Job description

JOB TITLE: MFA CSSP/ CP Projects Manager

TEAM/PROGRAMME: Programme Operations

GRADE: 3

LOCATION: Lusaka

POST TYPE: National

Safeguarding

Save the Children does not tolerate any form of exploitation, abuse, or harassment against any person. It is the responsibility of all employees and representatives to protect all people who come in contact with our organization. Save the Children commits to applying the same standards to all its employees and subject them to the same processes regardless of their position, influence, or reputation within or outside of the organization.

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

Save the Children International’s Diversity Policy, aims to promote equal opportunity in employment and to ban any kind of discrimination based on sex, age, social class, disability, HIV status, religion, race and ethnicity.

ROLE PURPOSE (PROJECTS OVERVIEW).

Project Goal: Contribute to improved protection of all children in both physical and digital environments from violence, exploitation and abuse through access to functional protection systems and services.

Name of the project: Protecting Zambian Girls and Boys Offline and Online – Phase II

Geographical location: (Copperbelt province) Ndola, Kitwe, Chingola districts, and Lusaka for national level activities.

Implementing partners: Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA)

Other partners: Zambia Information Communications Technology Authority (ZICTA), Ministry of Community Development and Social Services, Education and other government actors (Local and Central) and non-state actors who are part of the District Child Protection Committees (DCPCs), and Child Protection Cooperating Partners and CSOs working on child protection in Zambia.

Project Goal: Contribute to improved child poverty and household vulnerability trends in Zambia through child-sensitive social protection

Name of the project: Moving from Social Protection to Child Sensitive Social Protection in Zambia 3.0

Country/ geographical location: Rufunsa and Chongwe Districts in Lusaka Province, Shibuyunji and Kabwe in Central Province, Kalulushi and Lufwanyama in Copperbelt Province (2026 light-touch), and national level engagement on policy, programme design, advocacy, and capacity building

Implementing partners: Jesuit Centre for Theological Reflections (JCTR)

Other partners: Ministry of Community Development and Social Services, Government (Local and Central), structures such as CWACs, WDCs, and PTCs, Social Protection Cooperating Partners and CSOs working on social protection in Zambia.

SCOPE OF ROLE

Reports to: Head of Programs and Operations

Staff directly reporting to this post: Project Coordinator, MEAL (Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning) Officer, Project Officer & Project Facilitator.

Indirect: None

Budget Responsibilities: Main budget holder for the MFA (Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland) funded projects (CSSP & CP).

Role Dimensions

KEY AREAS OF ACCOUNTABILITY

Award Implementation and Management

Lead the implementation of MFA Finland funded CSSP and CP projects and ensure timely delivery against work plans, budget expenditure plans, procurement plans, and HR planning.

Oversee day-to-day projects operations, including direct implementation and partner-led activities, ensuring quality.

Act as overall budget holder for the MFA Finland funded projects, ensuring effective financial oversight, forecasting, and compliance with donor and SCI policies.

Serve as the key link with Finance for budget planning, spending tracking, forecasting, cash requests, and modifications.

Ensure timely and accurate donor and internal reporting, including narrative, financial, and indicator performance tracking, coordinating inputs from across the thematic area and partners.

Partnership Management

Work with the partnership, awards & finance teams to identify appropriate partners for implementation of the sector response, including conducting capacity assessments and developing capacity strengthening plans.
Lead the development and management of partner agreements, including budgets, work plans, and review SCI Child Safeguarding Policy and Counter-Fraud, Bribery & Corruption to ensure timely submission of Partner Sub Award Agreements (PAAs) to Awards & Finance teams.
Provide ongoing support and supervision to partners, ensuring alignment with projects’ objectives and compliance and quality standards.
Regularly review partner progress against budget and work plan, and engage with them to support any adjustments needed, especially in response to context changes or operational challenges, to meet projects’ goals.
Review partner narrative, financial reports and MEAL data in line with internal deadlines for MEAL, Finance, and Awards Review Meetings.

Team Management and Supervision

Ensure appropriate staffing within the teams and that all staff understand and are able to perform their roles.
Establish performance management for all line-managed staff through clear objectives, ongoing feedback, quarterly reviews, and fair evaluations.
Provide strong, supportive leadership to the team by coaching and mentoring staff, helping them set and achieve clear priorities, and fostering a culture of accountability and continuous learning. Actively identify and address team challenges, promote well-being, and ensure a collaborative and high-performing work environment.
Promote a culture of shared ownership and accountability, ensuring that team members understand their roles and are empowered to contribute meaningfully to programme goals.
Delegate tasks effectively within the team, balancing workloads and supporting staff development through clear guidance, coaching, and follow-up.

