Context

ForAfrika is an African-founded and led organisation with over 40 years of impact across the continent. We partner with communities through our integrated development continuum: saving lives and building resilience to reach self-sufficiency through our Humanitarian & Development work and unlocking commercial viability through our Social Enterprise activities. We are Africans, delivering African-led solutions for Africa, and we stand by our promise: we’re committed to the long run, until the job is done and communities are enabled to thrive.

The Design, Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability, and Learning (DMEAL) unit represents a cornerstone of ForAfrika's commitment to evidence-based programming and continuous improvement across all humanitarian and development operations. Positioned at the leadership level within the Humanitarian and Development Division, DMEAL ensures that rigorous evidence generation, systematic learning, and adaptive management become embedded throughout ForAfrika's pursuit of its 2036 vision to empower 20 million Africans to be self-sufficient, with a further 6 million provided with a platform to thrive.

Within ForAfrika's organisational structure, DMEAL functions as both a technical service provider and a quality assurance mechanism, working with country offices to ensure that monitoring, evaluation, accountability, and learning systems meet international standards while remaining contextually appropriate and utilisation-focused. The unit directly supports ForAfrika's commitment to demonstrating impact to stakeholders, ensuring accountability to the communities served, and generating evidence that contributes to broader knowledge in humanitarian and development practice.

Core Purpose

The Knowledge Management Specialist is ForAfrika's central point for internal knowledge: capturing, curating, translating, and repackaging technical products from programme and DMEAL teams so that different technical audiences, across country offices and at global level, can find, understand, and apply them. This knowledge management function makes up approximately 60% of the role.

The remaining 40% is dedicated to reporting, treated as one of the organisation's most important knowledge products: reports underpin external accountability to donors and communities while feeding organisational learning about programme implementation. Here, the Specialist manages the reporting calendar, quality-assures reports against donor and organisational standards, and consolidates multi-country reports, applying the same standards of clarity and audience adaptation that guide the rest of the role.

Key Roles and Responsibilities

Knowledge Management (approximately 60% of time)

Knowledge Systems, Filing, and Digital Infrastructure

The Specialist builds and maintains the systems that make ForAfrika's institutional knowledge easy to find and reuse: knowledge repositories on SharePoint and Teams, filing structures and naming conventions that scale as content grows, and version control, access permissions, and security protocols that protect sensitive information while keeping the right content open across the organisation. The Specialist also develops templates and short guidance materials so country office teams can contribute without added administrative burden.

Responsible Use of AI for Knowledge Management

The Specialist builds an AI-enabled knowledge hub, using AI tools to tag, index, search, and synthesise content across the knowledge base. AI-assisted outputs must be checked for accuracy before sharing, clear rules govern what data can be processed through which tools, and colleagues are kept informed of where AI is used.

Learning Analysis and Multi-Format Communication

The Specialist analyses knowledge products across ForAfrika's portfolio, including evaluations, monitoring data, operational reviews, and programme documentation, to identify lessons on works, what doesn't, and under what conditions. Findings are translated into the format and language each audience needs, from learning briefs and infographics for field teams to technical annexes for specialists and short narratives for senior leadership, including good practice guides, lessons learned notes, and case studies.

Facilitation, Communities of Practice, and Innovation

The Specialist develops and facilitates communities of practice among ForAfrika staff, running discussion sessions, learning events, and cross-country exchanges. The Specialist is expected to bring new thinking to how the organisation captures and shares knowledge, testing new formats, tools, and facilitation approaches and adjusting them based on what colleagues actually use.

Matrix Relationships and Coordination

The Specialist supports country office DMEAL staff on local knowledge management practice, and coordinates with the Monitoring Systems Manager and the Evaluation and Research Manager so that monitoring and evaluation findings feed systematically into the knowledge base and learning priorities inform monitoring and evaluation planning.

Reporting (approximately 40% of time)

Reporting Calendar Management and Risk Coordination

The Specialist maintains the master reporting calendar for ForAfrika's portfolio. Country offices remain accountable for producing their reports; the Specialist tracks submission status, runs reminders ahead of deadlines, and flags emerging risks to country directors, the DMEAL Director, and senior management. This includes regular check-ins with country offices approaching major deadlines and facilitating planning conversations that set realistic timelines for multi-level review.

Report Quality Assurance and Tiered Compliance Coordination

The Specialist coordinates quality assurance using ForAfrika's three-tier country office system: selective sampling for Tier 1, systematic review of major donor and annual reports for Tier 2, and full review before submission for Tier 3. The Specialist maintains quality checklists covering narrative coherence, data accuracy, donor compliance, and inputs from the finance team.

Multi-Country Report Consolidation and Synthesis

For multi-country projects, the Specialist designs data compilation structures and narrative frameworks that keep reporting consistent across countries while leaving room for context, sets timelines and quality standards for country-level inputs. The Specialist then synthesises country inputs into a single report that presents a coherent picture of portfolio performance and surfaces cross-country learning without flattening it into one storyline.

Data Management and Analysis for Reporting

The Specialist works with the Monitoring Systems Manager to access, verify, and analyse programme data, formulating clear data requests that state what is needed, in what format, and by when, so monitoring systems can supply the data each report requires.

Capacity Building and Technical Support

The Specialist calibrates reporting support to each country office's tier: intensive guidance and draft review for Tier 3, targeted review of major reports for Tier 2, and lighter-touch consultation for Tier 1. This includes training on report writing, data presentation, and storytelling, reference materials such as templates and annotated examples, and individual coaching that builds authors' skills over time.

Knowledge Skills and Abilities

Master's degree in Knowledge Management, Information Science, Development Studies, Communications, or a related field (a Bachelor's degree with equivalent relevant experience will also be considered)
Minimum 6 years of combined experience in knowledge management, organisational learning, and/or report writing and coordination, in humanitarian or development programmes
Demonstrated experience designing and running knowledge management systems, including SharePoint, Teams, and filing/document management systems
Experience using AI tools for content organisation, tagging, search, or synthesis, with an understanding of data sensitivity and quality control
Experience managing reporting calendars and coordinating multi-stakeholder reporting processes against donor requirements
Demonstrated ability to synthesise complex information from multiple sources into narratives and visual formats suited to different audiences
Practical experience with descriptive data analysis and data visualisation
Experience facilitating discussion sessions, communities of practice, or learning events
Strong writing and communication skills, with the ability to adapt technical content for non-technical audiences without losing accuracy
Experience in humanitarian and development programming, preferably in African contexts

Technical Competencies

Knowledge of knowledge management principles, methods, and technologies
Proficiency in SharePoint, Teams, and other collaboration and document management platforms
Working understanding of filing systems, taxonomies, and version control practices
Familiarity with responsible AI use in a knowledge or content management context
Strong organisational and time management skills, able to manage multiple concurrent deadlines
Proficiency in data analysis and visualisation software
Attention to detail, with strong quality assurance and document review capabilities
Familiarity with major institutional donor reporting requirements (such as USAID, EU, UN agencies, FCDO, GAC)
Strong facilitation skills, comfortable running discussions with technical and non-technical participants
Ability to work independently across time zones, and to take initiative in a remote, matrixed structure

Reporting Lines

Reports To (Function): Director of Design, Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability, and Learning (DMEAL)
Location: Remote – working hours on GMT+2 time zone
Availability: The candidate is expected to start in the position from 1 September 2026 or as soon as possible.

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Knowledge Management Specialist