Director of Multi-Country Projects

Danish Refugee Council, one of the world’s leading humanitarian NGOs, is currently looking for a highly qualified Director of Multi-Country Projects.

Alongside DRC’s normative country programmes, DRC has a portfolio of projects and platforms that are regionally led that are multi-country, cross-border and/or delivered through partnerships in countries where DRC is not present. This portfolio of projects is a significant and growing area of the organization that leverages DRC’s thematic expertise, longstanding presence and commitments to situations.

The setup of multi-country projects is complex and necessitates additional oversight, and performance and risk management to ensure effective governance, delivery and attainment of results. The most common multi-country project is being delivered over 3-5 countries, with 3-5 DRC legal entities involved together with a mix of international and national actors. Most of the multi-country projects are multi-year with an average 2.5 years. Lastly, DRC also multi-country projects that support Platforms and Secretariats as well as multi-country projects delivered in countries where DRC is not present. The project management models are diverse: from Chiefs of Party who lead integrated teams to Consortium Managers who coordinate projects across multiple DRC and external entities, and Project Managers who drive less complex projects. Internally, these projects require additional effort to ensure clarity to DRC accountabilities in the many layers that DRC is engaged – as an organisation, at a project-level as well as at a membership level where multiple DRC entities are part of a single project. The portfolio in EAGL is DKK 310 million with a further DKK 70 million in active business development.

Overall purpose of the role:

The Head of Multi-Country Projects (Hub-Anchored) will provide end-to-end management oversight of DRC’s portfolio of multi-country and cross-border projects, including platforms, in the defined region of the Hub.  The Head of Multi-Country Projects will line manage all individual multi-country project leads – Chiefs of Party, Consortium Managers, Programme Managers and Project managers – and work closely what Hub stakeholders to that DRC’s expertise and value-offer is conveyed through strategic engagement and representation, partnership and high quality programme design.

About the job

Direct managerial oversight and support

• Provide end-to-end management oversight of all multi-country projects in EAGL, ensuring all projects are delivered on time, budget and quality
• Lead and manage direct reports (including people planning, performance, well-being and development), , ensuring clear and realistic performance-based management goals and that there is a strong relationship with country operations built on trust, communication and clarity of roles and responsibilities.
• Contribute to the ongoing development of DRC’s policies and operational practices for multi-country project governance and management.
• Working with the Country Directors (CDs) and Principal Operations Support Advisor (POSA) to ensure robust risk management practices in place for all MCPs.

Representation

• Working with EAGL multi-country project leads and Hub roles, represent the MCPs to authorities, donors, partners, and in various co-ordination fora to strengthen DRC’s position nationally and regionally.
• Contribute to ensuring that DRC maintains excellent and productive relations with all key stakeholders, especially beneficiaries, local authorities, the humanitarian community and donors.
• Working across country teams and multi-country project leads, ensure that MCP representation and engagement is well organised, coordinated across country and global levels with robust information sharing practices are in place.

Fundraising and Advocacy

• Taking the lead from relevant workstreams, support fundraising and donor engagement for EAGL MCP initiatives.
• Working with EAGL multi-country project leads, ensure that ongoing projects are delivering on fundraising and advocacy needs for projects.
• Working across country teams and multi-country project leads, ensure that MCP fundraising and advocacy plans are working in conjunction with global and country-level plans and that information sharing practices are in place.

Programmes

• Taking the lead from relevant workstreams, support programme development of new EAGL MCP initiatives.
• Working with EAGL multi-country project leads, ensure that ongoing projects are working with, leveraging and feeding into DRC’s areas of programmatic excellence and Strategy 2030 at both country and global level.
• Contribute to the development of regional strategic partnerships for new and ongoing MCPs, including INGOs, Local NGOs and networks, authorities, research institutes and international networks.
• Promote an environment of rich programmatic sharing and evidenced-based programmatic design.

Safety

• Working with global and country-level safety accountabilities, ensure that all MCPs have working safety plans that are adapted to the variable safety contexts and project management models.

Accountability and Quality

• Support the role out of accountability processes across multi-country operations.
• Champion the critical importance of programme quality across MCPs.

About you

To be successful in this role we expect you to have Minimum seven years’ management experience in emergency/development contexts as country director/senior manager of a humanitarian or development organization or similar.

Moreover, we also expect the following:

Required

• Bachelor's degree in political science, international development, economics or other relevant field.
• Experience representing a large and leading organization to donors, external partners and authorities.
• Experience in managing staff in insecure/stressful locations.
• Experience with conflict related displacement issues.
• Experience of managing budgets and multiple donor contracts.
• Experience in donor contact, fundraising and networking.
• Experience working in the EAGL an advantage.
• Experience with networking, advocacy and coordination.
• Experience and proven leadership skills and a competence in people management.
• Proven communicator with all types of stakeholders; and
• Proven commitment to accountable practices and knowledge of quality assurance systems
• Proficiency in English required, while other regional languages are beneficial

In this position, you are expected to demonstrate DRC’ five core competencies: 

Striving for excellence: You focus on reaching results while ensuring an efficient process. 

Collaborating: You involve relevant parties and encourage feedback. 

Taking the lead: You take ownership and initiative while aiming for innovation. 

Communicating: You listen and speak effectively and honestly. 

Demonstrating integrity: You uphold and promote the highest standards of ethical and professional conduct in relation to our values and Code of Conduct, including safeguarding against sexual exploitation, abuse and harassment.

We offer

Contract length: 2 Years

Band: Management Band D

Work location: Nairobi - Kenya

Designation of Duty Station: Accompanied Family Duty Station

Start date: 1st January 2026

Salary and conditions will be in accordance with Danish Refugee Council’s Terms of Employment for employees on national or expatriate contract ; please refer to our website for more details.
 

Application process

All applicants must upload a cover letter and an updated CV (no longer than four pages) in English. Applications sent by email will not be considered.

Closing date for applications: 1st December 2025.
 

For more information about the Danish Refugee Council, please visit our website drc.ngo.

Danish Refugee Council is an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to creating an inclusive and positive work environment based on mutual respect for all employees. All applicants are considered for employment regardless of personal characteristics or attributes.