the energy transition is a major lever for its action. For ambitious societal change, Geres encourages the development and dissemination of innovative and local solutions, it supports climate-energy regional policies and it mobilizes all the players around Climate Solidarity by encouraging them to act and support the most vulnerable.

In Southeast Asia, Geres has 25 years of experience in providing locally adapted, affordable and transferable energy solutions, with a focus on wood and biomass energy, to improve the resilience and the livelihoods of rural communities, empower local stakeholders and contribute to the sustainable management of natural resources.

Geres is currently working in Cambodia and Myanmar with ambition to pursue portfolio development in those 2 countries but also to start operational activities in other countries in the region.

2021 is a pivotal year for Geres in terms of strategic development in the Southeast Asia region. In Myanmar the REACH project manager/country representative plays an important role in shaping this development from the country level in addition to his/her management and representative tasks.

Since 2018, Geres launched the project REACH (Rural Energy Access to Communities and Households) to expand the access to clean energy solutions by communities in rural remote areas of the central Dry Zone of Myanmar. By developing an innovative and inclusive last-mile distribution social business relying on community-based entrepreneurs, most of them women, REACH contributes to structuring an environment conducive to the dissemination of high-quality energy-efficient products. These products are safer, more cost-efficient in the long term and reduce the households’ strenuous chores, which impacts disproportionately women, and thus improving the living conditions in rural communities. REACH also supports the emergence and strengthening of women’s entrepreneurship in the energy sector, empowering them and boosting the new entrepreneurs’ livelihoods by developing their business and technical skills and facilitating their access to financing.

In Myanmar, Geres is also developing other projects and studies around productive uses of energy and industrial usage of biomass. On the latter and based on the fruitful collaboration with H&M in Cambodia, Geres undertook a study to assess the potential of sustainable biomass fuel alternatives for thermal energy generation for H&M garment suppliers in Myanmar.

mission

The REACH project manager/country representative will be in charge of the project management/lead and ensures its achievements. This is done through proper project cycle management, efficient financial management, development of sound partnerships and identification of new project outlooks.

In the function of country representative of Geres in Myanmar his/her mission will be to

A] streamline the regional strategy at the country level, in collaboration with the Myanmar-based teams and interacting with the regional management and supervise its implementation;

B] contribute inputs for an improved and updated regional strategy

These responsibilities are in compliance with the global framework of Geres, notably: charter of ethics, mandate, global strategy, shared costs recovery rules.

She/he works under the supervision and authority of the Southeast Asia Regional Director, and in strict coordination with Financial Controller based in the HQ and the GEX Ecodev Program Manager. She/he manages and supervises the local country team in Yangon and Meiktila.

acivities

As the REACH Project Manager

1. Manage Project Cycle

· Planning, coordinating and monitoring activities related to the project team and partners

· Coordinating the monitoring and evaluation process, in particular by developing methodologies and project monitoring & evaluation tools to measure the results and impacts of the project

· Tackling implementation constraints and putting in place the necessary corrective measures in consultation with stakeholders (including partners and beneficiaries)

· Organizing and supervising the use of external service providers, internal support missions and other suppliers

· Collecting information from teams and draft internal and external reporting documents

· Organizing the archiving, sharing and project knowledge management system

· Ensuring ownership and capacity building of the project team across the entire project cycle management

2. Manage REACH project partnerships

· Leading the definition of project partnerships in collaboration with the project team

· Monitoring, assessing and facilitating project partnerships (Thazi Network, Pollinate Group, Dry Zone Greening Department)

· Ensuring commitments of Geres towards its partners are dully filled and reciprocally, that project partners abide by their respective commitments towards Geres

· Preventing and, if need be, solving issues and disputes with partners

· Facilitating the identification and the implementation of partnerships at country level

3. Supervise the administrative, logistical and financial management of the project

· Develop and / or guarantee a framework of operations and responsibilities between the stakeholders in accordance with the rules of the financial partners

· Supervise financial expenditures and accounting flows in collaboration with the Administrative and Financial Officer

· Communicate to teams and ensure compliance with logistical, administrative and financial procedures

· Actively participate in co-funding research efforts

· Ensure that REACH project manager reports to the SAF in timely manner

4. Manage and animate the project and country team:

· Plan and prioritize team activity

· Coordinate and animate REACH team around the objectives of the project

· Ensure the hierarchical management (recruitment, training, working time, evaluation …)

