Programme Development Officer

Role: Program Development Officer:

Dimensions:

Save the Children has been operational in Kenya since the 1950s, supporting children through both development and humanitarian relief programs. These initiatives are delivered directly and in collaboration with local partners. Our current programming focuses on child protection, child rights governance, education, health, HIV/AIDS, livelihoods, nutrition, and water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH).
In 2012, as part of a global reorganization, Save the Children unified the operations of Save the Children UK, Canada, and Finland into a single entity in Kenya. In February 2014, we completed a second transition by merging with the British INGO Merlin, integrating their health and nutrition programs into our portfolio. Today, Save the Children maintains an operational presence in Nandi, Kajiado, Dadaab Refugee Camp, Kakuma Refugee Camp, Garissa, Mandera, Turkana, and Wajir, and works through partners in many other regions across the country. We employ approximately 230 staff, including members of the Global team who are hosted and hired in Kenya, but support Save the Children International (SCI) global operations. In 2025, our annual operating budget was approximately USD 20 million.

ROLE PURPOSE:

The Program Development Officer (PDO) supports the Head of Program Development and the PDQII team by coordinating proposal development processes, drafting narrative sections, maintaining proposal and donor‑related information systems, and managing key components of opportunity tracking and knowledge management. The role leads coordination for small-medium opportunities and support coordination for complex proposals, ensuring timely, compliant, high‑quality submissions aligned with the Country Strategic Plan.

The PDO plays a crucial role in supporting the country office to maintain a competitive and responsive funding portfolio aligned to Save the Children’s global breakthroughs. The position requires a proactive professional capable of managing complex tasks, consolidating information across teams, and ensuring quality and timeliness in program development processes. In the event of a major humanitarian emergency, the role holder may be required to work outside normal hours.

SCOPE OF ROLE:
Reports to: Head of Program Development
Staff Reporting to this Post: None
Key working relationships: Works daily with PDQII, MEAL, Operations, Finance, Supply Chain, Awards, HR, Security, and SC Members to deliver coordinated, compliant proposal submissions. Supports the Head of Program Development in donor‑engagement but does not independently lead donor representation unless formally delegated.

KEY AREAS OF ACCOUNTABILITY

Fundraising strategy support
• Contribute to opportunity analysis, proposal pipeline maintenance, and the preparation of materials that support fundraising actions under each strategic goal.
• Maintain and update funding trackers (pipeline, opportunity, proposal, donor, and member trackers), ensuring accurate inputs and timely reporting.
• Conduct background research on donor trends, funding landscapes, and programming priorities to inform strategic decision-making.

Proposal development and coordination
• Coordinate proposal coordination processes, including development schedules, consolidation of drafts, follow‑ups, and ensuring compliance with donor templates and SCI standards.
• Prepare proposal templates, checklists, and other required documents (e.g., AMS setup, PART/AMET risk assessments, gender markers), ensuring complete and compliant filing.
• Lead coordination for small to medium proposals; provide drafting and consolidation support to large/complex proposals.
• Draft standard and contextual narrative sections (country context, organisational capability, needs analysis, cross-cutting themes). Prepare donor annexes and ensure budget–narrative alignment in coordination with Finance.
• Support drafting and editing of technical narrative sections working closely with Technical Specialists, Programme Managers, and MEAL.

•Support and document proposal design workshops, produce summaries and action plans, and ensure proper archiving of materials.

Donor engagement and capture planning
• Regularly scan donor portals and external funding sources to identify new opportunities and update the opportunity pipeline.
• Support donor engagement preparation by conducting desk research, preparing briefs, and updating donor intelligence repositories.
• Maintain donor profiles, meeting notes, strategies, annual reports, and other intelligence resources in structured SharePoint folders.

