Country Director, Rwanda

Country Director, Rwanda 

About Viamo 

Viamo connects people and organizations through mobile and voice-based technology, including AI, so communities can access information and make their voices heard without internet access. Our services help partners overcome language, literacy and connectivity barriers. Learn more at viamo.io.

About the Role

We are seeking an entrepreneurial, hands-on partnership leader with the ambition, ownership and resourcefulness to grow our presence in Rwanda. You will create opportunities, uncover partners’ underlying needs, co-design impactful solutions tailored to their challenges and turn those solutions into signed, financially sustainable agreements.

You will own the Rwanda sales pipeline and targets, build trusted relationships with UN agencies, NGOs, donors and private sector companies, and lead the full business development cycle. Reporting to the Senior Regional Director, Eastern & Southern Africa & Asia, you will work closely with regional leadership, Programs, Product, Technology and Finance.

Success means achieving agreed monthly, quarterly and annual bookings targets, measured by the margin value of signed contracts; maintaining credible forecasts; and developing partnerships that support measurable outcomes, repeat business and expansion.

Key Responsibility

Sales and Partnership Development | At least 90%

• Build and execute the Rwanda growth strategy. Prioritize accounts, sectors and funding opportunities based on partner needs, Viamo’s strengths, business potential and feasibility. Develop opportunities proactively, including before formal calls for proposals are published.
• Lead thoughtful outreach and discovery. Research each partner’s programs, objectives and funding context; listen actively, ask probing questions and distinguish stated requests from the underlying problem. Establish who decides, how funds can be accessed, what success means and what could prevent progress.
• Co-design impactful solutions tailored to partners’ challenges. Translate discovery into a clear target audience, user journey, language and channel mix, content approach, engagement or referral pathway, measurement plan and implementation responsibilities. Test assumptions about reach, connectivity, literacy, gender and access with colleagues and partners.
• Lead proposals and partnership development. Personally develop compelling concept notes, proposals, scopes of work and budgets, coordinating specialist inputs. Align the narrative, activities, quantities, timelines, deliverables and costs; identify dependencies and protect financial sustainability.
• Move opportunities through to signature. Qualify funding and procurement routes, make disciplined bid/no-bid recommendations, build consortia where appropriate and negotiate scope and terms within Viamo’s approval processes. Secure internal validation before committing capabilities, pricing or delivery timelines.
• Develop existing accounts. Maintain senior partner relationships, identify renewal and expansion opportunities early, and work with delivery colleagues on issues that affect trust, scope, funding or future business. Turn evidence and learning from projects into relevant partnership opportunities.
• Maintain rigorous follow-through. Record substantive interactions, commitments, owners and next steps in the CRM; keep forecasts and opportunity stages current; follow up promptly after meetings and close loops without repeated managerial reminders.
• Use AI and digital tools intelligently. Integrate them into research, synthesis, drafting, analysis and workflow management while checking sources, facts, calculations and fit for purpose. Protect confidential information and retain personal accountability for every output and commitment.

Country Leadership | Approximately 10%

• Lead the Rwanda Country Crew. Align the Viamo Platform/Program Manager around shared priorities and clear responsibilities, enabling colleagues to contribute their expertise.
• Coordinate a thorough sales-to-delivery handover and support partner escalations. Delivery teams manage day-to-day implementation; you remain accountable for the partnership and work with relevant owners to resolve issues affecting it.
• Represent Viamo with government, development partners and mobile network operators. Support colleagues across departments on enabling relationships, infrastructure agreements and organizational compliance.

Essential Requirments

• Personally originating and closing significant business. A proven record of securing substantial contracts or partnerships against targets, with clear evidence of your own contribution and results.
• Rwanda experience and trusted relationships. Experience living and working in Rwanda, with an active professional network and trusted relationships within its development ecosystem.
• Development-sector understanding and funding fluency. Familiarity with UN, NGO and donor priorities, partner selection, and grant, subaward and procurement routes. Direct experience serving these organizations is highly valued.
• Strong proposal writing and budget development. A record of personally writing winning proposals and owning accurate budgets and scopes of work.
• Excellent communication and influence. Clear, concise and persuasive English, with the ability to engage senior decision-makers and explain complex ideas simply.
• Entrepreneurial drive, self-management and learning agility. Evidence of pursuing ambitious goals independently, prioritizing and following through reliably, and showing curiosity, resourcefulness and persistence when learning or overcoming setbacks.
• Collaborative leadership and integrity. Experience coordinating across functions and cultures without direct authority, managing disagreement respectfully and exercising sound judgment.
• Applied AI literacy. Daily professional use of AI, with examples demonstrating its benefits, limitations and your ability to use it responsibly.

Desirable Experience

• Fluency in English and Kinyarwanda
• Workshop facilitation skills and experience in design thinking approaches
• Understanding of local business and NGO laws and telecoms regulations
• Experience working with major bilateral donors such as USAID, FCDO and/or EU-funded projects

Viamo is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We value diversity and encourage applications from all candidates. We believe that diverse perspectives help our teams to create innovative solutions and understand our global clients' needs. In alignment with our values, we are committed to recruiting and retaining a diverse global workforce without discrimination. 

Apply now with a CV and a short cover letter. Please note that interviews will be conducted on a rolling basis, and only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.