Thomas Okedi

Experience

• 

  Mbale Progressive School

  Jun 2001 - Sept 2003

  Teacher

  • Prepared lesson plans and taught students in the Ordinary level• Prepared and administered Tests and end of term examinations• Assessed the performance of students on a periodic basis and provided guidance for improvement in performance.• Supported in the day-to-day management of the school• Addressed any students’ disciplinary issues.

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  ActionAid

  Sept 2004 - Feb 2008

  Field Assistant (Jun 2006 – Feb 2008) | Community Development Volunteer (Sept 2004 – May 2006)

  • Provided support to the Programme team in the implementation of community development projects, child sponsorship programme and capacity development interventions for partner 4 Community Based Organizations (CBOs) in Kumi District.• Worked with Community Based Organisations to mobilise communities to participate in WASH and Livelihoods interventions.• Provided support to Consultants during Trainings and Community Assessments and managed all the logistical and administrative arrangements during these activities.• Coordinated the activities of Teso-Karamoja Women’s Initiative for Peace (TEKWIP) – a women’s initiative aimed at fostering peaceful coexistence between the then conflicting communities of Teso and Karamoja.• Trained Community Based Organisations on Gender, Women’s Rights and Prevention of GBV.• Developed Activity Reports. Show less

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  VSO

  Mar 2008 - Sept 2008

  Organisation Development Advisor (for Ponlok Khmer, Cambodian NGO)

  • Co-founded Ponlok Khmer, when my placement organization was dissolved shortly after my arrival due to irreconcilable governance and management issues beyond my control.• Conducted a participatory organisational capacity assessment process in collaboration with the senior management and the BOD.• Developed and oversaw the implementation of a capacity development plan.• Led the process of developing organisational policies – Human Resources, Finance & Administration and Procurement.• Trained staffs and BOD members on key themes like Governance, Leadership & Management, Project Cycle Management, Village Savings and Loan Associations (VSLAs) and Fundraising.• Participated in new programme development and expansion by developing project proposals, reviewing donor reports, and participating in donor meetings.• Compiled a Community Training Guide with modules like Training of Trainers, Leadership & Management, Group Dynamics, Sustainable Livelihoods, etc. Show less

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  Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit GmbH

  Jan 2009 - Jul 2012

  Regional Refugee Program Manager, South-west Uganda

  • Led the design and implementation of a regional refugee response plan for GIZ interventions in Southwest Uganda.• Oversaw the implementation of multi-sectoral activities (WASH, Health & Nutrition, Community Services, Livelihoods, Education and Protection/SGBV) for more than 150,000 refugees and host communities in South-west Uganda Refugee Settlements of Nakivale and Kyaka II.• Implemented Cash for Work (CfW) projects for the rehabilitation of vital Community Roads in the Refugee Settlements.• Managed relationships with field partners including UNHCR Field Offices, Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) department of refugees at Settlement level and other Implementing partners and district local governments.• Oversaw the implementation of Annual Budgets, Sub Project Descriptions (SPDs), Work Plans, and submitted Reports to donors. During my tenure as Project Manager, funds absorption was above 90 percent and the visibility and quality of interventions remarkably improved.• Managed the safety and security of staffs and other organizational assets and provided updated information to senior management on incidents on the ground.• Designed and facilitated a Staff Capacity Building Program covering topics like Result – oriented Activity Implementation, Principles of Sustainable Community Development, Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) Methods and Stakeholder Management among others.• In 2012, developed and implemented a tool for assessing the Capacity of 60 Livelihoods Groups.• Reduced the level of staff turnover in Kyaka II Refugee Settlement from 50 percent before I took over the project to below 10 percent. This was through team building, participatory management practices, staff training & development and individual staff mentoring & counsel. Show less

• 

  Tropical Health and Education Trust (THET)

  Aug 2012 - Dec 2016

  Somalia Programme Manager

  • Managed the DfID funded Essential Package for Health Services (EPHS) Programme as part of the Health Consortium for the Somali People (HCS).• Led the capacity development processes of 11 local partners, including the Somaliland Ministry of Health and the National Health Professionals Council of Somaliland (NHPC) on their challenge to regulate health workers and improve on the delivery of maternal and child health interventions.• Led the development and implementation of Value for Money (VfM) indicators and means of verification across the HCS in line with donor requirements.• Participated in the development of the HCS sharing platform with other stakeholders including PSI, Save the Children, HPA and Trocaire. Delivered in house training on the platform to national and international staff teams and managed data input and use.• Led the roll out of the implementation of the Community Health Workers (CHW) training in Somaliland. Developed a successful funding proposal to WHO (US $400,000) for the training.• Led annual planning, budgeting, resource allocation and project review functions for all the partners.• Supported the Country Representative in the development and implementation of strategic assignments including fundraising, policy development and strategic planning.• Reviewed the monthly and other reports and submitted them to the Donor.• Represented THET Somalia in meetings in Somalia, Nairobi, Tanzania, Ethiopia, and London.• Supervised all five (5) local and two (2) expatriate programme staffs in the programme. Show less

• 

  Restless Development

  Mar 2017 - Dec 2017

  Senior Programmes Quality Manager

  • Participated in the closure of a Youth Internship Programme, benefitting more than 500 young graduates, bringing on board vital experiences from my own volunteer work in Uganda and Cambodia. Also supported the development of a new Internship Programme that was implemented in collaboration with Chemonics.• Coordinated a national risk assessment and planning exercise for the Uganda programme• Provided strategic advice on the integration of two projects into one core programme in Eastern Uganda.• Led the launch of a new programme and closure of an existing programme for the semi-arid region of Karamoja in North-eastern Uganda.• Led the review of community-based youth engagement and training materials (in Group Dynamics, Life Skills, Business Skills, VSLA Methodology, Business Skills and Financial Literacy) for use in an agribusiness programme in Northern Uganda funded by the MasterCard Foundation.• Led the annual programme strategy review meeting where all programmes were guided on how to align to the new organisational strategy launched in October 2016. Show less

