Mercy Corps SACCO / Youth Enterprise Development Specialist Job in Eldoret Kenya

Mercy Corps exists to alleviate suffering, poverty and oppression by helping people build secure, productive and just communities. 

Driven by local needs, our programs provide communities in the world’s toughest places with the tools and support they need to turn the crises they confront into the opportunities they deserve. 

Mercy Corps is looking for committed and dynamic individuals to take up the following position:

SACCO / Youth Enterprise Development Specialist - Eldoret
 

Program / Department Summary: Mercy Corps’ goal in Kenya is to strengthen and sustain capabilities of Kenyan society and stakeholders to be agents of positive change in their communities. 

It achieves this goal through three objectives: 

1) Strengthened ability of local, district, and regional structures to manage conflict and become managers of democracy;

2) Empowered Kenyan youth to achieve a greater voice in national reform and create new livelihood opportunities and 

3) More resilient drought affected populations in Northeastern Kenya.
 

The Yes Youth Can (YYC) program is a multi-year USAID-funded program that focuses on building youth-owned, youth-led and youth-managed institutional arrangements and capabilities at both national and county levels. 

Mercy Corps implements two of USAID’s regional YYC programs—one in the Rift Valley and one in Central region. 

In partnership with the County Bungee Forums and SACCOs, Mercy Corps works to achieve the following four objectives: 

1) Mobilize youth and form youth representation structures at the village and county level; 

2) Support youth to exercise a greater voice in local and national affairs; 

3) Increase youth productivity, employment opportunities, and income; and 

4) Increase young women’s access to social, political, and economic opportunities. 

Entering its fourth and final year of implementation, Mercy Corps has reached 1.9 million youth in Rift and Central regions and supported the development of over 11,000 bunges (youth parliaments).
 

General Position Summary: The Youth Enterprise Program Specialist is a senior level position with Mercy Corps Kenya. It will be primarily responsible for providing leadership under objective #3 listed above—increase youth productivity, employment opportunities and income—and specifically strengthening the seven County SACCOs that we work with in Rift Valley. 

Activities with the SACCO include professionalizing the SACCOs, strategizing about how to build their membership, SACCO sustainability planning, exploring the development of specific SACCO products, ensuring they hit their targets under YYC, and educating them on compliance for the CMC & SC committees. 

Other activities include: entrepreneurship training for youth starting businesses after acquiring loans from the SACCOs, developing youth’s job-skills, linking youth to different value-chains and markets. 

The Youth Enterprise Program Specialist will be responsible for designing and delivery of livelihoods training, SACCO supervision and management, ensuring timely repayment mechanisms to the SACCOs, and managing consultants.

Essential Job Functions:

• Oversee and monitor activities of the seven county SACCOs that we work with in the Rif Valley.
• Work with each SACCO to strategize how to build their membership, increase their sustainability and develop products that meet their members’ needs.
• Work with and mentor SACCO leadership to ensure that they meet their YYC targets and ensure they are complying with all SACCO requirements.
• Provide technical insight and advice for economic empowerment programming especially on SACCO components regarding committee meetings, compliance and employment activities, combining experience with practical on-the-ground identification of opportunities and constraints;
• Provide technical leadership in value chain/market analysis to identify business opportunities youth participants. Facilitate or provide business training to YYC youth.
• Under the leadership of the CoP, facilitate linkages to respective County ministries and complementary projects to ensure sustainability and ownership
• Contribute to YYC’s planning and reporting processes as requested by the Chief of Party
• Provide training and mentorship to MC staff on Enterprise Development and SACCO strengthening.
• Represent Mercy Corps in related thematic working groups within the counties.

Organizational Learning: As part of Mercy Corps’ agency-wide Organizational Learning Initiative, all team members are responsible for spending 5% of their work time in formal and/or non-formal professional learning activities.

Accountability to Beneficiaries: Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts towards accountability, specifically to our beneficiaries and to international standards guiding international relief and development work, while actively engaging beneficiary communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects.

Supervisory Responsibility: No supervisory responsibilities
 

Accountability:

• Reports Directly To: Chief of Party, Yes Youth Can
• Works Directly With: Country Director, Program Managers, other YYC technical specialists, M&E staff, Operations/Finance Staff, other MC Kenya staff.

Knowledge and Experience:

• MA/S or BA/S and work experience in Cooperative Development and Management, business administration, economics/economic development, or international development;
• Minimum of 10 years of experience in the fields of economic development, SACCO strengthening, or business development and planning.
• Demonstrated technical expertise in SACCO strengthening and youth economic empowerment.
• Proven ability to work as part of a team and achieve project deliverables.
• Demonstrated ability to write compelling reports and communicate clearly in English.
• Ability to effectively convey programmatic goals, enlist partnerships, and work with a range of program and external stakeholders;
• Fluency in Kiswahili

Success Factors:

• Innovative, decisive and inclusive leadership approach
• Creative and insightful as regards development programming including the relationships between youth development, economic empowerment, peace-building and reconciliation
• Excellent communication and team-building techniques
• Proven experience managing and building capacity of diverse teams (expatriate and national)
• Cultural knowledge, sensitivity and respect
• Commitment to oversee projects for their duration
• Ability to engage with strategic institutional partners as well as current and potential donors

Interested candidates who meet the above required qualifications and experience should submit on or before September 10, 2014 at 4.00 p.m. a cover letter, detailed Curriculum Vitae (CV) listing three professional references (including a recent supervisor) to hrkenya@ke.mercycorps.org. 

The email subject Line must clearly show the job title and location they are applying for. 

Applications without the right subject heading will be automatically disqualified. 

Please do not attach any certificates.

(ONLY Qualified and selected candidates for the interview will be contacted)

NB: Mercy Corps does not charge any fee at any stage of the recruitment process.