Senior Project Assistant
Context
Diasporas are agents of change who, via their knowledge and skills transfer, social and civic involvement, economic contributions, and cultural interchange, build bridges across numerous spaces. They are the first to step in to support their communities of origin during times of need and use their talent to spur development in countries of origin and destination.
At the continental level, leveraging diaspora financial and human capital for socioeconomic development of countries of origin has long been a priority for African policymakers. The “African Common Position on Migration and Development” (2006) recognized the pivotal role of the diaspora as the sixth region in Africa; and other regional policy decisions reinforced this statement, such as the AU 2063 Agenda, the AU revised Migration Policy Framework and the Global Compact for Migration (GCM) objectives on diaspora engagement.
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) will be implementing the project “Streamlining Diaspora Investments to Catalyze Private Investments and Reduce Vulnerability through Promoting Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Business Linkages” (SDE4R) financed by the African Development Bank (AfDB). This intervention targets eight (8) transition states, i.e. The Gambia, Liberia, Madagascar, Mali, Somalia, South Sudan, Togo and Zimbabwe identified based on existing scalable interventions on diaspora engagement for private sector development. The governments of these countries have called for stronger support in diaspora engagement by either including it as an element of their national development plan or adopting dedicated policy recommendations.
The project aims to strengthen private sector development, economic growth and social resilience in African transition states through their Diaspora in The Gambia, Liberia, Madagascar, Mali, Somalia, South Sudan, Togo and Zimbabwe. The proposed intervention seeks to leverage diaspora engagement to strengthen economic development in their countries of origin through two (2) key outcomes: (1) Increase of remittances contribution to local economic development; and (2) improvement of socio-economic resilience for vulnerable populations in diaspora’s countries of origin. IOM’s Regional Office for West and Central Africa (WCA) has a regional coordination role under this project. Under the overall supervision of the Regional Director and direct supervision of the Regional Thematic Specialist for Labour Mobility and Social Inclusion (LMI), the successful candidate will provide specialized programmatic and administrative support to ensure successful implementation of the SDE4R project with a specific focus on the four pilots in West Africa, namely Gambia, Liberia, Mali and Togo, as well as related regional activities.
Key responsibilities
- Assist in the planning, coordination, implementation and monitoring of SDE4R project activities, in close coordination with the Regional Programme Officer (LMI) and the Regional Thematic Specialist (LMI).
- Coordinate the administrative and accounting tasks related to the project outputs (such as the organization of TDYs, trainings, meetings, workshops and other events, online or in person), in close liaison with IOM support units (logistics, procurement, finance, resource management, and other relevant focal points) and service providers, adhering to IOM’s internal procedures and collecting proper documentation in a timely manner.
- Organize internal meetings for the follow up of the projects with all units, take notes, file appropriately, and ensure timely information-sharing on various events.
- Draft correspondence, reports, briefing notes, graphics, statistical tables, presentations and other forms of documentation needed for the project implementation and coordinate with focal points in country missions, as needed.
- Support the development and updating of external informational, visibility and communication materials, including content for IOM Fact Sheets, stories, summaries of events, etc.
- Support translation of presentations, short documents and communications from English to French and from French to English.
- Participate in meetings and conferences; maintain effective liaison and coordination with local authorities, partners, United Nation agencies, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations, donors and other stakeholders relevant to the project.
- Monitor work of implementing partners and report any non-compliance to the supervisor.
- Provide inputs for the development of concept papers and provide general support for the development of new projects.
- Perform other related duties as assigned.
Required Qualifications and Experience
Education
- High school diploma or equivalent with six years of relevant experience;
or, - Bachelor’s degree or equivalent in Political or Social Sciences, International Relations, Development Studies, Migration Studies, Human Rights, Law or related fields from an accredited academic institution with four years of relevant professional experience.
Experience
- Prior work experience with international humanitarian organizations, non-government or government institutions/organization in a multi-cultural setting is an advantage;
- Previous experience with regional programmes and/or working with different countries in West and Central Africa is an asset.
- Previous academic work in relation to migration, labour migration, diaspora engagement, or development is a distinct advantage.
Skills
- Excellent computer skills and high level of proficiency in Microsoft Office applications including Excel, Word and Teams Tasks;
- Knowledge of IOM financial, procurement and/or human resources rules and regulations is a distinct advantage.
Languages
Required
- External applicants for all positions in the Professional category are required to be proficient in English and have at least a working knowledge of one additional UN Language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian, or Spanish).
- For all applicants, fluency in English and French is required (oral and written).
Required Competencies
Values – all IOM staff members must abide by and demonstrate these five values:
- Inclusion and respect for diversity: Respects and promotes individual and cultural differences. Encourages diversity and inclusion.
- Integrity and transparency: Maintains high ethical standards and acts in a manner consistent with organizational principles/rules and standards of conduct.
- Professionalism: Demonstrates ability to work in a composed, competent and committed manner and exercises careful judgment in meeting day-to-day challenges.
- Courage: Demonstrates willingness to take a stand on issues of importance.
- Empathy: Shows compassion for others, makes people feel safe, respected and fairly treated.
Core Competencies – behavioural indicators level 2
- Teamwork: develops and promotes effective collaboration within and across units to achieve shared goals and optimize results.
- Delivering results: produces and delivers quality results in a service-oriented and timely manner; is action oriented and committed to achieving agreed outcomes.
- Managing and sharing knowledge: continuously seeks to learn, share knowledge and innovate.
- Accountability: takes ownership for achieving the Organization’s priorities and assumes
- responsibility for own action and delegated work.
- Communication: encourages and contributes to clear and open communication; explains complex matters in an informative, inspiring, and motivational way.
How to apply
Interested internal and external candidates are invited to submit their applications by e-mail to [email protected] , indicating: « ROWCA-HR-24-003-SVN, Senior Project Assistant» in the subject line.
For applications to be considered, applicants are asked to submit applications with a cover letter (no more than one page long) specifying motivation and qualifications for applying, as well as a detailed resume/CV, functional e-mail address and mobile telephone number. Incomplete applications will automatically be rejected.
Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.