Partnership & Training Coordinator - Youth Challenge International

Youth Challenge International (YCI) is a leading global youth development organization that promotes youth innovation to drive positive change. Together with our partners, we create market-ready solutions that catapult youth around the world to succeed and prosper; we are driven by youth and their potential to affect positive change in the world.

Our solutions are focused – always keeping the young people we are designing for and with at the centre of the conversation. Our approach is rooted in creativity and constantly evolving to respond to changing needs and market realities.  YCI is an organization where diversity and talent come together to shape a better future for youth around the world.

HerStart: Innovate the Future

HerStart: Innovate the Future is an initiative developed by Youth Challenge International to foster and create innovative solutions for a more equitable and prosperous economy within Ghana, Tanzania and Uganda.

The program includes training and support for aspiring entrepreneurs in social enterprise, gender-responsive business planning, social impact measurement, and access to finance. Canadian volunteers will be engaged in providing human capital support for activities through on-site placements and capacity building initiatives with partner organizations.

This initiative will provide programmatic support for organizations to more effectively deliver environmental and gender-responsive activities that drive sustainable and equitable business ventures.

The entrepreneurial ecosystem in each country will be further catalyzed to identify and reduce gendered barriers, which will foster more enabling environments for young female entrepreneurs.

Job Description

• Location: This position will be based in either Tamale or Bolgatanga, the final location is yet to be confirmed
• Required Languages: English, Fra Fra and Dagbani 
• Contract Length: 1 year
• Commitment: Full time, 37.5 hours/week
• Compensation: 5, 083.59 GHC/month
• Start Date: ASAP

Position Summary

Reporting to the Project Lead, the Partnership & Training Coordinator will lead activities and processes designed to leverage project partners’ capacity to deliver more inclusive, innovative and environmentally sustainable development initiatives, while shaping an inclusive enabling environment for women entrepreneurs.

The Partnership & Training Coordinator will utilize training materials (listed below) and a participatory approach to deliver elements of the HerStart Toolkit Curriculum to young women and men, alongside partner organizations.

We are seeking a passionate, skilled, and creative candidate to deliver exceptional results.  We are looking for people to join our team who believe in youth as powerful agents of change, and those who are passionate about contributing to women’s empowerment and advancing both national and global gender equality agendas.

Training Materials

• Sparking Social Innovation provides training for aspiring or established entrepreneurs in how to create and measure the social and environmental impact of their business activities. It has the dual purpose of building skills around social enterprise and raising awareness among community members of how social enterprise can be utilized as a vehicle for achieving gender equality and transforming their communities. This initial training increases access for young women to participate in HerStart and builds a pipeline of diverse young women to engage in later stages of training support.   
• Seed your Social Venture builds young women’s competencies to prepare a business idea to launch using innovative tools such as the Impact Business Model Canvas. The training leverages best practice tools adapted to meet the needs of young social innovators. It will focus on social innovation, idea testing, market assessment and measurement. Participants will be provided tools to support the design of gender-inclusive and environmentally sustainable products and services for their communities. 
• Grow your Social Venture creates a supportive ecosystem around female-led social ventures with high potential for social impact. A holistic and tailored blend of supports is offered to meet the unique needs of each social entrepreneur. Personalized coaching focused on both the business venture and cultivating the individual’s leadership and targeted brokering of relationships with potential investors, customers and partners will address key barriers young women face in growing social enterprises. 

Responsibilities Include:

• Partnership Development: Work closely with partners to assess organizational and technical capacity to align technical assistance with real-time needs for organizational sustainability; collaborate with partners to identify and apply leading development practices, methods and tools, as well as, recruitment strategies; oversee and coordinate the co-delivery of Training of Trainer (ToT) and curriculum revisions with respective sub-contractors, project activities and initiatives; engage skills-based Canadian volunteers and leverage their expertise in the development and delivery of initiatives;  capture and facilitate shared learning between partners, volunteers & YCI; establish and maintain positive, collaborative and productive relationships with project staff, implementing partners, youth participants and volunteers.
• Training and Support: Leverage training materials, dynamic facilitation skills and participatory approaches to engage participants in an inclusive and responsive learning environment; provide technical support in the preparation of training modules and learning materials on main project themes, including social entrepreneurship, green business and women’s leadership development; contribute to ongoing quality improvement of training materials and processes; recognize, and adapt to the needs and strengths of young women program participants, coaching and collaborating with them at varying stages of starting and implementing a successful social enterprise.

Required Skills or Experience

• You are a self-starter with 5+ years of progressively responsible leadership experience in participatory Facilitation, training and partnership building
• You are passionate about investing in women's and youth livelihoods and inspired by the potential of innovation and entrepreneurship
• You are talented at fostering relationships with young people and diverse stakeholders
• You are aligned with the Lean Startup approach and familiar with design thinking
• You understand the potential of online and offline learning environments
• You have demonstrated the ability to mentor and support ventures at the start-up phase
• You possess a learning orientation and willingness to participate in ongoing professional and personal development
• You have demonstrable experience in conducting ToTs and training with young people and community-based organisations
• Experience working with a lean budget
• You have sound working knowledge of multiple methods and tools for organizational capacity building and technical assistance
• You thrive as a team member and work respectfully and inclusively with diverse stakeholders, including international volunteers
• You demonstrate an integrated understanding of the principles of gender equality and the empowerment of girls, including a familiarity with the socio-economic profile of young women in Ghana
• You are an effective communicator with excellent written and verbal English proficiency and you are a permanent resident or a Citizen of Ghana.