Project Advisor

Project Advisor – Risk & Compliance, Operations

This position is contingent upon approval of the Project Agreement

The Opportunity

Save the Children believes every child deserves a future. In Bhutan and around the world, we give children a healthy start in life, the opportunity to learn and protection from harm. We do whatever it takes for children – every day and in times of crisis – transforming their lives and future we share. Save the Children expects that anyone associated with it abides by its Safeguarding and other Zero Tolerance Policies.

The project titled “Strengthening the future generation development system through enhancing the quality of basic education and job readiness in Madhesh Province, Nepal” will be implemented from 2025 until 2029, through the financial support from Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) and Save the Children Korea with a focus on Education with Livelihood and Climate Resilience as sub themes. The Project Advisor will be mainly responsible for oversight on the project management to ensure donor compliance, engaging with SC Korea, SCI Nepal and KOICA Nepal Office for effective delivery of the project.

This role supports the SCI Nepal project team and PNGOs to operate and manage the project in accordance with the KOICA compliance – administration and finance relating to the project operations.

KEY AREAS OF ACCOUNTABILITY:

STRATEGIC GUIDANCE ON DONOR COMPLIANCE:

• Provide oversight, guidance and advice to SCI Nepal and Partner organisations on donor compliance to ensure project financial reports meet donor’s requirements.
• Provide strategic guidance and training to SCI Nepal staff (Project Manager, Awards, Finance, and Procurement) on donor compliance requirements embedded in project management, finance, operation, and quality reporting.
• Lead meetings and discussions to understand issues and challenges and support the project team to make decisions in line with donor compliance.
• Monitor, review, and provide feedback on overall budget management including procurement, specifically budget planning and reallocation, budget expenditure analysis, and ensuring that expenditure evidence documents are qualified for submission to the donor.
• Provide guidance and advice to SCI Nepal and Partner organisations on donor compliance to ensure performance monitoring reports meet the donor’s requirements
• Provide guidance and training to SCI Nepal staff (Project Manager, Awards, and MEAL team) on donor compliance requirements embedded in the project’s MEAL plan and quality reporting.
• Monitor, review, and provide guidance to ensure performance evidence documents are properly collated according to the PDM, qualifying for submission to the donor.
• Ensure performance verification data is collected, reported to donor in a proper way and uploaded to the donor designated website – KOPIS

DONOR LIAISON AND COMMUNICATIONS:

• Lead daily communications with KOICA Nepal Office to discuss critical problems in terms of donor compliance requirements and to minimize operational risks and to ensure their continued support
• Identify risks and issues, especially regarding budget management and project operations, and consult with SCK and KOICA to provide timely solutions to the SCI Nepal project team.
• Coordinate monitoring visits for SCK, KOICA, and other Korean donors to project sites upon request.
• Ensure any changes in project staff, regardless of the amount of LoE, are reported to the donor in line with the donor’s requirements.
• Establish a process for information sharing and data collection to meet donor requirements.
• Support communications and coordination between SC Korea and SCI Nepal

 

REPORTING AND DOCUMENTATION:

• Review narrative and financial reports for submission to SCK and ensure its quality as per donor requirements.
• Collaborate with the project team to understand project progress and the status of report preparation, particularly for financial reporting, ensuring report quality and timely submission to the donor.
• Engage with project team staff, awards, finance, and compliance to improve the quality of financial reporting.
• Ensure that reports generated by SCI Nepal are properly translated and prepared in Korean language according to donor standards.
• Organize and conduct field monitoring visits to project sites in collaboration with SC Korea, KOICA Nepal Office and SCI Nepal, when required.
• Coordinate content gathering activities and media trip
• Ensure that all creative content generated throughout the project complies with donor and SC guidelines.

Qualifications and Experience:

• Master’s degrees in management, Project management, Social Sciences, economics, or in any relevant disciplines
• Over 7 years of relevant work experience including with minimum 3 KOICA civil society programs, either with Korea-based NGOs or International NGOs
• More than 5 years of direct experience in communicating with KOICA, both through face-to-face meetings and via KOICA’s designated IT platforms (KOPIS and FLOW)
• Proven ability to establish and maintain strong working relationships with KOICA, serving effectively as the organization’s focal point
• Fluent in Korean and English language with excellent verbal and written communication skills, adept at negotiating with KOICA at both operational and strategic levels
• Experience of conducting risk-based reviews of systems and processes, identifying gaps and areas of improvements
• Experience in responding to KOICA financial audits, including preparation of audit documentation, coordinating with KOICA-designated accounting firms, and addressing audit findings
• Detailed oriented and committed to undertaking work in a logical and disciplined manner, in line with prescribed methodology
• Ability to manage conflicting priorities
• Willingness to travel as per the requirement of the role
• Demonstrated standards of ethics and integrity

Required No.(s): 1 (Nepalese Citizen Only)

Contract length: Fixed Term

Location: Kathmandu, Country Office

The Organisation

We employ approximately 25,000 people across the globe and work on the ground in over 100 countries to help children affected by crises, or those that need better healthcare, education and child protection. We also campaign and advocate at the highest levels to realise the right of children and to ensure their voices are heard.

We are working towards three breakthroughs in how the world treats children by 2030:

No child dies from preventable causes before their 5th birthday
All children learn from a quality basic education and that,
Violence against children is no longer tolerated

We know that great people make a great organization, and that our employees play a crucial role in helping us achieve our ambitions for children. We value our people and offer a meaningful and rewarding career, along with a collaborative and inclusive workplace where ambition, creativity, and integrity are highly valued.

Application Information

Please apply using a cover letter and up-to-date CV as a single document. Please also include details of your current remuneration and salary expectations.

We need to keep children safe so our selection process, which includes rigorous background checks, reflects our commitment to the protection of children from abuse.

All employees are expected to carry out their duties in accordance with our global anti-harassment policy.

Save the Children does not charge a fee at any stage of the recruitment process.

Job Identification: 12837
Job Category: Programme Operations
Apply Before: 05/30/2025, 11:59 PM
Locations: CO – Kathmandu