(01) COUNTRY DIRECTOR IVORY COAST AND GUINEA

Job Description

COUNTRY DIRECTOR IVORY COAST AND GUINEA

Department : GUINEA

Work Location : Cote D’Ivoire – Abidjan

Work Location : Cote D’Ivoire – Abidjan	Type of Post : Not Applicable
Other Possible Location :	Funding : APPROVED
Expected Travel : up to 10%	Type of Contract : Local
Language Requirement : French and English	Application Deadline :
Employee Duration : Full-Time

* Starting salaries are based on various factors, including candidate experience, education, knowledge, skills, and the cost of labor where the job is based. Salaries listed only apply to jobs based in the US.

Who We Are:

As a global leader, CARE is shaping the future of the humanitarian and development sector. Each year, we deliver support and services to millions of people globally. We do this by focusing on our mission and vision, and the values of equality and excellence that guide our organization. We seek dedicated individuals who align with our mission and are passionate about making it a reality by collaborating with others, embracing learning and innovation, and delivering results.

What We Are Looking For:
At CARE, we value diversely talented people who can bring different experiences and perspectives to our organization. We know that not all applicants will have every skill and qualification. We encourage everyone who meets the minimum required qualifications to apply. Having one or more of the preferred qualifications will strengthen an application. But, even if you are earlier in your career or followed a non-traditional educational or professional path, we hope you will consider a career at CARE.

Job Title: COUNTRY DIRECTOR IVORY COAST AND GUINEA

Job Location(s): Cote D’Ivoire – Abidjan

Lead. Innovate. Transform Lives.

Shape the Future of Development in Cote d’Ivoire & Guinea

ROLE SUMMARY

CARE is seeking an exceptional Country Director to lead and position our Country Office for bold, sustainable impact. This is a high-profile leadership role for a visionary, entrepreneurial, and agile leader who can navigate complexity while delivering measurable results.

As CARE’s most senior representative in-country, the Country Director (CD) provides overall strategic and operational leadership, ensuring alignment with CARE’s global mission to save lives, combat poverty, and promote social justice — with a particular focus on women and girls.

CARE strongly encourages applications from qualified Cote d’Ivoire & Guinea nationals and will prioritize hiring on a local contract for this role. International candidates will only be considered if a suitable local candidate cannot be identified.

The Leader We Are Looking For

We are seeking a leader who is:

Innovative – Drives change and embraces new modalities of impact, including digital transformation and entrepreneurial approaches.

A Dynamic Network Builder – Deeply grounded in the country context and skilled at forging strategic partnerships across government, civil society, donors, and the private sector.

A Manager of Complexity – Leads high-performing, results-focused teams with emotional intelligence and sound judgment in fragile or fast-changing environments.

Impact-Driven – Delivers cost-effective, scalable results with a clear long-term vision for sustainable change.

Agile and Adaptive – Responds decisively to shifting political, economic, and security landscapes while positioning the organization for growth and resilience.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Strategy & Execution

• Lead and deliver the Country Office’s multi-year strategy, aligned with global priorities and national development agendas.
• Drive organizational transformation to ensure agility, competitiveness, and relevance.
• Embed strategic foresight, scenario planning, and adaptive leadership across teams.

People Leadership & Culture

• Inspire and lead a diverse team, fostering inclusion, accountability, safety, and continuous learning.
• Build leadership pipelines and strengthen succession planning.
• Create a high-performance culture with clear expectations and measurable results.

Resource Mobilization & Representation

• Develop and implement a diversified resource mobilization strategy, expanding beyond traditional institutional donors.
• Cultivate strong relationships with government, multilateral agencies, philanthropy, civil society, and private sector partners.
• Position CARE as a trusted, influential partner and shape policy and donor agendas.
• Explore innovative financing models, including private sector partnerships and local resource generation.

Operational Excellence & Risk Management

• Ensure strong financial stewardship, compliance, and delivery of programs on time, on budget, and to quality standards.
• Oversee risk management, safeguarding, security, and fraud mitigation systems.
• Maintain fit-for-purpose management structures aligned with income and strategic priorities.

Program Quality & Impact

• Champion evidence-based, community-led programming that advances locally owned solutions.
• Ensure high standards of program quality, monitoring, evaluation, and learning.
• Strengthen civil society partnerships and scale innovative approaches for transformative impact.

Why This Role Matters

This is an opportunity to lead at scale — shaping strategy, mobilizing resources, strengthening systems, and delivering transformative impact for vulnerable communities. The successful candidate will combine visionary leadership with operational discipline, ensuring both immediate results and long-term sustainability.

If you are a bold, purpose-driven leader ready to drive change in complex environments and build a resilient, high-performing Country Office, we encourage you to apply.

Required Qualifications:

– Bachelor’s degree in related field required
– 6-8 years in senior management position in development field
– Strategic and operational Management
– Demonstrated experience in leading strategic and operational planning
– Extensive conceptual skills including strategic analysis
– Demonstrated management skills in a complex international setting

People/Relationship Management
– Demonstrated self-awareness, leadership and interpersonal skills
– Strong human resource management skills including capacity building, coaching and conflict management
– Experience supervising and developing a multi-disciplinary team in a cross-cultural setting
– Demonstrated interest and ability to give feedback, develop, motivate and lead a diverse team to achieve results
– Demonstrated use of positive coping strategies in stressful environments

Financial Management
– Knowledge and experience with financial management as demonstrated by ability to:
– Must possess the ability to manage a complex budget
– Effectively follow-up on internal and external audit recommendations (not sure if this is a skill
– Ensure donor compliance and reporting

Information/Knowledge Management
– Ability to establish a learning culture within the CO and to facilitate knowledge sharing across CARE

Preferred Qualifications:

– Master’s degree in related field
– 8+ years in a senior management position in development field
– Demonstrated experience in program design, implementation and evaluation
– Experience managing emergencies

There are individuals who may use CARE’s name and trademark in emails and on websites in an attempt to solicit fees from interested job-seekers. Some examples of these fees are placement fees or immigration processing fees. CARE does not use recruiting or placement agencies that charge candidates an up-front fee of any kind. Occasionally, CARE does employ recruiting or placement agencies to help us identify candidates for specific employment within CARE. If you’re contacted by a legitimate recruiting or placement agency, there should be no charge to you. If you suspect that you have been a victim of fraud from someone purporting to be CARE, please contact us at legal@care.org. Please do not email legal@care.org to apply for this position. Instead, click “apply now” below in order to submit your interest.

CARE is an Equal Opportunity employer. We provide equal employment opportunities to all employees and qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, sex, religion, ancestry, national origin, age, disability, marital status, or veteran status, or any other characteristics protected under applicable law.

Starting salaries are based on internal equity, candidate experience, and the cost of labor where the job is based. Salaries listed only apply to jobs based in the US.