JD Unique ID: 76119
Job Title: Entrepreneurship Ecosystem & MSME Development Assistant – Youth in Work Project
Company: Self Help Africa
Location: Sokoto with field visits to Zamfara State
Contract type: Fixed term contract, full-time (local recruitment)
Period: 22 months (subject to donor contract)
Reports to: Officer Entrepreneurship Ecosystem & MSME Development
Organisation overview:
About Self Help Africa:
Self Help Africa (SHA) is an international development organisation headquartered in Dublin, Ireland and dedicated to the vision of ‘Sustainable livelihoods and healthy lives for all in a changing climate’. Founded in 1969 and working across 17 countries, 15 of which are in sub-Saharan Africa while subsidiary organisations, ‘Self Help Brazil’ and ‘Self Help Bangladesh’, have been created for our programmes in the two countries where we are working outside of Africa. SHA has been operating in Nigeria for over 25 years (formerly as United Purpose and Concern Universal).
Our wider organisation also includes social enterprise subsidiaries: Partner Africa – which provides ethical auditing and consultancy services, TruTrade – an innovative trading platform in East Africa, and CUMO – Malawi’s largest micro-finance provider.
In early 2023, we launched a new five-year organisation strategy, which outlines our mission of alleviating hunger, poverty, social inequality and the impact of climate change through community-led, market-based and enterprise-focused approaches, so that people can have access to nutritious food, clean water, decent employment and incomes, while sustaining natural resources.
Our three core values are:
▪ Impact: We are accountable, ambitious and committed to systemic change.
▪ Innovation: We are agile, creative and enterprising in an ever-changing world.
▪ Community: We are inclusive, honest and have integrity in our relationships.
To achieve our organisational mission, we work across numerous sectors, such as Agriculture, Climate & Environment, Energy, Enterprise, Nutrition, and Water Sanitation & Hygiene (WASH).
Project Description
SHA is partnering with the World Food Programme to implement the Strengthening Food Systems to Promote Increased Value Chain Employment Opportunities for the Youth in Nigeria-Northwest (Sokoto and Zamfara). The project aims to strengthen food systems that promote increased value chain employment opportunities for the youth; sustaining and improving on-farm and off-farm job opportunities for 25,000 young women and young men engaged in the different nodes of sorghum, millet, soya bean, groundnut, and horticulture value chains.
The project will focus on capacity building interventions for existing enterprises, using this as an avenue to create employment opportunities for youth and women in Sokoto and Zamfara States.
Job Purpose:
SHA is seeking for a dedicated and result-oriented candidate to serve as Officer – Entrepreneurship Ecosystem and Micro Small Medium Enterprise (MSME) Development Assistant for Sokoto & Zamfara states. The Entrepreneurship Ecosystem & MSME Development Assistant will play a crucial role to support project participants to build up their business skills and knowledge to improve their agribusinesses.
Key Responsibilities:
Enterprise Development and support to MSMEs
- Conduct market research to analyse trends, challenges and opportunities for small holders’ farmers and business owners.
- Identify service gaps and assess business needs through Engagement with Agri-entrepreneurs and provide business advisory services, including finance and marketing.
- Support in organising training program and mentorship on financial literacy, digital marketing among others.
- Assist agribusiness owners in accessing finance by linking them with financial institutions and support funding application.
- Develop strategic partnerships with local organisations, financial institutions and government agencies.
- Focus on empowering underserved groups such as women youth and rural entrepreneurs.
- Support conduct capacity building training for participants in crop production, food processing, service provision, post-harvest management, retailing among others.
- Conduct mapping of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) to foster collaboration and synergy, enhancing project implementation success.
Effective Collaboration, Representation and Project Quality Assurance
- Collaborate with the project team to sensitise traditional leaders, community stakeholders, and the Community Targeting Committee (CTC) on project objectives, ensuring effective targeting and profiling of project participants.
- Conduct mapping of MSMEs to foster collaboration and synergy, enhancing project implementation success.
- Organise and foster strong, collaborative relationships with partner institutions and business development service providers.
- Supervise and support Business Facilitators to ensure quality implementation of project activities.
- Organise an Innovation Business Challenge aimed at empowering participants with creative business ideas, offering awards to support the launch or improvement of their businesses, thus promoting job creation.
- Represent the organisation where needed SHA, at technical meetings as well as state clusters on MSMEs.
Transparency, Compliance and safeguarding:
- Employ the highest standards of openness, transparency and accountability to ensure good financial management in line with SHA’s zero-tolerance approach to fraud, bribery and corruption.
- Demonstrate commitment to safeguarding, protection, gender mainstreaming and inclusion of vulnerable population including people with disabilities.
- Provide support to establish feedback, complaints and response mechanism across communities of implementation to ensure programmatic and operational decisions are informed by local perspectives and priorities, and contribute to the protection of program participants at the LGA level.
Key Relationships:
Internal: Programme, Monitoring, Evaluation & Learning, Finance & Admin, Operations & Procurement, Security and Communications teams.
External: Government Agencies, Private Sector Partners, Entrepreneurship and MSME Networks, Educational Institutions, Consultants and Subject Matter Experts, International Development Organisations.
Knowledge, Experience and Other Requirements
Education, Qualifications and other Requirements:
- University degree in Agriculture, Development studies, Business management, and any other related social sciences.
- ICT operation, and proficiency in MS Office.
- Minimum of 2 years of experience working in the development sector/INGO/NGO/Social Enterprise specifically on Livelihood project.
- Native or strong familiarity with Sokoto or Zamfara States.
Experience and Skills:
- Excellent coordination skills (and ability to coordinate several tasks at once and managing priorities)
- Effective communication, problem solving and decision-making skills
- Respect for cultural diversity and gender sensitivity
- Communication, networking, facilitation and mobilisation
- Organisational development
- Reporting and documentation
Desirables:
• Gender and intercultural sensitivity
• Positive outlook and team spirit
• Adaptable and responsive disposition relative to the demands of the Project
Language Requirements:
Excellent written and oral proficiency in English language is required and working knowledge of Hausa language is required.
Application Procedure:
Fill and send the attached Self Help Africa application form and also send your cover letter and CV in a single document (of not more than 6 pages) to the link provided on the website.
Email title must be the same as the position you are applying for and the location of the position.
In the cover letter, please ensure to explain the following:
- Why you are applying for the position.
- How do your skills and experiences meet the job’s specification
- When will you be able to take up the position if successful.
The deadline for this application is 28th March, 2025 at 5pm. You are advised to apply early, as applications will be treated on rolling basis. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.
All candidates offered a job with Self Help Africa will be expected to sign our Safeguarding Policies and Code of Conduct as an appendix to their contract of employment and agree to conduct themselves in accordance with the provisions of these documents. Specific roles may require Police/DBS/ [relevant police authority] vetting.
Self Help Africa strives to be an equal opportunity employer.
