Team Leader, Syria Education Programme III (SEP III)
The International Rescue Committee (IRC) responds to the world's worst humanitarian crises, helping to restore health, safety, education, economic wellbeing, and power to people devastated by conflict and disaster. Founded in 1933 at the call of Albert Einstein, the IRC is one of the world's largest international humanitarian non-governmental organizations (INGO), at work in more than 40 countries and 29 U.S. cities helping people to survive, reclaim control of their future and strengthen their communities. A force for humanity, IRC employees deliver lasting impact by restoring safety, dignity and hope to millions. If you're a solutions-driven, passionate change-maker, come join us in positively impacting the lives of millions of people world-wide for a better future.
The IRC has worked in Syria since 2012 and is one of the largest providers of humanitarian and early recovery assistance in the country, delivering health, protection, economic recovery, water and sanitation, and education programming, including as a partner to the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO).
SYRIA EDUCATION PROGRAMME III (SEP III)
Building on SEP I (2018–2022) and SEP II (2022–2027), which supported primary educatio in Idleb and Aleppo, FCDO plans to procure a new Technical Assistance (TA) contract, SEP III, to support the Syrian Ministry of Education (MoE) in implementing its nationally-led reform agenda, complementing the Ministry's wider reform programme, including support provided through the Global Partnership for Education (GPE). Since December 2024, the MoE has begun to reunify a fragmented education system, but progress has been constrained by limited institutional capacity, a lack of data, weak policy development processes and the absence of a clear long-term strategy for recovery. Unlike earlier phases, which focused primarily on service delivery in northwest Syria, SEP III will work directly with the MoE and local Education Directorates, generally at national level and directorate level, in partnership with Ministry officials, to help the Ministry translate its policy and process reforms into practice through technical advice, capacity building, coaching and support to implementation.
SEP III has two components. The first, which is the subject of this contract, is politically informed TA to the MoE and Education Directorates to strengthen inclusive, effective and evidence-based policy making. The second is non-formal education (NFE) for returning refugees and internally displaced persons, which is outside the scope of this contract and will be delivered by a separate provider. The TA supplier will be required to work collaboratively with the NFE component.
The exact scope of the TA work will be determined jointly with FCDO and the MoE through a demand-led, co-designed and flexible approach. No reform priorities are set in advance; they will be identified with the Ministry during inception. The work is expected to focus on strengthening the education system to improve foundational learning outcomes for primary-school-aged children across Syria, delivered through: 1) Services and Analysis to inform TA and policy decisions; 2) Foundational Learning thematic TA (for example teacher development, coaching and supervision, safeguarding, learning data generation and use, and inclusive education); and 3) Education Systems Strengthening TA (sector planning and prioritisation, policy development, financial management, and monitoring and accountability). Given the difficult fiscal choices likely to shape the sector over the coming years, the programme is also expected to support the Ministry's public finance and value-for-money decision-making. Illustrative technical priorities include: supporting policy reform and Ministry-led coordination, standard-setting, and system strengthening; supporting the roll-out of child safeguarding and Codes of Conduct; improving the quality and consistency of teaching through professional development and a national Teacher Competency Framework; and data-driven planning, including through education management information systems (EMIS/SIMIS).
Given the fluid transition context, the programme will need to operate flexibly, respond quickly to changes, and seize windows of opportunity for reform as they arise. FCDO expects a politically informed, 'test, learn, adapt' approach rather than a fixed blueprint. Delivery must be aligned with government systems, avoiding parallel platforms and the substitution of government functions, and must be underpinned by gender equality, disability and social inclusion (GEDSI) and conflict sensitivity. This requires strong political judgement, including a clear understanding of how decisions are made within the Ministry and government and where opportunities for reform are most likely to emerge, an in-depth understanding of the Syrian education system and its institutional actors, and the ability to sustain trusted relationships with the Ministry, FCDO, and other sector stakeholders, including UNICEF, GPE, Education Cannot Wait (ECW), and the World Bank.
The anticipated delivery model comprises i) a Core Delivery Team responsible for overall leadership, technical oversight, coordination, MEAL, governance and quality assurance, which should be predominantly Syrian and mostly based in Syria; and ii) a demand-led TA Pool of experts with education and governance backgrounds. The contract is expected to begin on 1 July 2027 with a six-month inception period, during which the supplier must mobilise rapidly, establish a presence in Damascus and operationalise its delivery systems. Details are indicative and will be confirmed in FCDO's Tender Notice.
POSITION SUMMARY
The Team Leader holds overall accountability for the design, rapid mobilisation, and delivery of SEP III, including leading the Core Delivery Team and overseeing the TA Pool, ensuring the programme is implemented in accordance with the contract, FCDO requirements, IRC policies and principles, and internationally recognised quality of assistance standards. The Team Leader is the primary point of contact with FCDO and, working closely with the ESS Technical Director and senior Ministry counterparts, provides strategic direction to support the Ministry's implementation of its reform priorities.
The Team Leader is responsible for the programme's overall management, including budget oversight and value for money, performance against contractual KPIs, and risk management (including fiduciary and reputational risk in a sensitive political environment), with the technical quality of the programme's workstreams assured by the ESS Technical Director. The postholder ensures the programme operates adaptively — using political analysis, evidence, monitoring data, and regular review points to prioritise, test, learn and adapt in response to a fast-moving political and institutional context — while maintaining the flexibility needed to respond to emerging windows of opportunity for reform.
The Team Leader maintains strong working relationships with the implementing team, consortium/delivery partners (if applicable), the MoE and Education Directorates, FCDO, the provider of the NFE component, and other education sector stakeholders, and represents the programme and IRC in relevant coordination fora, technical working groups, and policy dialogues. The postholder also oversees programme staffing, procurement, and administrative functions, and ensures robust communications and knowledge management, both internally and with external stakeholders, to share progress, evidence, and lessons learned.
JOB RESPONSIBILITIES
##
Strategic Leadership
● Provide overall strategic leadership for SEP III, ensuring the programme's support to the MoE and Education Directorates, led technically by the ESS Technical Director, is relevant to, and aligned with, the Ministry's evolving reform priorities and helps translate these priorities into practice