Overview
This role contributes to Plan International’s Malawi ‘Skills and Opportunities for Youth Employment and Entrepreneurship (SOYEE)’ priority area by leading the development and quality delivery of impactful skills and opportunities for youth and economic entrepreneurship programming.
Key Responsibilities
- Lead the development and/or adaptation and application of SOYEE programming approaches, principles, methodologies, and tools.
- Provide technical leadership in designing SOYEE programmes for Plan International Malawi, formulating specific strategies and goals for gender transformative programming.
- Provide technical leadership in the design of SOYEE annual plans, Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for specific interventions.
- Lead development of different technical documents, reports, manuals, guidelines on participation rights and SOYEE, which align with national and international standards, strategies and approaches.
- Identify key implementing and strategic partners working in the field of SOYEE.
- Develop program strategies through participatory processes.
- Lead analysis of national legal frameworks and the challenges and gaps that the system is facing to incentivise youths, especially young women.
- Oversee the collection of evidence and best practices from Plan International SOYEE programmes.
- Assume a leading role on thematic issues such as skills development in general and technical and vocation education and training (TVET) in particular.
- Provide technical guidance to the SOYEE projects teams during implementation.
- Work closely with the technical lead MERL to ensure that all project plans are complete with outcome-level monitoring and evaluation plans.
- Coordinate and direct program planning processes.
- Ensure that program implementation is responsive to communities, authorities, and partners and consistent with Plan’s program guidelines, principles, values, quality standards, and strategic plan.
- Integrate sustainability plans, SOYEE, and gender sensitivity and capacity building into all project activities.
- Ensure that Project Managers/ Project coordinators have access to and are appropriately using routine monitoring and periodic assessment/survey data.
- Provide technical leadership in quarterly/ interim and annual project reflection meetings.
- Draft and/or review scopes of work to hire and manage SOYEE technical consultants.
- Cascade the SOPs to ensure effective implementation to the team implementing SOYEE project/interventions.
- Conduct field supportive supervision of the team implementing SOYEE project/interventions.
- Lead the programme team in the quality implementation of all SOYEE projects.
- Lead proposal development in close coordination with the Business Development Team.
- Provide sound technical inputs to Business Development.
- Establish and maintain effective linkage and relationship with National Offices, internal and external donors, and development partners.
- Pro-actively engage with development partners and donors to mobilize resources and project funding.
- Ensure a robust understanding of Plan International Sudan’s sponsorship vision.
- Identify areas of continuous improvement to strengthen youth participation and SOYEE programming.
- Undertake training of staff, project teams, and partner staff.
- Extend technical support to partners to improve SOYEE programming and influencing.
- Coach and train other staff on high quality youth participation and SOYEE practices.
- Work in coordination with Gender Specialist and Director of Influencing to ensure strong gender transformation is embedded in all projects.
- Facilitate the creation and implementation of learning and knowledge management.
- Build and scale-up programme approaches and methodologies from lessons learnt.
- Build strategic relationships with government ministries, UN agencies, and non-government institutions.
- Work with public, private and international actors to influence policy frameworks.
- Represent Plan International Malawi in national and international spaces.
- Lead documentation and sharing of best practices.
- Ensure that Plan International’s global policies for Safeguarding Children and Young People, and Gender Equality and Inclusion (GEI) are fully embedded.
- Provide guidance in identifying and mitigating complex risks and problems.
- Demonstrate gender transformative programming and activities in reports.
- Advocate internally for adaptations of Plan International’s policies, processes, attitudes and behaviours.
Required Experience
- At least 7 years’ experience in implementing projects related to youth employment and entrepreneurship, financial inclusion and private sector engagement.
- Strong experience and knowledge of working with private sector actors such as private companies and engaging them in SOYEE programming.
- Experience working directly in gender, age, disability or social inclusion programming, related issues and/or broader protection issues, preferably in an NGO, UN context.
- Solid experience in resource mobilisation with a variety of donors.
- Experience in interactive/ innovative training approaches and conducting successful workshops.
- Experience in community facilitation, sensitisation and awareness raising is desirable.
Qualifications
• Master’s degree preferably in social science, Sociology, Development Studies, Gender and Development, International Affairs, Economics or other relevant field
