The posting
Position Title: Country Program Manager – Syria
Department: Humanitarian and Emergency Affairs – International Disaster Response
Reports to: Director, International Disaster Response
Status: 100% FTE
Contract Type: Initial One-Year Contract; with the possibility of extension.
Location: Damascus, Homs, or Aleppo, Syria*. Regular field travel within Syria may be required, subject to security and access conditions. This is a national position open to candidates who are legally authorized to work in Syria.
PURPOSE OF POSITION
The Country Program Manager – Syria provides day-to-day leadership, coordination, and oversight for World Renew’s humanitarian and recovery programming in Syria. The position is responsible for supporting effective program planning, implementation, monitoring, reporting, partner engagement, donor compliance, and responsible stewardship of project resources.
Working closely with the Director, International Disaster Response, World Renew technical and support teams, local partners, donors, and other stakeholders, the Country Program Manager helps ensure that World Renew’s Syria portfolio is well coordinated, responsive to changing humanitarian needs, and implemented in accordance with organizational standards, donor requirements, and humanitarian principles. The position supports effective relationships and coordination with institutional donors and other funding partners at the country level.
The position also serves as a key in-country coordination focal point, supporting effective communication across program, finance, MEAL, safeguarding, operations, and partner functions; representing World Renew in appropriate routine coordination forums; monitoring operational risks; and escalating strategic, security, compliance, or reputational matters through established channels.
We do not discriminate based on disability, culture, ethnicity, or gender, and welcome and encourage people from diverse backgrounds to apply.
MAJOR DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
R1. Program Management & Implementation (35%)
- Coordinate the day-to-day implementation of World Renew’s Syria program portfolio and ensure activities progress against approved work plans, budgets, indicators, and timelines.
- Translate approved program strategies and donor commitments into practical implementation plans, team priorities, and partner follow-up actions.
- Coordinate regular program reviews and follow up on deliverables, deadlines, decisions, risks, and corrective actions.
- Ensure programming remains relevant to changing humanitarian needs and operating conditions and support appropriate program adaptations.
- Coordinate the preparation of narrative reports, donor updates, briefing notes, monitoring visit materials, and other program documentation.
- Support assessments, proposal development, project start-up, modifications, closeout, and new program opportunities as required.
- Promote program quality, accountability to affected populations, safeguarding, and adherence to humanitarian standards throughout implementation.
R2. Partner Management & Capacity Strengthening (20%)
- Serve as a primary day-to-day program contact for local implementing partners and maintain respectful, accountable, and collaborative relationships.
- Coordinate partner work-plan reviews, implementation follow-up, reporting, problem-solving, and action-point tracking.
- Monitor partner performance and identify implementation challenges early, working with partners and World Renew colleagues to address concerns.
- Support partner capacity strengthening in project management, reporting, MEAL, safeguarding, compliance, financial stewardship, and other identified areas.
- Promote locally led approaches and ensure partner perspectives inform program planning, adaptation, and learning.
R3. Country Coordination, Representation & Risk Monitoring (20%)
- Support effective coordination of World Renew’s in-country program activities, staff functions, partner relationships, and operational priorities.
- Represent World Renew in appropriate donor, government, UN, NGO, cluster/sector, partner, and humanitarian coordination meetings within delegated authority.
- Coordinate with institutional donors and funding partners on program implementation, monitoring visits, project reviews, reporting follow-up, and other operational matters, in consultation with the IDR Director and relevant World Renew colleagues.
- Document significant external commitments, decisions, and follow-up actions and keep the IDR Director informed of issues with strategic, donor, security, or reputational implications.
- Monitor operational, security, access, partner, safeguarding, compliance, and implementation risks and escalate significant concerns promptly through established channels.
- Support coordination of field travel, program visits, stakeholder meetings, and other operational requirements in collaboration with relevant colleagues.
- Support World Renew’s organizational registration, regulatory requirements, and related country-level administrative processes, coordinating with relevant authorities, legal advisors, and World Renew leadership as required.
- Maintain constructive relationships with donors, relevant authorities, humanitarian actors, peer organizations, and other stakeholders to support effective program implementation, coordination, and partnership development.
R4. Financial Management, Compliance & Operational Coordination (15%)
- Monitor program progress alongside budget utilization and participate in regular budget-versus-actual and forecasting reviews with Finance.
- Ensure program plans and implementation decisions are realistic and aligned with approved budgets, donor requirements, and partner agreements.
- Coordinate with Finance to follow up on partner financial reporting, fund requests, documentation, and program-related budget variances.
- Support procurement planning and ensure program teams follow applicable organizational and donor requirements.
- Identify and escalate potential donor compliance, fraud, safeguarding, procurement, or financial management concerns.
- Support audit readiness and ensure program documentation is complete, organized, and maintained in accordance with donor and organizational requirements.
R5. MEAL, Learning & Team Coordination (10%)
- Work closely with MEAL colleagues to ensure monitoring, accountability, data quality, and learning are integrated into program management and partner follow-up.
