Hot Uganda Jobs

Project Management Specialist with over 20 years of professional experience addressing rural development challenges through program quality implementation. Experienced in designing implementation of livelihoods/social protection strategies and frameworks for promoting resilient households and communities. Has hands on experience in designing of livelihoods and youth empowerment projects, and providing implementation oversight, coordination, knowledge management, monitoring and evaluation aspects of programs focused on improving livelihoods. Skilled in project portfolio management, coupled with complementary analytical and evaluative methods to assess implementation performance to improve project/program results delivery. Skilled in project portfolio management, coupled with complementary analytical and evaluative methods to assess implementation performance to improve project/program results delivery.

Experience
Technical Specialist/Livelihoods Jan 2018-Dec 2019
USAID Sustainable Outcomes for Children and Youth Project (SOCY)
Catholic Relief Services/ACODEV
• Coordinated program activities in Central and Western Uganda to ensure optimum efficiency and compliance with appropriate policies, procedures and specifications
• Managed project budget, ensuring that project funding was sufficient to accomplish the work required
• Monitored program activities and assisted with determination of priorities
• Implemented a market led value chain and enterprise approach that enhanced improved livelihoods for the vulnerable households and youth, improved access to income and other basic services.
• Strengthened capacity of local government and community organisations to support relevant skills training and created employment opportunities for youth
• Conducted continuously market intelligence and assessments to inform programming including identification of sectors and value chains that had high potential to benefit project participants especially youth.
• Provided multiple levels of support to and worked with diverse stakeholders (project teams, NGO partners, private sector partners, community entrepreneurs, and potential investors) to finance livelihoods and youth empowerment to achieve project objectives.
• Provided follow-up services to help the youth secure and retain employment

Technical Lead/Economic Strengthening July 2014-Dec 2017
USAID Deinstitutionalisation of Children and Orphans Project (DCOF)
ChildFund International
• Offered technical leadership and guidance to the consortium for program implementation, development and management in the areas of economic strengthening
• Actively coordinated and worked closely with the other component leaders in the consortium to ensure integrated approach to program implementation
• Worked in liaison with the technical director to identify, assess and develop partnership strategies for potential private sector, civil society and government partners.
• Established and maintained productive working relationships with Local Government officials and line departments, soliciting their participation in all activities where appropriate.
• Built knowledge and capacity of staff through training, on the job mentoring/coaching and exposure to the youth employment model/program to enable them to efficiently plan their day-to-day work and provide appropriate support to the youth.
• Coordinated the establishment of Youth Employment Stakeholders’ Network group by convening meetings with government agencies, non-government agencies and private sector partners, and created avenue to discuss issues, coming up with appropriate measures to address the issue of youth in the workplace.
• Made on-site field visits regularly to provide technical back stopping and/or design suggestions
• Ensured proper logistics, administration, human resources and transport needs of the program were conducted within ChildFund policy and with the maximum benefit to the program.
• Technically supported the development and continual revision of a dynamic, program-wide monitoring and evaluation system linked to program strategies, indicators, and information management tools, which supported program management, accountability and learning.
• Led continual gathering and sharing of information pertinent to the operating environment and held frequent activity review sessions to continually re-examine the relevance and impact of the program.
• Produced and sent written reports on the program capturing impacts related to all activities.
• Ensured establishment and maintenance of relationships with communities, consortium partners, other CSOs and local government in target operation areas.

Agriculture Advisor Jan 2009-Dec 2013
SNV Uganda
• Executed overall management of Community Empowerment Project in Eastern Uganda
• Guided the project set-up, including developing work plans, budgets and competence table with financial responsibilities and mandates
• Built, strengthened and managed partnerships with local governments (districts), key partners, institutions and stakeholders
• Managed human, physical and financial resources related to the project
• Monitored performance of the project team and service providers to ensure all milestones set in the annual work plan were met, developed mitigation plans to reduce risks and took corrective actions to remedy any deviation from the work plans
• Accounted and reported to SNV and the donors on project performance
• Guided knowledge development, documentation and communication and branding in close collaboration with the donors
• Identified follow-up funding and partnership possibilities and business development
• Developed value chains and the commercialization of production of maize, beans, sunflower, cassava and the development of Public-Private Partnerships.

