Programmes Manager -
Conservation and Rural Livelihoods (Madagascar)

SEED  Madagascar  is  a  medium-sized  international  NGO  seeking  a  driven  and  enthusiastic
livelihoods
Programmes  Manager  to  help  shape  and  deliver  our  conservation  and  rural
programmes in Madagascar. This is a unique opportunity to take on real responsibility early in your
career,  working  at  the  heart  of  an  organisation  that  combines  hands-on  community impact with
evidence-led programming.

This  role  is  ideal  for  an early-career development professional with two to four years’ experience
who is ready to step into managing people, projects and partnerships. You will work closely with a
diverse team of national and international colleagues, taking the lead on programme design, grant
writing, reporting and evaluation, and playing a key role in strengthening and growing SEED’s work.

To succeed in this role, you will need proven experience in grant writing, a strong understanding of
conservation  and  rural  livelihoods  programming,  and  the  ability  to  work  confidently  to  a  high
standard in written and spoken English. These skills are essential and candidates will need to have
these to be considered for this post.

SEED  Madagascar  is  a  British  charity  working  in  long-term  partnership  with  communities  in  the
southeast of Madagascar. Our integrated approach brings together community health, WASH, rural
livelihoods,  education  and  conservation  to  support  sustainable,  locally  led  change.  Alongside
implementation,  we  place  strong  emphasis  on  learning,  research  and  publication—ensuring that
the  work  you  help  lead  in  Madagascar  contributes  to  international  best  practice  and  your  own
professional development.

Location: Fort Dauphin, Anosy Region, Madagascar

Contract minimum duration: 2 years

Probationary period: 3 months

Terms and conditions: Local salary, plus £1,200 contribution to flight and £650 to insurance

Duties and Responsibilities

Project Development

1.
Work  with  national  and  international  staff  to  design  livelihood  and  conservation
projects  that  fulfil  local  needs  and  align  with  SEEDs  strategic  aim,  taking  into  account  past
learning, international best practice, contextual constraints and government objectives.

2.
Oversee  the  development  of  project  frameworks  (e.g.,  Log  Frames  and  Theory  of
Change) and proposals to ensure they are representative of the community needs whilst being
attractive to donors.

3.
Support the team to conduct research into international and national development best
practice and funding opportunities for the conservation and sustainable livelihoods programmes

4.
Ensure  the  high  standard  of  all  project  documents  submitted  to donors to secure the
ongoing  funding of SEED’s projects – currently at around £150,000 per annum across all active
interventions

Identify  partners  and  build  networks  and  collaborations  across  the  conservation  and

5.
sustainable livelihoods programmes to increase the impact of SEEDs work in these areas

6.
Use  evidence-based advocacy from research and project findings in briefing papers for
staff,  local  and  regional  stakeholders,  and  government  departments  to  inform  regional  and
national development strategy.

Programme Management

Provide timely updates to the Programme and Funding Coordinator of project activities

7.
and support them to communicate any changes in project activities to donors when necessary.

8.
Oversee effective systems for monitoring project progress against activity plans, working
with project teams to ensure objectives are met and using learning from ongoing evaluation to
inform the development of projects.

Conduct  fieldwork  and  monitoring  visits  to project sites when appropriate and ensure

9.
observations are fed back into ongoing project design.

People Management

10.
Recruit,  support,  manage,  review  and  provide  professional  development  to a team of
Programme  Interns, Officers and Specialists, delegating to and managing their work to achieve
departmental objectives and support organisational ethos and strategy.

11.
Foster essential cross-cultural collaboration and learning, providing support to both the
national  and  international  teams  to  bridge  gaps  in  understanding  and  priorities  for  project
development and implementation.

Provide  pastoral  care,  guidance,  and  act  as  a  role  model,  both  professionally  and

12.
personally, for a team of early career professionals living in country.

Budget Management

Oversee the development of budgets, including full cost allocation with consideration of

13.
the organisational strategy and priorities over the coming years.