Budgeting and Financial Management

Responsible for the overall projects’ financial and budgetary management. This responsibility includes.

Ensuring that a quality and timely projects’ phased budgets are aligned with the Detailed Implementation Plan (DIPs).
Ensure that projects’ implementation meets the monthly financial performance target (100% burn rate) and annual spending against life of awards’ budgets are within approved donor budgets.
Ensure that all financial policies and regulations relating to cash flow management, expenditure controls, cash management, accounting information, and advances management are in place and the management and control of funds are followed by the staff and partners in implementing the different projects’ activities.
Hold monthly staff meetings to plan and reflect on projects roll out.
Financial management – Ensure excellent financial management and accountability in line with SCI & donor policy guidelines anchored on effective and efficient forecasting, monitoring and tracking planned and actuals versus obligated.
Support audits to ensure seamless compliance with donor regulations.

Monitoring and Evaluation

Ensure timely and quality projects’ design and study processes which include baseline assessments, research, midline and endline evaluations.
Use monitoring data, including Quality Benchmarks, to inform adaptive planning and projects’ improvements.
Work with MEAL, CSSP & CP Technical Leads to define a learning and projects’ documentation agenda.
Lead pause- and reflect activities to understand what is working well and what adaptations may be needed to achieve projects’ results.
Ensure accountability mechanisms are integrated into all aspects of projects’ management structures including information sharing, beneficiary engagement (including children’s participation) and that excellent collection and management of complaints and feedback is conducted in close collaboration with MEAL staff.
Ensure regular monitoring of projects’ results, documentation of projects’ impact and achievements, case studies, lessons learnt, significant changes and best practices and coordinating, learning and reflection meetings/sessions.
Ensure functional program monitoring and evaluation systems are in place

Internal and External Representation, Engagement

Ensure regular engagement with SCF TA’s on CSSP & CP to ensure quality implementation of the projects”.
Represent Save the Children in relevant coordination forums, regional government meetings, and with other relevant regional as well as national stakeholders.
Support advocacy and policy engagement efforts in collaboration with the Advocacy, Campaigns, Communications, and Media teams.
Promote local partner participation in coordination mechanisms and policy dialogues.
Foster strong collaboration with Programme Development & Quality, MEAL, Awards, Finance, Safety and Security, and Operations teams.

SKILLS AND BEHAVIOURS (our Values in Practice)

Accountability

Holds self-accountable for making decisions, managing resources efficiently, achieving and role modelling Save the Children values
Holds the team and partners accountable to deliver on their responsibilities – giving them the freedom to deliver in the best way they see fit, providing the necessary development to improve performance and applying appropriate consequences when results are not achieved

Ambition

Sets ambitious and challenging goals for themselves (and their team), takes responsibility for their own personal development and encourages others to do the same
Widely shares their personal vision for Save the Children, engages and motivates others
Future orientated, thinks strategically

Collaboration

Builds and maintains effective relationships, with their team, colleagues, members and external partners and supporters
Values diversity, sees it as a source of competitive strength
Approachable, good listener, easy to talk to

Creativity

Develops and encourages new and innovative solutions
Willing to take disciplined risks

Integrity

Honest, encourages openness and transparency.

QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE

Master’s degree in psychology, social sciences, development studies or a comparable area with minimum 5-7 years’ experience in similar position, Additional years of experience can count in lieu of master’s degree to complement an undergraduate degree in a relevant subject;
Experience in the delivery of child protection and child sensitive social protection programmes/projects using right-based approaches;
Solid experience in grant management, including budget holding and donor reporting;
Substantial people and programme management experience within the NGO development sector, with understanding of and experience in working with Government departments and civil society partners;
Good project management and/or development programming in development and emergency context:
Fluency in written and spoken English with good report and proposal writing skills;
Strong communication, interpersonal and representational skills;
Ability to work collaboratively as part of a team;
Good analytical and writing skills as well as strong organizational skills and the ability to work independently;
Strong networking and advocacy skills;
Willingness to travel across project areas;
Willing to work under pressure and work extra hours, when required;
Knowledge of local language(s).

APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS

ONLY QUALIFIED APPLICANTS SHOULD APPLY BY ATTACHING A COVER LETTER AND AN UPDATED CV.

The closing date for receipt of applications is Wednesday 23^rd September 2026.

Due to the volume of applications we receive, only shortlisted candidates will be contacted by a member of the HR team.

Save the Children reserves the right to re advertise if suitable applicants are not found.

Save the Children is an equal opportunity and affirmative action employer that does not engage in any practices which discriminate against any person employed or seeking employment based on race, colour, religion, gender, national or ethnic origin, age, marital status and we will never ask that you pay for anything as part of the selection process or thereafter.

MFA CSSP/ CP Projects Manager