Project Assistant - Rakai job at Raising The Village

Reporting to: Project Manager
Years of Experience 2+ Years
Location: Rakai Travel
Required: Up to 90%
Languages: Luganda plus any other applicable native languages.
 
About Raising The Village

We are Raising The Village (RTV) – an international development organization and a registered charity – on a mission to end ultra-poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa. Raising The Village is a fastgrowing organization on an accelerated growth path. We have 120+ national staff in Uganda and a team of 8 people in North America working together to lift communities out of ultra-poverty in lastmile villages. We operate at the intersection of direct implementation and advanced data analytics to inform progress, decision-making, and impact. Our programs are focused on removing scarcity barriers, increasing and diversifying incomes, and ensuring sustained outcomes through 24-month partnership with last-mile villages and local governments. We work in the thematic areas of agriculture, WASH, Financial Inclusion through a gender transformative and community-driven development approach.

To date we have supported more than 665,000 people through our innovative holistic approach and are on track to expand to reaching one million people annually in the region by 2027.

We have achieved this tremendous growth with the support of our incredible partners from all around the globe who believe in our model and impact. Find out more about our programs and impact at: www.raisingthevillage.org.

Responsibilities

Project Implementation

• Conduct project design review meetings with respective partner villages and provide feedback as required to update project designs and budgets prior to implementation;
• Coordinate and co-facilitate training activities including but not limited to financial literacy and behavior and mindset change, water and health sanitation, village savings and loans associations, agriculture, livestock care and management and health outreaches, etc.
• Responsible to implement RTV’s project methodologies with the purpose of increasing household income and reducing extreme poverty as per project designs;
• Develop and submit list of required goods and services for project implementation to the procurement and logistics officer;
• Responsible to verify goods/inputs prior to distribution;
• Conduct project follow-up and provide support and guidance to community groups and individual households to ensure project compliance and continuation;
• Identify potential risks and issues and provide mitigation measures and recommendations for improvements;
• Conduct regular meetings with leadership and community members on performance, participation, and perceptions of RTV based projects.

Reporting and Administration

• Develop and manage work plans;
• Complete field reporting on a weekly basis and provide support with information sharing for donor reporting and proposal writing as might be required;
• Attend and participate in weekly staff meetings as well as cluster team meetings to highlight issues and success and outline next steps;
• Complete weekly financial request, submissions and accountabilities to the Senior Project Officer;
• Take photographs and share them for data repository.

Monitoring and Evaluation:

• Providing feedback and recommendations to the Project Officer and Senior Project Officer, and the program team to improve RTV’s way of work;
• Provide suggestions to management on potential activities that need to be redone, reviewed or introduced to ensure sustainability of RTV projects, methodologies and improvement in the lives of community members.

Note: Other requirements as required by their direct supervisor and/or management.

Required Qualifications

Technical and Administrative Skills:

• Strong training & facilitation skills;
• Strong communication skills, both verbal and written English;
• Fluent in local languages where RTV works;
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office programs i.e. Word and Excel
• Understanding of Community Based Development Principles
• Organizes work effectively while remaining aware of changing priorities and deadlines;
• Able to work independently to accomplish tasks, but also as part of a team to achieve mutual goals and objectives;
• Able to think outside of the box to provide plausible solutions to issues and challenges;
• Strong work ethic, flexible, and able to build relationships with various stakeholders most notably colleagues, and community members;
• Able to keep a positive attitude in a fast-paced and challenging environment;
• Energetic and physically able to hike high terrain;
• Able to travel approximately 90% of time;
• Ability to ride a motorbike is of desired and strong advantage.

Education and Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in Social Science, Social Work, Humanities, Community Development, or related field of study
• Minimum of two (2) year of relevant field experience in the last mile community levels.

• Conduct project design review meetings with respective partner villages and provide feedback as required to update project designs and budgets prior to implementation;
• Coordinate and co-facilitate training activities including but not limited to financial literacy and behavior and mindset change, water and health sanitation, village savings and loans associations, agriculture, livestock care and management and health outreaches, etc.
• Responsible to implement RTV’s project methodologies with the purpose of increasing household income and reducing extreme poverty as per project designs;
• Develop and submit list of required goods and services for project implementation to the procurement and logistics officer;
• Responsible to verify goods/inputs prior to distribution;
• Conduct project follow-up and provide support and guidance to community groups and individual households to ensure project compliance and continuation;
• Identify potential risks and issues and provide mitigation measures and recommendations for improvements;
• Conduct regular meetings with leadership and community members on performance, participation, and perceptions of RTV based projects.
• Develop and manage work plans;
• Complete field reporting on a weekly basis and provide support with information sharing for donor reporting and proposal writing as might be required;
• Attend and participate in weekly staff meetings as well as cluster team meetings to highlight issues and success and outline next steps;
• Complete weekly financial request, submissions and accountabilities to the Senior Project Officer;
• Take photographs and share them for data repository.
• Providing feedback and recommendations to the Project Officer and Senior Project Officer, and the program team to improve RTV’s way of work;
• Provide suggestions to management on potential activities that need to be redone, reviewed or introduced to ensure sustainability of RTV projects, methodologies and improvement in the lives of community members.

• Strong training & facilitation skills
• Strong communication skills, both verbal and written English
• Fluent in local languages where RTV works
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office programs i.e. Word and Excel
• Understanding of Community Based Development Principles
• Organizes work effectively while remaining aware of changing priorities and deadlines
• Able to work independently to accomplish tasks, but also as part of a team to achieve mutual goals and objectives
• Able to think outside of the box to provide plausible solutions to issues and challenges
• Strong work ethic, flexible, and able to build relationships with various stakeholders most notably colleagues, and community members
• Able to keep a positive attitude in a fast-paced and challenging environment
• Energetic and physically able to hike high terrain
• Able to travel approximately 90% of time
• Ability to ride a motorbike is of desired and strong advantage

• Bachelor’s degree in Social Science, Social Work, Humanities, Community Development, or related field of study
• Minimum of two (2) year of relevant field experience in the last mile community levels.