Job Title:   Planning & Design Officer (Assistant Project Manager – AMO)

Organisation: Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF)

Duty Station: Kampala, Uganda

About US:

Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) is an international independent medical humanitarian organization that delivers emergency aid to people affected by armed conflict, epidemics, natural disasters and exclusion from health care. MSF offers assistance to people based on need irrespective of race, religion, gender, or political affiliation.

Job Summary:   MSF continuously manages multiple construction projects simultaneously in order to support the medical activities. During the initial phases of these projects, operations require technical support for project management and design, as well as temporary assistance for other activities (studies, planning, etc.). The Planning & Design Officer (Assistant Project Manager – AMO) supports a portfolio of construction or renovation projects during the initial stages of the project cycle. Based at SUKA (Support Unit Kampala) in Kampala, the AMO supports missions and operational cells in their role as project owners. S/He:

• Assists in clarifying/defining needs in the form of a medico-operational program or project narrative document.
• Translates these needs into a concept design while considering cost, quality, and timeline constraints.
• Recommends the methods and means to achieve the objectives by providing support in construction/renovation project management, proposing a contextualized project cycle, and an organizational structure tailored to the project’s specific needs.
• Supervises construction/renovation project management teams, providing functional management support.

Key Duties and Responsibilities:

• Acts in an advisory and propositional role, while the project owner (MSF Operations) remains the final decision-maker. Advice and proposals must align with the overall institutional strategy, particularly regarding climate and environmental ambitions (including the carbon footprint reduction roadmap).
• Interacts at various levels, from headquarters to field locations, depending on the nature and progress of the projects. Understands the scope and specifications of the project to propose the most appropriate management/governance approach in line with internal rules. Facilitates initial coordination, enabling the project owner to fully assume their project management responsibilities.
• Clarifies and prioritizes program elements (needs, constraints, risks), ensures a multidisciplinary approach with other support actors, and structures them into a specifications document (project narrative and design concept).
• At the project owner’s request, facilitates the mobilization of necessary resources. May be authorized by the construction referent to validate local or regional service providers, materials, tools, or context-specific implementation methods.
• Participates in construction or shelter-related emergencies, provides functional management of construction managers and occasionally site supervisors, supports training activities, and may temporarily replace the technical referent during absences.

• Fluent in French & English
• Degree in Construction Project Management, Architecture, or Civil Engineering
• 4 years minimum experience in construction project management
• 2 different project experience in hospital design
• Experience in construction within the humanitarian sector or developing countries
• Dynamic, organized, rigorous, with strong analytical and synthesis skills while respecting existing structures and their evolution.
• Ability to collaborate, strong interpersonal skills, sense of dialogue, and good listening skills.
• Ability to communicate at different levels and maintain a global vision of the project.
• Proficiency in Autocad

Considered as assets

• Field MSF experience
• Experience in hospital management

All interested candidates should complete their application in English or in French (5MB max).