Youth Employment Manager - DRC

** Position pending funding with anticipated start of activities in march/April Position duration for 1 year PROGRAM/ DEPARTMENT SUMMARY:

Mercy Corps has been operating in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) since August 2007, with a staff of over 150 people working in North Kivu, South Kivu, and Ituri provinces. Mercy Corps national office is in Goma with sub-field offices in Bukavu and Kavumu/Katana (South Kivu), Kitchanga (North Kivu), and Bunia (Ituri). The current Mercy Corps strategy in DRC focus on the provision of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) services and the coordination and distribution of cash-based assistance in camps of internally displaced peoples (IDPs), large-scale WASH infrastructure and service delivery development in urban centers. Mercy Corps also has Food Security, Economic Recovery/Development and Governance programs, with an increasing shift towards transitional and integrated development programming. The DRC team has a strong commitment to providing entrepreneurial and innovative solutions to development challenges and is actively seeking and facilitating market-based solutions.

At present, Mercy Corps DRC seeks motivated and qualified staff to be part of its upcoming integrated youth development project (IYDA). Pending funding, but expected to be carried out in the provinces of North Kivu (Goma) and South Kivu (Walungu, Kabare, Kalehe and Bukavu), this three-year program funded by USAID aims overall to improve young persons' resilience to conflicts and violence in Eastern DRC. The three core objectives of the program are as follows: 1) to increase youth's access to basic education and to skills needed for Positive Youth Development, 2) to strengthen the capacity of youth-led and youth-targeting institutions and to improve community support in order to encourage positive youth engagement, and 3) to increase skills/access to resources for young entrepreneurs as well as the access that youth institutions have to markets.

GENERAL POSITION SUMMARY:

The Youth Market Integration Manager (based in Mercy Corps' sub-office in Bukavu) is a new position that will support programming aimed at improving the livelihoods as well as the skills of vulnerable youth living across the targeted provinces and territorites by:

• fostering new and improved opportunities for youth to ac quire market-driven work readiness skills, financial literacy, vocational/technical training, business plan training and entrepreneurship training (including access to safe, decent, and equitable income-generation options);
• improving the access that youth entrepreneurs and youth-owned enterprises have to markets and networks

Additionally, s/he will oversee program planning, monitoring and management of the day-to-day implementation and operations of such programming, coordinate with the appropriate parties on sector-related developments, and contribute high-standard technical inputs to ensure program quality. This includes, but is not limited to, predominately providing technical and managerial oversight on all objectives, strategies, and activities carried out as part of IYDA's Immediate Result 3 (IR 3).

Therefore, the manager will have a background in supporting youth employment, entrepreneurship and development, a strong understanding of market-based activities and functions, experience working with and managing budgets, and will support the high-quality execution of such related activities across the portfolio. The manager will supervise key staff (directly or indirectly) and ensure accountability to Mercy Corps policies and donor rules and regulations, while working closely with Mercy Corps' team members to build capacity and ensure achievement of program results. Close coordination and collaboration with fellow Component Managers and teams, Gender Manager, and partner staff will be crucial in developing and maintaining an integrated and multi-sector approach. Finally, the Manager will play a key role in building capacities of IYDA national staff, and will be responsible for identifying a national Component Manager by the end of the first year of implementation, as well as handing over his/her program management responsibilities to him/her.

ESSENTIAL JOB RESPONSIBILITIES:

Vision, Leadership, and Strategy:

• Demonstrate visible leadership and adherence to Mercy Corps' core values, principles and strategy.
• Plan, coordinate and oversee the implementation of the third component of the IYDA program, throughout the first year of implementation.
• Oversee all youth development and market integration activities, ensuring that team members are following work plans, that activities are on schedule, and that project deliverables are completed as planned.
• Manage collaborative partnerships, providing effective donor liaison, including identifying and building partnerships with consortium partners, sub-grantees, donors, local governments, youth-led (YL)/youth-serving (YS) CSOs, key community organizations, markets and entrepreneurship networks in targeted zones of intervention, and other stakeholders.
• Communicate effectively to ensure overall project targets and donor obligations are met.

Program Management:

• Oversee program start-up and ongoing program management and administration of teams across the project intervention sites.
• Develop work plans in collaboration with national staff, as well as monitor implementation, program quality, and impacts of these activities.
• Coordinate with program team and other departments to ensure operational systems are in place to support all IR 3-driven activities including logistics, administration and human resources, etc.
• Develop partner MoUs and contracts & oversee a training program for program partners integrating community approaches, gender sensitivity, and capacity building into all activities as appropriate.
• Create and maintain systems ensuring effective and transparent use of financial resources for timely and informative reporting in line with donor and Mercy Corps policies and procedures.
• Develop monitoring systems (with technical support from the M&E team) and provide regular reports on program activities as required by the program.
• Collaborate with evaluators and advise on evaluation and research questions relevant to youth engagement and development (IR 3) activities.
• Ensure all program management minimum standards are met including risk management, issues management.

