Project Manager, East Nimba Nature Reserve (ENNR), Liberia

Project Manager, East Nimba Nature Reserve (ENNR), Liberia
Fauna & Flora International

Salary: Commensurate with skills and experience
Start Date: As soon as possible
Duration: Two year fixed-term contract
Location:  The position is based in Yekepa, Liberia with travel to Monrovia as required

Fauna & Flora International (FFI) protects threatened species and ecosystems worldwide, choosing solutions that are sustainable, based on sound science and take account of human needs. Operating in more than 40 countries worldwide, mainly in the developing world, FFI saves species from extinction and habitats from destruction, whilst improving the livelihoods of local people. Founded in 1903, FFI is the world’s longest established international conservation body and a registered charity.

Working closely with local partners, FFI’s Africa Programme currently operates in 14 countries in West, Central, East and Southern Africa, and is implementing a range of projects focused on species and habitat conservation, biodiversity planning, protected area management, institutional development and capacity building, sustainable use and community-focused wildlife management initiatives.

Liberia is home to large sections of Upper Guinean Forest rich in endemic and rare species. Diana monkeys, chimpanzees and other endangered species rely on this forest for their survival. Sadly, it is at risk from extreme and immediate threats, such as slash-and-burn agricultural expansion, mining and poaching. Liberia is the Africa region’s biggest programme of work, and has been central to FFI’s West Africa sub-programme since 1997 throughout recovery from years of conflict. Recently, communities that were slowly returning to their ancestral lands have been faced with the further challenges presented by the biggest outbreak of Ebola HV to date.  FFI is helping them to secure sustainable livelihoods that work in harmony with biodiversity conservation.

The country’s forests are a hugely important asset to its people and need to be protected to ensure the long-term success of the country. Liberia is at a crucial stage in its development, which FFI has committed to assist.

FFI is seeking a Project Manager to lead work in the East Nimba Nature Reserve (ENNR), Nimba County, Liberia.

East Nimba is a Key Biodiversity Area (KBA) and the most important Alliance for Zero Extinction (AZE) site in Africa. The Nimba Mountains were designated as an Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International in 2001. It is also part of the Upper Guinea Forests Endemic Bird Area (EBA) and is home to populations of Western chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes verus) (EN). As part of the Liberian Government’s protected area network plan, the ENNR was the 3rd land area (135km2) in Liberia to be gazetted to Protected Area (PA) status (with the official title as a Nature Reserve) in 2003, but has existed without an official management plan (required by law within 5 years of gazettement) or any formal management structure, to date.

In 2013-2014, FFI in Liberia built a strong working relationship with ArcelorMittal (AML) – a leading international Iron-ore extractive company - during work to develop an operational management plan for the ENNR. This work was facilitated by FFI, financed and supported by AML. Objectives of the management plan are to:

• Promote the conservation and management of biodiversity in the ENNR and jointly reduce and/or avoid threats to that biodiversity;
• Establish a process of shared responsibilities regarding use and management of ENNR;
• Provide information to the communities and raise awareness about sustainable use, management and conservation and the value of forest resources to the community and the nation;
• Ensure sharing of the costs and benefits of ENNR management, between the state (FDA) and community;
• Identify and resolve, through a consultative process, any conflicts that may arise in the management and conservation of resources in the ENNR;
• Ensure the effective and efficient management of the ENNR for this and future generations; and
• Assist the management of the ENNR.

The management plan for the ENNR is the first of its kind in Liberia to be created with a co-management agreement between the Government and the ENNR-local communities, who are represented through a joint board called the Co-Management Committee (CMC). The CMC includes representatives from surrounding communities and the Government’s Forestry Development Authority (FDA). The CMC is bound by a 5 year co-management agreement (initially signed in 2010).

The project “Building Capacity for Protected Area Management in East Nimba Nature Reserve (ENNR)” will run for two years (minimum), with the aim of ensuring the successful and sustainable conservation of ENNR through the provision of technical support for biodiversity studies and research alongside substantial capacity building of the CMC. The outputs of the applied capacity building will underpin monitoring and the development of PA management tools, which form phase 1 of the management plan implementation for the PA.  The project will involve working with AML and other ENNR stakeholders through the CMC.

The Project Manager will deliver the project through the full project life-cycle. S/he will have responsibility for the operations, implementation, financial, and HR management of the project, which sits within FFI’s wider programme of work in Liberia. We are looking for an individual highly experienced in biodiversity conservation project management and capacity building with a strong technical background in relevant protected area management, ideally co- or collaborative management and integrated biological survey methods in Africa. The successful candidate will need to have demonstrable experience in project finance management and reporting, logistics, staff training and mentoring, institutional strengthening and effective incorporation of local communities in biodiversity conservation project activities.

Final appointment of the Project Manager, ENNR is subject to confirmation of funding anticipated in mid-September 2015.

For further details and to apply please visit: http://www.fauna-flora.org/about/jobs/

The closing date for applications is Wednesday 16 September 2015.  No agencies please.

FFI values diversity and is committed to equality of opportunity