- Use program and MEAL information to identify implementation issues, support adaptive management, and strengthen program quality.
- Promote community feedback and complaints mechanisms and ensure feedback is considered in program decision-making.
- Facilitate regular internal coordination and planning among relevant country-based staff and ensure roles, priorities, and follow-up actions are clear.
- Promote a team culture of collaboration, accountability, safeguarding, learning, and responsible stewardship.
SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES
Provides day-to-day coordination and functional leadership to country-based program and support staff as assigned. May have direct supervisory responsibilities based on the approved country staffing structure.
QUALIFICATIONS
Personal Attributes
- Demonstrates commitment to World Renew's mission, vision, and values and an ability to work respectfully and effectively within a Christian faith-based organization.
- Demonstrates and promotes World Renew's organizational values, including service, justice, compassion, stewardship, dignity, integrity, and respect for all people.
- Strong collaborative team player with the ability to work respectfully across cultures, functions, and stakeholder groups.
- Demonstrated initiative, flexibility, resilience, and ability to adapt to changing priorities and operating conditions.
- Strong organizational skills with attention to detail and accountability for follow-through.
- Sound judgment, integrity, discretion, and a commitment to ethical and responsible programming.
- Excellent written, verbal, and interpersonal communication skills.
- Ability to manage multiple priorities and deadlines in a fast-paced humanitarian environment.
Essential Skills
- Strong project and program management skills, including planning, implementation, monitoring, reporting, risk management, and adaptive management.
- Demonstrated ability to coordinate across program, finance, MEAL, safeguarding, operations, and partner functions.
- Strong partner relationship management and capacity strengthening skills.
- Working knowledge of institutional donor compliance, grant management, budgeting, and financial monitoring.
- Ability to represent World Renew professionally and build constructive relationships with donors, government authorities, humanitarian coordination bodies, partners, and other stakeholders.
- Strong analytical, problem-solving, communication, and report-writing skills.
- Good understanding of humanitarian principles, accountability to affected populations, safeguarding, and localization.
- Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite and common collaboration and data-management tools.
- Professional proficiency in Arabic and English is required.
EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE
To perform this position successfully, the individual should have:
Education
- Bachelor's degree in International Development, Humanitarian Assistance, Project Management, Social Sciences, Public Administration, or a related field. A master's degree is an asset.
Experience
- Minimum five (5) years of progressively responsible experience in humanitarian, international development, recovery, or related program management.
- Demonstrated experience managing projects through local partners and coordinating multiple program stakeholders.
- Experience with project planning, budget monitoring, donor reporting, compliance, and performance tracking.
- Experience managing humanitarian or development programs in complex, conflict-affected, or displacement-affected contexts.
- Strong knowledge of the Lebanese humanitarian context, including relevant stakeholders, coordination structures, and operational dynamics.
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience with institutional donor-funded humanitarian programs, including U.S. Government, Global Affairs Canada, UN, or comparable donors.
- Experience participating in humanitarian clusters, sector working groups, or NGO coordination mechanisms.
- Experience with food security, livelihoods, cash assistance, protection, or other relevant humanitarian sectors.
- Experience working with local civil society organizations, faith-based organizations, and partner-led programming.
- Project management or humanitarian-sector certification is an asset.
PHYSICAL DEMANDS
The physical demands described here are representative of those required to successfully perform the essential functions of this position. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform these functions.
Ability and willingness to travel regularly within Syria, including to field locations where infrastructure and services may be limited, subject to security and access conditions.
The position may require work in challenging physical and emotional environments, including engagement with communities affected by conflict, displacement, and humanitarian crisis.
Flexibility to work occasional evenings or weekends during urgent program needs, donor deadlines, or emergency response periods may be required.
WORK ENVIRONMENT
The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those encountered while performing the essential functions of this position.
The incumbent will operate within a dynamic humanitarian environment requiring flexibility, collaboration across teams and partners, and the ability to respond to changing priorities, operational constraints, and deadlines.
World Renew requires permanent work authorization at time of hire. With World Renew's commitment to Core Humanitarian Standard and Safeguarding responsibilities, as part of the recruitment process, a successful candidate can expect to go through a thorough background check. Please note that the tentative application deadline for this position will be EOD October 27, 2026 for External Applicants and Internal Applicants, closing date depending on application volume. We encourage all interested candidates to apply before this deadline as we move candidates through our hiring process on a continuous basis
*Please be advised that this role represents a single position. Only one (1) candidate will be selected for hire, with the final work location to be determined based on the successful candidate’s residence and organizational requirements.
World Renew is an equal opportunity employer. It does not unlawfully discriminate in employment opportunities or practices on the basis of race, color, sex, national origin, age, people with disabilities, veteran status, height, weight, marital status, pregnancy, genetic information, or any other category or characteristic protected by law.
World Renew is committed to providing reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with disabilities throughout the recruitment and selection process. If you require accommodation at any stage of the application, assessment, or interview process, please notify Human Resources, and we will work with you to meet your accessibility