Provide monthly overview of financial reports, ensuring project spending is on track and

14.
identifying trends in expenditure, and management of exchange rate gains.

General

15.
Provide core support to the Director of Programmes & Operations in management and
ensuring the support and security of all international staff, including acting as an intermediary of
organisational priorities to the wider team.

16.  Work flexibly, including changing work priorities at short notice and working unsociable
hours when necessary to meet a short deadline, for example the submission of project funding
documents within the timeframe set by donors.

Ensure  all  of  SEEDs  policies  and  procedures  are  evident  throughout  the  work  of  the
including  those  for  safeguarding,  whistleblowing  and  anticorruption,  and

17.
department,
undertake continual training to ensure these are always promoted.

Represent  SEED  Madagascar  in  external  meetings  with  other  agencies,  donors,  and

18.
partners on the ground in Madagascar and in the UK.

Act as a temporary stand-in for the Director of Programmes & Operations and/or other

19.
Programme Managers when required during a period of leave and absences.

Required skills & experience:

Essential

At  least  a  first  degree-level  qualification  or  equivalent  experience  in  Conservation,

●
sustainable livelihood development, or related discipline

Sound  knowledge of international development frameworks and contemporary global

●
issues facing least developed countries

Sound  knowledge  of  and  interest  in  conservation  issues  and  approaches  in  least

●
developed countries

Minimum of 2 years’ experience of conservation or livelihoods projects in a developing

●
context

●

Minimum of 3 years’ experience in grant writing and proven record of success.

Minimum  of  2  years’  professional  experience  in  line  management  and/or  project

●
management

Familiarity  with  the  use  of  project  management  tools  including  Logical  Frameworks,

●
Theory of Change models, Budgets Activity Plans and Monitoring & Evaluation frameworks

Fluency in English (written and spoken) with excellent written communication skills, to

●
the level of editing English documents for publication

●

Excellent listening and verbal communication skills, and a flexible and patient attitude

●
Excellent  proposal  and  report  writing  and  editing  skills,  with  previous  experience
compiling project proposals and reports and the ability to tailor written information to various
audiences

●
Cross-cultural  negotiation  skills  and  a  curiosity  in  effective  work  practices  in  a
cross-cultural setting. Ability and desire to build capacity both within international and national
teams

Ability and desire to develop, support and manage a team of volunteers and staff, and

●
to oversee the Project Development internship programme

●
Ability to demonstrate and support staff to develop appropriate professional and social
attitudes  required  for  living  in  another  country,  and  to  manage  these  aspects  of  volunteers’
behaviour when required

●

Proficiency in Microsoft Office, particularly Word, Excel, and PowerPoint

Excellent  problem  solving  and  analytical  skills,  with  demonstrable ability in gathering

●
and assimilating facts and data from various sources

●
Experience of living and working in a developing country with the ability and desire to
work  with  teams  from  different  economic  and  cultural  backgrounds  and  across  multiple
language barriers

Application procedure:

Interested  applicants  should  send  a  CV  and  covering  letter  in  English  outlining  why they wish to
take  up  this  position  and  how  their  skills  and  experience  match  the  requirements  in  the  job
description criteria to SEED Madagascar Director of Programmes and Operations, Lisa Bass by email
on lisa@seedmadagascar.org.

Please note: AI generated cover letters and recruitment exercises will not be processed.

We value concise and focused applications. To help us review all submissions efficiently, please limit
your CV to a maximum of four pages. Unfortunately, longer CVs cannot be considered.

Application Deadline: Monday 2nd February 2026 at 23:59 GMT. Applications will be reviewed on
an ongoing basis throughout this period.

Candidates  will  complete  an  exercise,  long-listed  applicants will have an initial informal interview
with Madagascar based staff and short-listed applicants will then be offered an interview with the
London team.

SEED  Madagascar  actively  encourages equality, diversity, and inclusion in the workplace and aims
to  create  a  working  environment  free  of  bullying,  harassment,  victimisation,  and  unlawful
discrimination,  where  individual  differences  and  the  contributions  of  all  staff  are recognised and
valued.