Burundi: ECONOMIC EXPATRIATE ADVISOR

Since 2012 SKAT Consulting Ltd is implementing the project known as PROECCO (Promoting off–farm employment and income in the Great Lakes Region through climate responsive construction material production) funded by the Swiss Development Cooperation (SDC). The project is implemented through three coordination offices, one in Kigali City, a field coordination office for the Lake Kivu Zone in Kamembe, Rusizi District, responsible for the zone along Lake Kivu in Rwanda and also for South Kivu in RDC, and another office in Bujumbura, Burundi. The overall aim of the project is to minimise the impact of building material production on the environment while improving the livelihoods and working conditions of workers in the building material sector. The Project implementation involves a range of stakeholders, namely entrepreneurs in the building material sector, rural men and women employed in the sector, raw material suppliers, business service providers, national level and local authorities, vocational training institutions and other stakeholders.
In this context, Skat-PROECCO is seeking an experienced professional to fill the position of an ECONOMIC EXPATRIATE ADVISOR responsible for the coordination and day-to-day management of the Bujumbura Field Office.

General tasks:

• Responsible for the overall coordination of the Bujumbura Field Programme Office and for expert support to the project team, entrepreneurs and stakeholders in matters related to business, labour and sector intelligence;

The responsibilities of the position include:

• Contribute to the planning and coordination of activities in support of PROECCO project milestones, take the lead on planning efforts for activities related to cluster-building, branding and marketing;

• Provide project team and coaches with expert inputs on social, labour and economic issues in the East African context;

• Provide coaching to local trainers and entrepreneurs in business and labour issues;

• Support the establishment of 6-10 local Brick Federations in Burundi, Rwanda and South Kivu;

• Facilitation of the establishing of Modern Brick Industry Clusters in all 3 countries;

• Support the Coordination team in the development of projection models and other business tools for public and private sector building material industry stakeholders (e.g., investors, contractors, national and local authorities, etc.);

• Lead the development of construction sector/market monitoring methods and data verification procedures;

• Identify potential partners and opportunities for collaboration with key stakeholders from the local brick sector supply chain, from brokers to producers and/or contractors;

• Promote the PROECCO Project and the supported brickmakers at local trade affairs and other events in Bujumbura;

• Provide guidance to entrepreneurs and project economist in developing business plans;

• Support the establishment of a monitoring and evaluation system of all the relevant data of the PROECCO Project;

• Contribute to strengthening key links in the brick value chain by developing strategies in the areas of a) stakeholder outreach and education, b) marketing and product placement, and c) branding, labelling, certification and stocking;

• Provide guidance and build the capacities of the local team and ensure quality work in the field;

• Conduct regular exchange with the Kigali head project office;

• Identify external consultants to support team in gathering and analysing sector intelligence data;

• Lead the Branding Office and Information Access Point in Bujumbura;

Beginning of the assignment:**August 2017**

General qualifications required:

• Degree in social/economical sciences;

• Experience in social/labour/livelihood and/or and business development in Africa;

• Experiences in SME development and related Business Development Services;

• Experiences in Marketing, Branding and Entrepreneurship;

• Experiences in leading a local team comprised of technical staff and administration;

• Fluency in written and spoken French and English; knowledge of German would be an asset.

Preferred qualifications:

• Experience working on donor projects in conflict zones;

• Advanced knowledge of Microsoft Excel and statistical tools like SPSS or Stata.

Deadline for Submission of Application

Eligible and interested candidates should submit a letter of application and a detailed CV in English and French language and in electronic format not later than 1st of July 2017 to:

Skat Consulting Ltd., attn. Ms Violeta Zivanovic, Vadianstr. 42, CH-9000 St. Gallen, Switzerland; email violeta.zivanovic@skat.ch