Deputy Project Director – DREEM Program

World University Service of Canada (WUSC) is seeking a seasoned senior leader to serve as Deputy Project Director for the DREEM (Displacement, Refugees, Education, Employment, and Migration) Program, based in Nairobi, Kenya. This is a high-impact, full-time role designed for a professional with deep technical expertise in refugee and displaced population (RDP) programming, who is ready to drive systemic change across Africa's diverse displacement contexts — from urban refugee settings and camps to settlements and host communities.

Reporting directly to the Project Director, the Deputy Project Director (DPD) will co-lead DREEM's strategic and technical direction, overseeing three core technical pillars: Refugee-Led Organization (RLO) Engagement, the Technical Assistance Mechanism, and Higher Education Inclusion. The DPD will champion inclusive, gender-responsive, youth-centered, and protection-sensitive approaches that place the lived realities of displaced youth — particularly young women — at the heart of program design and delivery.

• Provide strategic and technical leadership across DREEM's three technical pillars, ensuring all activities are grounded in strong understanding of refugee and displaced populations, host communities, and displacement-affected systems.
• Supervise three Senior Technical Managers (one per pillar) and the cross-cutting Training and Curriculum Development Specialist, providing mentoring, coaching, and performance oversight.
• Lead oversight of annual workplan implementation, ensuring commitments are achieved on time, within budget, and to high technical quality.
• Ensure coherence and integration across technical pillars, embedding inclusive, gender-responsive, and protection-sensitive approaches throughout programming.
• Support project staff and partner organizations to design and deliver capacity-building, training, mentoring, and follow-up support that enables RDP youth to access higher education, employment, and entrepreneurship pathways.
• Collaborate closely with Heads of Operations, Finance, MERL, Communications, and GESI to ensure activities are effectively planned, monitored, and adapted.
• Serve as a key liaison with WUSC teams in Canada and across Africa, the DREEM Youth Advisory Board, the Youth Technical Committee, and the Mastercard Foundation.
• Deputize for the Project Director as required, representing the program at high-level forums, donor meetings, and external engagements.
• Provide technical guidance on refugee inclusion and displacement-responsive programming to partners, governments, and other stakeholders.
• Champion adaptive management, using data and learning to continuously improve program approaches.

• Demonstrate a minimum of 10 years of progressive experience in international development, with at least 5 years focused on refugee, displacement, or forced migration programming.
• Show a track record of designing, implementing, or advising on programs that advance inclusion, education, employment, or entrepreneurship for RDPs and host communities.
• Exhibit proven ability to lead and manage multi-disciplinary technical teams in complex, multi-country environments.
• Apply strong technical judgment on refugee inclusion, displacement-responsive programming, and systems change approaches.
• Demonstrate experience embedding GESI (Gender Equality and Social Inclusion) and protection principles into program design and delivery.
• Communicate and engage effectively with diverse stakeholders including donors (ideally Mastercard Foundation or similar), RLOs, governments, academic institutions, and affected communities.
• Hold a Master's degree or higher in International Development, Social Sciences, Education, Public Policy, or a closely related field.
• Show experience working in African displacement contexts, including familiarity with East Africa's refugee landscape.
• Demonstrate capacity to produce high-quality technical reports, briefs, and donor deliverables in English.

The salary for this role is open and will be competitive, commensurate with WUSC's international NGO pay scales and the candidate's experience. Based on the seniority and scope of this Deputy Director-level position within an INGO context, the estimated monthly compensation range is KES 450,000 – 750,000, or equivalent in USD depending on the candidate's employment terms. WUSC typically offers a comprehensive benefits package for senior international roles.

This role is ideal for a senior development professional with substantial hands-on experience in refugee and displacement programming, who combines strong technical expertise with the leadership skills to manage teams, influence partners, and represent a flagship program externally. You are a strategic thinker who is also willing to roll up your sleeves, someone who centers RDP youth — especially young women — in everything you do, and who thrives in complex, multi-stakeholder environments across Africa. Candidates with lived experience of displacement or who identify as members of refugee or displaced communities are strongly encouraged to apply.

This role is not suitable for candidates without direct experience working with refugee or displaced populations, those seeking an entry- or mid-level development position, or professionals whose background is exclusively in emergency humanitarian response without a development or systems-change orientation.

Interested candidates should submit their application through the WUSC careers portal or via the platform where this posting was found. Your application should include: (1) an updated CV highlighting relevant experience with refugee and displaced populations, (2) a cover letter (maximum 2 pages) explaining your technical approach to displacement-responsive programming and your leadership philosophy, and (3) contact details for at least three professional references. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. WUSC is committed to equity, diversity, and inclusion and encourages applications from women, people with disabilities, and members of marginalized communities.