Senior Officer – Youth Internship and Training Coordinator at National Youth Development Council

Position: Senior Officer – Youth Internship and Training Coordinator

Term of employment: Two years; subject to renewal based on performance

Company: National Youth Development Council

Background

The National Youth Development Council (NYDC) was established by the Government of the Republic of Zambia (GRZ) under an act of parliament in 1986. The NYDC is responsible for advising the GRZ on youth development matters, registering and coordinating youth organizations, mobilizing additional resources for youth development programs and administering a micro financing scheme for the youth of Zambia. The NYDC is also developing leadership and civic engagement skills among youth organizations and their members. The Council has 1,120 affiliated youth organizations. The Council is managed through a board appointed by the Honorable Minister in charge of Youth Development. The Board has a Secretariat in place headed by the Council Secretary.

The NYDC is partnered with FHI 360, an international development organization, to implement the Youth Lead Zambia program funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). Youth Lead is guided and informed by an advisory board, comprised of representatives from youth-led organizations, civil society groups, government entities, private sector actors, and USAID/Zambia. The goal of Youth Lead is to support, network, and elevate outstanding young leaders ages 18–35 from across Zambia to amplify the impact of their work, inspire civic innovation, and promote a culture of sustained, citizen-responsive leadership. Youth Lead builds youth’s civic engagement skills through a training and internship program that will culminate in grant-funded, youth-led projects. Youth Lead works with the NYDC to strengthen to institutional capacity of local actors, including government agencies, non-profit organizations, and private businesses, to support and mentor youth.

The NYDC seeks to fill two positions. Both positions will be at the Senior Officer level within the NYDC and serve as the Internship and Training Coordinators (ITC) on the USAID-funded Youth Lead Zambia project. The ITC will report to and take direction from NYDC Principal Manager. The ITC will work closely and collaboratively with the Youth Lead Zambia program, overseeing all training of youth in leadership and civic engagement skills, identifying and coordinating placement of youth as interns with government, civil society, and private sector entities, and supporting and mentoring youth throughout their training and internships.

Scope of Work

• Utilizing the established Youth Lead curriculum, regularly conduct leadership and civic engagement trainings, preparing all materials and activities and administering, identifying guest speakers and lecturers, and integrating program activities into all training sessions.
• Provide administration, logistical, and technical support to ensure effective and timely delivery of all training activities.
• Work with youth to develop personal and career development goals and align them with mentoring and internship opportunities with government, civil society, and private sector entities.
• Regularly follow-up on youth mentoring and internship placements with host organizations to ensure compliance with Youth Lead programmatic goals and objectives through frequent site visits; complete all monitoring and reporting requirements.
• Assess host organizations capacity to support internship and mentoring programs, identify areas for improvement, monitor progress by youth and host organizations, and make recommendations to the NYDC, Youth Lead to refine and improve programmatic implementation.
• Collaborate with the NYDC to develop a roster of mentors, guest speakers, youth-leaders, and other key influencers to participate in and support Youth Lead activities, including one-on-one mentoring and counseling, round-table discussions with youth, and mentoring to the NYDC roster of youth-led organizations across Zambia.
• Serve as a member of the Youth Lead management team, providing creative and innovative solutions to challenges confronting youth, while constantly refining and improving the leadership and civic engagement curriculum.

Requirements

• Entrepreneurial Zambian citizen between the ages of 18 and 35 with a bachelor’s degree in business administration, public administration, public health, international development, or related field. Masters Degree preferred.
• Five years’ experience on international donor funded youth development program involving soft-skills development, skills training, entrepreneurship, and capacity building, including curriculum delivery. Experience on a USAID-funded program preferred.
• Three years’ project management and staff supervision experience, including technical, financial, administration, and monitoring and evaluation.
• Demonstrable experience organizing, mobilizing, and leading youth development projects and organizations involved in civic action and advocacy, youth rights, governance or health sector.
• Proven entrepreneurial skills, including experience starting-up, influencing, or managing a business, civil society organization, or community-based organization.
• Demonstrable knowledge of the Ministry of Youth, Sport, and Child Development’s National Youth Development Strategy and ongoing programs and policies.
• Demonstrable knowledge of and experience implementing gender sensitive programs.

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