Programme Director for Syria

Starting date: September 2026

Country Program: Syria Response

Base: Damascus, Syria, with frequent travels between implementation offices

Line Manager: Country Director for Syria

About Syria Country Programme:

People in Need (PIN) has been working in Syria since 2012, making us one of the first international responders to the humanitarian crisis. Over more than a decade, we have supported millions of people across the country through education, food security, livelihoods, WASH, and shelter programmes, balancing life-saving assistance to internally displaced populations with early recovery support in areas of return, including cash-based assistance, winterisation, education for returnee children, and community-based livelihoods. Our programme portfolio is organised around four interlinked pillars: emergency response and early recovery; human capital and education systems; climate resilience and sustainable livelihoods; and civil society and inclusive governance. Together, these pillars span the full spectrum from immediate humanitarian assistance through skills development, green economy, and market systems, to participatory governance and civil society strengthening.

Position Summary:

The Programs Director (PD) is a core leadership position and a key representative of People in Need (PIN) at the country level in Syria. The PD holds strategic responsibility for the quality, coherence, and compliance of PIN's programme portfolio, ensuring alignment with PIN's values, policies, and the strategy of Syria Country Program (CP) and the Relief and Development Department (RDD). The PD supports the Country Director (CD) in steering the overall country programme, manages programme risks, and, together with Programme Managers, the Deputy Regional Director for the Middle East (DRD) oversees the quality of programme design and implementation. The PD directly line manages the Programme, MEAL, Grants, and Communications teams, and has primary responsibility for HR management and staff development across these units.

Duties and Responsibilities:

Human Resources & Capacity Development of Programme Team

• Line manage and lead the Programme, MEAL, Grants, and Communications teams, fostering team spirit, a culture of respect, personal, responsibility, transparency, and openess.

• Ensure all staff are aware of, understand, and comply with relevant PIN policies and rules, including the Code of Conduct and Safeguarding Policy.

• Together with team leads, identify and address capacity gaps, building staff resilience and adaptability to the changing context and funding landscape.

• Ensure effective coordination and collaboration across the Programme, MEAL, Grants, and Communications units, promoting clear division of responsibilities and shared objectives.

• Contribute to the recruitment of key positions across supervised teams at the national level and, where relevant, to processes led at the HQ level.

• Provide regular performance feedback and coaching to senior staff under direct supervision.

Project & Programme Management

• Provide strategic oversight of programme implementation and ensure Programme Managers have the systems and support required to deliver quality programmes. Oversee programme budget performance and burn rate across all projects, ensuring early identification of variances and timely corrective action in coordination with the Finance and Grants team. Ensure all programmes are designed and managed in line with PIN quality standards, global guidelines on project management and MEAL, and in adherence to PIN policies and strategies.

• Ensure effective cooperation between Programme, MEAL, Grants, and Communications teams through clear division of responsibilities, open communication, and joint tool development and data management.

• Ensure regular presence of the Programme team within inter-agency coordination platform at both national and local level (national and sub-national clusters, working groups etc.).

• Oversee the Grants team to ensure timely, high-quality donor reporting and compliance, and support the Communications team in producing external materials and visibility products aligned with programme priorities.

• Ensure protection, accountability, gender and disability, and environment are systematically mainstreamed across all programmes and regularly reviewed in coordination with MEAL and relevant focal points.

• Facilitate coordination across programme and support functions; ensure close collaboration with all CMT members throughout the programme cycle.

• Lead programme emergency preparedness and response planning; keep relevant sector teams engaged and informed, and provide regular updates on the Emergency Preparedness Plan.

• Ensure systematic documentation of programme learning; oversee regular lessons-learned exercises and ensure key findings are captured and applied to future programming.

• Commission and oversee pillar-specific analysis to inform both design and positioning — including market and economic analysis for livelihoods and green-economy programming, and climate and risk analysis for the climate-resilience pillar.

Strategic Positioning & Programme Development

• Lead on strategic programme and relevant cross-cutting priorities as defined in the PIN Syria Country Strategy 2026-2028, ensuring all four programmatic pillars advance coherently towards the strategy's "From Relief to Resilience" vision.

• Promote and support the development of new programming suited to the evolving context, with particular focus on stabilisation, early recovery, and climate-resilient programming.

• Lead business development for PIN Syria — maintaining oversight of the funding pipeline across all four pillars, overseeing and guiding proposal development and quality assurance, and ensuring strategic alignment between fundraising priorities and programme direction.

• Support CD in strategic positioning with key institutional donors, including ECHO, SHF, DG MENA, GCF and FCDO - building and maintaining relationships that reflect PIN Syria's technical credibility and strategic direction.

