Project Associate at International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES)

PRIMARY FUNCTION/PURPOSE:

The Project Associate is responsible for supporting the planning and activities of the gender and Inclusion projects for IFES Nigeria, specifically the Women in Politics (WIP) component, as well as overseeing the CSO-led LGA elections advocacy component for the IFES SEAT project. Additionally, the Project Associate will assist in monitoring and evaluation support to the Senior
Monitoring and Evaluation Officer. The role includes supporting the civil society work for IFES in a timely fashion and within the budget of the IFES-Nigeria field office

MAJOR DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

Technical Support

• Act as a thought partner to the gender and inclusion officer, offering innovative/creative ideas or solutions to contribute to the overall success of projects.
• Support the Gender Officer in planning and implementing activities regarding gender equity.
• Conduct assessments of legal frameworks, policy documents, and initiatives to assess their impacts on women and other marginalized groups.
• Document and present high-quality field reports of unit activities and events to be reviewed and included in quarterly and annual reports.
• Support in managing CSOs/organizations that are being sub-granted.
• Co-facilitate quarterly partner review meetings.
• Develop draft proposals/concept notes for the gender officer to review.
• Assist the gender officer to keep track of synergy between the gender unit and other units.
• Provide advice on international best practices to reflect gender equity and inclusion principles and practices pertaining to electoral management.
• Provide oversight, monitoring, and evidencing of actions taken by a focal CSO to be managed by the assistant
• Support in ensuring that monthly reports from partners are submitted, collated, and filed in the shared drive.
• Responsible for updating the tracker on activities from CSOs – dates started, ended, reports submitted, pending, etc.
• Monitor YIAGA Africa sub-award. Attend sub-grant planning and working group meetings and report on their progress.
• Act as the primary contact for the YIAGA Africa CSO LGA elections led project.
• Perform other tasks assigned by the Supervisor, Deputy Country Director, and/or Country Director

Monitoring and Evaluation Support

• Assist the Senior Monitoring and Evaluation Officer in developing and implementing M&E frameworks and tools.
• Support the collection, analysis, and reporting of data related to project activities and outcomes.
• Provide logistical and administrative support for M&E activities, including field visits and data collection exercises.
• Contribute to the development of M&E reports, ensuring accuracy and timeliness.
• Assist in training project staff and partners on M&E procedures and best practices.
• Help ensure that M&E findings are integrated into project planning and decision-making processes.

Operational Support

• Provide logistics support for meetings/workshops, including but not limited to, identifying workshop venues, developing and distributing invitations, taking attendance on time, and following up with financial disbursements from finance.
• Work with the gender officer to draft meeting/workshop invitations and program agendas.
• Prepare and distribute minutes of partner meetings and follow up to ensure action items have been taken forward by the people responsible.
• Ensure accurate and timely adherence to procurement processes.
• Provide necessary support to and supervise the work of YIAGA Africa for IFES Nigeria and serve as a firewall on the SEAT Project for the State  Independent Electoral Commission support.

Qualification and Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in political science, social science, law, or a related field.
• Minimum of 2 years’ experience.
• Experience in the democracy and governance field preferred.
• Proven ability to solve problems creatively, correctly, and in a timely manner.
• Ability to follow procedures, meet deadlines, and achieve desired tasks.
• Ability to take instructions and provide needed assistance as required
• Strong interpersonal skills and extremely resourceful.
• Familiarity with USAID, FCDO, and other donor project management policies.
• Strong attention to detail.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office and Excel required.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills.

LANGUAGE SKILLS: Proficiency in English language required.

TRAVEL: Travel is required.