Knowledge management and learning
• Maintain the team’s knowledge management systems including proposal archives, donor intelligence libraries, trackers, capacity statements, templates, lessons‑learned repositories, and version‑control.
• Synthesize learning from design workshops, donor feedback, and proposal after-action-reviews and update learning repositories.
• Ensure standardized SharePoint file naming, storage, and accessibility across PDQII and Operations teams.

Humanitarian response
• Support humanitarian proposal coordination and drafting, including situation updates, response snapshots, and capability statements.
• Provide short term surge support for Category 1 & 2 emergencies when required.

BEHAVIOURS (Values in Practice)
Accountability:
• Takes responsibility for quality and timeliness of assigned tasks.
• Uses resources efficiently and supports partners and colleagues to deliver.

Ambition:
• Demonstrates a proactive, solutions-focused mindset.
• Sets ambitious personal development goals and seeks opportunities to advance skills.

Collaboration:
• Builds strong, respectful working relationships across departments.
• Values diversity and communicates clearly and effectively.

Creativity:
• Brings forward new ideas to strengthen proposal quality and efficiency.
• Adapts quickly and positively to changing contexts.

Integrity:
• Demonstrates the highest levels of honesty and professionalism.
• Upholds SCI safeguarding, anti-harassment, and ethical standards always.

QUALIFICATIONS:
Education:
• Bachelor’s degree (required) in Development Studies, International Relations, Social Sciences, Public Policy, or a related field.
• Master’s degree (preferred) in any of the above or related disciplines.
EXPERIENCE AND SKILLS
Required:
Professional Experience:
• 3–5 years of relevant experience in programme development, proposal writing, grants coordination, or donor-facing roles within the humanitarian or development sector.
• Minimum 3 years of experience coordinating proposal development processes (including drafting, compliance checks, templates, and consolidation) for donors such as FCDO, ECHO, UN agencies, or philanthropic foundations.
• At least 2 years of experience supporting the preparation of donor proposal budgets in collaboration with finance teams.
• Experience contributing to or documenting multi-stakeholder design workshops and engaging with technical, operational, and MEAL teams.
• Technical Skills
• Strong writing, editing, analytical, and research skills, with the ability to develop high quality narrative sections.
• Excellent project coordination and time management skills, with demonstrated success managing multiple deadlines in a fast-paced environment.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint).
• Proven experience with SharePoint, Teams, and other knowledge management platforms, including version control best practices.
• Ability to maintain structured document repositories and ensure high data accuracy.
Competencies & Core Attributes:
• Strong cross-functional collaboration skills and ability to engage effectively with internal and external stakeholders.
• Ability to lead coordination for small to medium proposals and support complex multi-sector or multi-country opportunities.
• Demonstrated capacity to conduct background research on donor trends, funding landscapes, and strategic priorities.
• Fluency in written and spoken English (required).

Added Advantage:
• Experience supporting humanitarian proposal development.
• Familiarity with Save the Children systems, templates, and tools.

Additional job responsibilities:
The duties and responsibilities as set out above are not exhaustive and the role holder may be required to carry out additional duties within reasonableness of their level of skills and experience.

THE ORGANIZATION

We employ approximately 25,000 people across the globe and work on the ground in over 100 countries to help children affected by crises, or those that need better healthcare, education and child protection. We also campaign and advocate at the highest levels to realise the right of children and to ensure their voices are heard.

We are working towards three breakthroughs in how the world treats children by 2030:

• No child dies from preventable causes before their 5th birthday.
• All children learn from a quality basic education and that,
• Violence against children is no longer tolerated.

Save the Children is an equal opportunity employer and seeks to employ and assign the best-qualified talent.

Female Candidates are encouraged to apply.

Disclaimer:

Beware that there are individuals who may take and use SCI’s name in an attempt to solicit fees from interested job-seekers. We do not use recruiting persons or agencies to help us identify candidates for employment. If you’re contacted by a person promising you recruitment or placement at SCI for a charge, do not accept, and please get in touch with us at SCIFraud@savethechildren.org.

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.