OPERATIONS DIRECTOR

Médecins Sans Frontières, founded in 1971, is an international medical humanitarian organization that provides emergency medical assistance to people affected by conflict, epidemics, disasters or exclusion from health care. Our teams are made up of tens of thousands of medical professionals, logistics, administrative and various other professions, all guided by our medical ethics and our principles of impartiality, independence and neutrality.

MSF WaCA, created in 2019, is the first MSF headquarters in Africa, and responds to the desire to reinvent the MSF movement after 50 years of humanitarian actions in the world, for more access to care, more reactivity and proactivity for greater medical coverage of affected populations in the world.

Why join us?

You are preparing to become a member of the MSF family, with over 50 years of emergency medical action that earned the Nobel Peace Prize in 1999.

We are an inclusive organization that considers social and professional well-being a right for all and provides an environment that considers the diversity of each member.

MSF WaCA claims an African anchorage that considers the local expertise with which it contributes to the implementation of its activities and makes each member, a key actor of the new dynamics of the humanitarian action in the world.

Diversity, Inclusion & Safe Recruitment

MSF offers equal recruitment and development opportunities without any form of discrimination based on gender, religion, sexual orientation, ethnicity, geographical origin, physical disability or any other discriminatory ground.

Female candidates who meet the requirements are strongly encouraged to apply.

MSF is committed to applying Safe Recruitment principles, ensuring transparent, fair, and respectful recruitment processes that protect candidates, the organization, and its beneficiaries.

We Are Looking for: OPERATIONS DIRECTOR

Department: General Directorate / Operations

Direct Manager: General Director

Internal functional relations: Finance, Medical, HR, Logistics, Supply, IT departments, etc.

External: international platform (RIOD, Med Ops, Steering Committee, etc., Africa CDC, WHO Africa, MOH, etc.

Working %: 100%

Number of people to manage: Unit managers, security focal point, networking and context analysis focal point, assistant to the Director of Operations, operational communications focal point, community engagement manager.

Position Based in: Abidjan, HQ

Mobility: All WaCA’s Interventions Zones

Type of Contract: Fixed-Term Contract under Ivorian law; Renewable

Position to be filled: As Soon As Possible

Mission

The Director of Operations is responsible for defining, steering and monitoring MSF's humanitarian interventions in several countries. He/she ensures the relevance, quality and safety of operations, in line with MSF's principles.

Main responsibilities

Reporting to the Director General, he/she forms, by delegation, a single level of decision-making with the Operational Managers.

1.        Strategic and decision-making management

•        Develop the 2026-2031 operational strategy

•        Implement operational policy within programme departments (priorities, final decisions)

•        Identify priorities for action based on humanitarian emergencies and geopolitical contexts.

•        Define WaCA's operational research strategy

•        Ensure that operations comply with MSF's charter and principles.

•        Contribute to policy discussions and debates to advance practices and knowledge;

•        Stimulate and validate messages (angles) for public operational communication;

•        Participate in board meetings.

•        Validate the opening or closing of missions (after consultation with the Project Committee)

2.        Supervision and management of programme managers

•        Supervise programme managers

•        Support decision-making during crises (epidemics, conflicts, natural disasters).

•        Ensure the medical, logistical and humanitarian quality of projects.

3.        Resource management

•        Validate and monitor mission budgets.

•        Oversee the management of human, financial and material resources.

•        Ensure the optimisation and transparency of the use of funds.

4.        Security and risk management

•        Analyse security risks and implement appropriate protocols.

•        Make decisions in the event of a security crisis, evacuation or mission suspension.

5.        Coordination and representation

•        Represent MSF to donors, local authorities, NGOs and international institutions.

•        Ensure consistency and communication between departments (medical, logistics, HR, finance).

•        Contribute to MSF's advocacy and institutional positions.

•        Liaise with the operations of other centres within the movement.

•        Contribute to the promotion of a new operations management model.

6.        Monitoring, evaluation and reporting

•        Regularly assess the impact of operations and propose adjustments.

•        Produce strategic reports for headquarters and the Board of Directors.

•        Responsible for mission evaluations/capitalisation for learning and accountability purposes.

•        Responsible for MEAL (Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning).

7.        Development and leadership

•        Supervise and support programme managers and other team members.

•        Promote skills transfer by ensuring the development plan for field teams

•        Promote innovation and continuous improvement in humanitarian practices.

•        Set directions, define objectives and evaluate work;

•        Ensure that your department contributes effectively to cross-functional/interdepartmental projects/work

•        Ensure the principle of subsidiarity is upheld in operations

8.        DEI

•        Supports the integration of diversity, equity and inclusion principles into project design, implementation and evaluation. He/she ensures that operational teams adopt inclusive practices that respect cultural, gender, origin and status differences, both in internal relations and with beneficiary communities.

9.        Safeguarding

•        Supports the implementation of safeguarding policies in all missions. He/she ensures the prevention of abuse, the protection of vulnerable persons, and the creation of a safe, ethical and respectful working and intervention environment for all.

Education

•        Master's degree in Public Health, Social Sciences, Medical Anthropology, Organisational Management, International Relations, Communication or any other relevant field.

Competencies

Essential skills

•        Leadership and influence: Ability to inspire, motivate and guide teams towards achieving objectives, promoting a collaborative environment.

•        Strategic thinking: Ability to analyse complex situations, anticipate challenges and develop effective strategies for association and community engagement.

•        Team management : Proven skills in recruiting, developing, evaluating and coaching high-performing teams.

•        Communication and advocacy: Mastery of communication techniques to interact with various stakeholders (internal and external) and promote engagement initiatives.

•        Results-oriented: Ability to set clear objectives, monitor progress and ensure that expected results are achieved.

Specific skills

•        In-depth expertise in community engagement and participation methodologies.

•        Ability to develop and adapt innovative tools and approaches to different contexts.

•        Data analysis and reporting skills to evaluate the impact of engagement initiatives.

•        Knowledge of protection and ethical principles in community engagement.

•        Ability to provide first and second line technical support, including field assignments.

Professional experience required

•        10 years of programme experience with MSF as head of mission, project coordinator, emergency project coordinator required

•        At least one year's experience in a management position at MSF headquarters (desirable).

•        Experience in West and Central Africa (at least 2 missions)

•        Experience in various humanitarian contexts

•        Proven experience in projects with a community engagement component

Languages Skills

·       Working proficiency in English and French (Mandatory)

Computer Skills

·       MS Office suite (mainly MS Word, Excel and Powerpoint)

·       Familiarity with online communication and collaboration platforms (Teams, Zoom, SharePoint, etc.).

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N.B.: This job description provides a framework for the main responsibilities and primary activities of the position. It is not exhaustive. Therefore, the responsibilities and activities of the position may differ from those described in this job description due to organizational and operational needs.

Deadline: 15th November 2025 18:00 GMT
Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.