National Project Officer
Organizational Context
The EU’s Opportunity-Driven VET (OP-VET) Action contributes to the goals of the AU Agenda 2063 on Education and Skills revolution as well as Education and Skills Priority of the Global Gateway. The Action is designed to strengthen the VET offer across Africa by aligning it with real employment opportunities generated by Global Gateway investments on the continent. The ILO has been a long-standing strategic partner of the African Union Commission, African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NEPAD), and the Regional Economic Communities (RECs). ILO works closely with these institutions across a wide range of areas, including skills development and the promotion of lifelong learning in Africa. To further strengthen coordination and impact, the ILO has established Africa’s Skills Hub, hosted within its Regional Office in Abidjan. The Hub serves as a dedicated platform to coordinate regional skills development work and to provide technical support to the African Union, AUDA-NEPAD, and RECs, fostering coherence, knowledge sharing, and scalability across countries. Through this partnership, the ILO works closely with AUDA-NEPAD, as the technical arm of the African Union. In this capacity, the ILO contributes to the advancement and operationalization of major continental frameworks, including the development and implementation of the Africa Continental TVET Strategy (CTVET Strategy), the Africa Occupational Standard Development Framework (AOSDF), and the joint ILO–AU Youth Employment Strategy for Africa (YES-AFRICA). ILO is acting as a technical partner with AUDA-NEPAD under the implementation of Pillar 5 of the Opportunity-Driven VET Action. Under this framework, the ILO and AUDA-NEPAD will jointly implement the 5-year project Opportunity-Driven Skills and VET in Africa (OP-VET) under the Africa–Europe Cooperation Mechanism on Skills.
Job Purpose
The EU’s Opportunity-Driven VET (OP-VET) Action contributes to the goals of the AU Agenda 2063 on Education and Skills revolution as well as Education and Skills Priority of the Global Gateway. The Action is designed to strengthen the VET offer across Africa by aligning it with real employment opportunities generated by Global Gateway investments on the continent. The ILO has been a long-standing strategic partner of the African Union Commission, African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NEPAD), and the Regional Economic Communities (RECs). ILO works closely with these institutions across a wide range of areas, including skills development and the promotion of lifelong learning in Africa. To further strengthen coordination and impact, the ILO has established Africa’s Skills Hub, hosted within its Regional Office in Abidjan. The Hub serves as a dedicated platform to coordinate regional skills development work and to provide technical support to the African Union, AUDA-NEPAD, and RECs, fostering coherence, knowledge sharing, and scalability across countries. Through this partnership, the ILO works closely with AUDA-NEPAD, as the technical arm of the African Union. In this capacity, the ILO contributes to the advancement and operationalization of major continental frameworks, including the development and implementation of the Africa Continental TVET Strategy (CTVET Strategy), the Africa Occupational Standard Development Framework (AOSDF), and the joint ILO–AU Youth Employment Strategy for Africa (YES-AFRICA). ILO is acting as a technical partner with AUDA-NEPAD under the implementation of Pillar 5 of the Opportunity-Driven VET Action. Under this framework, the ILO and AUDA-NEPAD will jointly implement the 5-year project Opportunity-Driven Skills and VET in Africa (OP-VET) under the Africa–Europe Cooperation Mechanism on Skills. The position will contribute to ensuring coherence, alignment and synergies across OP-VET interventions and support linkages between programme implementation and relevant continental skills and VET policy frameworks. The incumbent will perform the follow duties: • Support the activities of the OP-VET Programme Coordination Desk established under the leadership of AUDA-NEPAD, supporting day-to-day coordination, information exchange and follow-up among OP-VET implementing partners and stakeholders. • Support the coordination and facilitate implementation across OP-VET Pillars 1–5, promoting coherence, complementarity, alignment and synergies among programme interventions and helping identify areas requiring joint action or follow-up. • Maintain regular communication and effective working relationships with AUDA-NEPAD, Regional Economic Communities (RECs), AU Member States, ILO technical units, OP-VET Pillar leads, implementing partners and other relevant institutions, ensuring the timely exchange of programme information, workplans, implementation updates and other relevant documentation. • Monitor implementation progress across the OP-VET Action and develop and maintain appropriate monitoring and coordination tools to track activities, milestones, deliverables, implementation challenges, results, decisions, commitments and agreed follow-up actions. • Support the preparation of consolidated technical, implementation and progress reports, including collecting and compiling inputs from OP-VET Pillars, implementing partners and relevant stakeholders. • Support engagement with ILO constituents, including relevant government institutions and employers' and workers' organizations, and facilitate their participation in relevant OP-VET activities and consultations. • Contribute to the implementation and dissemination of relevant continental skills and VET policy frameworks and initiatives, including the Continental TVET Strategy (CTVET), African Occupational Standards Framework (AOSF) and AfCFTA-related skills-development initiatives. • Support linkages between OP-VET programme interventions and relevant African Union, regional and national skills-development priorities, facilitating information exchange and documenting opportunities for collaboration and scaling.
