Experience

Independent Consultant

• 1 - 100 Employee

• Program Design / Business Development Consultant

  • Jan 2017 - Present

  Consulting for Plan International Canada • Proposal writer and contributor for a CAD 50 million program focused on sexual and reproductive health and rights for women and adolescent girls in 5 sub-Saharan African countries (Benin, Togo, Uganda, Malawi, and Zimbabwe). • Led program design and proposal development for emergency response projects in Uganda and Cameroon in response to Global Affairs Canada's 2018 Humanitarian Response Plan (HRP) launch, intended to assist crisis-affected refugee and host populations. Total requested funding: CAD 4 million. Sectors of intervention: WASH; livelihoods; child protection; and gender. Supported the early phases of a similar proposal development process as above for a project in Nigeria. Consulting for the International Rescue Committee • Program design coordinator and/or lead writer for the following women's empowerment / labour mobility projects: UK/DFID (Sierra Leone); Canada/GAC (Afghanistan); Sweden/SIDA (South Sudan); Europe/CERV (Greece/Italy); US/BPRM (US); Canada/EMP (Canada). . Program design coordinator and proposal writer to secure funding of AUD 3 million from the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) for a program targeting Myanmar refugees through protection and access to legal services. • Lead proposal writer and program design support to secure funding of EUR 8 million from the European Union for a social innovation program targeting Ethiopian communities. • Lead coordinator and proposal writer to secure funding of EUR 7 million from the European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (EU - ECHO) for a country-wide emergency response mechanism (ERM) program in Ethiopia. Sectors of intervention: WASH, health, nutrition, and protection. Deliverables: proposal narrative and logframe (ECHO's Single Form).



International Rescue Committee

• United States
• Non-profit Organizations
• 700 & Above Employee

• Grants Coordinator

  • Jun 2013 - Jun 2014

  • Oversaw the Grants Unit managing a team of atleast four, providing training and guidance on program design / proposal development, grants management, and donor compliance/relations. • Provided program coordination and grants management for 40+ grants with a portfolio of over USD 60 million, building and sustaining effective relationships with internal staff, donors, and partners. • Led program design and co-developed logical frameworks and monitoring tools for programs on environment, education, youth livelihoods, health, women's empowerment, and child protection, covering nine local regions and 20 refugee camps. • Identified synergies among six program technical sectors and liaised with operational units enabling high-quality, effective and efficient programming. • Investigated and responded to funding opportunities, expanding existing programs and establishing new programs; the organization’s portfolio increased from $16 million in 2010 to over $60 million in 2014. • Supported the expansion of donor pool; strengthened donor relations through constructive, effective and diplomatic communication; served as a primary point of contact for seven United Nations and United States Government donors. • Closely and frequently liaised with senior management, providing thoughtful feedback for making high-level organizational decisions. • Closely and effectively liaised with IRC headquarters in New York and London for proposal development and managing U.S. and European grants (e.g., BPRM, ECHO). • Developed staff capacity through mentoring and detailed/constructive feedback on reviewed proposals, budgets, and reports. • Prepared and led presentations on departmental activities in small- and large-group meetings.

• Program Manager

  • Jun 2012 - May 2013

  • Led the development of successful funding proposals (a maximum of 10+ proposals at a time) by effectively coordinating with various IRC departments (technical sectors, finance, supply chain, HR/admin, field staff, headquarters in New York and London). Major donors from which large or yearly funding was secured: USAID, OFDA, BPRM, EU - EA & ECHO, DFID, UNHCR, UNICEF. • Developed high-quality budgets, with little to zero pass-back rates from IRC headquarters and/or donors. • Coordinated closely with program quality monitoring staff and technical sector teams to develop program monitoring tools, address gaps in program implementation, and identify program successes for documentation (e.g., success stories). • Improved proposal development and grant management processes by managing the updating, streamlining and dissemination of Grants Unit tools and resources (e.g., Grant Tracking, Proposal Tracking, Project Feedback Forms).

• Senior Program Officer

  • Jun 2010 - May 2012

  • Wrote clear and concise donor reports as well as provided detailed reviews of donor reports (an average of 13 per month) improving accuracy and readability. • Identified gaps in data collection / reporting and worked closely with technical teams and field staff to improve data quality. • Reviewed/tracked/processed donor agreements; reviewed government reports and agreements, and assisted in resolving any arising discrepancies/issues. • Provided inputs to the development of two capacity building training modules (Report Writing and Excel Skills) and managed the roll-out of trainings across three program implementation sites.



UNIDO

• Austria
• International Trade and Development
• 700 & Above Employee

• Project Officer

  • May 2007 - Mar 2010

  • Provided inputs to the development of a Bamboo Sector Strategy Framework for Ethiopia (including bamboo policy development and improvements to the resource base). • Supported the design of annual project action plans (2008 and 2009); produced monthly, quarterly and biannual project progress reports. • Led the project’s 'Bamboo Design and Product Development' component, involving a team of four. Innovative and unique bamboo product lines developed to enhance competitiveness in the global market, and production manuals developed and circulated. • Conducted needs assessments in one project site to identify gaps in the bamboo value chain. • Led and managed all activities related to the importation of exotic bamboo seeds from China and Europe. • Monitored grassroots activities including bamboo nursery operations and trial plantations at project sites. • Conducted in-depth reviews to improve the quality of manuals for bamboo cultivation and furniture production. • Supported HQ missions to Ethiopia by developing TOR for consultants, co-facilitating training workshops, planning field trips, and reviewing field mission reports. • Led the project's PR activities: managed the review and publishing of project booklets, and the drafting/approval/finalization of workshop proceedings; wrote articles for newspapers and the project website; and assisted in script writing for the project's documentary film.



UN Environment Programme

• International Affairs
• 700 & Above Employee

• Program Intern

  • Jul 2006 - Apr 2007

  • Contributed to inter-agency cluster/sub-cluster meetings dealing with environment, water, energy and sanitation, in support of the African Union’s (AU) New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) under the coordination of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA). • Reviewed water- and other environment-related projects with a view in identifying commitments and proposals for participation of UNEP. • Backstopped UNEP technical missions to Ethiopia and organized UNEP conferences in Addis Ababa; served as the UNEP lead in successfully organizing the first African rift geothermal conference with large attendance from the African rift countries (Djibouti, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, and Ethiopia). • Acted as the UNEP Addis Ababa Office lead for the Billion Tree Planting Campaign global initiative in 2007. • Coordinated with NGOs, government agencies and community-based associations in organizing international environment awareness-raising events (e.g., World Environment Day). • Attended UN Country Team, UNECA and AU meetings on environment issues and produced articles for UNEP Addis Ababa's monthly newsletter.