Natural Resources Program Manager

CARPE is a stand-alone operating unit based in the USAID/DRC mission with the goal during CARPE III of; accelerating Central Africa's transition to climate-resilient, low emissions development through sustainable management of biodiverse forests with a development objective as follow: "the ecological integrity of the humid forest ecosystem of the Congo Basin maintained.". This Development Objective is to be reached through the achievement of four Intermediate Results (IR): (1) Targeted forest landscapes sustainably managed; (2) Biodiversity threats in targeted forest landscapes mitigated; (3) Policy and regulatory environments supporting sustainable forest and biodiversity conservation established; and (4) Capacity to monitor forest cover change, greenhouse gas emissions and biodiversity strengthened in the six most forested countries in Central African (Democratic Republic of Congo, Cameroon, Gabon, Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Central African Republic).

The incumbent of this position has a range of complex analytical, management, and program monitoring responsibilities within CARPE. The position is based in Kinshasa, DRC but is responsible for monitoring CARPE programs in six Central African countries. He/she serves as an expert on natural resource management, biodiversity conservation, financial management, economic sector policies, and the role of civil society in natural resources management and related subject matters. The contract is for an initial two-year period with the possibility for an additional three years with satisfactory performance, a continuing need for the position and availability of funds.

The incumbent serves as the Regional Field Coordinator within the Strategic Objective Team (SOT). As the Regional Field Coordinator, he/she will serve as Agreement Officer Technical Representative (AOTR) for at least two major CARPE activities as assigned by the SO Team Leader and the Regional Acquisition and Assistance Officer. The incumbent will also perform communication/outreach public diplomacy elements of the Congo Basin Forest Partnership (CBFP), by working with the 50 international CBFP partners at high government and donor levels in the six Central African countries served by CARPE.

Additionally, the incumbent will monitor and guide the work of six CARPE Focal Points and civil society/local NGO recipients of the CARPE small grants program. In this capacity, he/she must maintain constant and extensive contacts with local, regional and headquarters counterparts at senior levels and with donor representatives to promote CARPE's goal of sustainable resource management in Central Africa.

Additional responsibilities include the monitoring of the impact of CARPE's strategic objective of reducing forest degradation and loss of biodiversity with a particular focus on natural resources and conservation policy reform and global climate change mitigation. He/she must execute the full range of analyses to identify constraints and propose solutions and therefore provide guidelines for the CARPE Focal Point Officers in DRC, Congo-Brazzaville, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, Central Africa Republic and Cameroon.