Rising Academies works with governments to improve the quality of teaching and learning in public education systems, supporting more than 450,000 students across 1,400 public schools in West and East Africa. It is a Certified B Corp founded in Sierra Leone in 2014.
Rwanda now has a growing portfolio of opportunities across RisingFaster and broader foundational learning work, co-design and testing partnerships, potential Last Mile roles, and Product R&D including Rori, Tari and LearnLens. The Head of Strategic Partnerships & Innovation, Rwanda will turn these opportunities into a coherent, government-aligned portfolio, focusing on strategic partnerships, government alignment, technical and AI-related engagement, and connecting opportunities so they develop coherently. This is not primarily a programme-delivery or deep technical-specialist role.
Key responsibilities:
- Build and maintain a prioritized Rwanda partnership and innovation pipeline, with government sponsors, funding pathways, decisions and next steps.
- Own senior external relationships across key institutions in the country.
- Work with MINEDUC, REB, NESA, MINICT and other institutions so Rising's digital and AI work is aligned to education-system priorities.
- Advance RAISE and WadhwaniAI ORF toward government-backed next-stage pathways.
- Define credible Rwanda use cases and system pathways for Bambai+, Rori, Tari, LearnLens and other technologies, including no-go recommendations where appropriate.
- Strengthen RisingFaster and other core government partnerships by identifying where technology can improve implementation quality, data use and cost-effectiveness.
- Provide targeted strategic support to Imara.
- Identify shifts in government or funder priorities early.
- Work across programme, Digital, CAIO, Impact/MEL, Finance, Operations and Business Development colleagues.
- Originate or materially advance at least one significant new opportunity during AY26/27.
Location and reporting: full-time, based in Kigali, Rwanda; reports to the Country Director, Rwanda, with a dotted line to Business Development. Target start date is 4 January 2027.
Requirements: approximately 8+ years of progressively responsible experience in strategic partnerships, business development, government relations, education, technology/AI, public-sector innovation, philanthropy or a related field; strong experience engaging senior government stakeholders and navigating multi-stakeholder partnerships (familiarity with Rwanda's education, technology or public-sector ecosystem highly desirable); ability to turn emerging opportunities into clear strategies and executable workplans; strong strategic judgement and evidence-based go/no-go recommendations; comfort with digital and AI-enabled products at a strategic level; cross-functional influencing skills; strong written and verbal communication; a relevant degree or equivalent professional experience.
HOW TO APPLY: