Employment Promotion and Institutional Capacity Building Specialist, Ghana at CDI/VOCA

Since 1963 and in 148 countries, ACDI/VOCA has empowered people in developing and transitional nations to succeed in the global economy. Based in Washington, D.C., ACDI/VOCA is a nonprofit international development organization that designs and delivers technical and management solutions in agriculture, economic growth, and resilience to promote economic prosperity and social inclusion.

Employment Promotion and Institutional Capacity Building Specialist, Ghana

ACDI/VOCA is seeking an Employment Promotion and Institutional Capacity Building Specialist for the USAID Feed the Future Ghana Trade and Investment (GTI) Activity. The GTI Activity aims to facilitate the transformation of the agricultural sector through investment promotion, trade facilitation, and Small Medium Enterprise (SME) development.

The Employment Promotion and Institutional Capacity Building Specialist will be responsible for providing technical implementation support in Component C of the GTI Activity, primarily in the areas of entrepreneurship ecosystem and workforce development, capacity building, and organizational development. They will ensure that businesses employ at least 20% more skilled workers, especially women, youth, and people with disabilities. The role facilitates human capital development on a systemic level by reducing talent gap and ensuring that youth seeking jobs have developed business and agricultural value chain specific skills needed by GTI supported SMEs and end-user firms. The position is based in Accra, Ghana.

Responsibilities

• Coordinate training of agriculture SME start-ups with business training and commercial agricultural focused innovation to ensure growth and ability to employ more skilled workers
• Collaborate closely with other institutions to ensure complementarities and synergies in the development of successful SMEs to achieve overall strong developmental results and impact
• Technical and organizational planning, implementation, and coordination of project activities (macro-level consultation, capacity building measures, seminars, workshops, conferences, publications, etc.) in the areas of labor market policy and employment promotion
• Support project partners in organizational development, especially in the field of trade and investment, as well as developing approaches and instruments for employment promotion
• Establish and expand professional networks, including cross-border networks
• Build up the service delivery capacity of SME-support institution
• Oversee the private sector institution capacity building component of the project, including all target value chains
• Coordinate partnership between training institutes and private sector actors to develop/upgrade curricula and launch apprenticeship and internship program. Link training participants to private sector businesses
• Facilitate acceleration/incubation to build business and entrepreneurship skills of SMEs and employees
• Liaise with workforce development institutes and other similar projects to increase support to agriculture value chain actors especially marginalized groups to facilitate the development of non-discriminatory human resource practices, ensuring that women have the capacity to take leadership roles through mentorship

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in business, organization development, psychology, sociology, marketing/entrepreneurship, law, or related field is required.
• Minimum 5 years of progressively responsible management experience in promotion of employment opportunities, industrial relations/liaison, training, and development, working with programs that are of a similar scope and complexity. USAID program experience is highly preferred.
• In-depth knowledge of and experience managing SME development, finance, investment, market systems, and private sector engagement programs.
• Proven ability to facilitate high-value partnerships with communities, private and public-sector stakeholders.
• Knowledge of livelihood and/or food security programming is an advantage.
• Knowledge of regional, cross-border and international trade procedures, market information systems, and quality standard requirement for agriculture.
• Ability to work effectively within tight deadlines, excellent analytical and report writing skills.
• Fluency in English required, Ghanaian languages preferred.