Job Summary

Provision of technical expertise in support of new business and partnership development, including pre-positioning for growth opportunities around the areas of gender, youth and social inclusion. We are looking for a candidate with a strong background on product design and development with a focus on gender, youth, and social inclusion lens and also able to contribute to partnership development.

• Minimum Qualification:Bachelor
• Experience Level:Senior level
• Experience Length:5 years

Job Description/Requirements

Industry: Microenterprise/Microfinance/International Development/Social Entrepreneurship

Reports to: VP of Programs, with a dotted line to the Director, Institutional Relations, and Director of Partnerships for the Business Development and Partnerships part of the role

Start Date: 1ST June 2023

Travel: 35%%+ – This role would include travel to field offices in Kenya, Uganda, and Rwanda

About US.

Village Enterprise’s mission is to end extreme poverty through innovation and entrepreneurship.  Over the years, Village Enterprise has transformed the lives of over one million people living in extreme poverty in East Africa. The organization’s new strategy focuses on ‘scale and impact’, and has ambitious goals in the area of conservation. Village Enterprise intends to impact the lives of 20 million people living in extreme poverty by 2030. Over the next three years, we plan to significantly increase the number of people we serve (from 18,000/year to 45,000/year) and expand into new countries. Our goal is to ensure that every enterprise started by our entrepreneurs is profitable, climate-smart, and mitigates human-wildlife conflict in protected areas. 

About the Role:

Village Enterprise is seeking a Technical Advisor- Gender, Youth, and Social Inclusion. This role will contribute to ensuring Village Enterprises programs are equitable and innovative across the board. As the organization pursues its ambitious goal of reaching 20 million lives by 2030, this role will be critical in supporting to define approaches and the operationalization of tools, and practices that promote social inclusion in Village Enterprise’s ongoing and new programs. The candidate leads the integration of gender, youth transformative, and socially inclusive programming elements in Village Enterprise Poverty Graduation program with global best practices. The candidate will; 1) will participate in strategy, program implementation, program monitoring, and evaluation in relation to gender, youth, and social inclusion integration in all programs, 2) facilitate and support the development of specific outcomes and indicators to be measured and facilitate knowledge learning and sharing and 3) Build capacity and provide technical assistance to staff of Village Enterprise and its partners, 4) Provision of technical expertise in support of new business and partnership development, including pre-positioning for growth opportunities around the areas of gender, youth and social inclusion. We are looking for a candidate with a strong background on product design and development with a focus on gender, youth, and social inclusion lens and also able to contribute to partnership development. 

Key Duties/ Functions

Product Design and Development 70%

Strategy and Program Development

• Work with the VP of Programs to develop and implement Gender Equity, Youth and Social Inclusion Strategy and action plan, including the adaptation and development of tools, targets, and approaches to support the strategy and action plan.
• Provide technical leadership and oversight, and integration of GYSI approaches across program activities.
• Focus on ways to purposefully and effectively engage youth, women, and marginalized groups in all activities and areas. 
• Develop an evidence-based practical plan and approach with targets and indicators that allows Village Enterprise to foster gender equity and meaningfully work with youth and marginalized populations across all its program areas
• Provide input on women and youth inclusion-focused deliverables, undertake GYSI assignments, and help field staff apply good inclusion practices across all program components.

Capacity Development

• Equip Village Enterprise staff with requisite tools and aids for gender fostering and meaningfully working with youth. 
• Work closely with program staff to build their understanding of gender, youth, and social inclusion issues.
• Facilitate GYSI training and develop and/or adapt training content.
• Provide input on women and youth inclusion-focused deliverables, undertake GYSI assignments, and help field staff apply good inclusion practices across all program components. 

Knowledge Management, Learning, and Sharing

• Translate external trends in GYSI into internal improvement actions and innovations for Village Enterprise’s Poverty Graduation Program. Support the development, maintenance, and updating of the GYSI knowledge agenda and how it plays out across all areas of operation and supports organizational learning.
• Lead the regular sharing and learning of GYSI best practices and associated program outputs and outcomes with program staff and partners
• Support development of GYSI behavior change communication activities and messages. Write blogs, articles, and success stories related to the GYSI work being done

Business Development and Partnerships 30%

• Support the development teams in designing and reviewing the quality of new technical proposals on GYSI aspects.
• Work with the partnerships team to build and expand partnerships with relevant actors (knowledge organizations, impact investors, venture philanthropists, foundations, donors, etc.) through professional profiling, showing Village Enterprise’s strategy, vision, and level of knowledge and experience. 
• Represent Village Enterprise at selected events. Work closely with our programs and communications teams to develop messaging and engaging in relevant national and international GYSI-related development discussions.

Candidate Profile

• Bachelor’s Degree in Gender Studies, Economics, International Development, or related Social Sciences required. Master’s degree strongly preferred but will consider candidates with compensating strong work experience.
• Minimum of five (5) years relevant international work experience, preferably with at least three to five years in an advisory or management role and strong practical experience in gender equity, women’s empowerment, and/or youth employment programming.
• Experience with community development, livelihoods, humanitarian response, and/or resilience programs. 
• Work experience in East Africa required, experience in Ethiopia, and other countries in West Africa and other regions is an added advantage.  

Technical Competencies

• Demonstrated ability to apply technical principles and concepts in gender integration and social behavior change to program development.
• Demonstrated ability to apply technical principles and concepts in positive youth development and livelihoods, including workforce development and entrepreneurship.
• Experience conducting gender, youth, and social dynamics assessment, analysis, and related research, and operationalizing a resulting program strategy.
• Design and adaptation of program approaches that promote gender-responsive and gender-transformative programming in diverse contexts.
• Experience with program monitoring and evaluation including the development of indicators, data collection tools and methodologies, analysis, and data presentation.
• Experience developing successful proposals for donor funding, including technical writing, is required. Design and facilitation of training and learning agendas on gender, youth, and social inclusion.
• Experience in mentoring, coaching, and supporting colleagues (senior, peer, and junior) and partners to integrate gender and inclusion principles and best practices into their work

Work Authorization 

This is a local position and candidates must be authorized to work in Uganda without sponsorship. 

How to Apply 

All applications will be received and Reviewed through Brightermonday Portal by Clicking on the ‘Apply Now ‘ section

Your cover letter should explain why your experience and background make you the ideal candidate for this position and should be no more than one page. This should be accompanied by a detailed CV and the names of at least three (3) professional referees. Applications will be accepted through April 20, 2022, and will be reviewed on a rolling basis until a suitable candidate is found. 

Note: Please do not contact Village Enterprise to inquire as to the status of your application. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. 

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