Qualifications: What We Are Looking For
Required Qualifications:
- A Master’s degree or equivalent in Natural Resource Management, Conservation, Agriculture, or other relevant disciplines.
- A minimum of 10 years’ experience in natural resource management, with a focus on the forestry or agriculture sectors, especially in Central Africa.
- Significant leadership experience in international or transboundary projects and initiatives.
- Prior experience with WWF is considered an advantage.
- Bilingual proficiency in English and French, with the ability to communicate complex ideas across different disciplines effectively.
- Advanced skills in MS Office, including Word and Excel, and proficiency in online collaboration tools.
- A proven ability to inspire and earn the confidence of stakeholders at all levels.
- A collaborative team player, with a strong background in fostering teamwork and collective success.
Key Skills and Competencies:
- Demonstrated success in leading and facilitating working groups.
- Strong interpersonal skills, with the ability to effectively manage virtual teams across various locations.
- Exceptional negotiation, diplomacy, and advocacy skills.
WWF’s Core Values & Behaviors:
- Demonstrates WWF’s key behaviors in daily operations: striving for impact, deep listening, open collaboration, and fearless innovation.
- Strongly aligns with WWF’s core values of Courage, Integrity, Respect, and Collaboration.
Mission of the Department
The Tri-National Dja-Odzala-Minkebe (TRIDOM) Landscape spans across 178,000 km², covering nearly 10% of the Congo Basin rainforests in Cameroon, Gabon, and Congo-Brazzaville. This landscape comprises 11 protected areas, representing 24% of TRIDOM (42,319 km²). TRIDOM is one of the priority landscapes for WWF, home to the largest remaining elephant population in the Congo Basin, estimated at up to 40,000 elephants—though these numbers are rapidly declining. TRIDOM also hosts rich biodiversity, including up to 140,000 western gorillas and central chimpanzees, making it a key biodiversity hotspot in Central Africa.
With a population of 250,000 people, including 10,000 Baka indigenous people, TRIDOM maintains a 97% forest cover and one of the lowest deforestation rates in the Congo Basin at 0.2% per decade (1990-2010). Despite this, emerging threats such as logging, artisanal mining, palm oil and cocoa expansion, and ivory poaching are escalating, primarily due to increased road networks and infrastructure development.
WWF’s involvement is crucial in ensuring sustainable management and protection of this valuable ecosystem. The WWF Network provides collective support to this priority landscape initiative, safeguarding the biodiversity and combating the growing challenges.
Key Responsibilities
1. Strategic Direction
- Redefining Strategy: Oversee the collaborative redesign of the TRIDOM strategy in alignment with WWF’s goals.
- Program Delivery: Ensure the achievement of the TRIDOM program objectives with the support of WWF country offices, partners, and technical experts.
- Stakeholder Engagement: Act as the main point of contact for government agencies, WWF entities, donors, and partners involved in TRIDOM.
2. Management and Implementation
- Team Leadership: Manage TRIDOM’s regional staff, focusing on performance management, training, and development.
- Work Plan & Budget: Supervise the preparation and execution of the annual work plan and budget.
- Program Coordination: Ensure timely delivery and reporting of TRIDOM activities and foster collaboration with the wider WWF Network.
3. Partnerships & Fundraising
- Strategic Partnerships: Identify and establish relationships with conservation NGOs, development organizations, research institutes, and other relevant bodies.
- Fundraising Strategy: Implement a comprehensive fundraising strategy, coordinating efforts across WWF entities to secure funding.
- Donor Relations: Organize visits for donors and VIPs, and manage relationships with key stakeholders and champions of TRIDOM.
4. Communication and Knowledge Management
- Communication Strategy: Develop and execute a communication strategy in collaboration with the WWF Congo Basin communication team.
- Database Management: Ensure the establishment of a TRIDOM database for effective information management.
- Awareness Raising: Draft technical briefings and papers on critical TRIDOM issues to increase awareness among stakeholders, donors, and partners.
5. Governance
- Secretariat Role: Act as the Secretariat for the TRIDOM Steering Group, ensuring submission of quarterly updates and reports.
- Membership: Participate in the Congo Basin Support Group and the ROA Landscapes Group.
Application closes on 27/10/2024