Title: Project Coordinator – Entrepreneurship Promotion and Market Innovation
Reports to: Head of Field of Action
The GIZ Private Sector Development & Employment Promotion Project (PSD) supports the government of Iraq and the government of the Kurdish Region to develop its private sector with the objective to create more job opportunities for young people. The project comprises the two Modules of Macro Economic Policy Consulting and Labour Market Interventions. Thereby the latter Module includes the component of MSME and start-up development support, innovation and cooperation with local and international stakeholders, which will be the area of placement.
We are working on job-related qualification measures for business development, process or market innovations within the framework of cooperation with international and local companies, professional associations or chambers, providing technical and process advice for local actors to identify innovation potential and upgrade strategies in the selected sectors. Thereby we are building stakeholder networks to improve the Iraqi entrepreneurial
ecosystem; the access to competence development and awareness raising campaigns for entrepreneurship.
The PSD project is looking for a project coordinator, who has collected work or education experiences in the relevant fields. The duty station for this position is the GIZ Baghdad Office.
A. Responsibilities
As part of its approach to foster private sector company growth, the PSD project implements
The position holder is responsible for:
- Adequate support to the project director and team leaders in project implementation matters, which includes planning, implementing, reporting, and monitoring & evaluation.
- The position holder supports the implementation of the project’s operational plan in coordination with the project director, module manager and team leader. This may include the full responsibility for certain activities according to the standard project cycle:
- Coordinate the implementation of activities to promote entrepreneurship among young people in Iraq for example idea competitions for students, social media campaigns, hackathons etc.
- coordination with and between MSMEs, start-ups, service providers and public entities
- responsibility to ensure the quality of entrepreneurial trainings provided to MSMEs and start-ups
- serving as focal point for the MSMEs and start-ups and the project
- identifying training needs of MSMEs and start-ups
- supporting the improvement of the financial sector in order to support access to finance for MSMEs and start-ups
- coordinating function between the financial service provider, the potential beneficiaries, relevant public entities
- implementing and monitoring of the project’s activities: taking over operational tasks; coordinating, aligning, guiding individual activities
- liaising with any partners and other direct or indirect stakeholders, either companies, chambers, official bodies, etc. and set up meetings and dialogues
- supporting the communication between partners, beneficiaries, experts, GIZ staff and others, if necessary, by translations.
- maintaining of a good flow of communication and information between all involved institutions and counterparts and GIZ
- Adequate support of the team leader and the team in the design, coordination and implementation of activities for entrepreneurship promotion and development with a specific focus on entrepreneurial ecosystem development within the module for employment promotion.
B. Tasks
1. Research & Development
The position holder will support in
- conducting desk and field research, collecting and assessing data and information
- conceptualizing, drafting ToRs, reports, procurement documents, guiding analysis and assessments, reviewing texts
2. Implementation
The position holder supports
- Investigating innovative approaches for service and product development, business opportunities, efficient business support, access to finance, etc. especially in the sectors of agribusiness, renewable energy, waste management, tourism
- the development of Capacity Development concepts
- the emergence and maintenance of innovative clusters
- organizing, contributing and supervising different events like workshops, missions, webinars, virtual conferences, etc.
- the implementation and monitoring of activities along the project cycle and assist the team and the team leader in all respective matters.
- the designing, conceptualizing and realization of measures for skill and capacity development measures and training programs, formal and nonformal education and learning; job-oriented training systems, professional development, capacity development for entrepreneurship, youth enabling, job creation and counseling and mentoring for youth employment
- to accompany international consultants in meetings with actors from the private and public sector and provide minutes of those meetings
- the development, review and dissemination of sectoral expertise, learning and knowledge materials with training participants, local companies, company staff, private sector representations, etc.
- the identification of participants; identifies and reviews applicants for training and/or learning journey participation and advertisement of trainings and activities
- compiles relevant data for the Project impact monitoring and contributes to progress reporting on his/her scope of work.
3. Communication, knowledge sharing, networking and initiating cooperation
The position holder will operate and contribute to
- identify, develop and establish and guide networks of institutions, entities and persons from the private sector, public sector, research and education facilities, society, etc. and knowledge partners (universities, NGOs, IGOs…)
- identify, develop and establish contacts with local resource persons, experts and knowledge holders and influencers and integrating them
- adopt and apply modern methods of communication and cooperation by working with suitable digital methods and tools: social media, virtual meeting tools, etc.
- identify, liaise, communicate, cooperate and ensure knowledge transfer with entities and networks working in formal and non-formal education, skills training and entrepreneurship development, private sector and its representations, with companies with a strong potential for growth and employment creation,
- improve MSMEs, start-ups and entrepreneurs access to information about networking opportunities.
- Coordinating with his/her colleagues in Baghdad and other regions on a daily basis
4. Other duties/additional tasks
The position holder will support the project with any additional task if necessary, e.g. she/he
- supports the project with translation duties and any additional tasks if deemed necessary.
- contributes to the development of communication material and presentation supports.
C. Required qualifications, competencies, and experience
Qualifications
- Education: University degree (Bachelor / Master) in a relevant field (e.g. economics, business development, innovation management, institutional building, entrepreneurship etc.)
Professional experience
- Experience: Minimum of 2-5 years of relevant occupational experience. Work for an international company or development organization is an advantage.
- Experience on the interlinkages between job creation / private sector development/capacity building/entrepreneurship promotion and Agribusiness / Renewable Energy / Waste Management /Tourism would be a clear advantage
- Working experience in one or more of the above-mentioned sectors in an academic, policy advice, skill development, or business capacity would be an advantage
- Working experience in one or more relevant fields of non-formal education and learning; job-oriented training systems, professional development, capacity
- development for entrepreneurship, youth enabling, counseling and mentoring for youth employment
- Experience conducting desk and field research of a similar nature as required by the assignment
- Experience in target-group orientated communication
- Being acquainted with administrative procedures in government and administrative offices is an advantage.
- Above average academic Arabic, and fluent English language proficiencies are mandatory (written and spoken). Kurdish proficiencies are an advantage.
Other knowledge, additional competences
- Tasks require constructive creative thinking, sometimes also conceptual initiative
- Microsoft Office software literacy
- Team player, proactive and responsible personality, innovative and flexible.
- Ability and willingness to travel within Iraq including to Norther Region and abroad for limited periods.
Requirements for application:
- The reference number and position must be mentioned in the subject line of the email, Ref: (BGH-PSD21-143) Project Coordinator – Entrepreneurship Promotion and Market Innovation
- Subject line of the application should clearly indicate the vacancy applied for.
- CVs and motivations letters that are in the form of IMG, pictures, screen-shots and links will not be accepted.
- Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.
- Applications passed the expiration date of the advertisement will not be considered.
