Chief of Party

About the Position

Chief of Party

The Danish Refugee Council (DRC) is seeking a Chief of Party for our consortium in Nigeria. This role is responsible for providing vision, leadership, and direction to the project, ensuring the project meets its stated goals and addressing the needs of conflict and climate-affected populations in Northeast and Northwest Nigeria.

Responsibilities

Management & Leadership

• Ensure high-quality technical program monitoring through hands-on guidance and support grounded in the program’s strategic objectives and adherence to donor requirements.
• Directly supervise CMU project staff in line with DRC HR policies and input from the consortium members.
• Chair the project steering committee, ensuring key information on the project is available to senior members of the consortium and decisions are taken to support the effectiveness of the consortium.
• Document and disseminate key steering committee decisions, roll-out the decisions and follow-up as required.
• Monitor work plan and keep partners accountable to program commitments.

Compliance & Support

• Manage a Finance and Admin Coordinator to provide supervision and monitoring of the programme support aspects of the consortium including administration, finance, logistics, and human resources.
• Provide oversight to consortium partners on contract inception, implementation, and closeout activities as well as maintain a knowledge base of different processes and requirements for fund and project management.
• Provide support to the Finance and Admin Coordinator, to verify all financial reports and expenditure, lead and coordinate the auditing process, maintain knowledge of all donor requirements and be able to provide advice to partners in finance, procurement, human resource, and visibility requirements.
• Oversee financial management, project accounting systems, sub-grant management, and ensure operational efficiency through monitoring partner financial reports, providing guidance on cost eligibility, acting as the donor focal point to clarify rules and processes, and supporting the implementation of corrective measures when required.
• Maintain country-specific and project wide risk register, consolidating agency specific risks at the consortium level, ensuring all risks have appropriate ownership, are monitored and mitigation and response measures are in place.

Program Implementation & Strategy

• In coordination with the Steering Committee and Technical Working Groups, develop the consortium intervention strategy.
• Facilitate and ensure the effectiveness of different governance structures, including the Steering Committee, Country Level Technical Groups, Advocacy Groups, Advisory Groups and other ad-hoc working groups deemed necessary.
• Oversee planning, program design and delivery of consortium objectives, and budgets.
• Facilitate the decision-making process within the project governance structure and that actions are documented and followed up.
• Ensure the timely delivery of agreed outputs of the Consortium and ensuring quality program implementation in line with the agreed strategy.
• Ensure the set-up of a harmonized Vulnerability Assessment Framework, of robust community engagement, and of a centralized, interoperable information management system that facilitates data sharing and coordination among the humanitarian community.

Representation & Advocacy

• Organize the Consortium Advocacy Working Group (AWG) or other relevant set-up aiming at elaborating and piloting the advocacy objectives and activities.
• Serve as primary project representative to donors and other local and international stakeholders, responsible for addressing all project matters.
• In coordination with country level AWGs and relevant partner focal points, develop and maintain positive relations with relevant ministries and other government counterparts, donors, local organizations and program partners.
• Engage in and represent the consortium at the country level INGO and UN coordination architecture, promoting interoperable information management system that facilitates data sharing and coordination among the humanitarian community.
• Provide strategic leadership on external communications in line with Steering Committee and AWG guidance.

Reporting & Communication

• Monitor program implementation and ensure regular reporting by consortium partners.
• Ensure all partners are submitting timely financial and narrative reports in line with donor and DRC system requirements.
• Review and approve final donor reports based on inputs from consortium partners Finance and Admin Coordinator.
• Review actual financial performance against the budget, and explain variances on a regular basis.
• Ensure the DRC online project management database is regularly updated.
• Provide support to the development and roll-out of project communication strategies, including compliance with donor’s branding and marking requirements.

Business Development

• Identifying, researching and developing new funding opportunities within the Consortium mandate and utilizing consortium member’s specific skills and capacities.
• Lead and coordinate the development of full proposals linked to the consortium scope.

Requirements

• Minimum 7 years of professional work experience in humanitarian work, some specifically in displacement settings.
• Proven success and experience in managing consortia, with a strong preference for ECHO-funded programs.
• Demonstrated expertise in representation, networking, and engaging with multiple stakeholders.
• Motivated, detail-oriented, and accustomed to working in challenging environments.

Required Skills & Qualities

• Proficiency in analytical thinking, strategic planning, and communication.
• Strong writing and negotiation skills.
• Competence in data analysis.
• Excellent communication skills, as well as patience and politeness, are required.
• Fluency in written and spoken English.

General Regulations

• The employee shall follow DRC instructions on safety, confidentiality and ethical guidelines, including the Code of Conduct and the Humanitarian Accountability Framework.
• Employee should not engage in any other paid activity during the DRC contract period without prior authorization.
• Employee should not engage in any activity that could harm DRC or the implementation of any project during the DRC contract period.
• Employee should not give interviews to the media or publish project-related photos or other material without prior authorization.
• Employee shall return all borrowed equipment for the project to DRC after the end of the contract period or upon request.

Application Process

This advertisement is an internal advertisement open to DRC Nigeria and DRC Global.

All applicants must send a cover letter and an updated CV (no longer than four pages) on DRC website. Both must be in English.

DRC provides equal opportunity in employment and prohibits discrimination in employment on the basis of race, sex, color, religion, sexual orientation, age, marital status or disability.

DRC encourages all applicants to apply and does not practice any discrimination in any recruitment process.

However, all applicants shall take into consideration that DRC cannot offer an international work contract to a citizen of the country of assignment (in this specific case, Nigeria).

Applications close on Tuesday, the 16th of June 2026 at 11:59pm (GMT-time). Applications submitted after this date will not be considered.

Due to the urgency of the position, DRC has the right to recruit a candidate who matches the required profile before the above deadline.

About the Company

Founded in 1956, DRC Danish Refugee Council is Denmark’s largest, and a leading international NGO. We have continuously been ranked as one of the best NGOs in the world - and are one of the few with a specific expertise in forced displacement. In over 30 countries, we protect, advocate and build sustainable futures for refugees and other displacement-affected people and communities.

By working in DRC, you will be joining a global workforce of over 6,000 employees. We pride ourselves on our:

• Professionalism, impact & expertise
• Humanitarian approach & the work we do
• Purpose, meaningfulness & own contribution
• Culture, values & strong leadership
• Fair compensation & continuous development

DRC’s capacity to ensure the protection of and assistance to refugees, IDP’s and other persons of concern depends on the ability of our staff to uphold and promote the highest standards of ethical and professional conduct in relation DRC’s values and Code of Conduct, including safeguarding against sexual exploitation, abuse and harassment. DRC conducts thorough and comprehensive background checks as part of the recruitment process.

Danish Refugee Council is an equal opportunity employer and we consider all applicants based on individual merit and qualifications, regardless of personal characteristics or attributes. We are committed to increasing the diversity of our workforce, aiming for a 50% balance of men and women in management roles and ensuring that at least 50% of management roles are filled by national staff. We recognize that a diverse and inclusive team is crucial for achieving our organizational goals and making a positive impact on the communities we serve.