Job Description

EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY

INTERNAL/EXERNAL POSTING

BACKGROUND

WUSC (World University Service of Canada) is a Canadian non-profit organization working to create a better world for all young people. We bring together a diverse network of students, volunteers, schools,

governments, and businesses who share this vision. Together, we develop solutions in education, economic opportunities, and empowerment to overcome inequality and exclusion for youth around the world, particularly young women and young refugees. WUSC currently works in 25 countries across Africa, Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America, with an annual budget of approximately CAD $40 million. We have over 90 staff in our Ottawa office, and over 200 people overseas implementing 16 development projects in collaboration with donors such as Global Affairs Canada, the UK Department for International Development (DFID), the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank, and the African Development Bank.

The EMPLOY Project

The Enhancing Market Participation and Learning Opportunities for Young women (EMPLOY) Project is an innovative five-year (2025-2030) initiative funded by Global Affairs Canada (GAC).

EMPLOY builds on and sustains the gains of the GAC-funded INVEST project which economically empowered over 5,000 urban poor young women in Accra, Kumasi and Takoradi between 2020 and 2025. EMPLOY will achieve this by enhancing skills training for young women in the non-traditional sectors as was the focus of INVEST, whilst expanding into other sectors with high pay and career advancement potential such as the growing tourism/hospital sector. EMPLOY will also scale on the INVEST project by expanding into four new regions.

Ultimately, the project will economically empower over 23,000 young women in the 7 regions by supporting their transition from training to work through a blend of interventions including entrepreneurship development, apprenticeship-based training and workplace attachment programs.

RESPONSIBILITIES

Whilst reporting to the Project Director, the BDS Advisor will work closely with the TVET Advisor in ensuring the project’s entrepreneurship and business development interventions are well integrated into the greater skills development and sustainable youth employment generation strategy of the project.

Among other things, the BDS Advisor will provide strategic direction and coordination between EMPLOY’s Training Institution and Industry partners in creating sustainable pathways for young women under the EMPLOY project to transition from skills training into the world of work. To achieve this, the BDS Advisor’s responsibilities will include:

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Entrepreneurship and Business Development Advisory

• Lead the development and implementation of the entrepreneurship and business development strategy of the EMPLOY project.
• Provide leadership and direction in the selection of an appropriate Business Development Services (BDS) partner(s) for the implementation of the project’s BDS strategy.
• Support in the development of training resources (curriculum, monitoring and reporting tools, etc.) for enhancing the BDS capacity of project clients.
• Lead in the design and implementation of the project’s Business Challenge Competition aimed at promoting entrepreneurship and growth of selected women-led businesses.
• Lead in the management of the project’s Business Challenge Grant including its disbursement, expenditure monitoring, financial reporting and development of impact reports.

Private Sector Engagement

• Develop and implement a comprehensive private sector engagement strategy, mobilizing stakeholders and private sector organizations, especially those in industries related to the project’s trade areas, to promote youth employment and entrepreneurship.
• Identify, engage, and maintain strategic partnerships with private sector organizations, including technology providers, training service providers, and financial institutions.
• Facilitate co-creation of joint activities, partnerships, and collaborations with private sector actors to design and scale programs that promote youth employment.
• Encourage the private sector to adopt inclusive hiring practices that support gender equality, disability inclusion, and the empowerment of young women and men.
• Manage the project’s Organizational Innovation Grant that supports the implementation of policies and practices that promotes the hiring, and retention of young women.
• Conduct regular assessments to understand industry trends, skill gaps, and employment opportunities in the private sector and use this data to guide curriculum development, training modules, and policy advocacy.
• Facilitate access for project beneficiaries to wage employment opportunities in both private and public sector organizations.
• Work with the Ghana TVET Service (GTVETS) to enhance the capacity of Industry Liaison Officers (ILOs) in creating linkages with the private sector for a sustainable Workplace Experience Learning (WEL) program in TVET institutions.

Financial Linkages

• Identify and engage interested Financial Institutions in developing financial products that support young women entrepreneurs especially in TVET related businesses.
• Work with selected BDS provider(s) to prepare project clients to assess available financial products that support entrepreneurship development, especially those that fund TVET business start ups.

Monitoring & Reporting

In collaboration with the MERL team,

• Develop mechanisms for tracking the impact of the project’s BDS intervention on youth employment outcomes and contribute to project reporting.
• Ensure regular data collection, timely reporting, and documentation of project lessons learned, with a focus on youth employment, skills development, and private sector involvement

Required Skills or Experience

Education & Experience

• Degree in business or other relevant degree or adequate experience;
• At least 5 years’ technical experience in a similar capacity in private sector relationship building, entrepreneurship, business development services or other relevant sectors;
• Strong experience in business development and women’s economic empowerment programs are desirable.
• Possess an extensive network comprising of industry players and private sector actors

Competencies

• Competent in engaging effectively for project planning and management with the private sector, government and technical and vocational education and training institutions;
• Extensive experience working with entrepreneurs, economic intermediaries and other business development support organizations and experts in Ghana.  This could be direct experience with these groups or on related assignments (e.g. private sector development initiatives, foundation activities);
• Willingness to travel frequently to other parts of the country;
• Strong grasp of concepts such as climate change, environmental sustainability, entrepreneurship, business development support services, impact investing and gender lens investing;
• Excellent presentation, leadership, mentoring and coaching ability and team building skills;
• Familiarity with inclusive market systems approaches to international development;
• Excellent oral and written communication skills in English;
• Experience in building the capacity of staff and partners, both formal and informal;
• Ability to actively participate as an effective member of a team and take initiatives to strengthen the implementation of the project;
• Proven ability to work productively with various stakeholders and to meet tight deadlines with a focus on producing quality products;
• Knowledge of, or willingness to learn and use google applications (google docs, google hangouts, etc.);
• Demonstrate a commitment to gender equality and youth empowerment;
• Curious, enthusiastic and willing to innovate and adapt.