Partnership and Resource Mobilization Specialist – East and Southern Africa

Organization: Right To Play International

Department/Division: Headquarters

Reports to: Vice President, Partnerships

Work Location: Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; Kigali, Rwanda; or Kampala, Uganda

Authorized to work in: Ethiopia, Rwanda, or Uganda (eligible to work legally without visa or work permit sponsorship)

Target Hiring Range: Local salary scale applies (Grade 9). Hiring range and benefits will be shared with applicants as part of the recruitment process. Please note salary will be paid in the local currency.

Target Start Date: As soon as possible

Contract Duration: Full-time, one-year fixed term contract renewable based on performance and funding

Application Closing Date: January 5, 2025 23:59 EAT

ABOUT US:

We reach millions of children each year in some of the most difficult places on earth, helping them to stay in school and learn, overcome prejudice, heal from trauma, and develop the skills they need to thrive. We do this by harnessing play, one of the most fundamental forces in a child’s life, to teach children the critical skills they need to dismantle barriers and embrace opportunities, in learning and in life.

Established in 2000, Right To Play reaches children through experiential programming in 14 countries in Africa, Asia, the Middle East, and North America. These programs are supported by our global offices in Toronto, Canada; London, UK and seven national offices across Europe and North America.

OUR CULTURE:

• Accept Everyone – Be intentional about inclusion
• Make Things Happen – Seek opportunities to lead and innovate
• Display Courage – Act with integrity
• Demonstrate Care – Look after yourself and one another
• Be Playful – Have fun at work

Please visit our website to learn more about who we are and what we do, and watch this video to find out about the five pillars of our Culture Code.

ROLE SUMMARY:

The Partnership and Resource Mobilization Specialist – East and Southern Africa is a new position created at Right To Play (RTP) to realise our Strategic Plan 2024 – 2026. One of our key objectives is to develop new funding partnerships in Africa – with a focus on East and Southern Africa as a priority. You will be the lead to develop and maintain various strategic donor partnerships to support programming in line with Right To Play’s mission and vision. This will be a great opportunity for an experienced and well-connected advisor focused on strategic partnerships, who can draw upon their outstanding networking skills, and excellent knowledge of the donor community and funding architecture across 3 countries (Ethiopia, Uganda, Rwanda).

This is a pivotal role to increase RTP’s partnership portfolio in East and Southern Africa through strategic fundraising and engagement. Reporting to the Vice President, Partnerships (a member of RTP’s Executive Team), you will work closely with Country Directors, coordinate with relevant global support teams and help build stronger funding relationships in specific countries where RTP is delivering programming.

Regular travel is required to support donor engagement across Ethiopia, Rwanda and Uganda, with some occasionally in the wider East and Southern Africa region, and to the Global Offices (Toronto, Canada; and London, UK).

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WHAT YOU’LL DO:

#1: Strategic Position & Planning (40% of Time):

• Identify, build and maintain relationships with potential donors in East Africa in cooperation with country teams and global support teams.
• Develop donor engagement plans and build knowledge on and relationships with key donors in the East Africa region, including but not limited to Ethiopia, Uganda and Rwanda, and/or interested in funding RTP programming on the African continent.
• Observe donor strategies and priorities at country/regional level and monitor opportunities to anticipate calls for proposals and identify bidding opportunities.
• Undertake proactive intelligence gathering, by monitoring relevant trends in donor and partner organisations and relevant platforms and by tracking changes in donor policies that could impact current or future funding opportunities.
• Provide business development expertise in positioning, capture planning and proposal preparation for specific opportunities with institutional donors (government and inter-governmental award issuing organizations), as well as foundations and non-governmental organizations.
• Coordinate with RTP leadership the strategic direction, business development strategy and efforts to meet annual growth targets and support the diversification of revenue from institutional donors and foundations to achieve RTP’s strategic objectives.

