Partnerships Manager & Grants Writer at TaRL Africa

Reports to:            Senior Fundraising Manager

Duty Station:        Remote

Application Deadline :              21 February 2025

Time Zone:            Candidates should be within a 2-hour time difference from the Central Africa Time (CAT) zone.

About TaRL Africa 

TaRL Africa initiative is hosted by Empower Learning Africa, a not-for-profit organisation registered and headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya, with teams in Côte d’Ivoire, Nigeria, and Zambia and locally registered offices in Nigeria and Côte d’Ivoire. TaRL Africa began as a joint venture by Pratham and J-PAL in 2019, to support governments and organisations across Africa to accelerate children’s foundational skill learning using the evidence-based “Teaching at the Right Level” (TaRL) approach. TaRL Africa’s vision is for every child across Africa to have foundational skills so that they can have a better future. Our mission is to ensure education systems effectively equip children with these foundational skills.

We support governments and organisations in over 15 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa to design, deliver, and scale impactful TaRL programmes while learning and sharing how the approach can be improved for different contexts. Together with partners, TaRL Africa has reached over five million children with TaRL programming.

Summary of the role

TaRL Africa is seeking an experienced Partnerships Manager and Grants Writer to join our dynamic team. This position will report directly to the Senior Fundraising Manager and work closely with the Director of Programs and Partnerships.

The role will spend half of its time providing overall management of TaRL Africa’s contribution to an institutional donor-funded program supporting the update of evidence-based initiatives at scale. The role will oversee the development and implementation of the TA projects alongside the TaRL Africa and partner project leadership team.

This role is responsible for delivering results as outlined in the results framework, overseeing the various stages of the project from mobilization to completion. This would involve program planning, donor compliance, stakeholder engagement, reporting, and ensuring effective monitoring and evaluation (M&E) in accordance with donor and organizational requirements. The Program Manager will work closely with partners and internal teams to ensure the successful execution of the program.

The role will be remotely based with travel to sub-Saharan Africa if required.

The other half will be dedicated to developing funding proposals and supporting reporting for large institutional and multilateral donors in the international development sector, including the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO), USAID, and other institutions as well as UNICEF and other multilateral agencies.

The ideal candidate will bring deep expertise in institutional grant management, writing, and reporting within the international development sector, with a strong preference for experience in education in Africa.

Program Management (40%) 

• Serve as the primary point of contact for a prime partner.
• Lead the execution of the program, ensuring activities align with the donor’s expectations, timelines, and budget.
• Develop and oversee program work plans, ensuring adherence to agreed targets and milestones.
• Coordinate with internal teams (M&E, finance, operations) and implementing partners for smooth program delivery.
• Identify and mitigate risks that may impact the program’s success.

Grant Writing and Reporting: (50%) 

• Lead the entire grant writing process for institutional grants.
• Collaborate across teams to develop an initial concept, gather all requirements, and put together a high-quality final submission, ensuring alignment with donor requirements.
• Craft compelling, clear, and concise proposals, including technical sections, management and staffing plans, resumes, and executive summaries, tailored to each donor’s specific requirements.
• Prepare timely and accurate reports for institutional grants, in accordance with donor requirements. Lead the process to collect and consolidate inputs from program teams, for both narrative and financial reports.
•  Work closely with the Senior Fundraising Manager, Programs and Partnerships Team, Monitoring and Evaluation Team, and other program staff to gather relevant information and data required for proposals and donor reports.
• Edit and review contributions from other team members, synthesizing raw content from various sources into cohesive, comprehensive passages. Ensure content is clearly written and structured per the expectations of the specific donor.
• Ensure that final submissions are compliant with donor regulations and instructions, and meet the highest standards of writing and presentation for both proposals and reports.

Donor Compliance & Grant Management (10%) 

• Ensure full compliance with donor regulations, policies, and reporting requirements.
• Track deliverables and ensure timely submission of high-quality donor reports (technical and financial).
• Work with the finance team to oversee budget utilization, ensuring alignment with donor-approved budgets.
• Coordinate with procurement teams to adhere to donor and organizational policies.
• Work with the MEL team to develop and oversee data collection, analysis, and reporting frameworks.

Minimum requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in International Development, Public Policy, Education, English, Communications, or a related field (Master’s degree preferred).
• Extensive experience (minimum 7 years) in writing and managing successful proposals and grants for major international development donors, including FCDO, USAID, UNICEF, etc.
• Proven track record of leading proposal processes and securing funding from these donors.
• Exceptional writing, editing, and proofreading skills, with a strong ability to articulate complex ideas clearly and persuasively.
• Deep understanding of the international development sector, with a focus on education in Africa, is preferred.
• Ability to work independently, manage multiple projects simultaneously, and meet tight deadlines.
• Strong research and analytical skills, with attention to detail.
• Excellent communication and collaboration skills, with the ability to work effectively with diverse teams.

TaRL Africa Values

1. We put children’s learning first.
2. We are always learning, improving, and innovating.
3. We are locally rooted for high-quality delivery and sustainable impact.
4. We are kind, respectful, and collaborative.
5. We are proactive, committed to integrity, and doing our best each day.

TaRL Africa provides a nationally peer-benchmarked compensation package aligned with organisational salary scales, taking into account both qualifications and professional experience.

Method of Apply 

Interested and Qualified should visit Teaching at the Right Level Africa to Apply