Job Opportunities at The International Foundation for Electoral Systems

The International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES) is currently recruiting an Inclusion Specialist (IS) for a two-year, FCDO-funded project entitled the Kenya Elections Support Programme (KESP). The program is expected to build upon electoral reforms previously supported by FCDO/DFID in Kenya to contribute to a credible, peaceful and inclusive 2022 general election in Kenya. The program will support:

• Meaningful electoral reforms early in the electoral cycle and effective coordination between relevant institutions; 
• Improvement on standards achieved in the 2017 election, and incorporation of lessons learned for more effective planning, management, strategic communication and stakeholder engagement to build public trust; 
• An enabling environment that leads to more women, youth and persons with disabilities (PWDs) turning out to vote and elected to representative posts; and, 
• Strengthened domestic election observation and monitoring. 

PRIMARY FUNCTION/PURPOSE:   

The IS will support the IFES-Kenya program by providing technical leadership to IFES’ inclusion project activities and by mainstreaming inclusion throughout IFES’ program. In addition, the IS will support institutions with electoral mandates in the full realization of the IEBC’s Gender and Inclusion Policy. 

MAJOR DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Support the creation and capacitation of gender focal points and/or units in line with the IEBC’s Gender & Inclusion Policy. 
• Facilitate two-way dialogues between the IEBC and CSOs representing marginalized groups. 
• Guide and support staff and consultants on issues related to women, youth and persons with disabilities (PWDs) with a focus on mainstreaming and participation of vulnerable groups in the electoral process. 
• Prepare various analysis, reports, work plans and project documentation for the design, realization, monitoring, evaluation and reporting of programmatic activities of the office, ensuring inclusion mainstreaming throughout program activities. 

• Develop and maintain excellent working relations with partner organizations and elections stakeholders. 
• Keep up to date with key political and governance developments related to inclusion in the country and brief the Country Director and other IFES staff as necessary. 
• Assist programs teams and technical specialists with development of briefing/training documents and materials for inclusion-related programmatic activities. 
• Monitor and report on inclusion program activities. 
• Represent IFES as required at external meetings related to inclusion-related topics and maintain good relationships with key local and international electoral stakeholders. 

• Other duties as directed by the Deputy Country Director and/or Country Director. 

SKILLS and SPECIFICATIONS: 

• Demonstrated in-depth knowledge of issues related to inclusion in political processes, particularly as relates to women, youth and PWDs. 
• Ability to remain highly organized while handling multiple tasks under tight deadlines. 

• Ability to complete tasks with limited supervision. 
• Excellent reporting and document handling skills. 
• Excellent communication skills in order to be able to work with IFES program and administrative staff to identify and resolve issues. 
• Willingness to adhere to all principles of confidentiality. 
• Must value operating in a collaborative and cooperative environment. 

• Ability to show initiative, good judgment, and resourcefulness. 
• Ability to handle sensitive issues and address inclusion matters with integrity. 

EDUCATION and QUALIFICATIONS: 

• Bachelor’s Degree in social sciences, gender studies or related required. 

• Minimum of 6 years of experience working with international NGOs on issues of inclusion in international technical assistance programs. 
• Experience working on donor-funded programs. 
• Experience working on democracy and governance programs. 
• Demonstrated professional experience and knowledge in the gender and inclusion field. 
• Training/facilitation skill/qualification is an advantage. 

• Proficiency in Word, Power point, Outlook and Excel. 

LANGUAGE SKILLS: Fluency in written and spoken English required.  Proficiency in at least one other language in use within assigned project location is strongly preferred. 

 TRAVEL: Travel may be required. 

 PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS/WORK ENVIRONMENT: Standard office work environment.  Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of the job.  

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The International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES) is currently recruiting a Finance Officer (FO) for a two-year, FCDO-funded project entitled the Kenya Elections Support Programme (KESP). The program is expected to build upon electoral reforms previously supported by FCDO/DFID in Kenya to contribute to a credible, peaceful and inclusive 2022 general election in Kenya. The program will support:

• Meaningful electoral reforms early in the electoral cycle and effective coordination between relevant institutions; 
• Improvement on standards achieved in the 2017 election, and incorporation of lessons learned for more effective planning, management, strategic communication and stakeholder engagement to build public trust; 
• An enabling environment that leads to more women, youth and persons with disabilities (PWDs) turning out to vote and elected to representative posts; and, 
• Strengthened domestic election observation and monitoring.