· Develop skills and support the evolution of team members

· Ensure the well-being of the team and the working conditions

5. Ensure communication and external representation at the project level:

· Ensure communication and external representation at the project level with REACH project partners and as Thazi Network, Pollinate Group, Dry Zone Greening Department and key stakeholders such (e.g. IFC, GGGI, Pact, Gret, Merci Corps, H&M)

· Ensure the visibility of the activities implemented in accordance with the communication rules of the financial partners and consistent with the recommendations of the headquarters communication department

· Contribute to Geres global communication by providing project news and contents to HQ communication colleagues

· Represent Geres with partners / institutions / beneficiaries / project interlocutors

6. Contribute to the development of Geres activities in its field of activity:

· Monitor the evolution of the project environment

· In connection with the country strategy, identify needs and opportunities for the development of activities / new projects

· Write notes of intent and project proposals

· Feed the reflections on the country strategy

· Develop capitalization / feedback on experience and feed exchanges between different projects

· Carry out studies/research if needed

As a Myanmar Country Representative

7. Support the design and the implementation of the Country Strategy in line with GSA regional strategy

· Lead the country team in the identification of the strategic work-streams and roadmap drafting in lines with the country context and development priorities

· Participate in the validation and formalisation process of the country strategy with GSA Regional Director and GHQ

· Mainstream the country strategy across key partners and country team

· Lead the evaluation and update of the strategy with the country team and in close coordination with the Southeast Asia Regional Director

4. Develop the project portfolio in the country in line with the Country Strategy :

· Identify new technical and geographical space of intervention in the country

· Lead the country team in developing context specific background knowledge beyond the areas where Geres is already active.

· Identify new funding opportunities

· Identify new partnership opportunities and support the creation of strategic partnerships

· Contribute to proposal drafting in coordination with the Southeast Asia Regional Director, GEX and the Headquarter

5. Geres’ representation, partnership management and country mission oversight

· Represent Geres before institutional partners as well as in project steering committees, national events beyond REACH project perimeter

· Manage partnership contracts and agreements and ensure due oversight over their enforcement (e.g. H&M assessment, IED contract for the AFD feasibility study)

· Ensure the sound overall management of Geres’ mission in Myanmar (HR, logistics, administration and finance) oversee the compliance of relevant procedures and the alignment to national laws.

· Participate in the recruitment of human resources and coordinate their actions in other projects than REACH

6. Ensure country-level security management.:**

· Carry out context and stakeholders’ analysis related to security concerns

· Follow up the security development of the context of intervention

· Regularly update the security documents and streamlining them across the team

· Enforce Geres Global Security Policy in the country

· Manage security events

PROFILE

Education **

• A Master’s Degree or equivalent experience in Economics, Development, Engineering, Energy or Environmental studies is required

• A Degree in Development Economics or Renewable energy is appreciated

Experience

• 3-year minimum prior experience as a project manager in the international development sector (including project proposal writing) is required

• Previous experience as a project manager in initiatives in support to local entrepreneurship is appreciated

• Prior experience in energy projects in the development sector, in particular related to rural electrification and biomass fuels

• Previous experience in South-east Asia is an asset

• Previous experience as a Country Representative is an asset

Skills

· Required skills:

• Proficiency in Project Cycle Management, Logical Framework Development, M&E

• Excellent writing and reporting skills

• Highly conversant with support to local entrepreneurship in developing countries

• Proven understanding of energy-climate nexus in developing countries, in particular related to renewable energies

• Excellent interpersonal skills, ability to establish contact with people from different background and cultures

• Organization and attention to detail especially meeting deadlines

• Team player with capacity to work in a multicultural environment

• Fluency in English both written and spoken is a must (at least C1 as per the CEFR)

• Intermediate knowledge of French (at least B1 as per the CEFR)

• Comfortable with high-level governmental/institutional relationships

• Conversant with Microsoft Office

· Appreciated skills:

• Working knowledge of gender principles and main applied tools in the development sector

• Working knowledge on information gathering and assessment tools

· Skills that would be an asset:

• Working Knowledge of Myanmar language

• Proven understanding of energy principles in humanitarian settings

Conditions

• 12 months contract (renewable)

• Full time with days off in lieu

• Starting date: as soon as possible

• Position based in Yangon, with travels to project site(s)Salary based upon profile, experience and Geres salary grid

• 26 paid leaves per year

• 420 USD expatriation allowance (paid localy), annual leaves bonus, health insurance (50% covered by GERES), retirement, unemployment, repatriation insurance

• 1 air ticket/year (beginning and end of contract)