Reporting, Monitoring, and Evaluation:

• Oversee all aspects of design, monitoring, evaluation and learning, and ensure that all program aspects are documented (working closely with the M&E Manager and officers).
• Use reporting results to monitor program success, measure impact, and calibrate program strategy accordingly.
• Ensure documentation of achievements and lessons learned and ensure best practices are captured and disseminated in quarterly and final program reports, and shared with internal and external stakeholders as appropriate.

Team Management:

• Create and sustain a work environment of mutual respect where team members strive to achieve excellence.
• Promote accountability, communicate expectations and provide constructive feedback via regular performance reviews.
• Supervise, hire and orient new team members as necessary.
• Provide team members with information, tools and other resources to improve performance and reach objectives.
• Contribute to country team-building efforts, help team members identify problem solving options and ensure the integration of all team members into relevant decision-making processes.

Learning:

• Keep up to date with developments in the sector, including best practice examples in-country and internationally, and ensure ongoing personal development and learning.
• Ensure the documentation and communication of new developments within the organization, with partners and other stakeholders.

Security:

• Ensure compliance with security procedures and policies as determined by country leadership.
• Proactively ensure that team members operate in a secure environment and are aware of policies.

Organizational Learning:

As part of our commitment to organizational learning and in support of our understanding that learning organizations are more effective, efficient and relevant to the communities they serve - we expect all team members to commit 5% of their time to learning activities that benefit Mercy Corps as well as themselves.

Representation and Coordination

• Liase with relevant stakeholders including government ministries and local extension agents, donor organizations, humanitarian clusters, local NGOs, project partners, private sector partners and community members to ensure support for and acceptance of Mercy Corps' projects in relevant technical sectors.

Fiscal, Compliance Management and Accountability

• Collaborate with program, finance and administrative staff to ensure systems are in compliance with donor and Mercy Corps policies and procedures.
• As appropriate, coordinate and manage relevant program budget lines within approved spending levels and ensure compliance with all donor and Mercy Corps' rules and regulations.
• Create and maintain systems ensuring effective and transparent use of financial resources for timely and informative reporting in line with donor and mercy Corps policies and procedures.
• Ensure adherence to Mercy Corps' polices as per internal/external audit requirements.
• Ensure accurate and timely program financial reporting to donors and Mercy Crops' headquarters.

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:

Direct supervision of: IR 3Component team, consultants, other program staff (including field officers)

ACCOUNTABILITY:

REPORTS DIRECTLY TO: IYDA Deputy Chief of Party

WORKS DIRECTLY WITH: IR 1 & 2 Component Managers and teams, IYDA Gender & Inclusion Adviser, IYDA Conflict Adviser, IYDA Monitoring and Evaluation team, partner organizations, other DRC team members, and members of the Mercy Corps Technical Support Units as appropriate.

KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:

• College degree in one of the following: Public Policy, Social Sciences, Economics, Business Management, Governance, International Development or other related field (Master's degree preferred)
• 3-5- years of experience focused on youth employment/development, market development and/or civil society programs at community and/or national level. (Experience and knowledge of governance systems in DRC preferred.)
• Experience designing and implementing programs related to youth programming, governance, participation, and accountability.
• Demonstrated understanding of systems approach and/or systems thinking.
• Experience recruiting, training, and managing program teams.
• Experience developing and managing budgets.
• Experience collaborating with local authorities and leaders and YL/YS CSOs, community capacity building, and community mobilization.
• Previous experience working with international organizations required and history with USAID-funded initiatives desirable.
• Proven ability to work effectively in multi-cultural teams and with technical and administrative staff and consultants.
• Strong communication skills in English and French, with conversational Swahili a plus.

SUCCESS FACTORS:

A successful candidate will have a demonstrated ability to lead and communicate effectively with team members of varied work styles and cultures, follow procedures, and meet deadlines with flexibility and creativity in project planning. S/he will demonstrate flexibility and creativity in planning and problem solving, and have a proven ability to learn quickly and achieve stated results and objectives. S/he will combine strong collaborative working skills with an ability to implement programs successfully. S/he will demonstrate adaptability, flexibility in approach and a strong sense of equity. In DRC, patience, diplomacy, tenacity, compassion, determination and a sense of humor are all success factors.

LIVING CONDITIONS/ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS:

This position is an unaccompanied post based in Bukavu, DRC. Travel to field sites (particularly to other regions in the South Kivu province, as well as to Goma in North Kivu) up to 30% will be required where living conditions are clean and secure, but basic.

While conditions in the country are improving, and security is quite stable in Bukavu, there are still pockets of violence and insecurity and petty crime is present. Mercy Corps' sub-offices experience variable levels of insecurity, with the situation closely monitored by UN peacekeepers. Years of conflict and corruption have badly damaged the county's infrastructure. Air travel is necessary to get from one end of the country to the other. Mobile phones and cellular service are widely available. Interne is limited, but available in all Mercy corps offices. Travel to field sites will be required where living conditions are clean and secure, but basic. There are a number of health services available with several evacuation options for serious illnesses. There is reasonable access to most consumer goods, although they can be expensive.

Mercy Corps Team members represent the agency both during and outside of work hours when deployed in a field posting or on a visit/TDY to a field posting. Team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner and respect local laws, customs and MC's policies, procedures, and values at all times and in all in-country venues.

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