PRIMARY FUNCTION/PURPOSE:   

• The FO will provide office financial, administrative and operation support to the IFES-Kenya field office. Specifically, FO will support the Director of Finance and Administration (DFA) with the day-today management and operationalization of IFES-Kenya’s financial and administrative systems. 

MAJOR DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

The FO will assist the DFA with the processing and execution of all financial transactions, expense tracking and record keeping, day-to-day office administration, management of local contracts and purchase orders, and other general support to program activities. Furthermore, the FO will assist with/be responsible for: 

• Preparing local procurement packages and ensure procurements and expenditures are in accordance with FCDO and IFES policies and regulations.  
• Collecting office bills and making payments for regular office expenditures via credit card or IFES’ payment processing system.  
• Ensuring that all deposits and expenses are supported by appropriate documentation as required by IFES policy and donor regulations and are allocated to the appropriate budget category/chart of accounts.  
• Preparing vouchers in QuickBooks and preparing of checks for all project expenditures into QuickBooks accounting system. 
• Preparing, in close cooperation with the DFA, monthly financial reports with supporting documentation for all accounts, to be sent to IFES Headquarters as required.  
• Preparing end of month bank reconciliation and processing monthly payroll including withholding and payment of the necessary taxes to the authorities. 
• Forecasting field office monthly operational costs for cash flow management and preparing monthly wire transfer requests when necessary.  
• Reviewing petty cash custody and reconciliation as required.  
• Processing VAT exemptions for all applicable payments.  
• Tracking local employees’ vacation and sick leave accruals and usages.  
• Supporting the preparation of program events.  
• Overseeing the day-to-day management of all suppliers/vendors and managing all contracts/leases.  
• Providing supervision and mentoring to team members as required. 
• Other duties as assigned by the DFA and/or the CD. 

SKILLS and SPECIFICATIONS: 

• Demonstrated professional experience and knowledge in Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP), budgeting and fiscal control principles. 
• Familiarity with FCDO rules and regulations on financial management and procurement. 

• Ability to remain highly organized while handling multiple tasks under tight deadlines; 
• Ability to complete tasks with limited supervision; 
• Excellent reporting and document handling skills; 
• Excellent communication skills in order to be able to work with IFES program and administrative staff to identify and resolve issues. 
• Willingness to adhere to all principles of confidentiality. 

• Must value operating in a collaborative and cooperative environment. 
• Ability to show initiative, good judgment, and resourcefulness. 
• Ability to handle sensitive issues and address inclusion matters with integrity 

EDUCATION and QUALIFICATIONS: 

• Bachelor’s Degree in Finance, Business Management or related required. 
• 4 years of experience working with international NGOs on implementation of international technical assistance programs. 
• Experience working on FCDO-funded or other donor-funded programs. 
• Demonstrated professional experience and knowledge in financial and administrative management. 
• Relevant skills in automated accounting software systems and database spreadsheets. 

• Proficiency in Word, Power point, Outlook and Excel. 

LANGUAGE SKILLS: Professional level of oral and written fluency in English required.   

 TRAVEL: Travel may be required. 

 PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS/WORK ENVIRONMENT: Standard office work environment.  Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of the job

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Job Description

The IRC is seeking a REBUILD Livelihoods Assistant, based in Nairobi, for a Euro 30 Million five year, urban Livelihoods program; Refugees in East Africa: Boosting Urban Innovations for Livelihoods Development (RE:BUILD). The program is funded by the IKEA Foundation and will be implemented in Kampala and Nairobi. IRC is the Lead Partner and will coordinate a consortium of local and international partners to deliver the program. RE: BUILD seeks to support urban refugees and vulnerable host residents to achieve economic self-reliance and benefit from strengthened urban economic, regulatory and social environments. RE:BUILD will seek to enable change at varying levels, from better access to livelihoods opportunities and inclusive services within communities, to improved refugee-related policies and more targeted and effective service delivery from national, regional and global actors. Key features of RE: BUILD’s approach include flexible funding, adaptive design and knowledge and evidence generation.

