Program Manager

Youth’s Assembly for Afghanistan Rehabilitation Organization (YAAR) is a national non-governmental organization working in Health, Nutrition, WASH, Education, Community Development, Livelihoods, Women Empowerment, Child Protection, Emergency Response, and Construction sectors throughout Afghanistan.

To strengthen the relevant activities and improve the performance, YAAR has decided to hire a well qualified program manager. 

Program Manager will be responsible for strengthening and expanding YAAR’s program portfolio, with particular focus on Livelihood, WASH, Education and other sectors.

The position combines program management, program development, proposal writing, fundraising, donor engagement, and partnership development. The post holder will not only oversee existing projects but will proactively identify new opportunities, develop competitive proposals, establish partnerships, and contribute to the overall growth and sustainability of YAAR.

The Program Manager should have a combination of strong practical field experience and proven proposal/business development experience.

Purpose of the Job

Program Manager will be responsible for strengthening and expanding YAAR’s program portfolio, with particular focus on Livelihood, WASH, and Education sectors.

The position combines program management, program development, proposal writing, fundraising, donor engagement, and partnership development. The post holder will not only oversee existing projects but will proactively identify new opportunities, develop competitive proposals, establish partnerships, and contribute to the overall growth and sustainability of YAAR.

The Program Manager should have a combination of strong practical field experience and proven proposal/business development experience.

 Key Responsibilities

A. Program Development and Expansion

• Lead the development of YAAR’s Livelihood, WASH, and Education portfolio.
• Identify emerging needs, gaps, and potential program opportunities.
• Develop new project ideas aligned with YAAR’s strategic priorities and organizational capacity.
• Conduct basic needs assessments, context analysis, and opportunity assessments to inform program development.
• Develop project concepts, theories of change, logical frameworks, implementation approaches, and results frameworks.
• Maintain a pipeline of potential projects and funding opportunities.
• Identify opportunities for consortiums, partnerships, and joint programming.

B. Proposal and Concept Note Development

• Lead the preparation of high-quality proposals, concept notes, EOIs, and other funding applications.
• Review donors call for proposals and assesses their relevance to YAAR.
• Coordinate with technical, finance, HR, MEAL, and operations teams during proposal development.
• Develop project narratives, objectives, activities, outputs, outcomes, indicators, workplans, and sustainability strategies.
• Ensure proposals are technically sound, evidence-based, realistic, and aligned with donor requirements.
• Coordinate development of project budgets and ensure consistency between the narrative and budget.
• Maintain a proposal tracker and funding opportunity database.
• Ensure timely submission of quality proposals.

C. Resource Mobilization and Donor Engagement

• Identify and monitor funding opportunities from UN agencies, INGOs, bilateral donors, foundations, and other funding sources.
• Develop and maintain relationships with relevant donors and partners.
• Support senior management in donor meetings, negotiations, presentations, and partnership discussions.
• Explore new funding sources and approaches to diversify YAAR’s funding base.
• Support YAAR in positioning itself for future funding opportunities.

D. Project Management and Technical Support

• Provide technical oversight and support to ongoing Livelihood, WASH, and Education projects.
• Ensure effective project planning, implementation, monitoring, and reporting.
• Review project workplans and progress against agreed targets and indicators.
• Identify implementation challenges and provide practical solutions.
• Support project teams in achieving quality, timely, and cost-effective results.
• Ensure lessons learned and best practices are documented and incorporated into future programming.

E. Donor Compliance and Reporting

• Ensure projects comply with donor contractual requirements and applicable YAAR policies and procedures.
• Review donor reports and provide technical input where required.
• Ensure project documentation is complete and maintained appropriately.
• Coordinate with Finance and Operations to ensure proper budget management and compliance.
• Support project close-out, evaluation, lessons learned, and reporting processes.

F. Coordination and Representation

• Represent YAAR in relevant coordination meetings, technical forums, cluster meetings, and stakeholder engagements as delegated.
• Develop and maintain professional relationships with UN agencies, INGOs, donors, government institutions, and other relevant stakeholders.
• Identify opportunities for strategic partnerships and collaboration.
• Promote YAAR’s technical capacity, experience, and comparative advantage.

G. Team Management and Capacity Building

• Provide technical guidance and mentoring to program and proposal development staff.
• Strengthening staff capacity in project design, proposal development, reporting, and donor compliance.
• Promote teamwork, accountability, innovation, and professional development.
• Ensure effective coordination between field teams, program staff, finance, operations, and senior management.

Job Requirements:

Minimum Education Qualifications: 

Master’s degree in development studies, International Development, Business Administration, Project Management, Economics, Social Sciences, Development Studies or Related disciplines  or at least bachelor degree with handful work experience.                           

Minimum Work Experience: 

Minimum 5-7 years of progressively responsible experience in proposal development, grants management, fundraising, business development, or program development.

 Proven experience in developing successful competitive proposals for institutional donors.

Experience working with national or international NGOs.

Demonstrated track record of securing donor funding.

Essential Competencies

Strong proposal and concept note development skills.

Strong analytical and strategic thinking.

Proven business development and fundraising ability.

Strong understanding of the Afghanistan NGO and humanitarian system

Excellent project management skills.

Strong communication, coordination, negotiation, and networking skills.

 Strong leadership and team management skills.

Ability to develop innovative and practical project concepts.

Ability to work under pressure and meet tight proposal deadlines

Strong report writing and presentation skills.

High level of integrity, professionalism, and accountability.

Email / Application Form: recruitment@yaar.af