Save the Children International is seeking to recruit an Education Technical Specialist to lead strategic and technical education programming in Kenya. The role is based in Nairobi and focuses on developing and implementing high-quality education programmes in both humanitarian and development contexts. This position offers an opportunity to make a meaningful impact on children’s access to education, their learning outcomes, and overall well-being. The successful candidate will bring technical expertise, contextual understanding, and strong relationship-building skills to ensure delivery of the organisation’s strategic ambitions in the education sector.
The Education Technical Specialist will play a key role in programme design, strategic partnerships, advocacy, monitoring and evaluation, and capacity building. The position will engage with national and county stakeholders, local partners, and donors, while representing Save the Children in relevant coordination forums. A focus will be placed on early childhood care and development, foundational learning, and education in emergencies to ensure uninterrupted access to education for children across Kenya.
In the event of a major humanitarian emergency, the role holder may be required to adjust responsibilities and work outside normal hours to support urgent response efforts.
Key Areas of Accountability
Technical Leadership
• Provide technical leadership in education across the Kenya Country Office, setting the strategic direction in alignment with the broader country strategy.
• Build capacity of staff and implementing partners in key technical approaches related to education.
• Engage programme managers and field teams in the development or updating of strategies and thematic plans, ensuring education programming is needs-based and responsive.
Programme Quality – Design and Implementation
• Collaborate with new business development colleagues to identify and pursue funding opportunities, ensuring both integration into broader programmes and standalone education initiatives.
• Lead the technical scoping, planning, design, and proposal writing for new programmes, ensuring alignment with global best practice and inclusion of gender, disability, and resilience considerations.
• Work closely with Child Rights Governance colleagues to embed rights-based approaches in programme design and implementation, with a strong emphasis on child participation.
• Promote an Education Systems Strengthening approach, working collaboratively with governments, regional bodies, and local partners to achieve impact, scale, and sustainability.
Programme Quality – Evidence and Impact
• Provide guidance and oversight to implementation teams to ensure that thematic programme components are technically sound and consistent with national and global strategies.
• Promote integrated programming to maximise the overall impact of education interventions at the community level.
• Collaborate with Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability, Research, and Learning (MEARL) teams to develop a robust learning agenda that informs evidence generation and utilisation for programme improvement.
• Ensure quality monitoring against international standards through participatory methodologies that promote gender equality and social justice, including child-friendly and gender-transformative approaches.
• Foster an organisational learning culture that promotes the use of disaggregated data, evidence, and analysis (including gender and power analysis) to enhance accountable and quality programming.
• Conduct field visits to project sites to assess impacts, identify operational challenges, and support opportunities for learning and improvement.
• Share learning from Kenya’s education programmes with internal colleagues and partners, as well as the wider Save the Children regional and global community.
• Support the operations team in developing emergency preparedness plans, conducting sectoral assessments, and designing and implementing emergency response and recovery programmes.
• Monitor education trends to enable early action and lead technical coordination of humanitarian responses as needed.
Fundraising and External Engagement
• In collaboration with Country Office leadership, engage in strategic positioning with donors, partners, and government to position Save the Children as a partner of choice in education.
• Actively participate in national technical coordination and networking bodies, including co-leading the Education in Emergencies (EiE) working group with UNICEF and the Ministry of Education.
• Work with advocacy and child rights governance colleagues to strengthen civil society engagement in policy dialogues and ensure children’s voices are represented.
• Represent Save the Children’s education programme to national and local government representatives, donors, and partner agencies.
• Ensure technical components of reports are clear, consistent, and high-quality, working closely with awards, implementation, and communications teams.
• Leverage global Save the Children technical expertise, ensuring Kenya’s experiences inform global learning and that relevant global lessons are integrated locally.
Contract Details
• Contract Duration: 1 year (renewable)
• Number of Vacancies: 1
• Work Location: Nairobi, Kenya
• Job Schedule: Full-time
Qualifications and Experience / Skills
• Bachelor’s degree in education (mandatory). A Master’s degree in education or a related field is preferred.
• Minimum of 10 years’ relevant professional experience in the education sector.
• At least 8 years’ experience leading the design and implementation of humanitarian and development education programmes.
• Deep understanding of the education sector in Kenya.
• Familiarity with education systems and humanitarian/cluster mechanisms, including INEE Minimum Standards and Sustainable Development Goal 4.
• Proven track record in business development and fundraising with donors such as the Global Partnership for Education, Education Cannot Wait, EU, FCDO, USAID, and the World Bank.
• Experience conducting research and evaluations to design and scale sustainable impact pathways.
• Skills in context, capacity, and policy analysis, as well as regional/international advocacy to hold duty bearers accountable for children’s rights.
• Strong networking, representation, and partnership development skills.
• Ability to generate and use data and evidence to innovate, deliver, learn, and share lessons.
• Experience promoting quality and impact in crosscutting areas including gender equality and inclusion, adaptive programming, child rights, disability, and migration/displacement.
• Humanitarian preparedness, response, and recovery experience.
• Significant capacity-building, training, and mentoring experience.
The Organisation
Save the Children International employs approximately 25,000 staff globally and operates in over 100 countries, delivering programmes to children affected by crises and those needing improved healthcare, education, and protection. The organisation also engages in high-level advocacy to realise children’s rights and amplify their voices.
Save the Children is working towards three key breakthroughs by 2030:
• No child dies from preventable causes before their 5th birthday.
• All children have access to quality basic education and achieve learning outcomes.
• Violence against children is no longer tolerated.
How to Apply
Interested candidates should apply in English, submitting their CV and covering letter as a single document, and include salary expectations. Full job details are available on the Save the Children careers website at www.savethechildren.net/jobs.
As part of its commitment to child protection, Save the Children’s recruitment process reflects strict safeguarding standards, including background checks. Employment is subject to adherence to the organisation’s Child Safeguarding Policy.
Save the Children is an equal opportunity employer and encourages applications from qualified female candidates.
Disclaimer: Save the Children International does not charge any fees at any stage of the recruitment process, nor does it request medical examinations or act through recruitment agents.