Responsibilities
The position will contribute to ensuring coherence, alignment and synergies across OP-VET interventions and support linkages between programme implementation and relevant continental skills and VET policy frameworks. The incumbent will perform the follow duties: • Support the activities of the OP-VET Programme Coordination Desk established under the leadership of AUDA-NEPAD, supporting day-to-day coordination, information exchange and follow-up among OP-VET implementing partners and stakeholders. • Support the coordination and facilitate implementation across OP-VET Pillars 1–5, promoting coherence, complementarity, alignment and synergies among programme interventions and helping identify areas requiring joint action or follow-up. • Maintain regular communication and effective working relationships with AUDA-NEPAD, Regional Economic Communities (RECs), AU Member States, ILO technical units, OP-VET Pillar leads, implementing partners and other relevant institutions, ensuring the timely exchange of programme information, workplans, implementation updates and other relevant documentation. • Monitor implementation progress across the OP-VET Action and develop and maintain appropriate monitoring and coordination tools to track activities, milestones, deliverables, implementation challenges, results, decisions, commitments and agreed follow-up actions. • Support the preparation of consolidated technical, implementation and progress reports, including collecting and compiling inputs from OP-VET Pillars, implementing partners and relevant stakeholders. • Support engagement with ILO constituents, including relevant government institutions and employers' and workers' organizations, and facilitate their participation in relevant OP-VET activities and consultations. • Contribute to the implementation and dissemination of relevant continental skills and VET policy frameworks and initiatives, including the Continental TVET Strategy (CTVET), African Occupational Standards Framework (AOSF) and AfCFTA-related skills-development initiatives. • Support linkages between OP-VET programme interventions and relevant African Union, regional and national skills-development priorities, facilitating information exchange and documenting opportunities for collaboration and scaling.
Work Experience
At least two years of professional experience in programme or project coordination, development cooperation, skills development, vocational education and training, employment promotion or a related field. Experience in one or more of the following areas would be an advantage: • Coordination and implementation of development cooperation programmes; • Skills development, TVET or employment programmes; • Monitoring programme implementation and preparing progress reports; • Organizing multi-stakeholder meetings, consultations and technical events; • Working with government institutions, regional organizations, development partners or social partners; • Working with the African Union, AUDA-NEPAD, RECs, UN agencies or other international organizations; • working on regional or continental programmes in Africa.
Skills
Candidates interested in the position should consider that the nine core competencies of the ILO, listed below, may be evaluated during the selection process: Integrity and transparency, Sensitivity to diversity, Orientation to learning and knowledge sharing, Client orientation, Communication, Orientation to change, Takes responsibility for performance, Quality orientation and Collaboration. Amln addition to the ILO core competencies, this position requires: • Knowledge of ILO's mandate and values. • Good drafting skills. • Ability to communicate effectively both orally and in writing. • Knowledge of programme and budget, project administration and evaluation concepts. • Knowledge of, or ability to learn, the Office's financial rules and regulations. • Ability to Interpret project information and to identify and analyse problems to improve implementation. • Ability to work independently, quickly, precisely, and take initiative and responsibility. • Ability to work under pressure and to meet the deadline. • Proficient in Microsoft Word, Power Point, Excel, web-browsers and database applications • Effective organisational skills. • Ability to work on own initiative as well as a member |of a team. • Ability to work in a multicultural environment and to demonstrate gender-sensitive and non-discriminatory behaviour and attitudes