Position: Program Manager, Eastern Africa
Reports To: Regional Director, Eastern Africa
Location: Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania – Hybrid
Position Type: Full Time (40% Tanzania | 60% Eastern Africa Regional Support)
ORGANIZATIONAL PROFILE:
For more than 43 million people, blindness is a daily reality; another 295 million suffer from moderate to severe vision impairment. 90% of these people live in low- and middle-income countries where access to eye care is limited and the challenges for those who can’t see are severe. But there is hope: 80% of this burden is treatable or preventable. For example, 17 million blind people could be cured with a 10-minute cataract surgery. Millions more suffer from corneal blindness, which is often preventable or treatable. At Cure Blindness Project, we believe avoidable blindness can – and must – be overcome. For more than 30 years, we have worked alongside a capable network of collaborators to help people around the world retain and regain their sight by developing high-quality, cost-effective eye care systems in underserved areas of the world. With the help of partners in more than 30 countries, Cure Blindness Project has provided more than 2 million sight-restoring surgeries and screened more than 20 million people to provide care and basic treatments. We’ve trained more than 25,200 eye health professionals and have established 6 eye hospitals. There is more work left to do, but we can overcome the mountain of global blindness together.??
Cure Blindness Project is expanding its team to meet new challenges, scale its work, and broaden its reach. We are seeking individuals who are passionate about changing lives and want to be a part of a team that works together to reach new heights. We want leaders who can aim high, make things happen, and are invested in building a positive team dynamic to bring the work to life.??
VISION: A world where no one is needlessly blind
MISSION: We enable countries to cure avoidable blindness by developing high quality, cost-effective eye care in underserved areas of the world.
REGIONAL PROGRAM OVERVIEW:
Cure Blindness Project and its partners currently work in several countries in Eastern Africa, including South Sudan, Tanzania, Eritrea, Somaliland and Rwanda, and are also looking at expansion opportunities in the region. Cure Blindness Project’s Ethiopia office is managed separately and manages all programs in Ethiopia.
SCOPE OF WORK:
Cure Blindness Project began working in Eastern Africa in 2008 with a mission to eliminate needless blindness through cross-collaboration with an implementing partner network, focusing on both service delivery and training. As work expanded, a country office was established in Ethiopia to manage in-country programming and support regional initiatives.
To support continued growth and strengthen programming across Eastern Africa (outside Ethiopia), this Program Manager position has been created to provide operational, programmatic, and strategic support to the Regional Director, Eastern Africa.
The Program Manager will dedicate 40% of their time to oversight and coordination of the Tanzania portfolio, given recent expansion, and 60% to broader regional support across Eastern Africa countries. The role requires working across multiple time zones, including participating in morning and evening calls and travel nationally and regionally up to 20% of the time.
This position will be housed within a partner office and will operate primarily through technical leadership, coordination, relationship management, and performance oversight. The role carries no direct supervisory responsibility but will provide technical guidance and matrix coordination across teams.
ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS:
(40% Tanzania | 60% Regional)
1. Strategic & Program Coordination
- Support the Eastern Africa strategy and annual operating plans in close collaboration with partner teams.
- Provide enhanced coordination and technical support to the Tanzania portfolio to ensure smooth expansion and sustained program quality.
- Strengthen performance monitoring systems, including scorecard tracking, routine data review, and joint performance reflection.
- Identify opportunities and develop action plans for program strengthening based on sector trends, policy developments, and emerging eye care needs.
- Promote alignment with Cure Blindness Project’s mission, values, and global standards while respecting partner systems and structures.
2. Partnership Engagement & Representation
- Serve as a coordination focal point between Cure Blindness Project, partner institutions, and relevant government stakeholders.
- Represent Cure Blindness Project by actively participating in technical working groups, donor meetings, and coordination forums as delegated by the Regional Director.
- Support the development, review, and follow-up of partnership agreements and MOUs.
- Foster constructive, trust-based relationships that enable shared planning and accountability.
3. Program Quality, Learning & Reporting
- Support effective implementation through structured monitoring and joint review processes.
- Coordinate timely and high-quality narrative and financial reporting in collaboration with partners and regional teams.
- Strengthen operational discipline in performance tracking, documentation, and compliance.
- Encourage a culture of continuous improvement, shared learning, and evidence-informed decision-making.
4. Financial & Operational Oversight
- Support annual planning and budgeting processes, with focused engagement on Tanzania program performance.
- Monitor expenditure trends and flag risks or variances in collaboration with finance teams.
- Promote adherence to donor requirements and local regulatory frameworks.
- Support transparent processes around agreements, disbursements, and accountability systems.
5. Business Development & Portfolio Growth
- Contribute technical input to proposal development and donor submissions.
- Support identification of funding opportunities and strategic partnerships across Eastern Africa.
- Strengthen positioning of the Tanzania and regional portfolios for sustainable growth aligned with national priorities.
6. Risk & Context Monitoring
- Support identification and monitoring of programmatic, operational, and con-textual risks.
- Contribute to mitigation planning and adaptive responses in coordination with regional leadership and HQ.
- Promote adherence to security and compliance protocols across the portfolio.
QUALIFICATIONS:
- Bachelor’s degree in public health, Health Sciences, International Development, Business Administration, or a related field required. Master’s degree preferred.
- At least 5 years of experience working with an international NGO or business
- Progressive experience in program management within global health, public health systems, or international development.
- Strong communicator familiar with working independently in a cross-functional role
- Demonstrated experience and skill with budget preparation and analysis, financial reporting preparation and presentation
- Previous experience partnering with and managing government relations
- Experience building inclusive partnerships that support community-led, long-term sustainability
- Prior program management experience and strong organizational skills
- Advanced computer skills in MS Office programs, particularly Excel
- Excellent oral and written English skills required
Additional qualifications include:
- Excitement to join a nonprofit institution poised to expand global operations.
- Demonstrates a highly professional and collaborative demeanor with supervisors, coworkers and partners.
- A sense of discretion and a high degree of professionalism is required, ability to maintain confidentiality of highly sensitive information.
- Strong interpersonal, communication, facilitation, and presentation skills.
- Detail oriented and able to efficiently prioritize tasks.
- Flexibility to adjust and contribute to continually evolving work situations and changing priorities.
- Committed to advancing diversity, equity and inclusion.
Physical requirements:
- Prolonged periods of sitting at a desk and working on a computer
- Must be able to lift up to 15 pounds at a time.
- Cure Blindness Project encourages applications from people of all races, religions, national origins, genders, sexual orientations, gender identities, gender expressions, and ages, as well as veterans and individuals with disabilities.