Project Support Assistant
Reporting to: Secretary General

PURPOSE OF JOB
a) To support the effective planning, implementation, and reporting required, to deliver the Enhancing the Contribution of Local Authorities to Governance and Development in Zimbabwe project.
b) The incumbent will be expected to undertake thorough situational analyses/needs assessments, capacity building assessments, develop and manage intervention strategies, implement agreed activities and provide timely reports to inform actions and decisions.
c) The ability to work with the Secretary General to implement the project in a timely and effective manner is critical.

MAIN DUTIES
Duties and Responsibilities
Working closely with the Secretary General, and in line with the agreed project framework the Project Assistant will:
• Assist in the development, design and delivery of the project implementation plan
• Assist in the development of research and capacity assessments frameworks and tools
• Conduct an assessment of the target local authorities’ institutional and human resource capacity to determine the appropriate interventions needed to improve performance.
• Design and tailor local governance capacity development and leadership programmes for local authorities, local government stakeholders, and local government associations in Zimbabwe
• Facilitate the implementation of capacity building interventions in participating local authorities.
• Assist in organising and facilitating dialogue meetings, workshops and seminars with local authorities, government representatives, civil society and other stakeholders
• Provide regular coaching and mentoring to local authorities’ senior management on organizational growth and effectiveness.
• Day to day liaison with local authorities and other project partners regarding project implementation and monitoring of risks and changes.
• Contribute to internal and external reporting processes with a particular focus on project outputs and outcomes.
• Provide on-going project monitoring and evaluation against the programme implementation plan and individual project documents.
• Identify opportunities for collaboration and co-funding with other partners in Zimbabwe
• Assist with promotions/website, communications and other publicity activities.
• Provide general administration support to the project.

PERSON SPECIFICATION
Education/experience
• A minimum Bachelor’s degree in public administration, economics, local governance, development studies and management
• Professional experience preferably relating to project management and evaluation, within a relevant sector e.g. local government/international development/voluntary sector.
• At least 2 years of working experience in local government, public sector or NGO
• An excellent knowledge and understanding of local government in Zimbabwe is essential and exposure to local government systems in the region will be an added advantage
• Be of the age between 25 – 30 years
• Exposure of local government association roles and local authority operations is critical

Knowledge and understanding
1) Strong knowledge, technical competence and experience of creating and delivering capacity building projects
2) Extensive knowledge and experience in all aspects of project management, (assessment, design, implementation, monitoring, evaluation, partner management and funding)
3) Knowledge in advocacy and partnership building as well as organizational development
4) Strong analytical and assessment ability; capable of working at both a strategic and operational level, with a capacity to translate overall objectives into clear, coherent and practical action plans
5) An ability to identify opportunities and to develop innovative programme designs
6) Able to work independently but also able to work effectively as part of a team
7) Good written and oral communication skills
8) Good knowledge of Microsoft office.

Application Procedure
To apply, please submit a CV and a covering letter to [email protected] by close of business on 5 November 2018