Project Manager School Construction and Rehabil...

Project Manager School Construction and RehabilitationSyria
Danish Refugee Council (DRC) is planning a school construction and rehabilitation program in Syria for 2009. To manage this project, DRC is advertising for a Construction / Rehabilitation Manager with international hands-on experiences in managing an, co-ordinating the construction of storage buildings (preferably schools) within a humanitarian / development setting working for an INGO.BackgroundUnlike other Arab countries, Syria has maintained an open border policy since the outbreak of the Iraqi conflict allowing Iraqis to enter Syria and to enjoy access to public services. The humanitarian needs differ, but the needs of the most vulnerable extend from basic assistance within food and non-food items, access to potable water, to improved access to education, health care, income opportunities etc. DRC is among the first organisations that have gained formal access to address the protection needs of the Iraqis refugees.In co-ordination with Syrian Arab Red Crescent (SARC) and UNHCR, DRC has chosen a two-pronged strategy in Syria which addresses the education needs and displacement issues raised at the community level. In close co-ordination with the Ministry of Education (MoE), DRC has among other activities engaged into a school rehabilitation programme since June 2008 with the aim of improving access to education at primary and secondary level schools. DRC has been rehabilitating 7 schools among which 5 are large-size building of 36 classrooms on 4 floors with an average of 1,500 pupils. For 2009, DRC is planning to extend our focus within the education sector by adding 2 new components: school construction and “soft education” support.The office presently consists of 3 international managers and a national team of support staff including administration, finance and logistic officers. About 100 Iraqi volunteers are contributing to the DRC community services’ development. DRC Syria has its main office in Damascus and 8 branches in the community centres located in the rural Damascus.ResponsibilitiesThe Project Manager will be responsible for developing and managing the school construction and rehabilitation component. The projects will be implemented in close co-ordination with the local counterparts (MoE and SARC) and DRCs donors: UNICEF, UNHCR and DANIDA. The Project Manager refers to the Country Director and will be assisted by a national team of engineers and monitoring officers. The main tasks will be:School Construction / Rehabilitation:• Assess the areas / schools suggested by the MoE for construction / rehabilitation in Damascus,• Undertake all necessary legal steps to allow the using of the selected lands / schools in coordination with the lawyer• Complete the recruitment of skilled staff, train, organise and manage the teams’ work• Define a detailed planning of activities• Organise logistic and administrative matters related to the works• Ensure that the schools’ design is optimised and agreed on by the MoE and donors• Supervise the bills of quantities’ drafting, tendering process, and selection of contractors• Supervise the equipment specifications’ drafting, tendering process and selection of suppliers• Organise and oversee the monitoring of the contractors and the progress of the work• Ensure that schools are constructed / rehabilitated in a timely, safe and quality manner• Ensure coordination with the MoE• Report to the line manager, donors and local counterparts• Participate in project evaluations, identify lessons learnt, provide recommendations and contribute to drafting project proposals• Coordinate with the DRC Syria team• Represent DRC in coordination meetingsQualificationsApplications should be very precise especially in terms of describing concrete experiences within the following issues as applications will be evaluated and judged from this:• Higher degree in building construction, civil engineering, or architecture,• At least 5 years of hands-on experience in managing related project (storage buildings), including international experiences from a humanitarian / development settings, • Working experience for an NGOs in an equivalent international position is a strong advantage• Strong working knowledge of drawing applications (e.g. Autocad)• Concrete experience in working with Ministries, UN agencies and school management• Experience working in a sensitive, diverse and politicised environment• Good communication skills and team spirit• Full proficiency in spoken and written English. Arabic language skills an advantage• Experience with working in the Middle East or Syria an advantageOur conditionsCommencement: ASAP (no later than February)Duty station: Syria, Damascus with frequent field visits in rural Damascus and countryside. Few  travels in the region.Contract: 10 months (with a possibility of extension based on performance evaluation. The employment period is also subject to funding and registration)Further information About the operation or responsibilities Programme Co-ordinator for the Middle East, Mr. Christian J Hansen: +******or Country Director for Iraq, Mr. Olivier Beucher: +963 991794285About the application procedureHuman Resource, Ms. Anne Oxholm at ******ease expect delay in responses due to the holiday season.Application and CVOnly motivated applications in English that address the stipulated duties and meet the required qualifications sent together with a CV will be considered. Please provide references, but do not attach any written recommendations. CV-only applications will not be considered. DRC does not operate with standard formats for applications or CVs for this position. It is very important for us to know where you first saw this vacancy posted, so we kindly ask you to supply us with that information in your application.Please forward application, in English and marked “Syria - Construction and Rehabilitation”, no later than 2. January 2009. Please submit your application to ******.  Interviews will be held in January 2009.