• Lead the operationalisation of PIN Syria's locally-led action agenda under programme strategy pillars, driving organisational adjustments towards greater partnership with local actors and meaningful community engagement. Share representation responsibilities with the Country Director towards key partners, coordination fora, and local authorities.

• Ensure interlinkages across the four programmatic pillars and area-based approaches are used effectively to maximise strategic impact, leveraging cross-pillar synergies at the community and systems level.

• Support the CD in reporting on country programme performance to HQ and in medium- and long-term planning in line with the RDD strategy.

• Maintain a continuous mapping of the actor landscape, drawing on cluster data, 3W/4W reporting, and direct intelligence, to continuously test and update PIN Syria's added-value proposition, identifying gaps to fill, duplication to avoid, and shifts that affect PIN's comparative advantage.

• Position PIN as a technical leader in Syria's education, livelihoods, governance, and climate resilience sectors through evidence generation, policy dialogue, and strategic engagement in sector reform and coordination mechanisms.

Quality & Risk Management

• Ensure PIN and RDD policies are known and respected across the programme unit.

• Ensure robust MEAL systems are in place across all programmes, including functional Community Feedback and Response Mechanisms (CFRM) and systematic safeguarding and protection mainstreaming.

• Oversee programme risk assessments; recommend risk mitigation measures and ensure these are integrated into project design and implementation.

• Promote a culture of learning by ensuring PIN Syria's programming is grounded in existing internal and external knowledge and best practices.

• Ensure timely and high-quality information sharing within the Programme unit and between the country programme and HQ.

• Facilitate relevant and timely programme reporting through PIN's online platforms.

Representation & External Relations

• In collaboration with and under the supervision of the CD, formally represent PIN towards local authorities, partners, and donors.

• Build and maintain strategic partnerships with relevant organisations and stakeholders (including CSO partners, Alliance 2015 members, and local actors) for programme development and implementation.

• Support the CD and Communication Department in promoting the PIN brand at the country level, ensuring appropriate visibility and external communication.

Key Requirements:

Education:

• Master's degree or equivalent in International Development, Humanitarian Affairs, Social Sciences, or a related field.

Experience:

• Minimum 7 years of senior programme management experience in humanitarian and development contexts, with at least 2 years of experience in a similar role in humanitarian context (Head of Programmes/ Program Director or equivalent).

• Demonstrated experience in leading multi-sector programmes across the humanitarian-development-peace nexus, including stabilisation, early recovery, and longer-term development programming.

• Experience working in complex, conflict-affected contexts; Middle East or Syria experience is a strong advantage.

• Track record in successful proposal development and donor engagement (UN, EU, DG ECHO, FCDO).

• Experience managing and mentoring teams.

Skills and Competencies:

• Strong strategic thinking and ability to adapt programming to rapidly changing contexts.

• Excellent people management and team leadership skills.

• Strong understanding of MEAL, PCM, and localisation approaches.

• Excellent written and spoken English; Arabic is an asset.

Commitment to PIN's values, Code of Conduct, and Safeguarding Policy.

We Offer:

• Working environment in a well-established humanitarian organization in a challenging context;

• Salary & Benefits: Salary based on PIN’s salary scale and HR policies; expected salary range between 3200 – 3300 EUR super gross (based on experience).

• Additional allowances include:

• Monthly Subsistence Allowance of 1440 EUR;

• Accommodation in PIN guesthouse.

• Time off and Rest:

• 25 days of holiday annually;

• 10 sick days.

• Travel benefits:

• Reimbursement of travel expenses with travel to the country of residence once every 6 months of work;

• Reimbursement of costs of visas and vaccinations; assistance with the visa application procedure;

• Reimbursement for the medical check-up before and after the deployment;

• Travel health insurance covering medical care, incl. the repatriation.

• Health and Well-being:

• 24/7 Medical Support available online;

• Free psychological consultations available online.

• Professional Development: Free access to e-learning platforms and PIN Learning Hub; PIN’s global Induction Training, and tailored capacity-building opportunities, HEAT training.

How to apply

If you are interested in this position, send us your CV and short cover letter via our application form.

Please note only the shortlisted candidates will be contacted. Interviews will be conducted on rolling basis and the vacancy will be closed when filled.

People in Need is committed to preventing any type of unwanted behaviour at work including sexual harassment, exploitation and abuse, lack of integrity and financial misconduct and committed to promoting the welfare of children and adults with whom People in Need involves. People in Need expects all staff to perform job duties and responsibilities in accordance with People in Need code of conduct and key policies (available at: https://www.peopleinneed.net/key-policies-4142gp)). People in Need Staff will undertake the appropriate level of training. All offers of employment will be subject to satisfactory references and appropriate screening checks, which can include criminal records and terrorism finance checks. We are committed to ensuring diversity and gender equality within our organization and encourage applicants from diverse backgrounds to apply.