Senior Program Officer, VAcancy at India Government Relations and Strategic Partnerships,

Post:Senior Program Officer,
Organization:India Government Relations and Strategic Partnerships,
Location: New Delhi, India
Division:Global Policy and Advocacy
Department:India Country Office
Location:New Delhi

Foundation Overview
Guided by the belief that every life has equal value, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation works to help all people lead healthy, productive lives. In developing countries, it focuses on improving people's health and giving them the chance to lift themselves out of hunger and extreme poverty. In the United States, it seeks to ensure that all people-especially those with the fewest resources-have access to the opportunities they need to succeed in school and life. Based in Seattle, the foundation is led by CEO Jeff Raikes and co-chair William H. Gates Sr., under the direction of Bill and Melinda Gates and Warren Buffett.

Group Summary

The mission of the Global Policy & Advocacy program is to understand and shape the public policy debates affecting the Foundation's work in developing countries, build support for its major program and policy objectives, and develop partnerships and alliances that can advance the Foundation's policy objectives nationally and globally. Because the Foundation's resources alone are not enough to solve the challenges ahead, GPA also supports advocacy efforts to engage diverse stakeholders and promote innovative solutions that advance our program goals. GPA is composed of our International Programs in India, China and Africa; our Europe & Middle East team based in London and our US, Canada & Asia-Pacific team based in Washington, DC; a Program Advocacy team; a Policy Analysis & Financing team; and our Charitable Sector Support team. We work in close partnership with grantees, our colleagues in the Global Health and Global Development Programs, the CEOs office, and Foundation Communications to build the environment in which all people have the opportunity to lead healthy and productive lives.

Responsibilities

The Senior Program Officer (PO) is a key member of the India Country Program team and shares responsibility for management of the Foundation supported development initiatives at the national level. This position will assist in the development of strategies, and actively manage partnerships at national, state (especially UP and Bihar) to achieve the desired impact of the Foundation investments. S/he will assist in working closely with the Government of India (GOI) and the ICO leadership team to evaluate and define proposed partnerships for increasing impact in health, agriculture and other sectors. The position will be located in New Delhi. The position will work towards creation, management of critical ICO level partnership in support of the policy and advocacy goals of the foundation.

We are looking for an individual with expertise and direct experience in program management and coordination with multiple stakeholders. The ideal candidate will have worked at different levels of the government and other development sector stakeholders and would have demonstrated experience in and an appreciation for the complexities of implementation and scaling up of programs in partnership with a wide range of stakeholders.

Key Responsibilities:
Management of critical relationships:

• - Lead responsibility to develop and maintain relationships with government and other key partners at national level especially with development and technical partners critical to Foundation's success
• - Leverage knowledge of national and state level government structures, working protocols, decision-making processes to identify influencers who can partner with the foundation to develop and implement programs
• - Develop strong and collaborative relationships with technical teams throughout the Foundation's Program in order to leverage opportunities to increase impact through consolidated grant making activities
• - Responsible for managing internal and external processes to deliver on the Foundation's commitments and strategic partnerships with the Government of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and other states
• GOI Partnership development:
• - Identify opportunities and develop strategies to work with the Government of India at the central and state levels, in collaboration with NGOs, the private sector and other partners, to identify and address policy constraints, optimize visibility, offer compelling evidence, boost political will and mobilize necessary resources in support of India's development goals.
• - Track legislative and other policy initiatives and strategies pertaining to the foundation's work in the above mentioned sectors in support of the Government of India, and lead ongoing and collaborative efforts within the foundation to assess the implications for investment and engagement.
• - Collaborate with ICO and Seattle based program staff (and development partners as necessary) to evaluate and define proposed partnerships with the GOI
• - Participate in and promote conferences and convening's' that provide opportunities for shaping the improvement of development priorities of the GOI and the foundation with other development partners.

Qualifications

•     Masters degree in Social Sciences or any other discipline relevant to the position
•     -15 years of experience in designing and implementing development programs at the national and state level
•     -Knowledge of Indian government structures. Has good networks/relationships at the national level(specially Ministry of Health, GOI)
•     -Highly strategic in thinking and approach. Should have the ability to vision higher levels of strategic engagement with Government of India – to advocate for changes in policies and programs at a national level.
•     -Experience in a global donor or funding agency is preferred
•     -Experience in grant management, review and evaluation and program design is desirable.
•     -Highly ‘engagements oriented in approach' and be able to facilitate strategic dialogues at the highest level of government.
•     -Demonstrated ability to work with multiple stakeholders including government, other donors, grantees and to identify, establish and maintain effective working relationships
•     -Experience in a role requiring collaboration in complex internal and external organizations.
•     -Demonstrated ability to work with efficiency and diplomacy, flexibility and a sense of humor, particularly as part of a team effort.
•     -History of involvement and commitment to public health issues of the poor.
•     -Ability to travel to remote, rural and under-served regions in north India
•     -Excellent written and verbal communication skills. Good negotiation & influencing skills.
•     As part of our standard hiring process for new employees, employment with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation will be contingent upon successful completion of a comprehensive background check.

Requisition Number:4254BR
How to Apply
http://unjobs.org/vacancies/1374008870902