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  ZOA

  Jan 2018 - Sept 2019

  Yemen Programme Manager

  • Developed key project management tools and templates and Standard Operating Procedures including Multipurpose Cash Grants SOPs, Programme Documentation Framework, Change Request Forms, Food Assistance & Vegetable Home Gardening SOPs and Implementing Partner Management Tools.• Oversaw the implementation of the first Multipurpose Cash Grants worth USD 600,000 to 500 Households in Hajjah and Sana’a Governorates in Yemen.• Developed detailed Project Implementation Plans (PIPs) and budgets for proper delegation to the Area managers in Sana’a, Hajjah, Al Mahwit and Al Hudaydah Governorates responsible of the implementation of projects.• Oversaw the implementation of quality humanitarian assistance Water, Sanitation & Hygiene (WASH), Cash Based Interventions (CBIs) and Food Security and Livelihoods (FSL) activities for conflict affected people in Yemen.• Provided technical backstopping to three (3) Area Managers in the management of local Implementing Partners in different Programme Areas in Yemen.• Participated in the design of concept notes and proposals for new projects and was instrumental in gaining new funding from OFDA, ECHO and Netherlands MOFA.• Led the development of high-quality narrative programme reports and reviewed financial reports for submission to donors.• Collaborated with MEAL to ensure that monitoring & evaluation and accountability processes were in place and compliant with ZOA MEAL benchmarks and ensured that beneficiary and other stakeholder feedback was incorporated into programme design and learning disseminated.• Ensured that the minimum standards of humanitarian relief were maintained in accordance with the Sphere Charter and Red Cross Code of Conduct.• Took the initiative in documenting lessons learnt, good practice and case studies to shape in-country strategies and programme approaches and contributed to broader organisational learning. Show less

• 

  Norwegian Refugee Council

  Nov 2019 - now

  - Developed a 4-year (2022-2025) strategic plan for NRC interventions in South Afghanistan, with a major focus on expanding programming to hard-to-reach districts, effective emergency response through prepositioning of cash, staff capacity enhancement for quality and timely programming and the expansion of the Area Office funding portfolio to at least 8 million USD in 2022.- In support of the implementation of the Afghanistan South Area Operations Strategic Plan (2022-2025), caused the completion of a Multi-sectoral Needs Assessment (MSNA). Other Area Offices borrowed leaf from our experience.- Expanded the funding portfolio of NRC Afghanistan South Area Operations from USD 4 million in 2021 to USD 8 million by July 2022.- Led the process of opening a new NRC Field Office in Zabul Province, through new projects design, coordination with the provincial authorities, conducting a Security Risk Assessment (SRA), recruitment of staffs, and the acquisition of management approval.- Designed and facilitated a 5-days training workshop on Leading Teams, Decision-making and Effective Followership for 55 NRC Afghanistan South staffs from June 5-9, 2022.- Under the INTPA funded project, oversaw the disbursement of grants worth more than Euro 416,000 to 26 MSMEs in Kandahar City directly employing 416 vulnerable young people. The project was behind schedule and the change in government August 2021 had created uncertainties for its implementation.- Supported the Access Coordinator, Health, Safety & Security (HSS) Coordinator and Project Managers to coordinate with and gain approvals from local authorities (political and security) for implementation of projects in the target areas.- Managed the delivery of programming during the post-Taliban takeover of Afghanistan in August 2021, and supported the delivery of Non-Food Items (NFIs) and Cash for more than 4,000 winter, flooding and drought affected households in Uruzgan, Kandahar and Zabul provinces of Afghanistan. Show less - Acted as Area Manager for Gambella Regional Operations from September 2020 to July 2021 and led the Area Management Team (AMT) in strategy & operations as well as stakeholder management making Gambella the second most funded Area Operation in the Ethiopia Country Programme.- Developed three successful funding proposals to ECHO, SIDA and UNHCR attracting funding worth more than 4 million USD for transitional shelter, education in emergencies and integrated programming for IDPs, refugees and host communities in Gambella.- Led the process of developing and overseeing the implementation of a COVID-19 Business Continuity Plan (BCP) for Gambella Operations in March 2020.- Fast tracked the implementation of a stalled USD 2 million Norwegian Embassy funded Education Project directly benefitting ten (10) host community schools and more than 8,000 students in primary and secondary schools in Gambella region.- Increased the number of female staffs in the Gambella programme from 1 to 8, occupying decision-making and field implementation positions. - Streamlined project cycle management processes including improving the quality of assessments, project planning – (work plan, spending plan, procurement plan, HR plan, reporting schedule), project documents processing & management, and quality implementation and reporting.- Improved the collaboration between NRC with relevant Government, UN and NGO partners through coordination meetings, timely reporting, and quality activity implementation. In 2021, NRC won extra funding from UNHCR to implement an integrated Shelter and CCCM project for Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Gambella region.- Built the capacity of field teams in cash-based interventions specifically Multipurpose Cash Grants, Cash for Shelter, and conditional cash for dignity kits for adolescent schoolgirls, leading to the transfer of more than USD $500,000 to beneficiaries in 2021 alone. Show less

  • Area Manager

    Sept 2023 - now

  • Area Manager

    Nov 2022 - Sept 2023

  • Area Manager

    Sept 2021 - Oct 2022

  • Area Programme Manager

    Nov 2019 - Aug 2021