About Mercy Corps

Mercy Corps is a leading global organization powered by the belief that a better world is possible. 

In disaster, in hardship, in more than 40 countries around the world, we partner to put bold solutions 

into action — helping people triumph over adversity and build stronger communities from within. 

Now, and for the future.

Program / Department / Summary

Mercy Corps has been operational in Sudan since 2004 and currently has a country office in Khartoum and field offices in South Darfur, South Kordofan, North Kordofan, and Gedaref states. We work with Sudanese communities to build resilient, scalable solutions that interrupt the cycle of fragility and crisis due to conflict and climate change by improving food and water security, peace and governance, and enabling economic opportunities in the agricultural sector.

Our programs in Sudan cover the triple nexus approach with a range of projects interlinking the humanitarian, development, and peace sectors. Our humanitarian response focuses on integrated FSL, Cash, WASH, Protection, and Nutrition activities with cross-cutting focuses on youth and gender. These programs have a strong emphasis on increasing self-reliance through the provision of improved livelihood opportunities. Under our peace program, we aim to promote an active role for women in preventing and mitigating violence and conflict, especially in South Darfur and South Kordofan, in collaboration with civil society. Our development program is pioneering a Market System Development (MSD) approach to support the food security and strengthening of agricultural market systems for smallholder farmers in South Kordofan and Blue Nile. The project has a focus on the empowerment of women and promotion of climate-resilient agriculture.

Working with a diverse base of donors that includes the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Switzerland Development Cooperation (SDC), Swedish International Development Agency, AICS, Sudan Humanitarian Fund, Centre de Crise et de Soutien (CDCS) and others, Mercy Corps empowers people to recover from crisis, build better lives, and transform their communities for good. We work closely with the private sector, civil society, and governance structures at local, regional, and national levels to facilitate change and ensure that opportunities are inclusive of all Sudanese.

Mercy Corps will be implementing a 12-month Centre de Crise et de Soutien (CDCS) funded project scheduled to start in July 2025, proposed by a consortium made up of four partners whose areas of expertise are complementary. The program aims to meet the urgent needs of populations affected by the conflict in Sudan or displaced, as well as host communities. The project adopts an integrated approach, including nutrition, health, water, sanitation and hygiene, shelter and NFI, protection, and multi-purpose cash assistance to respond to a complex situation, which corresponds to the most recent crisis, to an entrenched regional and national crisis.

The Position (General Position Summary)

This position is responsible for understanding Sudan’s ever-changing implementation context and humanitarian coordination landscape, articulating Mercy Corps Sudan’s vision for CVA programme design and development; serving as a focal point on proposals with CVA components; supporting quality analysis and implementation for CVA; supporting evaluations and research; and helping manage partner relations at the local level. This role will provide direct support to program teams, including the development/review of internal program tools and processes, as well as defining MC Sudan’s stances on topics like interagency harmonization, social protection linkages, and/or MPCA deduplication. The position will technically represent Mercy Corps in all CVA fora and explore the potential to expand further CVA as a tool used by programs.

Essential Responsibilities 

Strategy and Vision

• Work closely with the program country team to build Mercy Corps’ strategy and influence in CVA in Sudan
• In close coordination with the Team Leader, Area Manager, CVA Advisor, Director of Programs, and PaQ team, support prepositioning and development of program strategies.
• Work with program team members on the design and support of multi-sectoral programs that encompass elements of broader country goals such as food security, market systems development, and governance.
• Ensure Mercy Corps is continuing to better collect and use data to analyze, understand, and document the many facets of vulnerability in Sudan, the role of CVA in addressing it, and identify opportunities to work with other entities on this.
• Provide technical and strategic support to ensure that cash-based programs are designed, implemented, monitored, and evaluated correctly.

STRATEGY AND PLANNING

• Work with the regional senior leadership team to develop and support the regional strategy.
• Mobilize support services and risk management resources to enable country and regional leadership teams to execute their respective strategic priorities.
• Lead the development and administration of regional and country-level reports on key finance, operations, and human resources indicators.
• Manage and administer regional core budgets in coordination with regional and global leadership.
• Lead on measurement and analysis of regional key performance indicators to inform strategic decision making.

REGIONAL SYSTEMS AND SUPPORT FUNCTIONS

• Ensure that effective systems are in place in all country offices for the adequate management of human resources, financial, and operational field support functions.
• Review and support country team adherence to Mercy Corps and donor policies and procedures.
• Capture and disseminate best practices on operations, finance, and HR systems across country teams to ensure the highest quality and standards.
• Provide dedicated support to country teams in the event of an emergency or startup of a complex program that requires additional resources. 
• Collaborate with country finance leads in producing bi-annual master budgets.

Program Management

• Conduct operational diligence, feasibility, and risk assessments for pilots.
• Fully own end-to-end design, planning, and execution of CVA projects, and coordinate with external and internal stakeholders to ensure successful end-to-end execution.
• Design and build operational models for new programs, including assessing trade-offs of different design decisions (e.g., targeting, payments, customer service)
• Manage partnerships with vendors, subgrantees/subcontractors, and other external parties to support implementation.
• Define, track, and report operational and efficiency metrics.
• Dynamically identify operational vulnerabilities (e.g., fraud, brand risk, etc.) and create solutions to de-risk
• Ensure that program implementation is responsive to communities and partners and consistent with Mercy principles, values, program guidelines, and quality standards.
• Ensure program implementation is on time, on target, and on budget, using effective Mercy Corps (and other standard) program quality tools to achieve the desired impact.
• Ensure effective and transparent use of financial resources and timely, accurate, and informative reporting in line with donor and Mercy Corps policies and procedures.
• Develop partnership frameworks, partner agreements/Memoranda of Understanding, and oversee partner capacity building.
• Support all donor reporting and communications and track major grant milestones, deliverables, cost share requirements, and project burn rates
• Collaborate with the communications team to create content to drive donor conversations and position MC as a thought leader in the cash space in Sudan.

