Background information about the job or company (e.g., role context, company overview)

Mercy Corps is a global humanitarian aid agency engaged in transitional environments that have experienced some sort of shock: natural disaster, economic collapse, or conflict.

General Position Summary

The BSP Area Coordinator reports to the Kenya Country Lead and serves as Mercy Corps’ focal point for the Border Security Programme (BSP) within the assigned area. The role provides oversight and coordination of partner activities, leads area-level work planning, and serves as the primary liaison with local government and other key stakeholders.

The Area Coordinator ensures that activities across BSP outcomes and partners are well-coordinated, sequenced, complementary, timely, and within budget, while remaining aligned with overall programme objectives

Essential Job Responsibilities

Area Coordination and Work Planning

• Coordinate and oversee all BSP partner activities in the area, ensuring they are sequenced, complementary and aligned with the overall programme workplan.
• With the Kenya Country Lead and outcome leads, develop and update the area workplan quarterly, and chair regular area-level coordination meetings with partners.
• Track progress against the workplan and report on implementation, flagging delays, gaps or overlaps between partners and proposing solutions.
• Maintain the area risk register, updating it quarterly and as needed, and escalate issues promptly.
• Attend quarterly programme meetings and contribute area-level updates, lessons and priorities.

Partner Oversight

• Act as the day-to-day link between consortium partners, local partners and outcome leads in the area.
• Monitor partner delivery against agreed milestones and verify activities. Recommend milestone payments or corrective action where needed.
• Identify opportunities to layer and link activities across partners and outcomes to increase impact.
• Ensure partners comply with programme, donor and safeguarding requirements.

Government Engagement and Representation

• Serve as the primary liaison with county and national government offices in the area, building relationships that support implementation.
• Brief government counterparts regularly on progress, challenges and lessons, and organise joint field visits where appropriate.
• Facilitate government participation in programme activities and planning.
• Represent Mercy Corps and BSP at area-level coordination forums, in consultation with BSP leadership.

Operations, Security and MEL

• Liaise with finance, logistics, procurement, HR and administration teams so operational support meets field needs and complies with Mercy Corps and donor policies.
• Work with the security focal point to ensure activities are planned with sound security analysis and that team safety systems are in place.
• Support the MEL team so area data is collected, used and fed back into adaptive management and the BSP learning agenda.

Safeguarding responsibilities

• Actively learns safeguarding and integrates it into their work, including safeguarding risks and mitigations related to their area of work.
• Practices the values of Mercy Corps including respecting the dignity and well-being of participants and fellow team members.
• Encourages openness and communication in their team; encourages team members to submit reports if they have any concerns using reporting mechanisms e.g., Integrity Hotline and other options.

Supervisory Responsibility

None

Accountability

Reports Directly To: Kenya Country Lead

Works Directly with: Programme Leads, Operations Team, Finance Team, Program Managers, consortium partners, local implementing partners, and donor stakeholders.

Accountability to Participants and Stakeholders

Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our program participants, community partners, other stakeholders, and to international standards guiding international relief and development work. We are committed to actively engaging communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects.

Knowledge and Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in Programme Management, Development studies, Migration, security Sector/Police reform, Border/Security Management, or related discipline.
• At least five (5) years of relevant professional experience in multi-sectoral programs, including security, governance and policing, strategic planning and implementing programs.
• Strong managerial skills, including adaptive management, coordination and decision-making.
• Experience working in complex programs required.
• Sound understanding of financial, procurement, administration, and logistics management systems, including remote management.
• Experience coordinating multiple activities, developing synergies and creating opportunities for collaboration.
• Strong commitment to local capacity building and the ability to engage local stakeholders in project design and implementation.
• Experience working with host governments at the sub-national level, INGOs and national NGOs.
• Excellent organizational and project management skills; detail-oriented; and possessing an ability to anticipate program and operational needs.
• Proven ability to work cooperatively with others in a team environment and to a diverse group of national and international staff.
• Understanding of adaptive management and participatory methodologies for project design, implementation, and evaluation.
• Demonstrated proficiency with the MS Office software (i.e., Word, Excel, PowerPoint) required.
• Knowledge of the local language in the Area of application.
• Persuasive written and oral communication in English and Swahili required; competency in a relevant local language beneficial.

• Coordinate and oversee all BSP partner activities in the area, ensuring they are sequenced, complementary and aligned with the overall programme workplan.
• With the Kenya Country Lead and outcome leads, develop and update the area workplan quarterly, and chair regular area-level coordination meetings with partners.
• Track progress against the workplan and report on implementation, flagging delays, gaps or overlaps between partners and proposing solutions.
• Maintain the area risk register, updating it quarterly and as needed, and escalate issues promptly.
• Attend quarterly programme meetings and contribute area-level updates, lessons and priorities.
• Act as the day-to-day link between consortium partners, local partners and outcome leads in the area.
• Monitor partner delivery against agreed milestones and verify activities. Recommend milestone payments or corrective action where needed.
• Identify opportunities to layer and link activities across partners and outcomes to increase impact.
• Ensure partners comply with programme, donor and safeguarding requirements.
• Serve as the primary liaison with county and national government offices in the area, building relationships that support implementation.
• Brief government counterparts regularly on progress, challenges and lessons, and organise joint field visits where appropriate.
• Facilitate government participation in programme activities and planning.
• Represent Mercy Corps and BSP at area-level coordination forums, in consultation with BSP leadership.
• Liaise with finance, logistics, procurement, HR and administration teams so operational support meets field needs and complies with Mercy Corps and donor policies.
• Work with the security focal point to ensure activities are planned with sound security analysis and that team safety systems are in place.
• Support the MEL team so area data is collected, used and fed back into adaptive management and the BSP learning agenda.
• Actively learns safeguarding and integrates it into their work, including safeguarding risks and mitigations related to their area of work.
• Practices the values of Mercy Corps including respecting the dignity and well-being of participants and fellow team members.
• Encourages openness and communication in their team; encourages team members to submit reports if they have any concerns using reporting mechanisms e.g., Integrity Hotline and other options.

• Strong managerial skills, including adaptive management, coordination and decision-making.
• Experience coordinating multiple activities, developing synergies and creating opportunities for collaboration.
• Strong commitment to local capacity building and the ability to engage local stakeholders in project design and implementation.
• Excellent organizational and project management skills; detail-oriented; and possessing an ability to anticipate program and operational needs.
• Proven ability to work cooperatively with others in a team environment and to a diverse group of national and international staff.
• Understanding of adaptive management and participatory methodologies for project design, implementation, and evaluation.
• Demonstrated proficiency with the MS Office software (i.e., Word, Excel, PowerPoint) required.
• Knowledge of the local language in the Area of application.
• Persuasive written and oral communication in English and Swahili required; competency in a relevant local language beneficial.

• Bachelor’s degree in Programme Management, Development studies, Migration, security Sector/Police reform, Border/Security Management, or related discipline.
• At least five (5) years of relevant professional experience in multi-sectoral programs, including security, governance and policing, strategic planning and implementing programs.
• Experience working in complex programs required.
• Sound understanding of financial, procurement, administration, and logistics management systems, including remote management.
• Experience working with host governments at the sub-national level, INGOs and national NGOs.