Senior Programme Officer, SADC Transfrontier Conservation Areas (TFCAs)

Vacancy #: 7691

Unit: ESARO - South Africa Conservation Areas and Species

Organisation: International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)

Location: South Africa Country Office, Pretoria, South Africa

Reporting to: Team Leader, SADC Transfrontier Conservation Areas Facilities

Work percentage: 100%

Grade: P2

Expected start date: 01 October 2026

Type of contract: Fixed-term (up to 24 months)

Closing date: 02 September 2026

BACKGROUND THIS IS A LOCAL POSITION OPEN TO NATIONALS OF THE SOUTHERN AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY. THE SUCCESSFUL CANDIDATE CAN BE BASED IN COUNTRIES IN SOUTHERN AFRICA WHERE IUCN HAS OFFICES

BACKGROUND:

The IUCN Eastern and Southern Africa Regional Office (ESARO) operates in twenty-four countries in the Horn of Africa, Eastern Africa, Southern Africa and the Western Indian Ocean. IUCN’s work in the region is guided by its 20-Year Vision (Unite for Nature) and its Intersessional Programme (2026-2029), which were adopted by IUCN’s Members in October 2025. Biodiversity conservation is a crosscutting theme across IUCN ESARO project and programme portfolios. The overall strategic aim is to ensure that biodiversity is stabilized, sustained, retained and restored in terrestrial, marine and inland water ecosystems. Strategic priorities include capacity building of IUCN Members and partners, as well as the ESARO Secretariat, and mobilizing technical and financial support to tackle new and emerging biodiversity conservation challenges in the region, using a One Programme approach across the Union. The implementation of the SADC TFCA FF is a key strategic priority in the IUCN-SADC Action Plan under the auspices of the Memorandum of Understanding between the two institutions.

IUCN ESARO is the Project Executing Agency (PEA) for two Southern African Development Community (SADC) Transfrontier Conservation Area (TFCA) grant-making facilities. IUCN ESARO seeks to recruit a highly qualified and experienced Senior Programme Officer to manage and coordinate the “Training Facilities and Programmes for wildlife Rangers and Managers in the SADC Region programme”, from here on referred to as the Wildlife Manager and Ranger Training Programme (WMRT). A summary of the two SADC TFCA Financing Facilities is as follows:

SADC TFCA Financing Facility:

The development and establishment of a regional and sustainable Transfrontier Conservation Area (TFCA) financing mechanism is a major component of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) TFCA programme (2023-2033). The initial funding for the SADC TFCA Financing Facility has been provided by the German Government (BMZ through KfW), with additional commitments made by EU under the NaturAfrica programme. The intention is to leverage additional funds from various partners, to reach an operational funding volume of approximately EUR 100 million in the medium to long term.

The SADC TFCA Financing Facility (FF) is intended to foster closer collaboration between stakeholders supporting TFCAs and provide the basis for longer-term and more sustainable funding opportunities to develop all TFCAs. The SADC TFCA FF is fully aligned with the objectives of the SADC Programme for TFCAs (2023-2033) aiming at contributions to various objectives and goals in other relevant SADC strategies and protocols.

Through the TFCA Financing Facility, investments in tangible measures strengthening ecological, economic, cultural and institutional connectivity within SADC TFCAs will be leveraged in a flexible, demand-and performance driven way. The measures shall integrate three dimensions:

improved habitat connectivity, especially for elephants and large carnivores as flagship species (“species” dimension),

improved management effectiveness and governance of TFCAs and protected areas PAs (“habitat” dimension) and

improved livelihoods for communities affected by human-wildlife co-habitation (“people” dimension)

Wildlife Manager and Ranger Training Programme:

The Wildlife Manager and Ranger Training Programme (WMRT) is managed as a separate window under the SADC TFCA FF and funded by the German Government through the financial cooperation of BMZ and KfW. The WMRT aims to strengthen the capacities of personnel in SADC TFCAs to help implement existing SADC TFCA programmes. With a commitment of currently € 5 million made to this programme by the German Government, the WMRT is a grant-making programme disbursing funds for needs-based training for Wildlife Managers and Rangers in SADC TFCAs.

JOB DESCRIPTION MAJOR RESPONSIBILITIES:

Under the supervision of the Team Leader, working in close collaboration with the SADC TFCA FF Project Management Unit (PMU), the Senior Programme Officer will lead day-to-day management and coordination of the WRMT including administration of the training grants in liaison with SADC Member States, NGOs, National NRM Training Institutions, SADC Secretariat and donors.

SPECIFIC DUTIES:

Specific duties will include:

Implementation of the Training Facilities and Programmes for Wildlife Managers and Rangers in the SADC region:

Support the Team Leader and the PMU in assessing training needs for SADC TFCAs and develop training priorities and strategies aligned with SADC priorities and regional and global best practices

Lead preparation, implementation and monitoring of work plans and budgets for the WMRT

Provide technical support to applicants in formulating proposals for training in TFCAs

Lead appraisal, scoring and selection of training proposals, in close liaison with other PMU members

Oversee contracting, implementation and monitoring of training grants, including review of progress reports

Contribute to the design of training tools and curricula development, including overseeing procurement of external experts and services to support implementation of the training programme

Implementation of the SADC TFCA Financing Facility project:

Support the Project Management Unit with day-to-day grant management tasks related to the main facility including design of calls for proposals, review of project proposals and managing grant contracts.

General Responsibilities:

Oversee technical and financial reporting on the WMRT in accordance with donor contractual reporting requirements;

Assisting the Team Leader in monitoring grants and portfolio performance according to monitoring guidelines, in liaison with IUCN ESARO Regional M&E Manager;

Liaison with the ESMS Officer on relevant activities – risk screening of proposals, and mainstreaming rights-based approaches in training programmes.

Organise field visits and spot checks on the ground to support grantees, capacity build and to monitor compliance;

Work closely with the Team Leader, to leverage additional funding support for the Facilities, including preparing presentations and proposals to donors and other stakeholders;

Assist with coordinating with other grant-making mechanisms in the region to build on complementarities and synergies;

In line with relevant communications strategies, help to communicate project results through the IUCN website and SADC TFCA portal, (in the form of articles, news stories, publications, etc.);

Provide administrative and logistical support to project implementation including the organization of workshops, meetings and consultations;

Ensure the collection, collation, and reporting of all project data and documents, and be responsible for the submission of technical progress reports, as well as all weekly and monthly reports according to the agreed formats and deadlines;

Attending the Project Steering Committee (PSC) meetings, helping to prepare and deliver presentations and reports for the same

Attend relevant regional and global meetings e.g. TFCA network as required and delegated by Team Leader

Other res