Key Responsibilities will include:

• Conduct interviews and assessments for vulnerable clients to be registered for various interventions.
• Assist in conducting information sessions to clients before they join different services.
• Supervising students and Apprentices in both Vocational training and Apprenticeship host organizations.
• Work together with Livelihood Officer to ensure that clients access relevant skills trainings
• Assist in Facilitating the formation and monitoring of VSLA groups.
• Support in assembling success stories and detail them.
• Reviewing business plans, selecting business grant recipients and supporting disbursement of grant funds.
• Help in developing, monitoring and data collection processes and carrying out regular monitoring visits to beneficiaries and partners to supervise program progress.
• Support in developing, running and keeping track of activity work plans and training implementation schedules to ensure timely delivery of services and achievement of objectives.
• Work closely with the Client Responsiveness Senior Officer to collect feedback from client service delivery and client and community perception to help improve design and implementation.
• Fully align with IRC safety and security procedures and provide input to security monitoring and assessments to allow and promote a safe and secure environment for program implementation.
• Ensure confidentiality and ethical data collection throughout the monitoring and reporting phase.
• Other duties as assigned by the supervisor to enable and develop IRC programs.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration, Humanities/Social Sciences, International Development, Political Science, Management or other relevant field.
• Minimum of 2 years professional experience in livelihoods and enterprise development approaches.

Required Experience & Proficiencies:

• Experience of working with forced migrants is desirable.
• Experience in youth outreach and private sector partnerships.
• Strong written and oral communication skills, effective in representation and liaison with external parties.
• Strong program/technical and budget management skills, planning, reporting, monitoring and evaluation skills
• Strong leadership, analytical and organizational skills. Ability to quickly assess priorities and efficiently handle a variety of activities at a time while paying appropriate attention to detail.
• Personal qualities: Works well in and promotes teamwork, comfortable in a multi-cultural environment, flexible and able to handle pressure well.
• Validated practical experience in partner engagement and management.
• Ability to work and adapt in high passed environment.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills.
• Strong organizational and interpersonal skills.
• Computer literate (word processors, spreadsheet, database, CAD and statistical packages, etc.)
• Fluency in English and Swahili.

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The International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES) is currently recruiting a Deputy Country Director (DCD) for a two-year, FCDO-funded project entitled the Kenya Elections Support Programme (KESP). The program is expected to build upon electoral reforms previously supported by FCDO/DFID in Kenya to contribute to a credible, peaceful and inclusive 2022 general election in Kenya. The program will support:

• Meaningful electoral reforms early in the electoral cycle and effective coordination between relevant institutions; 
• Improvement on standards achieved in the 2017 election, and incorporation of lessons learned for more effective planning, management, strategic communication and stakeholder engagement to build public trust; 
• An enabling environment that leads to more women, youth and persons with disabilities (PWDs) turning out to vote and elected to representative posts; and, 
• Strengthened domestic election observation and monitoring.

PRIMARY FUNCTION/PURPOSE:   

The DCD under the management of the Country Director (CD) will support all aspects of program implementation and management of IFES-Kenya. The DCD will play a key role in managing partnerships with relevant Kenyan government agencies, and other electoral stakeholders and donor agencies. The DCD will also assist the CD with in-country oversight of project financial and program management, including reporting and timely execution of project activities within the allocated budget. 

MAJOR DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES: 

• Assist the CD in ensuring timely execution of project activities within the allocated budget, and strategic development and implementation. 
• Oversee specific project activities as directed by the CD and provide technical input as needed. 
• Serve as the IFES representative to Heads of Missions, Embassy staff and donors on a variety of issues when the CD is not available. 
• Supervise in-country local support staff and consultants providing feedback on performance.  
• Oversee program management, administration, finances, budgeting, and reporting  
• Oversee any necessary procurement in accordance with IFES policies and FCDO rules and regulations. 
• Ensure that donor-specified reporting requirements are met. 
• Prepare papers, reports, briefings on election related topics, programmatic work.   
• Develop and maintain relationships with key stakeholders, donors and partners. 
• Manage the project’s monitoring and evaluation plan and oversee data collection and reporting. 
• Other duties as assigned by the Country Director.