Research, Learning, and Impact (in close coordination with the PAQ unit)

• Work with Mercy Corps’ program and PaQ departments on the piloting, evidence-building, and growth of CVA, in line with the priorities.
• In collaboration with the Director of Programs, the Program teams, and the PaQ unit, identify topics for research and learning, such as pathways from CVA to durable financial inclusion.
• Leverage existing research and evidence pieces in shaping program design and improving impact, including through lessons learned from ongoing impact evaluations, reviews, and partner studies.
• Support the design and use of robust monitoring and evaluation frameworks across CVA, including through the development of tools, surveysand methodologies to improve how outcomes are measured, in alignment with global industry standards and best practices.
• Support new and ongoing programs with best practice advice and assistance on assessment, implementation, research, and evaluation needs.
• Support field teams to regularly conduct market analysis and Multisectoral Rapid Assessment within the framework of the CVA.
• Conduct assessments; write case studies, learning documents, short articles, and blogs; and develop internal and external dissemination plans for all products.

Finance and Compliance Management

• Ensure compliance and transparent use of resources in line with donor and Mercy Corps policies.
• Monitor and adherence to grant agreements, Mercy Corps’ policies and procedures, and other relevant regulations, including those of the Government of Sudan.

SAFEGUARDING RESPONSIBILITIES 

• Actively learns about safeguarding and integrates it into their work, including safeguarding risks and mitigations related to their area of work.
• Practices the values of Mercy Corps, including respecting the dignity and well-being of participants and fellow team members.
• Encourages openness and communication in their team; encourages team members to submit reports if they have any concerns using reporting mechanisms e.g., Integrity Hotline and other options.

Supervisory Responsibility

None

Accountability

Reports Directly To: Project Lead

Works Directly With: Team Leader, Area Manager, PAQ Unit, members of Operations, Program departments, finance dept, (Cash and voucher Advisors);

Accountability to Participants and Stakeholders

Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our program participants, community partners, other stakeholders, and to international standards guiding international relief and development work. We are committed to actively engaging communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring, and evaluation of our field projects.

Minimum Qualification & Transferable Skills 

• Bachelor’s degree required. or equivalent in nutrition, international development, business, economics, or related field, M.A., M.S., M.Sc. is preferable,
• 4+ years working in humanitarian response and development.
• 2 + years’ direct experience in supporting CVA, Cash programming in the field, including extensive field-based research and market assessments.
• Proven understanding of and experience using CVA tools, indicators, and other best practices.
• Previous experience managing cash transfer programming and knowledge of e-transfer mechanisms.
• Previous experience building the capacity of staff and local partners.
• Ability to work in a collaborative spirit with other departments, in particular Procurement and Finance, to effectively support implementation of programs while staying compliant with donor and Mercy Corps regulations.
• Advanced computer skills in MS Office programs, particularly Excel.
• Effective verbal and written communication, multi-tasking, organizational, and prioritization skills.
• Excellent oral and written English skills required; Arabic fluency is an asset.
• Knowledge of Sphere standards and other training in humanitarian response preferred.

Success Factors 

Define the specific behavior and attitudes critical to success in the position at the time of hire and as they develop over time in paragraph form (soft skills).

Living Conditions / Environmental Conditions

The position is based in Gazera State, and it requires up to 40% travel to support country programs, which may include travel to insecure locations where freedom of movement is limited and areas where amenities are limited.  Housing for this role is in individual housing, and staff will have access to good medical services, and the living situation is of a high standard. 

Ongoing Learning

In support of our belief that learning organizations are more effective, efficient, and relevant to the communities we serve, we empower all team members to dedicate 5% of their time to learning activities that further their personal and/or professional growth and development

Team Efficiency and Effectiveness 

Achieving our mission starts with how we build our team and collaborate. By bringing together individuals with a variety of experiences, backgrounds, and perspectives, we strengthen our ability to solve complex challenges and drive innovation. We foster a culture of trust and respect, where every team member is valued for their contributions, empowered to reach their full potential, and motivated to do their best work.

We recognize that building a strong and effective team is an ongoing process, and we remain committed to learning, improving, and growing together.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Mercy Corps is an equal opportunity employer that does not tolerate discrimination on any basis. We actively seek out different backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be collectively stronger and have a sustained global impact. 

We are committed to providing an environment of respect and psychological safety where equal employment opportunities are available to all. We do not engage in or tolerate discrimination on the basis of race, color, gender identity, gender expression, religion, age, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin, disability (including HIV/AIDS status), marital status, military veteran status or any other protected group in the locations where we work.

Safeguarding & Ethics

Mercy Corps is committed to ensuring that all individuals we come into contact with through our work, whether team members, community members, program participants or others, are treated with respect and dignity. We are committed to the core principles regarding prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse laid out by the UN Secretary General and IASC and have signed on to the Interagency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme. We will not tolerate child abuse, sexual exploitation, abuse, or harassment by or of our team members. As part of our commitment to a safe and inclusive work environment, team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner, respect local laws and customs, and to adhere to Mercy Corps Code of Conduct Policies and values at all times. Team members are required to complete mandatory Code of Conduct e-learning courses upon hire and on an annual basis.

As an applicant, if you witness or experience any form of sexual misconduct during the recruitment process, please report this to Mercy Corps Integrity Hotline (integrityhotline@mercycorps.org).

Females are highly encouraged to apply