SPARK
is seeking
PROJECT OFFICER
Post: Business Start-up Centre (BSC) Abidjan Project Officer
Location: Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire
Contract Duration: 8 months with possible extension
Application deadline: 05/10/2016
Starting date: 10/10/2016
Background:
SPARK, in collaboration with the Université Nangui Abrogoua d’Abidjan has established a Business Start-up Centre in Abidjan. The BSC is a business incubator aimed at developing the SME ecosystem in Ivory Coast and its mission is the promotion of entrepreneurship and SMEs development so as to contribute to economic development, diversification and (youth) employment in Ivory Coast. The BSC Abidjan is situated at the ‘Centre de Formation Continue’ building on the main campus of Université Nangui Abrogoua d’Abidjan.
SPARK works to support job creation and poverty alleviation in post-conflict environments. To achieve these objectives SPARK establishes local, independent, entrepreneurship centres (BSCs) which organise activities such as Business Plan Competitions (BPC) with access to finance, Business Skills Training, Business Development Services (BDS), Employability and work readiness trainings, teacher training, Matchmaking with local and international investors, Coaching, Mentoring, and Business plan writing workshops.
The BSC Abidjan’s objectives are to increase: a) entrepreneurial spirit, b) knowledge, c) competitiveness, d) productivity of the Ivory Coast SMEs, e) strengthen access to finance, f) generate employment opportunities. These objectives will contribute to the socio-economic and political stability amongst unemployed youth, thus creating more economically diverse and resilient communities. The BSC Abidjan will provide training to business coaches and policy makers to develop their capacity, knowledge and expertise of the SME sector.
SPARK seeks a Project Officer to manage the centre’s activities.
General responsibilities:
- Responsible for the development and execution of the activities at the BSC Abidjan
- Responsible for Monitoring and Evaluation of entrepreneurs who receive trainings at the BSC Abidjan.
- Preparation of the centre’s activity plan and supervision of its implementation
- Participate and assist in the development and execution of projects to realise the BSC’s above objectives
- Work towards sustainability and growth of the BSC organisation
- Assist the Country Manager in the acquisition of external funds: preparation of project proposals maintaining contact with partners and identifying prospective partners for future collaborations.
- Perform and coordinate general project administrative and operational tasks.
Service related responsibilities:
- Identify and develop training and coaching proposal for clients/partners
- Develop needs driven training courses and materials for SME clients/partners
- Serve as (principal) trainer, coach and mentor for SMEs, partners & clients
Training/workshop/promotional activities:
- Assist in the organisation of workshops and training: entrepreneurship, Business Planning
- Assist in preparation and organisation of promotion activities
- Prepare and execute training
- Mentor and coach entrepreneurs
- Assist the Business Plan competition Project Manager in implementing activities
Requirements:
- Degree in Business, Economics, Finance, Management or closely related fields;
- Be a West African national with experience in SME development specifically within a West African
- environment with similar social-economics challenges;
- Practical experience working with SMEs or working on a business incubator;
- Experience developing initiatives to create and/or diversify Income Generating Activities;
- Strong experience in Business Skills training, developing databases and processing data
- Excellent administration, organization and time management skills.
- Excellent computer skills in MS Office.
- Capacity to speak/read/write English and French with professionally proficiency.
Assets:
- Experience with leading projects is highly desirable
- Must be task oriented and committed to work with youth in business development
- Willing to travel to remote regions of Ivory Coast
- Experienced in training and facilitation of group processes;
- Strong writing and reporting skills;
- Interest in and knowledge about entrepreneurship and economic empowerment & access to finance
BSC offers:
- Full-time fixed-term contract
- Competitive remuneration (dependant on experience and education)
- Good learning atmosphere
- Business Development Services training workshops
How to Apply:
To apply for this position please email your letter of motivation (no more than one page) and CV (containing at least 2 references) to spark.ivorycoast@gmail.com before 05 October 2016. Incomplete applications will not be taken into consideration. For applications to be considered applicants must state that they are available to start NO LATER THAN 10th OCTOBER 2016. If you have any questions please address them to Daisy Leigh via the same email. Only successful candidates will be contacted. For more information about the organisation SPARK please visit our website: http://www.spark-online.org
