Africa: Programme Officer - Africa Youth Trust

TERMS OF REFERENCE

PROGRAMME OFFICER FOR EAST AFRICAN YOUTH REINVENTING A DEMOCRATIC AND HUMAN RIGHTS CULTURE AND CENTERING YOUTH VOICES IN REGIONAL LAW MAKING

A PROGRAMME OF THE AFRICA YOUTH TRUST

1. Timing and Duration

The Programme Officer will be recruited on contract, annually renewable based upon performance, for the duration of the Africa Youth Trust’s East African Youth Reinventing A Democratic And Human Rights Culture And Centering Youth Voices In Regional Law Making program.

2. Scope of Work

This is an East African wide programme covering Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Burundi and Rwanda. The programme officer will work to the Terms of Reference of the AYT and carry out appropriate assignments as regards the implementation of the programme. The programme officer will be based in Nairobi at the AYT secretariat

3. Specific Tasks of the Programme Officer

The Programme Officer will provide support in the management in the implementation of AYT’s East African Youth Reinventing A Democratic And Human Rights Culture And Centering Youth Voices In Regional Law Making program

* Work closely with the Programme Manger to manage the overall day-to-day running and implementation of project activities, co-ordinate and supervise the work of other staff, ensuring efficient and effective fulfillment of their roles; give support and advice as necessary.
* Assist the programme manager in planning processes of the project, including the development of project proposals, budgets, reports and tools to monitor progress and evaluate impact of activities for effective implementation. Ensure effective and timely implementation of outlined project activities.
* Assist in ensuring the development of the programme’s networks and building of strategic partnerships with the Government, donors, the private sector and like-minded organizations and communities.
* Assist in ensuring effective communication between project and other AYT projects; ensure participation of project at other programme and organization meetings; resolve conflicts as appropriate while observing the organizational policies.
* Assist in development of contingency plans and strategies for on-going and future programming
* Facilitation of effective Information, Education and Communication (IEC) that will ensure that beneficiaries are informed, participate in, and provide feedback on all aspects of the Programme
* Provide advise on the development of a resource mobilization plan based on the project
* Undertake such other programme development activities as may be requested by the AYT from time to time
* Liaise with the programme partners and the beneficiaries to provide information on implementation and to address concerns expressed by the partners, in particular with respect to results and absorption of programme
* Assist with the design and development of Stakeholder Participation Processes.
* Link international and local best practices dealing with democracy and human rights to the programme
* Support the establishment of a Monitoring and Evaluation Framework, including to monitor the implementation and achievement of the programme and, to identify successes, challenges and lessons learnt and to assist with the selection of appropriate indicators and targets and identification of available baseline data
* Conduct research and knowledge sharing, including identifying best practices and lessons learnt from other democracy and human rights programmes, both global (e.g., Canada and Sweden) and continental – e.g., Tanzania and ensure that mechanisms for dissemination are in place
* Assist with the identification of key risks and constraints to implementation and with the development of strategies to manage them
* Assist with the preparation of programme quarterly reports, reports for the workshops and annual programme reports
* Oversee efforts to assess the impact of the programme on cross-cutting issues, including gender equity, HIV/AIDS, the marginalized and people with disabilities and provide appropriate recommendations
* Support the development of internal team-building strategies including conflict management systems, time management policies, harmonized work planning, participatory budgeting.

4. Qualifications

1. Must have a graduate degree in a relevant field, such as International Relations, Business Administration, Organizational Development and any other relevant social science degree
2. Must have at least two (2) years experience in programme coordination/management dealing with development issues such democracy and human rights, and good governance
3. Should be below the age of 32 Years
4. Should be knowledgeable on issues youth development, democracy, governance and human rights issues in the context of Kenya and/or other sub-Saharan African countries.
5. Should be a team player with excellent interpersonal skills, including tact, diplomacy and high integrity.
6. Knowledge in project management
7. Knowledge in Monitoring and Evaluation
8. Knowledge in research methodologies
9. A broad knowledge of East Africa’s regional political and economic institutions
10. A broad knowledge of parliamentary processes
11. Ability to use office software programs such as MS Word, Excel and Outlook and Internet
12. Knowledge in written and spoken French is an added advantage

5. Reporting

The Programme Officer shall be directly reporting to the Programme Manager, Africa Youth Trust.

F. General eligibility

The post is open to candidates from the East African Region. Women candidates are highly encouraged to apply. AYT is an equal opportunity employer.

G. Application procedure

Please send your curriculum vitae indicating day telephone numbers, email and at least 3 referees. Only short listed candidates will be contacted.

Deadline for application:

5th August 2008 at 4.00 pm

Send your CV to:

[email][email protected]