Project Officer

Job Description

Position Title: Project Officer – YAG PLUS Project (2 Positions)

Organization: alignAfrica

Project: Youth Advisory Groups’ Participation, Leadership, Upskilling and Sustainability (YAG PLUS) Project

Duty Stations: Dessie, Bahir Dar and Mekelle

Reports To: Project Manager - YAG PLUS Project

Employment Type: Full-Time, On-site

Contract Duration: Fixed-Term (One year, renewable based on performance and project funding)

About alignAfrica

alignAfrica is a national non-profit organization established in 2009 and registered under Proclamation No. 1113/2019 with the Ethiopian Authority for Civil Society Organizations (ACSO). The organization works to address critical development challenges in health, education, economic empowerment, protection, governance, and climate resilience, while also contributing to emergency response and policy advocacy. Through innovative, community-centered approaches, capacity building, and partnership-driven interventions, alignAfrica supports individuals and communities to overcome structural barriers and achieve sustainable and inclusive development outcomes.

Vision

A thriving Africa where all communities live with dignity, resilience, and equal opportunity, empowered to shape their own sustainable futures.

Mission

To empower communities especially youth, women, and vulnerable groups by advancing inclusive, locally driven solutions in health, education, livelihoods, climate resilience, governance, and youth development. We build capacity, foster innovation, and strengthen systems for lasting impact.

About the YAG PLUS Project

The Youth Advisory Groups’ Participation, Leadership, Upskilling and Sustainability (YAG PLUS) Project is a Mastercard Foundation-supported initiative designed to support Youth Advisory Group (YAG) members across Ethiopia to transition from volunteer youth engagement roles into dignified and fulfilling wage employment and self-entrepreneurship.

The project provides transferable skills training, employability training, entrepreneurship development, mentorship, career coaching, financial inclusion referrals, and work-based learning opportunities, with a particular focus on young women, persons with disabilities, refugees and displaced youth, and economically disadvantaged young people.

Position Summary

The Project Officer will support the implementation of the Youth Advisory Groups' Participation, Leadership, Upskilling and Sustainability (YAG PLUS) Project at regional and cluster levels. The position holder will coordinate participant mobilization, training activities, internship placements, mentorship engagements, stakeholder relations, monitoring activities, and routine project reporting.

The Project Officer will work closely with the Mastercard Foundation’s implementing partners, Youth Advisory Group members, host organizations, training institutions, government partners, mentors, and community stakeholders to ensure effective delivery of project activities and achievement of project outcomes.

Key Duties and Responsibilities

1. Project Implementation and Coordination

• Support implementation of project activities in assigned geographic areas.
• Coordinate day-to-day project operations and field activities.
• Ensure activities are implemented according to approved work plans and schedules.
• Facilitate project meetings, workshops, trainings, and community engagement events.
• Monitor activity progress and identify implementation challenges.
• Support execution of corrective actions to address implementation bottlenecks.

1. Youth Engagement and Participant Support

• Support participant selection and onboarding processes.
• Maintain regular communication with project participants.
• Support participant profiling, assessments, and career pathway planning.
• Facilitate access to employability training and entrepreneurship development services.
• Coordinate mentorship and coaching activities.
• Track participant attendance, engagement, and progression.
• Ensure meaningful participation of women, youth with disabilities, refugees, and displaced youth.

1. Internship and Entrepreneurship Support

• Identify and maintain relationships with internship host organizations.
• Support placement of participants into work-based learning opportunities (internships).
• Conduct routine follow-up visits to internship sites and entrepreneurship premises.
• Monitor participant attendance and performance during internships.
• Collect supervisor feedback and participant progress reports.
• Support job placement and self-employment initiatives.
• Document employment and entrepreneurship outcomes.

1. Stakeholder Engagement and Partnership Development

• Maintain effective relationships with government offices, host organizations, TVET institutions, private sector and youth-focused organizations.
• Represent the project in local coordination meetings and forums.
• Facilitate stakeholder consultations and partnership meetings.
• Support identification of new partnership opportunities.
• Promote project visibility and stakeholder ownership.

1. Monitoring, Data Collection, and Reporting

• Collect project data and maintain participant records.
• Support administration of surveys, assessments, and monitoring tools.
• Verify activity outputs and participant information.
• Prepare weekly, monthly, and quarterly progress reports.
• Document success stories, case studies, and lessons learned.
• Ensure timely submission of project reports and supporting documentation.
• Support project evaluations, reviews, and learning activities.

1. Safeguarding, Inclusion, and Accountability

• Promote safeguarding and child/youth protection standards.
• Ensure compliance with disability inclusion and gender equality commitments.
• Support implementation of feedback and grievance mechanisms.
• Report safeguarding concerns and incidents through established procedures.
• Promote accountability and ethical conduct throughout project implementation.

1. Administrative and Logistical Support

• Support planning and logistics for trainings, meetings, workshops, and events.
• Coordinate participant travel, accommodation, and venue arrangements where applicable.
• Maintain project files and documentation.
• Support procurement and activity planning processes.
• Ensure proper filing of attendance sheets, reports, and activity documentation.

Equal Opportunity Statement

alignAfrica is an Equal Opportunity Employer committed to diversity, equity, inclusion, and safeguarding. Qualified candidates from all backgrounds are encouraged to apply. Women are strongly encouraged to apply.

alignAfrica maintains a zero-tolerance policy against fraud, corruption, sexual exploitation and abuse, harassment, discrimination, and any form of misconduct.