Program Coordinator at Mercy Corps

The Position Summary

The Program Coordinator will be involved in coordinating the implementation of the project at the regional level, provide the linkage between Energy 4 impact Mercy Corps, the local stakeholders and making sure the field staff are supporting ICS producers, Distributors, Installers, and fabricators and monitoring the progress of the project in Taita Taveta, Kwale, Kilifi and Mombasa. He/She will be responsible for compiling program progress reports at regional level. He/She will co-ordinate with other project implementing agencies to ensure synergies with each partner activities to achieve the project objective and identifying opportunities for expansion.

Essential Position Responsibilities

• Facilitating networking and establishing links across the sector in coastal region., including:
  • Organising and conducting stakeholder consultations, workshops,
  • Coordination with actors in the clean cooking value chain,
  • Tracking clean cooking initiatives in the region,
  • Advocacy and lobbying County governments including keeping the respective county governments informed of program activities.
  • ensure participation and representation in various regular cross-institutional meetings and working groups.
  • regular participation in relevant sector meetings and engagement on an ad hoc basis with related initiatives,
• Assess market information gaps among ICS producers, ICS retailers and distributors, and key stakeholders in the target county.
• Establish coordination with other program implementing partners such as GIZ, Dedan Kimathi university, Strathmore University etc.
• Validating the recruited project beneficiaries in the target county.
• Coordinate the various capacity building initiatives to program assistants and beneficiaries.
• Develop strategies for technology, business, gender and financial linkages support to the selected ICS enterprises.
• Ensure entrepreneurs receive adequate and effective technical support for the growth and development of their ICS enterprises.
• Coordinate the collection of M&E relevant data for monitoring and evaluating project performance.
• Support Program officers in Conducting market development activities for the ICS enterprises.
• Coordinate the awareness raising and behavior change communication activities in the counties. Identify and engage awareness raising networks such as CBO, youth and women groups, local institutions etc.
• Participate in project review and planning meetings.
• Compile and submit project implementation workplans and reports.

Minimum Qualification & Transferable Skills

Academic and Professional Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree in Project Management, Renewable Energy, Community Development, Environmental Science, Business, Economics, Finance, or related degree OR
• A Masters in a relevant field with 2 years program coordination will be an added advantage.

Relevant working experience

• At least 4 years’ experience implementing donor funded projects.
• Experience supporting Micro, Medium and Small Entrepreneurs, businesses and/or energy SMEs and/or an understanding of community business models is highly advantageous.
• Promotion of uptake of renewable energy and ICS for productive uses and activities.
• Experience in community-based approaches for mobilization.
• Experience in conducting surveys, managing data and statistics is desirable.
• Experience in working in the coastal region of Kenya is highly desirable.

Success Factors

The program coordinator- possesses the following attributes:

• Strong organizational skills and able to coordinate and manage a diverse array of activities and stakeholders.
• Excellent communication skills in Swahili and English.
• Ability to Plan and work independently with minimal supervision.
• Excellent report writing skills and computer skills in word processing and spreadsheets.
• Ability to travel and work in rural areas for most of the times.