Programme Specialist (African World Heritage Fund) at Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA)

Job Description    

• The World Heritage Committee adopted the African Periodic Report at its 26th session held in 2002 in Budapest, Hungary, which report dealt with the challenges encountered by many African countries regarding the identification, conservation, protection and preservation of the World Heritage Sites on the African continent and the implementation of the Convention’s principles and tenets in general. In general, the African Periodic Report states that given her cultural and natural diversity, Africa is grossly under-represented in the World Heritage list and a few of her countries have not ratified the Convention. Further, a significant number of the World Heritage Sites that are listed on the World Heritage List in danger are on the African Continent.
• The mandate of the African World Heritage Fund (AWHF) is generally to assist African countries that are signatories to the Convention in their heritage conservation efforts through financing the identification and listing of African Heritage sites in the World Heritage List.
• This position is specific to the AWHF reporting to the Head of Programmes. The role is responsible for the design, development and implementation of the programmes and activities of the African World Heritage Fund. 

Key Responsibilities    

• Programme Development and Implementation
• Conduct needs assessments to identify gaps in African World Heritage conservation and integrate findings into programme design.
• Prepare detailed programme concept notes and secure approvals from the Head of Programmes and relevant stakeholders.
• Deliver programmes annually, ensuring alignment with the African World Heritage Convention principles.
• Facilitate regular stakeholder meetings to review progress, gather feedback, and maintain alignment on fund objectives.
• Oversee compliance with the AWHF requirements and standards for all programmes.
• Coordinate, monitor, and follow up on programme implementation to ensure milestones and deliverables for all programmes are met.
• Submit progress reports highlighting achievements, costs, challenges, and adjustments needed for effective implementation.
• Assist in the Development and Monitoring of Project Proposals from State Parties
• Support State Parties in the preparation of high-quality project proposals for submission to the AWHF.
• Review and provide feedback on project proposals.
• Maintain a database of submitted proposals, tracking approvals, implementation, and outcomes.
• Collaborate with State Parties to align proposals with AWHF guidelines and funding criteria.

Partnerships and Stakeholder Engagements

• Establish and maintain strong relationships and partnerships to enable the progress of fund initiatives.
• Engage and coordinate meetings with existing partners to review collaborations and identify new opportunities.
• Maintain an updated partner directory with clear records of commitments, deliverables, and progress.
• Coordinate, prepare and validate the cash flow requirements for submission to the applicable Investment committees.
• Develop and maintain a programme cost control system.
• Plan, align, coordinate, control and implement changes to the approved programme plans.
• Identify and pursue visibility opportunities including participation in regional and continental forums to promote the Fund.
• Create a central repository for accessing all programme information.
• Compile programme management reports and submit them to various stakeholders.

Key Measurements of Outputs

• Number of Programmes and projects designed
• Number of programmes and projects implemented
• Number of technical and financial partnerships implemented for programmes and projects
• Quality of presentations and reports.
• Clean audit.

Expertise & Technical Competencies    
Sector Expertise (Heritage)

• Able to demonstrate strong knowledge of integrated development planning and the legislative requirements regarding heritage management.
• Develops sector insights to serve as a trusted advisor to African heritage stakeholders.
• Draws on knowledge in heritage and knowledge of the professional and institutional contexts in Africa to identify unique opportunities to enhance heritage protection and promotion for the benefit of African countries.

Project Management

• Defines, plans and manages large and/or strategic projects, including those with a high degree of technical complexity, with impacts across the organisation and/or with national implications.
• Assembles and leads diverse and multi-disciplinary teams, ensuring maximum effective resource utilisation.
• Successfully manages substantial project budgets and reports directly to senior managers on the progress and results of projects.
• Identifies complex issues that need escalation and proposes appropriate corrective actions.

Business Acumen

• Takes actions to fit business strategy.
• Assesses and links short-term tasks in the context of long-term business strategies or perspectives.
• Reviews own actions against the organisation's strategic plan; includes the big picture when considering possible opportunities or projects or thinks about long-term applications of current activities.
• Anticipates possible responses to different initiatives.
• Understands the projected direction of the industry and how changes might impact the organisation.

Detailed Oriented

• Quickly identifies relevant and irrelevant information to support accurate decision-making.
• Maps out all the logistics and details of a situation to ensure smooth and flawless
• Consistently identifies all relevant details that are not obvious in complex situations.
• Requires the highest standards for accuracy and quality of their work.
• Establishes processes to ensure the accuracy and quality of services delivered by the team.

Planning & Organizing

• Coaches’ others on advanced planning and organising skills.
• Plays a role in transferring advanced planning and organising skills and knowledge to others.
• Identifies and acts on opportunities to partner with other units in the department to achieve desired results.
• Develops partnership agreements that ensure win-win outcomes for all parties. Develops integrated plans for the work unit and others that interface with the function’s budget

Reporting & Communication

• Designs, reviews and improves reporting processes and provides guidance.
• Leads production of complex environment reports, takes an editorial role, determines content and level of detail, and ensures consistent messaging and branding.
• Is relied on by others to help them write complex technical and non-technical documents and briefs.
• Can determine which aspects of this knowledge area need to be transferred to others to achieve organisational goals.
• Coaches’ others and transfers communication skills and knowledge to others.
• Able to communicate complex problems or concepts, by making them simple and understandable for others.
• Adapts language to the level of the audience to ensure that the message has a positive impact and is interesting to the audience.
• Is articulate, demonstrates a wide range of vocabulary, and is confident when talking to large/high-level audiences.

Stakeholder Management

• Delivers objectives by bringing together diverse stakeholders to work effectively in partnership.
• Identifies and engages a diverse range of influential contacts within stakeholder and community groups, and partner organisations.
• Builds alliances to establish mutually beneficial working arrangements, openly sharing knowledge and insights.

Presentation Skills

• Knows how to deliver arguments persuasively by employing a range of advanced presentation techniques (e.g., the appropriate use of body language, how to close a presentation so that the audience continues to think about the subject matter etc.).
• Has knowledge of various feedback mechanisms to check levels of audience understanding.

Written communication

• Understands that different writing styles are required for different documents or audiences.
• Write effective correspondence, prepares questions and reports, statements of circumstance and briefing notes.
• Reviews others’ documents for clarity and impact.
• Has a solid mastery of writing principles such as grammar, sentence construction etc.

Verbal communication

• Able to present a theme in writing in an ordered, intelligible manner with well-structured and relevant supporting detail.
• Able to understand topic switches and use vocabulary of attitude. 
• Reasonably fluent in speaking. 

Deadline:18th June,2025