Senior Programme Officer - African Partnerships

ClientEarth; Elsene; On-site; EUR 46,000 - 50,000; Full time

Job summary

ClientEarth is seeking a Senior Programme Officer for its African Partnerships in Brussels. You will support the implementation of a West Africa programme with Liberia, Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana focus, coordinating activities, engaging partners and ensuring donor compliance.

You will bring fluent English and French, strong programme coordination skills, and a proven track record in not-for-profit contexts to advance forest governance and IPLC rights.

Qualifications

• Experience delivering complex programmes or projects in the not-for-profit sector.
• Strong understanding of Sub-Saharan Africa contexts.
• Proven track record maintaining partnerships with diverse stakeholders across Sub-Saharan Africa.

Responsibilities

• Partnership Engagement and Collaboration: manage relationships and support high-quality programme delivery, including decolonial and locally led practices.
• Programme and Project Coordination: plan and coordinate activities across the portfolio in line with objectives, budgets and donor requirements.
• Financial Management and Compliance: assist budget monitoring, forecasting and reporting with stakeholders to ensure donor compliance.

Skills

English (CEFR C2)

French (CEFR C2)

Programme coordination

Partnership management

Not-for-profit experience

Job description

Senior Programme Officer - African Partnerships

Application Deadline: 23 October 2026

Department: Global Impact

Employment Type: Fixed Term - Full Time

Location: Brussels

Reporting To: Geraldine Galvaing

Compensation: €3,958.13 / month

Description

This is an excellent opportunity for an experienced Senior Programme Officer to contribute to ClientEarth’s work to protect the world’s forests and strengthen Indigenous Peoples’ and Local Communities’ (IPLC) rights in land and forest governance. The postholder will draw on their experience in programme coordination, partner engagement, and monitoring, evaluation and learning to support the effective delivery of a diverse portfolio of projects.

ClientEarth works to achieve systemic change at scale. We aim to drive systems change through legal reform, advocacy and influencing, litigation and capacity sharing. We do this in collaboration with our partners, who represent diverse expertise and experiences and include law firms, NGO partners, consultants and local communities.

In this role, you will support the implementation and coordination of ClientEarth’s African Partnerships programme across West Africa, with a particular focus on Liberia, Côte d’Ivoire, and Ghana. Working closely with colleagues and partners, you will contribute to initiatives that strengthen equitable and durable forest governance systems, uphold community rights, and support climate and development goals.

Important dates to note:

• Deadline to submit an initial application: 25th of October
• If your profile passes initial screening, you will be asked to submit additional information in the form of 3 additional questions.
• The deadline to submit your answers to these questions is the 29th of October
• If we do not receive a response to these questions by the deadline we will assume you are no longer interested in the role.
• Interviews will take place the week beginning the 9th of November

Please also review the "Our Hiring Process" section at the bottom of this advert to learn more about the stages involved for this specific role.

Main duties

• Partnership Engagement and Collaboration: Maintain effective relationships with partners, using diplomacy to manage sensitive issues and support high-quality programme delivery. Identify and recommend improvements to collaborative ways of working and contribute to strengthening ClientEarth's partnership approach, including the implementation of decolonial and locally led practices. Facilitate regional collaboration, peer learning, and knowledge sharing among partners and programme teams.
• Programme and Project Coordination: Plan and coordinate the delivery of projects across the portfolio, ensuring activities are implemented in line with agreed objectives, budgets, timelines, and donor requirements.
• Financial Management and Compliance: Support budget holders in planning defined parts of programme and project budgets, and coordinate budget monitoring, expenditure tracking, forecasting, and financial reporting across the portfolio. Work collaboratively with partners, budget holders, and Finance colleagues to identify variances, recommend corrective action, ensure compliance with organisational and donor requirements, and promote strong financial stewardship and value for money.

See the job description (below) for a full list of duties for this role.

Role requirements

• Fluency (CEFR Level C2) in English
• Fluency (CEFR Level C2) in French
• Proven experience supporting the delivery of complex programmes or projects in the not-for-profit sector, including planning, implementation, monitoring, and reporting
• Strong understanding of Sub-Saharan African contexts, demonstrated through significant professional and/or lived experience
• Proven track record of maintaining effective partnerships with stakeholders across Sub-Saharan Africa, including civil society organisations, consultants, government representatives, local communities, and other local actors

See the job description (below) for a full list of requirements for this role.

Note to candidates: We know that long lists of criteria can be daunting and that some candidates will not apply for a role unless they feel they are 100% qualified. If you feel you meet at least some of the essential criteria, we still encourage you to apply.

Further Information

Have a question about this job? Please visit our Careers site for advice on applying, FAQs, and more.

Flexible working: We are proud to be a Flexa accredited Employer. Visit our Flexa Employer page for more information on our approach to flexible working. Our flexible working policy allows our people the choice to decide to work from home/another location in the country where their contract of employment is issued for 80% of their month, with the other 20% of their month being office-based. See our Benefits page for more as well as our flexible working FAQ.

ClientEarth values diversity and inclusion and the benefits this brings. We aim to appoint the most suitable candidate at all times and welcome applications from people from all different backgrounds. See our equity, diversity and inclusion journey page for more.

Please note that ClientEarth is only able to employ those who have the pre-existing legal right to work in the countries listed at the top of this job advert.

ClientEarth is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice or legal services to third parties.