Programme Manager (0958)

Job Description

This is an excellent opportunity for a seasoned Programme Manager fluent in French to contribute to ClientEarth’s work to protect the world’s forests and strengthen Indigenous Peoples’ and Local Communities’ (IPLC) rights on land and forestry governance. The postholder will use their experience of programme management, partner engagement and monitoring, evaluation and learning to facilitate strategic decision-making and the quality programme delivery.

ClientEarth works to achieve systemic change at scale. We aim to drive systems change through legal reform, advocacy and influencing, and capacity sharing. We do this in collaboration with our partners, who represent diverse expertise and experiences and include law firms, NGO partners, consultants and local communities.

Meet your Manager

In this role, you will report to Catherine Lalonde, Head of Food, Oceans, and Land Use, African Partnerships. Catherine joined ClientEarth in 2025 and is based in Brussels. She leads ClientEarth’s programmes and impact strategies in Africa, built on long-term partnerships with lawyers and civil society organisations across West and Central Africa. Her work is grounded in regional priorities while ensuring alignment with ClientEarth’s global mission and strategy.

Main Duties

• Work collaboratively with partners to foster and create an effective and efficient programme management culture and embed best practices to support the optimal delivery of strategic initiatives. This includes continuing to innovate and strengthen the way in which ClientEarth engages with partners, especially in light of the decolonizing aid agenda.
• Responsible for effective programme management of regional projects—including contract and budget oversight—to deliver efficient, value-for-money, and sustainable outcomes throughout the project lifecycle, working with colleagues across programmes to ensure plans and impacts are timely and aligned with strategic objectives.
• Support cross-partner regional collaboration, strategy, and planning to achieve consortium goals, while championing creative facilitation techniques and interactive group exercises in both online and in-person settings.

See the job description (below) for a full list of duties for this role.

Role requirements

• Fluent (CEFR level C2) in English
• Fluent (CEFR level C2) in French
• Proven, extensive experience managing complex, multi-country programmes in the not-for-profit sector, including oversight of substantial six- to seven-figure budgets and coordination with diverse internal and external stakeholders
• Proven track record of working collaboratively and effectively with national partners and stakeholders in developing country settings, such as civil society organizations, law firms, consultants and local communities

See the job description (below) for a full list of requirements for this role.

Note to candidates: We know that long lists of criteria can be daunting and that some candidates will not apply for a role unless they feel they are 100% qualified. If you feel you meet at least some of the essential criteria, we still encourage you to apply.

Further Information

Have a question about this job? Please visit our Careers site for advice on applying, FAQs, and more.

Flexible working: We are proud to be a Flexa accredited Employer. Visit our Flexa Employer page for more information on our approach to flexible working. Our flexible working policy allows our people the choice to decide to work from home/another location in the country where their contract of employment is issued for 80% of their month, with the other 20% of their month being office-based See our Benefits page for more as well as our flexible working FAQ.

ClientEarth values diversity and inclusion and the benefits this brings. We aim to appoint the most suitable candidate at all times and welcome applications from people from all different backgrounds. See our equity, diversity and inclusion journey page for more.

Please note that ClientEarth is only able to employ those who have the pre-existing legal right to work in the UK.

ClientEarth is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice or legal services to third parties.