Program Officer

Location: Based in one of YCI’s Africa program areas: Kenya, Tanzania or Ghana
Reports to: International Programs Director (IPD)
Duration: One year with the possibility of extension Application
Deadline: February 16, 2009
Start Date: April 1, 2009 (dependent on funding)

Compensation:

12,000-15,000cdn per year dependent on experience.
All contracts include return airfare, covered work expenses and comprehensive medical insurance.

Description: Youth Challenge International (YCI) builds the skills, experience and confidence of young people by involving them in substantive overseas international development projects in partnership with local youth-serving organizations.
YCI sends groups of youth volunteers to each of our program locations. Our programming focuses on HIV/AIDS education, youth employability, youth skills training and youth leadership programming, incorporating the energy and power of peer-to-peer collaboration with youth volunteers, and close collaboration with local partners.
YCI is seeking an international development or education professional with proven project, financial and personnel management abilities to work in one of our Africa country programs: Kenya, Tanzania or Ghana.

Scope of Work:
The Program Officer will work with YCI, as well as with local implementing partner organizations in the field. The PO will oversee the YCI program in-country, liaise with local partners and facilitate international volunteers.
The PO will be responsible for donor reporting, budget management, management of local staff, partner relations and program oversight.

Key Responsibilities:

Project Management
- Manage in-country program activities with a commitment to gender equity and best practice in youth-focused programming.
- Complete reports to donors and YCI, following standards and templates
- Establish relations with potential new donors in-country; coordinating with the IPD and International Partnerships Director
- Manage program logistics, administration, human resources and operations for the program as per YCI policies
- Recruit, hire and train local staff
- Manage interns
- Responsible for in-country security management and risk management
- Contribute to YCI proposals in conjunction with IPD including logical frameworks and budgets

Volunteer Management

- Facilitate short-term (6-10 week) involvement of volunteers and ensure their integration into programs
- Ensure completion of all volunteer reporting to Volunteer Program Manager, Africa Programs and International Programs Coordinator
- Coordinate logistical requirements before and during volunteer visits including home-stays, programming activities and pre and post in-country orientations
- Ensure volunteer activities are coordinated with local partners and are integrated with existing country programs
- Responsible for in-country security management and risk management for volunteers as well as adherence to YCI policies and procedures

Financial Management

- Submit financial reports as per donor and YCI requirements
- Contribute to field budget designs
- Manage in-country funds
- Submit monthly cash projections
- Manage program finances in-country including cash books and budgets

Partnerships

- Manage partner relations in-country and help enhance the capacity of existing partners
- Examine opportunities for program expansion and new partnership opportunities

Other
- Maintain regular communication with YCI office in Toronto
- Implement related components of the YCI strategic plan
- Attend relevant meetings in-country or at the regional/Toronto level

Requirements:

- Minimum university degree in development, social studies, education or related field; Masters preferred
- Previous experience in program management preferably in East or West Africa
- Previous experience managing volunteers, preferably in an international setting
- Previous experience working with youth, preferably in an international setting
- Experience in budget management, cash forecasting, budget design
- Experience with reporting, preferably to CIDA or other Government donors
- Ability to manage risk and security
- Previous experience managing and building relationships with local partners
- Knowledge of the project cycle and program design, monitoring and evaluation

Your personal attributes include:
- Commitment to volunteerism and a belief in the ability of youth to affect social change
- Ability to work as part of a team
- Willingness to take initiative, show flexibility and work in challenging settings
- Able to work unsupervised
- Computer skills: Microsoft Office (excellent working knowledge of Excel and Word), Internet

How to apply
YCI is an equal opportunity employer and considers all applicants on the basis of merit.

TO APPLY,
EMAIL A RESUME AND COVER LETTER AS A SINGLE WORD DOCUMENT WITH “PROGRAM OFFICER” IN THE SUBJECT LINE TO:
recruitment@yci.org
PLEASE, NO PHONE CALLS
Due to high volume of applicants, we can only respond to those selected for interview.

Reference Code: RW_7NPLRZ-79

Closing date: 16 Feb 2009