Job title: Transport Officer
Company: Self Help Africa
Location: Makurdi Benue State
Contract type: Fixed term contract, full-time (local recruitment)
Period: 1 year (renewable)
Reports to: Senior Officer, Procurement and Logistics

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 these countries 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 implementing in Nigeria for 25 years (as United Purpose and Concern Universal).

In early 2023, we launched a new five-year organisation strategy, which defines shared mission as the alleviation of 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 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.

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.

In Nigeria, we have a strong reputation in the WASH sector for our work on rural sanitation, having achieved the country’s first ODF LGA, and our systems strengthening approach to sustainable WASH service delivery.
The Rural Women Entrepreneurs (RWE) 2 project is a continuation of the GIZ funded Scaling Rural Women Entrepreneurs for Community-Led Digital Adaptation & Resilience in Africa project, which was implemented in Nigeria, Kenya, and Malawi. The intervention leveraged lessons learned in Bangladesh from the women-led social enterprise model and the collaborative development practices honed through the GIZ-funded Mobilizing Rural Women Entrepreneurs for COVID-19 Response and Recovery in Rural Bangladesh project. The 12-month pilot took an adaptive approach to implementing the model, evolving at each stage to respond to the unique contexts and demands of the proposed pilot countries.

About the project:
The Rural Women Entrepreneurs (RWE) Phase 2: Enterprise Accelerator will build on the achievements of the initial pilot that ended in December 2023. The project’s focus will be on empowering women entrepreneurs in existing women’s clubs through an incubator model that provide various targeted capacity strengthening including financial literacy support, product market development, and scale-up in the use of digital tools for both learning and customer recruitment. The project will work closely with these entrepreneurs across a diverse range of value chains such as agriculture, nutrition, WASH and well-being, integrating their existing business activities with new opportunities in these fields. The goal is to establish lasting connections and incentives that will sustain programme benefits beyond project support. Importantly, RWE aims to address gender disparities in enterprise support and access to resources for women in Nigeria, particularly in Vandeikya and Obanliku LGAs of Benue and Cross River States, through the integration of digital solutions, women-led social enterprises, and collaboration with multi stakeholders. By empowering women entrepreneurs and leveraging their networks, the project aims to support resilient, women-led businesses that improve wellbeing, promote economic opportunities, and strengthen community resilience.

Job purpose
The Transport Officer will work closely with the team in Benue State and support with all transport-related duties to achieve the organisational and Project goals and objectives. The Transport Officer’s responsibilities include dropping and picking up staff from Project locations, collecting various packages, and maintaining a travel log to record work hours, travel-time and locations travelled to. He/she should also be able to perform routine checks and cleaning of the Organisation’s vehicle.
The position requires familiarity with the location in which the project is being implemented, experience in community engagement and working with an international organisation.

Key Responsibilities

• Safely transporting project team members as well as various products and materials to and from specified locations in a timely manner.
• Assisting with the loading and offloading of staff luggage, products, and materials.
• Adjusting travel routes to avoid traffic congestion or road construction.
• Promptly informing the organisation of any tickets issued against the company vehicle during work hours.
• Ensuring that the organisation’s vehicle is always parked in areas that permit parking in order to avoid towing.
• Keeping the organisation’s vehicle clean and properly maintained by performing regular washing, cleaning and vehicle maintenance.
• Providing accurate time records of the organisation’s vehicles’ coming and goings.
• Reporting promptly, any accidents, injuries, and vehicle damage to management.
• Updating on a timely and accurate manner, SHA vehicle log book.

Key relationships

Internal:   Operations, Programmes, Finance & Compliance and Security teams.

Knowledge, Experience and Other Requirements

Education and other qualifications:

• High school diploma or GED is preferred.
• Valid driver’s license.
• Clean driving record.
• Familiarity with GPS, route mapping software, and basic vehicle tracking systems is an advantage.

Experience:

• Minimum of 3 years of experience as a professional driver, preferably in an NGO or development context.
• Experience driving in challenging road conditions or remote areas is highly desirable.
• Knowledge of vehicle maintenance and basic repair is an advantage.

Skills:

• Excellent driving skills with a clean driving record.
• Strong knowledge of local traffic laws and regulations.
• Ability to follow instructions and schedules accurately.
• Good communication skills, both verbal and written.
• Ability to remain calm and composed in stressful situations.
• Strong attention to detail, particularly in vehicle inspections and documentation.
• Must be a good team player, and willing to be flexible with work hours.
• Must be punctual and reliable, dependable and honest.
• Adaptable and responsive disposition relative to the demands and operations of his/her duties.

Language Requirements: Written and oral proficiency in English is a must and relevant local language (Nigeria Pidgin English) is a plus.

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 3 pages) to the link provided on the website.

Email title must be same as the position you are applying for and the location of the position.
Job description is available for download here.

In the cover letter, please ensure to explain the following:

1. Why you are applying for the position
2. How do your skills and experiences meet the job’s specification
3. When will you be able to take up the position if successful.

The deadline for this application is 6^th January, 2025. 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.