Country Program Manager – Philippines

EWS-KT; Hinoba-an; On-site; PHP 3,741,000 - 5,611,000; Full time

Job summary

EWS-KT is seeking a Country Program Manager for the Philippines to lead knowledge transfer initiatives and oversee program delivery across both EWS-KT and EWSF. This role demands strategic partnership building with government, donors, and partners, plus strong governance and risk management.

You will manage multi-disciplinary teams, coordinate field activities, and ensure compliant operations while driving impact for smallholder farmers in the Philippines.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of relevant professional experience.
• Experience managing partnerships with government agencies and donors.
• Experience in rural development and organizational governance.

Responsibilities

• Provide strategic oversight for programs of both foundations.
• Develop partnerships, funding strategies and compliance oversight.
• Lead Philippines teams and coordinate with global Knowledge Transfer teams.
• Ensure governance, financial oversight and risk management across the foundations.

Skills

Partnership management

Stakeholder engagement

Leadership

Project management

Strategic thinking

English proficiency

Education

MSc in international development / agriculture / economics / business administration

Job description

Become the Country Program Manager – Philippines and help smallholder farmers feed the world.

ROLE & RESPONSIBILITIES

About the Role

The Country Program Manager – Philippines leads East-West Seed Knowledge Transfer in the Philippines, providing strategic direction and oversight across both East-West Seed Knowledge Transfer Foundation (EWS-KT) and East-West Seed Foundation Philippines (EWSF).

The role is responsible for ensuring effective program delivery, developing strategic partnerships and funding opportunities, strengthening organizational capacity, and ensuring the effective and compliant operation of both foundations.

Place of Work

Bulacan, Philippines

Key Responsibilities

1. Partnerships, Funding and External Relations

• Build strong and lasting relationships with government agencies, local and international organizations, development partners, donors, and the private sector to develop long-term partnerships and advance the objectives of the foundations.
• Manage a pipeline of partners and funding opportunities, including identification, prospecting, outreach, assessment, alignment, negotiation, and closing.
• Work with the Executive Director and Head of Partnerships to develop partnership and funding strategies and lead their implementation in the Philippines.
• Map and engage key stakeholders to strengthen the profile and positioning of EWS-KT and EWSF.
• Explore and identify potential funding leads and partnership opportunities.
• Develop and pitch concept notes, proposals, and budgets.
• Ensure appropriate due diligence and legal compliance when entering into partnership and funding agreements.
• Maintain strong relationships with donors and partners and oversee timely and high-quality reporting.
• Coordinate with communications teams to showcase projects, partnerships, results, and impact through appropriate channels.
• Act as a key point of contact for EWS-KT in the Philippines and represent the foundations in relevant external forums.

2. Program and Project Management

• Provide strategic oversight and direction for the programs and activities of both foundations.
  
• In close coordination with program managers, develop work plans and support the effective management and successful implementation of projects.
  
• Monitor program and project performance to ensure objectives, deliverables, timelines, budgets, and impact targets are achieved.
  
• Regularly visit project areas to maintain an overview of activities and engage with teams, farmers, communities, and partners.
  
• Ensure strong monitoring, evaluation and learning practices and promote the use of evidence and learning to continuously improve program effectiveness.
  
• Identify opportunities for collaboration between the two foundations where these can increase impact, strengthen programs, or improve the efficient use of resources.
  

3. Organizational and People Leadership

• Provide leadership to the Philippines teams and foster a collaborative, accountable, and high-performing working environment.
  
• Lead the support team across finance, technical/training, MEL, digital media, HR, and other relevant functions, and oversee the field teams delivering programs to farmers and farming communities.
  
• Ensure clear roles, responsibilities, objectives, and performance expectations across the teams.
  
• Oversee the coordination of support from the global Knowledge Transfer support team.
  
• Support the development of programs and initiatives that strengthen the capacity of the teams and build succession for strategic roles.
  
• Promote collaboration, learning, and appropriate sharing of expertise and resources across the two foundations.
  

4. Governance, Finance and Compliance

• Ensure the smooth and effective functioning of both EWS-KT and EWSF.
• Ensure operations comply with applicable Philippine laws and regulations, organizational policies, donor and partner requirements, and the respective governance requirements of each foundation.
• Oversee annual planning and budgeting and monitor financial performance in collaboration with finance and relevant leadership.
• Ensure appropriate financial controls, reporting, audits, and risk-management processes are in place.
• Ensure that the respective mandates, governance structures, and accountabilities of the two foundations are appropriately maintained.
• Identify and manage operational, financial, programmatic, compliance, and reputational risks.
• Provide timely and accurate information and reporting to the Executive Director and relevant governance bodies.

5. Collaboration with East-West Seed Philippines

• Maintain and further strengthen alignment with East-West Seed Philippines to ensure that EWS-KT activities are focused in areas where there are opportunities to maximize synergies and impact.
• Maintain a strong collaborative relationship with the General Manager and leadership team of East-West Seed Philippines.
• Identify opportunities for appropriate collaboration and knowledge sharing between East-West Seed Philippines and the foundations.
• Coordinate activities where appropriate to maximize expertise, geographic reach, and impact while maintaining the respective mandates of the foundations.

6. Other Responsibilities

• Support communications and visibility efforts that demonstrate the impact of the foundations’ work and partnerships.
  
• Represent EWS-KT and, where appropriate, EWSF with government, donors, partners, and other external stakeholders.
  
• Undertake other related duties and responsibilities that may arise from time to time.

SKILLS & REQUIREMENTS

The candidate is expected to have at least 10 years of relevant professional experience, including:

• Solid experience managing partnerships with national and local government agencies.
• Experience working with or managing partnerships with international and local organizations, donors, foundations, and private-sector partners.
• Proven experience in the management of agriculture-based development projects.
• Strong resourcefulness and demonstrated ability to develop proposals and budgets.
• Excellent multi-stakeholder management skills and the ability to engage effectively at different levels of an organization.
• Strong leadership and people-management experience, including the ability to lead multidisciplinary teams.
• Solid project-management and organizational skills, with the ability to manage multiple priorities effectively.

Experience in rural development through market-based approaches.

Understanding of agricultural and vegetable markets and the challenges facing smallholder farmers.

Experience with organizational governance, financial oversight, compliance, and risk management within a foundation, NGO, or development organization.

Strong analytical and problem‑solving skills.

Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English.

A minimum of an MSc in international development, agriculture, economics, business administration, or a related field.

APPLICATION INFORMATION

At EWS-KT, we value diversity and aspire to reflect this in our workforce. We welcome applications from people from all sections of the community, irrespective of race, color, gender, age, disability, sexual orientation, religion, or belief.

Due to the large number of applications we receive, only applicants who are shortlisted for further discussions will be contacted.