| Description: |
Tostan has trained over 2,000 Community Management Committees in eight countries in Africa to lead the sustainable development of their communities at the grassroots level. Tostan facilitates stronger connections between these empowered communities and partnerships to support the realization of their development priorities. The Empowered Communities Network volunteer supports Tostan staff in partnership development, capacity development, networking and data management. The volunteer documents successful partnerships and diffuses these stories to internal and external audiences. This position offers the opportunity for volunteer to develop a wide range of transferable experiences in partnership management, M&E, economic empowerment strategies, and grassroots organizational development.
Start date: January 2012
Minimum Commitment: 12 months
Hours per week: Full-time (40 hours/week)
Location: Dakar, Senegal with travel to Thiès (20%) and other regions of Senegal (20%)
Direct Supervisor: Empowered Communities Network Coordinator, Tostan International
Collaborators: Key Tostan International and Tostan Senegal staff involved in partnerships, International Communications Team
Responsibilities
Primary Responsibilities:
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Co-develop strategies for supporting networks of Tostan-trained Community Management Committees (CMC) through partnerships and innovative communication and organizational strategies with Tostan Senegal and International ECN Team
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Organize a community development marketplace for Tostan-trained Community Management Committees in close collaboration with International ECN coordinator, including:
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Develop and conduct an environmental scan of potential CMC partners in Senegal in several categories (health, sanitation, education, agriculture, finance, infrastructure)
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Contact and develop relationships with top NGOs, government offices, and MFIs
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Engage with Tostan Senegal and International teams to refine terms of reference for a development marketplace event, existing partnership strategy, and develop template for Partnership Commitments and Follow-up Plan
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Plan with teams event logistics, invitations and press conference for a development marketplace
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Serve as media contact for development marketplace event
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Design and distribute relevant materials for event
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Conduct follow-up on commitments with partners and CMCs/Federations
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Collaborate with other members of the ECN team to raise profile of CMC activities for partners in Senegal and international donors and partners
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Support participatory CMC capacity assessment and reinforcement efforts
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Gather interviews & photographs for portraits about dynamic and active CMCs to showcase their accomplishments
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Support department staff in managing program information management system (for Dynamic CMCs, microcredit and Saving for Change)
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Periodically update databases to accommodate changes in the monitoring and management programs
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Control for quality of standard reporting forms used by regional supervisors to report information to the centralized direction in Thiès as needed
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Incorporate data into the central database as it comes in from regional staff
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Update geodatabase with MERL department at Tostan International
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Update Tostan intranet and website with information about CMCs and projects
Secondary Responsibilities:
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Build staff capacity; provide training in Excel and other internet and computer programs as needed
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Serve as a resource for questions about internet and computer operation and programs
Final Products
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Electronic copies of all documents produced, edited, etc. to supervisor, incoming volunteer, and Volunteer Coordinator
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Final narrative report of individual activities for internal distribution and adaptation for external use
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Completed “Request for Volunteer” forms, submitted to the Volunteer Coordinator, as needed
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Other activities, as requested by Executive Team, Volunteer Coordinator, and other immediate supervisors and collaborators
Qualifications and Necessary Skills
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Thorough understanding of Tostan’s programs and methodologies
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Bachelors degree in social sciences, business, management, or related field required
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Master’s degree OR current enrollment in Master’s program (studies in International Development, Education, Gender Studies, Non-Profit Management, or Monitoring & Evaluation preferred) OR At least two (2) years of professional experience either with a non-governmental organization / non-profit OR in Africa or other developing region
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At least 1 year experience with microenterprise development and community development in Africa or similar business experience in non-African context
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Proficiency in French and strong written and spoken English: the ECN volunteer must be able to communicate orally with the project team in French, understand written French, and produce quality written reports for the donor in English.
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Capable of working with external stakeholders on planning and program implementation
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Strong computer skills in Microsoft Office Suite, knowledge of Gmail, Google Groups, Google Documents, Google Calendars, and other Internet programs preferred
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Ability to be persistent and diplomatic, and to establish mutual respect among Tostan staff, project partners, and local community members
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Ability to work independently, self-motivate, and to manage multiple tasks at once
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Strong communication and organizational skills
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Flexible to adapt to a multicultural environment, to work in varied conditions, to be considerate of limited resources, and to adapt work priorities to the immediate needs of the project or donor
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Ability to
travel independently
Benefits
As a non-profit organization who works to commit the maximum level of resources to our communities, we rely on volunteers to cover many of their own costs during their volunteerships. These costs include expenses such as travel between their home countries and work countries, medical costs, and other personal incidentals such as meals, personal travel, clothes, etc. We in turn do our best to commit to covering housing and weekday lunches for all of our volunteers.
Professional Experience
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Hands on experience with an internationally recognized NGO
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Development of curriculum vitae/resume
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Opportunity
to develop highly sought-after skills in project management, training, and written and oral communication in a multicultural, multilingual environment
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Opportunity
to collaborate and interact with communities, Tostan staff, international volunteers, and a variety of donors and partners
Accommodations
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Common volunteer housing and utilities
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Lunch Monday-Friday
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All work-related travel covered by Tostan
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Internet access in office during business hours
Trainings provided
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Week-long volunteer orientation with other volunteers
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Introduction to national language skills
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Short introduction to software
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Other training, as deemed necessary and appropriate by supervisors
To learn more about the Tostan Africa Volunteer Program and the application process, please click
here.
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