Principal Programme Advisor – East Africa and Great Lakes

About the job

Are you passionate about driving strategic impact across humanitarian programmes? As a key member of our Programme Division based in HQ, the Principal Programme Advisor – East Africa and Great Lakes plays a pivotal role in supporting country offices to align with DRC’s global strategy and response framework. This role ensures programmatic quality, fosters accountability, and strengthens coordination between country teams and global programme units. You’ll work closely with senior leadership and technical experts to shape strategic direction, enhance programmatic performance, and support donor engagement across the hub.

Your main duties and responsibilities will be:

• Guide and support Country Directors and Heads of Programme on strategic programmatic planning and positioning.
• Lead HQ task teams to develop and quality-assure Country Analysis Frameworks, Theories of Change, and Strategic Plans.
• Oversee programmatic direction across EAGL, ensuring alignment with DRC’s global standards and response framework.
• Coordinate programmatic quality reviews and support capacity development across country offices.
• Monitor displacement trends and ensure programming adapts to evolving humanitarian contexts.
• Collaborate with Emergency and Solutions teams to support timely and relevant programmatic responses.
• Lead or contribute to the design and quality assurance of strategic, multi-country proposals.
• Represent DRC programmatically in donor and partner engagements alongside senior leadership.
• Advise HQ leadership on country office performance, technical capacity, and programmatic relevance.
• Provide technical supervision and support to Heads of Programme, including recruitment and performance reviews.

About you

To be successful in this role, we expect you to bring strong strategic thinking, excellent coordination skills, and a deep understanding of humanitarian programming. You are a confident communicator who can navigate complex stakeholder environments and drive quality and accountability across diverse contexts. Your ability to connect the dots between global frameworks and local realities will be key to your impact.
 

Moreover, we also expect the following:

• At least 7 years' experience in relevant field. 
• Significant experience in strategic programmatic oversight, quality assurance, technical supervision.  
• Significant experience in managing country or regional programs, including at country senior management level.  
• Significant experience with large-scale proposal development, budget development, program implementation, monitoring and evaluation. 
• Significant experience with effective coordination with national partners, local/government authorities, NGO partners, UN and other relevant stakeholders.  

In this position, you are expected to demonstrate DRC’ five core competencies: 

Striving for excellence: You focus on reaching results while ensuring an efficient process. 

Collaborating: You involve relevant parties and encourage feedback. 

Taking the lead: You take ownership and initiative while aiming for innovation. 

Communicating: You listen and speak effectively and honestly. 

Demonstrating integrity: You uphold and promote the highest standards of ethical and professional conduct in relation to our values and Code of Conduct, including safeguarding against sexual exploitation, abuse and harassment.

We offer

Contract length: 12 months.

Band: Non-management E

Work location: Nairobi, Kenya.
Designation of Duty Station:  Accompanied position

Start date: 1 January 2026

Salary and conditions will be in accordance with Danish Refugee Council’s Terms of Employment for employees on national or international contract; please refer to our website for more details.


Application process

All applicants must upload a cover letter and an updated CV (no longer than four pages) in English. Applications sent by email will not be considered.

Closing date for applications: 26 October 2025

For more information about the Danish Refugee Council, please visit our website drc.ngo.

Danish Refugee Council is an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to creating an inclusive and positive work environment based on mutual respect for all employees. All applicants are considered for employment regardless of personal characteristics or attributes.