Location: Monrovia, LIBERIA

Position Status: Full-time

Risk Level: ☐ Level 3 ☐Level 2 ☐Level 1

(Level 3: Frequent contact with participants, direct contact with children, access to sensitive data, and/or high level of accountability.

Level 2: Some contact with participants; unplanned non-direct contact with children.

Level 1: Likely to have no contact with participants or sensitive data)

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.

The Program / Department Summary

Mercy Corps has worked in Liberia since 2002, initially responding to the humanitarian impacts of the country’s civil conflicts and subsequently evolving its programming to address the changing needs and priorities of Liberian communities. Over the past two decades, Mercy Corps has implemented a diverse portfolio of programs focused on food security, agricultural livelihoods, nutrition, financial inclusion, youth economic empowerment, renewable energy, water and sanitation, and community resilience, supporting sustainable development and improved opportunities across the country.

Mercy Corps Liberia works across multiple counties and sectors to address evolving development needs and humanitarian challenges. In collaboration with government, communities, donors, and other partners, Mercy Corps implements programs that support food security, livelihoods, economic opportunity, and resilience. The country’s program is supported by operational and technical teams that help ensure effective, accountable, and compliant program delivery.

General Position Summary

The Government Partnerships Director provides strategic leadership for government systems strengthening, institutional capacity development, policy engagement, sustainability, and transition planning. The Director serves as Mercy Corps’ senior focal point with the Government of Liberia and leads efforts to strengthen national and subnational government capacity to plan, coordinate, finance, supervise, and sustain school feeding, literacy, and school health and nutrition systems.

Working closely with the Ministry of Education, County Education Officers, District Education Officers, School Feeding Coordinators, and other government stakeholders, the Government Partnerships Director will support implementation of national policies and strategies, strengthen coordination mechanisms, facilitate government ownership of program activities, and lead development of sustainable pathways for transitioning program responsibilities to government institutions. The position will guide government capacity strengthening, support planning and budgeting processes, oversee coordination platforms, and advance domestic resource mobilization and financing strategies that contribute to long-term sustainability of school feeding and education outcomes.

Essential Job Responsibilities

Government Partnerships and Stakeholder Engagement

• Serve as the primary senior liaison with the Ministry of Education and other relevant government ministries, agencies, and institutions.
• Develop and maintain productive working relationships with national, county, district, and local government stakeholders.
• Support implementation of Memoranda of Understanding and joint commitments between Mercy Corps and government counterparts.
• Ensure program implementation aligns with Government of Liberia priorities, policies, strategies, and development frameworks.
• Represent the program in national and subnational coordination forums, technical working groups, and stakeholder meetings.
• Facilitate collaboration among the Ministry of Education, Ministry of Agriculture, other ministries, and other stakeholders supporting school feeding and education systems.

Government Systems Strengthening

• Lead implementation of the program’s government capacity strengthening strategy.
• Strengthen government systems for planning, supervision, coordination, monitoring, and oversight of school feeding programs.
• Support County Education Officers, District Education Officers, and School Feeding Coordinators to progressively assume leadership of supervision, monitoring, and management functions.
• Promote integration of school feeding, literacy, school health and nutrition, and safeguarding priorities into existing government systems and structures.
• Support development and institutionalization of tools, procedures, and approaches that strengthen government ownership and accountability.

Sustainability, Transition, and Government Ownership

• Lead implementation of the program’s graduation, transition, and sustainability strategy.
• Develop and monitor transition plans that progressively transfer responsibilities to government structures.
• Track progress against government ownership and sustainability milestones.
• Support institutionalization of school feeding, literacy, and school health systems within government policies, plans, and budgets.
• Facilitate annual sustainability assessments and identify actions required to strengthen government readiness for transition.
• Promote locally led development approaches that strengthen long-term ownership and accountability.

Coordination, Planning, and Data Use

• Support national and county-level coordination platforms to function as effective planning and decision-making mechanisms.
• Facilitate coordination among government agencies, implementing partners, and development partners.
• Support integration of school feeding priorities into county education plans and budgets.
• Strengthen government use of monitoring and performance data to inform planning, budgeting, decision-making, and resource allocation.
• Support alignment between School Connect and other government monitoring systems where appropriate.

Policy Implementation and Institutional Capacity Development

• Support implementation of national education, literacy, school feeding, nutrition, and school health policies and strategies.
• Facilitate self-assessments, planning workshops, and capacity-strengthening initiatives with government stakeholders.
• Coordinate and oversee training, coaching, mentoring, and technical assistance provided to government counterparts.
• Support strengthening government systems for literacy policy implementation, materials planning, and education sector coordination.
• Promote integration of evidence and lessons learned into government planning and policy processes.
• Coordinate a task force for relevant government stakeholders supporting the project’s initiatives.

School Feeding Financing and Resource Mobilization

• Lead engagement with government stakeholders on school feeding financing and sustainability.
• Support development of costed implementation and financing plans for expansion of Home-Grown School Feeding initiatives.
• Facilitate analysis and dialogue related to government budget allocations, financing pathways, and long-term resourcing of school feeding systems.
• Support government efforts to increase domestic investment and mobilize additional resources for school feeding and education priorities.
• Contribute to advocacy and stakeholder engagement efforts related to sustainable financing.

Supervisory Responsibility:

None

Accountability

Reports Directly To: Chief of Party

Works Directly with: Ministry of Education and Government of Liberia, program technical staff, MEL, and partner teams

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.

Knowledge and Experience

• Master’s degree in education, nutrition, public health, food security, international development, agriculture, development studies, public policy, or a related field with at least 7 years of progressively responsible experience; or Bachelor’s degree with at least 10 years of relevant experience.
• Four or more years of progressively responsible experience working with government institutions, public sector systems, education systems, or donor-funded development programs.
• Demonstrated experience working with senior government officials and managing complex stakeholder relationships.
• Experience in institutional strengthening, systems strengthening, decentralization, governance, public administration, or policy implementation.
• Experience supporting the development of government planning, budgeting, coordination, or financing systems.
• Experience working in education, school feeding, nutrition, agriculture, or related sectors preferred.
• Familiarity with Liberia government systems and education sector structures strongly preferred.
• Experience with USG or other donor-funded programs preferred.
• Exceptional communication, facilitation, negotiation, diplomacy, and relationship management skills.
• Fluent oral and strong analytical, written English communications skills are required.

Success Factors

The successful Government Partnerships Director will be a skilled relationship builder and systems thinker who can navigate complex institutional environments while fostering trust, collaboration, and shared ownership among government stakeholders. They will be able to translate strategic objectives into practical actions that strengthen government leadership, capacity, and accountability. The successful candidate will combine political awareness, diplomacy, and technical expertise with a commitment to locally led development and sustainable impact.

Living Conditions / Environmental Conditions

The position is based in Monrovia, and it requires some travel to support the program, which may include travel to insecure locations where freedom of movement is limited and areas where amenities are limited.

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 Engagement 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 committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all employees and qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, sex, sexual orientation, religion or belief, national origin, age, disability, marital status, veteran status, or any other characteristics protected under applicable law.

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 the 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)

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. Candidates are therefore encouraged to apply early, as the position may be closed before the final application deadline.

Signatures

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