Funding and Donor Relations Manager May 2007-Dec 2008
Save the Children Uganda
• Researched the global funding market, identifying new leads and potential calls for proposals
• Lead development and submission of proposals
• Built relationships with new and existing funders to present new ideas of Save the Children’s work to sustain and expand the relationship in future
• Lead the development, management and delivery of Save the Children’s annual fundraising plan
• Reviewed organisational strengths, looking at opportunities to further develop our fundraising strategy with the SMT, with focus on developing a 3-5-year plan with a diverse range of income streams
• Coordinated and ensured reporting to donors was delivered on time and to Save the Children’s quality standard and began renewal process to prevent funding gaps
• Developed and maintained effective system for tracking and planning fundraising ensuring these were consistent with Save the Children’s operational requirements and policies
• Supported the development and implementation of the organisational strategy

Enterprise Development Specialist Jan 2004- May 2007
USAID PRIME West Project
 Acted as a subject matter expert and advisor to the Deputy Chief of Party in the following technical areas: conservation enterprise development and livelihoods; investment development and networking; business and entrepreneurship development; and business innovation and research.
 Lead project activities/results around the commercialization of conservation enterprises to counter unsustainable encroachments and deforestation in the protected areas.
 Assisted in designing and developing project activities that promoted sustainable use of natural resources while providing economic benefits that could be scaled up to provide value to Albertine region.
 Developed project activities that supported a comprehensive enterprise enabling environment with relevant business development agencies such as financial services providers, and business development service providers.

Enterprise Development Specialist Jun 2002 - Dec 2003
USAID SPEED Project
• Provided technical leadership in the implementation of activities designed to enhance access to finance and provided business development advisory support to agriculture stakeholders
• Worked with banks, MFIs and investors to identify opportunities to facilitate investment across value chains to enhance overall resilience and increase competitiveness of firms.
• Advised businesses on financial products and services development, including remittances, to support small-and-medium sized business development and access to market interventions.
• Formed strategic partnerships and alliances that incorporated disadvantaged businesses, particularly ones located in rural areas, into competitive value chains.
• Collaborated internally and externally to share international best practices and lessons learned for SME programs among government, financial institutions and business service providers.
• Coordinated and worked with existing USAID programs to expand entrepreneurship initiatives, particularly among youth, and created more dynamic entrepreneurship support-systems

Project Coordinator/Cotton July 2001-May 2002
USAID COMPETE Project
• Designed and developed the Cotton Sector development hypothesis and focus, business model with financials, implementation work plan and budget.
• Designed and developed sector and sub-sector operational and financial analysis to assess the return on investment (ROI) and analyzed the opportunity cost of sector-based investments.
• Conducted Business Development Services gap analysis through a consultation process to identify the set of BD services which helped the sector grow.
• Conducted value chain mapping exercise to identify the most appropriate areas, players, sub-sector(s) and developed a comparative analysis matrix for the cotton value chain to select SMEs having financial and operation capacities to acquire BD services.
• Developed, coordinated and recorded day-to-day field work activities e.g. marketing and promotional activities, liaison with sector stakeholders, individual meetings, presentation, and potential areas of working within the sector to achieve assigned targets.
• Responsible for raising awareness, knowledge and compatibility of potential SME clients and BD service providers to strengthen the outreach and to achieve the project targets.
• Improved access of BD services into cotton sector through advising, assisting and promoting SMEs and worked closely with BDSPs to address the required services within a sector.
• Established strong relationships and worked closely with the network partners e.g. academia, associations, business chambers and clubs, community clubs and government to strengthen the business development and programmatic activities within the sector.
• Identified and collaborated with potential BDS providers, consultants and training institutes at national and international level to increase the program outreach and linked these service providers with SMEs

Program Officer/Project Development Mar 2000-Jun 2001
ACDI/VOCA Volunteers Program
• Provided logistical and professional support to international volunteers while on development assignments in Uganda
• Coordinated implementation of various programme activities funded under Partnerships for Enhanced Productivity (PEP), Worldwide Farmer-to-Farmer (WWFtF) and Food Security Technical Assistance (FSTA).
• Carried out analysis and assessments on the development potential of rural communities and identified opportunities for intervention resulting in improved food security and income generation in a sustainable environment,
• Prepared scopes of work (SOW) for provision of short-term technical assistance by short term experts
• Promoted production of non-traditional agricultural exports (NTAE)-maize, beans, oil crops etc, with the objective of increasing the viability of small and medium scale farmers and agribusinesses at all levels of agricultural development from production to marketing.
• Worked with individuals and farmer organizations at the grass roots level to strengthen local capacity to increase agricultural production, improve profits and develop local and export markets.
• Assisted client organizations to attain their stated production and capacity building targets in compliance, and in tandem with targeted objectives of the TITLE II program.
• Carried out monitoring of supported programs in accordance with ACDI/VOCA data gathering and recording formats.
Skills

• Project management
• Value chain development
• Agribusiness development
• Economic development
• Policy/program development
• Program portfolio oversight
• Climate Smart Agriculture
• Natural Resource Management
• Organisational skills
• Fund raising skills
• Skills training
• Excellent writing skills

Education and Training
MSc. Entrepreneurship 2008
Makerere University Kampala

Post Graduate Diploma in Rural Policy and Project Planning 1998
International Institute of Social Studies,
Erasmus University Rotterdam, Netherlands.

BSc Agriculture 1985
Makerere University Kampala
Languages
• English -Professional working efficiency
• Swahili -Elementary working proficiency