Senior Grants Manager (Nairobi/Brussels/Geneva)

About CIVIC

Center for Civilians in Conflict (CIVIC) Center is an international nonprofit and nongovernmental organization with offices around the world working to improve protection for civilians in conflict zones. Our mission is to support communities affected by conflict in their quest for protection and strengthen the resolve and capacity of armed actors and relevant institutions to prevent and respond to civilian harm. We are advocates who believe that no civilian caught in conflict should be ignored, and advisors who provide practical solutions to preventing and responding to civilian harm. Learn more at civiliansinconflict.org.

About the Position

The Senior Grant Manager plays a critical role in ensuring CIVIC’s donor-funded projects are compliant with donor regulations, implemented effectively, and reported accurately. This position leads the coordination of donor compliance across the organization, ensures timely and high-quality donor reporting, manages grant audits, supports proposal development, and tracks the financial implementation of grant-funded projects. The Grant Manager, Global serves as a key liaison between CIVIC’s program, finance, and development teams and engages directly with donors as needed.

Location: Nairobi (Kenya) with possible consideration of Brussels (Belgium) or Geneva (Switzerland). Candidates must be fully authorized to work in any of these locations without the need for sponsorship now or in the future.

Travel:​ Up to 35% (domestic and international)

Reporting to:​ Director, Global Programs

Staff Reporting:​ Currently none, but possible in future. Will manage research partnerships and ​consultancies/fellows.

Contract: ​Open-ended (depending on funding)

Key Responsibilities

1. Donor Compliance and Relationship Management
   • Ensure full compliance with donor rules and regulations
     
   • Act as the focal point for grant contracts, interpreting, disseminating and ensuring clear understanding of donor requirements among CIVIC program and support teams.
   • Support regular donor communications throughout project implementation. This includes proactively reaching out to clarify compliance expectations, request and manage contract amendments, discuss project progress and address any challenges.
   • Maintain a centralized system for donor guidelines and contractual obligations.
2. Grant Reporting
   • Lead the coordination, review, and submission of high-quality, well-written, timelynarrative and financial reports that meet donor requirements.
   • Maintain and monitor a reporting calendar to ensure timely submissions across portfolio.
   • Work closely with program and MEAL teams to ensure impact, results and successes are appropriately and consistently captured in reporting.
3. Proposal and Budget Development
   
   • Contribute to the development of concept notes and proposals, working closely with development, program and finance teams to ensure proposals are realistic, compliant, and competitive.
   • Lead or support budget narratives, cost applications, and donor formatting requirements.
4. Program Cycle Support
   • Support the full program cycle by contributing to design workshops, inception phases, and
     closeout planning.
     
5. Financial Monitoring and Budget Implementation
   • Work with the Finance, Program, and Operations teams to monitor grant expenditures and ensure alignment with approved budgets.
   • Review monthly financial reports, participate in monthly budget vs. actual (BvA) meetings with relevant teams and flag issues such as under- or over-spending.
   • Provide technical support to program teams to ensure sound budget management.
6. Audit and Assessment Coordination
   • Lead and coordinate donor audits and project-specific assessments, ensuring preparedness in collaboration with finance and program teams.
   • Ensure the Financial Compliance Manager engages with external auditors and provides requested documentation, responds to queries in a timely manner.
   • Follow up that Senior Management implements audit and assessment recommendations • Overall, oversees compliance with donor protocols and internal standards.
7. Systems and Capacity Building
   • Maintain accurate and up-to-date grant files, including agreements, modifications, and correspondence.
     
   • Strengthen internal systems and tools for grants management, tracking, and donor compliance.
   • Provide training and support to field and HQ staff on donor compliance and grant management.
8. Technical and Operational Surge Support to Programs
   • Provide technical support and surge capacity in areas such as MEAL, Communications, and
     CBP, working closely with the leads for these departments (for example, work with comms
     and MEL to create innovative ways to showcase CIVIC work), when needs identified by regional directors.
   • Serve as a flexible team member who can address capacity gaps across regions and provide operational support as needed.

Key Qualifications

Education:

• Bachelor’s degree required (in international relations, public administration, finance, or related field), master’s degree an asset

Experience:

• Minimum 7 years of experience in grants management or donor compliance in an international NGO setting.
• Proven experience managing complex grants from institutional donors (multiyear, multi country).
• Experience contributing to multi-stakeholder (consortium) proposal development and grant management processes.
• Familiarity with humanitarian and/or protection programming, ideally related to civilians in conflict.
• Experience with EU ECHO and FPI funding compulsory.

Skills:

• Strong understanding of donor regulations.
• Excellent writing, editing, and communication skills.
• Strong financial acumen and budget monitoring experience.
• Detail-oriented, organized, and able to manage competing deadlines.
• Proficiency with grant management systems, Excel, and document-sharing platforms.
• Collaborative mindset and ability to work across departments and time zones.

Language:

• Fluency in English and French required; knowledge of another relevant language is an asset.

Work Environment

• Hybrid working modality
• Will require frequent travel to field offices or donor meetings.
• Valid authorization to work in the location of your choice at the time of this application without the need for current or future visa sponsorship. Nationals preferred.

Additional Details

Application Deadline: July 23, 2026

Due to the high volume of applications, only candidates selected for an interview will be contacted. Shortlisted candidates will receive an email invitation from TestGorilla to submit their resume. Please complete this step promptly to ensure your candidacy is fully considered.

CIVIC is an Equal Opportunities Employer committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive environment, and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, or any other protected characteristic.

Note to Recruiters and Placement Agencies: CIVIC does not accept unsolicited agency resumes and does not pay placement fees for candidates submitted by agencies other than its approved partners.