POSITION SCOPE: Manage and perform highly technical work requiring ingenuity and capacity to evaluate and respond to new and changing issues.  Support Country Director in the technical implementation of IFES programming for assigned projects. Oversee varied activities and processes to support effective project management and implementation.  Collaborate with Country Director in monitoring all aspects of project operations, reporting and compliance. 

DECISION MAKING/PROBLEM SOLVING: Identify risk factors with potential to disrupt achievement of program/project goals.  Analyze issues, problems or opportunities and propose appropriate courses of action, based on knowledge of professional principles and best practices.  Participate in the development and implementation of strategies to track and mitigate risk and its potential impact. 

FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY: Oversee project budgeting, financial management and reporting.   Oversee and approve local and international procurement in accordance with IFES policies and USAID, non-US rules and regulations. Authority to regularly make purchases and incur expenses, subject to established controls and procedures. 

RELATIONSHIPS: Maintain collaborative working relationship with senior-level stakeholders within and outside IFES to ensure timely and successful achievement of project goals and objectives.  Represent IFES with external contacts at professional and government levels in the absence of the Country Director. 

SUPERVISION EXERCISED: Oversee in-country project staff and participate in project monitoring and evaluation. 

SKILLS and SPECIFICATIONS: 

• Experience with financial tracking, forecasting and Microsoft Excel-based spreadsheets. 

• Demonstrated leadership, national staff management, project administration and financial management skills. 
• Thorough knowledge of FCDO financial regulations and contract compliance requirements.  Detailed oriented and organized. 
• Demonstrated ability to manage staff, remain highly organized while handling multiple tasks under tight deadlines. 
• Ability to complete tasks independently and proven capacity to work well with minimal supervision. 
• Diplomatic and flexible team player with demonstrated leadership skills in politically challenging environment. 

• Ability to develop and manage effective local relationships by applying cultural awareness. 
• Strong communicator, both verbally and in writing, in both English and other language(s). 
• Ability to work with IFES support divisions and program staff to identify and resolve issues. 
• Collaborative, team-oriented individual who values operating in a collaborative and cooperative environment. 
• Experience in managing relationships with international donor community. 

• Willingness to adhere to all principles of confidentiality. 
• Ability to show initiative, good judgment, and resourcefulness.

EDUCATION and QUALIFICATIONS: 

• University degree in international politics, international development, public policy, or related field with a minimum of 10 years of experience international development, preferably in the area of democracy and governance 

• Bachelor’s degree required; Master’s degree strongly preferred.  
• Minimum of 5 years of management experience, preferably administering donor-funded programs in East Africa.  
• Familiarity with political, economic and social context within assigned region. 
• Proven track record with democracy and governance programming.  
• Demonstrated experience working with senior government officials, local governments, NGOs, and the international donor community. 

• Knowledge of election administration and operations and experience working with elections management bodies. 
• Technical knowledge and experience in area(s) of project focus. 
• Experience working with civil society organizations specifically as relates to strengthening their technical capacity in aspects of electoral processes. 
• Familiarity with the international donor community and experience as an action-oriented interlocutor with democracy-development actors at all levels. 
• Experience managing FCDO-funded projects preferred, with demonstrated knowledge of FCDO regulations. 

• Demonstrated knowledge of report writing and management of budgets. 
• Ability and skills to promote and inspire effective collaboration between individuals, organizations and networks. 
• Strong interpersonal, presentation, and communications skills to meet the diverse technical and managerial requirements of the program and to effectively coordinate with a wide range of stakeholders. 
• Strong analytical reasoning skills. 
• Strong diplomacy skills and cultural sensitivity.

LANGUAGE SKILLS: Fluency in written and spoken English required.  Proficiency in at least one other language in use within assigned project location is strongly preferred. 

TRAVEL: Travel may be required up to 15% of time. 

