PD Assistant

1. Fundraising

1.1 Context Analysis

a) Support in the analysis of the country’s socio-economic situation, (donor) trends, needs and gaps;

b) Support in the conduct of regular stakeholder analysis, in particular who does what and where (3W)

1.2 External relations

a) Regularly update a directory of donors, international and local NGOs, other partners and stakeholders;

b) In the absence of Project Development Manager or other senior colleagues, represent ACTED in key clusters and working group meetings.

1.3 Fundraising and proposal development

a) Regularly check the websites of potential donors to identify Calls for Proposals and other funding opportunities;

b) Contribute to the identification of potential relevant international and/or local partners (private sector partners, national and international NGOs, think tanks, academia, etc.) to be included in proposals;

c) Contribute to liaison with AMEU to prepare the ToRs for needs assessments to be conducted for proposal development;

d) Contribute to the development of fundraising documents (be it expression of Interests/ Concept Notes/ Proposals) in line with ACTED country strategy and donor requirements;

e) Integrate learning from previous interventions (e.g. lessons learnt and best practices) into new proposals.

1.5. Contracting

a) Contribute to addressing in a timely manner all comments by donors on proposals in liaison with relevant staff in country and ACTED HQ GMU and finance;

b) Read thoroughly all contracts before ACTED signature, seeking ACTED HQ GMU and finance advice when required.

2. Grant Management

2.1. Contract follow-up

a) Ensure that contractual obligations (including visibility requirements) and reporting deadlines are known and met by ACTED Programme, AMEU and FLATS teams;

b) Ensure ad hoc requests from donors are addressed in liaison with the ACTED Country Director, Deputy Director, programme and support teams.

2.2.Reporting

a) Participate in and take minutes of kick-off and close out meetings for each project;

b) Write quality narrative reports, reflecting the progress and status of projects in a transparent, timely and professional manner, in liaison with ACTED HQ GMU and finance, which will contribute ultimately to steady cash inflow;

c) Work in close relation with AMEU to incorporate AME data (incl. data on input, process, output, outcome and impact indicators, lessons learnt and best practices) in reports and review M&E reports from AMEU;

d) Liaise with FLATS teams when preparing reports, especially with finance to ensure greater coherence between financial and narrative reports by crosschecking the matching of data in the narrative and financial reports;

e) Contribute to the monthly update of the Reporting Follow Up (RFU) and ensure smooth and regular communication with ACTED HQ GMU;

2.3. Partner Follow-up

a) Support liaison with partners when required to develop relevant grant agreements in close coordination with ACTED HQ GMU and finance;

b) Ensure partners report to ACTED in a timely and qualitative manner as per the requirements of the grant agreement.

3. Internal Coordination

3.1. Internal Coordination and Communication

a) Facilitate interdepartmental communication and information sharing from the Base, to the Area, Capital, and even up to the regional and HQ offices by taking minutes of the various ACTED coordination meetings;

b) Ensure these meeting minutes are sent monthly to HQ;

c) Respond to various requests from ACTED colleagues regarding project contract requirements, donor communication guidelines, requirements related to project reporting, or any other relevant requests.

3.2. Filing

a) File properly contractual project documents both in hard and soft copies and ensure that Project Development Department files, both hard and soft copies, are always up to date;

b) Update regularly the Resource Centre at the office with appropriate and relevant external and internal resources.

4. External Communication

a) Contribute to ACTED external communication strategy by feeding regularly ACTED HQ Communication Department with informal updates on projects, a flash news, pictures, articles on projects progress and/or specific events for ACTED communication tools, including, but not limited to, ACTED Newsletter, websites and ACTED Annual Report;

b) Ensure the update and design of in country communication and visibility tools and publications, their dissemination and availability to ACTED teams, as well as the capitalization of media and pictures of the mission;

Required professional qualities

• University degree in International Relations or relevant field (political science, anthropology, sociology etc.);
• Proficiency in written and spoken English
• Strong writing abilities and analytical skills
• Skills and knowledge in political sciences or international relations
• Ability to work efficiently under pressure
• Previous experience working in an international NGO would be an asset

Required personal qualities

The Project Development Assistant will be appraised on his/her demonstration of the qualities and competencies listed below as well as from carrying out of the duties in the previous section.

• Diplomacy is required for all interactions with both project beneficiaries, ACTED staff and other project stakeholders;
• Impartiality, objectivity and confidentiality are imperative; without prior authorization of Project Development Manager, reports and project development documents should not be shared within or outside ACTED but should be kept within the Project Development Department.
• Strong English writing skills and the ability to present information clearly and concisely.
• Flexibility and adaptability are essential, as well as the ability to plan, take initiative and organize work independently.
• Understanding the nature of work carried out by programmes is necessary for ensuring the relevance and usability of the reports produced. Therefore a proactive and self motivated attitude towards gaining a good understanding of ACTED programs is essential. In addition some prior knowledge of project specifics practices is desirable.
• Willingness to learn and capacity to innovate; the Project Development Assistant must be inventive and eager to improve his/her own skills, and be capable to adapt, shape and develop tools best suited for ACTED’s activities;
• Competency in all computer related tasks including Word, Excel, and PowerPoint is strongly desirable. An ability to learn new computer related skills rapidly is essential.
• Ability to travel to the field, which may include overnight stays, in order to collect information for reports and project proposals.
• Fluency in Arabic and English is required, fluency in French would be an asset.
• Good organizational and communication skills with international and national staff and rural communities are essential.