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#2: Networking and Relationship Building (35% of Time):

• Develop active and quality working relationships and make requisite connections with country teams, donors and strategic partners in select countries and identify potential funding partners.
• Strategically support and prepare RTP country leadership for partner and prospect meetings, including preparation of agendas, materials, key messages, and follow-up.
• In collaboration with Country Office teams, represent RTP in relevant external meetings and working groups in the region to increase RTP’s visibility and allow for information gathering on funding opportunities.
• Promote RTP’s technical positioning, approaches, know-how and skills within relevant networks with a view to developing suitable partnerships that can unlock funding opportunities in alignment with global and country strategic plans.
• Support and mentor key Country Office senior management teams to cultivate and strengthen institutional relationships with institutional donors, partner organizations and other stakeholders.

____________________________________________________________________________________#3: Resource mobilisation capacity building (20% of Time):

• Work closely with teams across select Country Offices, the Global Program Partnership team and the Program Quality & Impact team to coordinate proposal and budget development processes to ensure timely submission of high-quality proposals.
• Identify capacity building needs related to resource mobilisation, project design, and partnership development within the region and help deliver initiatives to address these identified capacity building requirements.
• Provide opportunities for sharing of resource mobilisation and fundraising knowledge, best practice, lessons-learned across other RTP countries and relevant global support teams
• In collaboration with Country Office teams, identify, build and maintain partnerships with partners that have the most potential for collaboration on achieving shared goals and objectives and joint resource mobilisation.

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#4: Performs Other Duties as Assigned (5% of Time)

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WHAT YOU’LL BRING (ESSENTIAL):

EDUCATION/TRAINING/CERTIFICATION:

• Undergraduate degree in International Development, Political Science, International Relations or related field

EXPERIENCE:

• 10 years’ work experience in partnership development with institutional donors in the Africa region
• Knowledge of and demonstrated experience on partnerships with: European Commission, US Government (including USAID), FCDO, SIDA, ECW, BMZ/GFFO, and UN agencies
• Demonstrated experience and successes in developing, building and maintain strategic partnerships with key actors in East Africa – especially related to RTP’s core program areas (education, MHPSS, and gender equality)
• Experience working with local partners
• Experience of resource mobilisation/fund-raising competency and capacity building including facilitating learning, coaching, and supporting learning across multiple stakeholders

COMPETENCIES/PERSONAL ATTRIBUTES:

• Outstanding networking and stakeholder engagement skills
• Highly organized and able to manage timelines involving multiple inputs under tight deadlines
• Exceptional critical thinking and problem-solving skills
• Strong communication and presentation skills and ability to develop relationships with partner organizations in aid and development field as well as various government agencies
• Self-starter, able to achieve results with little supervision and to work independently

TECHNICAL SKILLS AND KNOWLEDGE:

• Understanding of fundraising and donor policy trends, humanitarian principles and established international standards in humanitarian settings for refugees and other marginalised populations, especially children and youth
• Knowledge, understanding and experience of navigating complex funding structures and donor architecture
• Knowledge of a variety of government and foundation funding mechanisms

LANGUAGES:

• Fluency in spoken and written English

BONUS IF YOU’LL BRING (NOT ESSENTIAL):

• Additional experience with other donors such as African based foundations and humanitarian donors such as ECHO is desirable
• Proven track record in design and writing of winning grant proposals responding to grant solicitations in a limited amount of time
• Experience with technical programs in education and/or MHPSS
• Master’s degree in a related field

WHAT YOU’LL GET:

The opportunity to collaborate with an innovative global team who are passionate about working with children and youth. You will gain experience working for a globally recognized organization with a healthy culture premised on our Culture Code (accept everyone, make things happen, display courage, demonstrate care and be playful). You will be immersed in an environment where learning and development is encouraged and valued, and “play” is appreciated as a core avenue to building community.

• Competitive salary and benefits
• Flexible work arrangements (e.g. work from home and flex hours)
• 3 personal days per year
• 5 personal learning and development (L&D) days per year
• Maternity/paternity/parental leave top up and support
• Annual learning week
• Annual staff recognition awards
• Opportunity to connect with employees across our offices
• Opportunity to engage in global projects and initiatives
• Wellness programs
• Playful activities and events