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS/WORK ENVIRONMENT: Standard office work environment.  Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of the job

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The International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES) is currently recruiting a Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning Specialist (MELS) for a two-year, FCDO-funded project entitled the Kenya Elections Support Programme (KESP). The program is expected to build upon electoral reforms previously supported by FCDO/DFID in Kenya to contribute to a credible, peaceful and inclusive 2022 general election in Kenya. The program will support:

• Meaningful electoral reforms early in the electoral cycle and effective coordination between relevant institutions; 
• Improvement on standards achieved in the 2017 election, and incorporation of lessons learned for more effective planning, management, strategic communication and stakeholder engagement to build public trust; 
• An enabling environment that leads to more women, youth and persons with disabilities (PWDs) turning out to vote and elected to representative posts; and, 
• Strengthened domestic election observation and monitoring. 

PRIMARY FUNCTION/PURPOSE:   

The MELS will oversee monitoring systems for the IFES-Kenya field office and will work with the Country Director and/or their designee to provide technical leadership for project evaluations, risk mitigation and learning initiatives. 

MAJOR DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Manage, oversee and coordinate the collection of performance data throughout the life of the project.  
• Develop and maintain a database of performance indicators and ensure that the database is up to date in terms of baseline, targets, and actuals in line with the project’s logframe and/or Performance Monitoring Plan (PMP).  
• Liaise regularly with the program implementing team and maintain a calendar of events to anticipate and plan for any monitoring and evaluation (M&E) data collection needs.  
• Liaise regularly with the IFES M&E team in HQ to ensure data collection tools are appropriate and meet requirements for specific data collection efforts.  

• Plan and help with the implementation of data collection efforts such as pre- and post-training surveys, special population surveys, and other data collection efforts that feed into periodic evaluations of different components of the program as well as the program’s risk mitigation efforts.  
• Write periodic reports for the IFES Kenya office to document M&E data findings and report the progress of the project in relation to the logframe/PMP to IFES HQ and FCDO. 
• Assess logframe/PMP indicators every fiscal year or more often, if necessary, to ensure relevance to planned results; suggest revisions or additions to PMP indicators if needed. 
• Maintain and safeguard the electronic and hard copies of files to serve as backup related to the logframe/PMP.  
• Develop and maintain a database of minutes of meetings, photos, and various reports produced by different staff in the office.  

• Participate in meetings, training events and capacity building activities to collect data in relation to reporting and M&E.  
• Monitor the media and other sources of information to collect information for reporting and provide evidence to support the verification of the PMP indicators.  
• Join the Country Director and other staff at important meetings, write minutes of these meetings for filing and reporting purposes.  
• Conduct other activities as may be requested by the Country Director or designee. 

SKILLS and SPECIFICATIONS: 

• Experience in the drafting of program implementation plans and performance monitoring plans (PIP/PMP). 
• Experience with data collection, data analysis, and effective data presentation techniques.  
• Experience with developing and maintaining program performance and implementation tracking tools, such a M&E dashboards. 
• Demonstrated ability to produce substantive and clear reporting documents. 

• Demonstrated capacity to work with senior program staff to assess and report on program performance. 
• Knowledge and experience with FCDO grant and contract proposals, regulations, and procedures. 
• Ability to remain highly organized while handling multiple tasks under tight deadlines. 
• Ability to complete tasks with limited supervision. 
• Excellent reporting and document handling skills. 

• Excellent communication skills in order to be able to work with IFES program and administrative staff to identify and resolve issues. 
• Willingness to adhere to all principles of confidentiality. 
• Must value operating in a collaborative and cooperative environment. 
• Ability to show initiative, good judgment, and resourcefulness. 
• Ability to handle sensitive issues and address inclusion matters with integrity 

EDUCATION and QUALIFICATIONS: 

• Bachelor’s Degree in social science, research methodology or related required. 
• Minimum of 6 years of experience working with international NGOs on monitoring and evaluation of international technical assistance programs. 
• Experience working on donor-funded programs. 

• Experience working on democracy and governance programs, especially in electoral assistance projects, preferred. 
• Demonstrated professional experience and knowledge in the gender and inclusion field. 
• Training/facilitation skill/qualification is an advantage. 
• Proficiency in Word, Power point, Outlook and Excel.