Partnership and Capacity Development Officer

Role Purpose:

The Partnership and Capacity Development Officer is responsible for strengthening partnerships and building the institutional and technical capacities of sub-grantees (i.e., CSO implementing partners), government stakeholders, civil society organizations (CSOs) and civil society platforms, and community-based organizations (CBOs) to support the effective implementation of the Ethiopia Local Governance Project (ELGP). The position provides technical support on participatory governance, accountability, citizen engagement using Integrated Community-Based Participatory Planning (ICBPP), and Gender and Social Equity (GSE) approaches.

The officer leads partner assessments (i.e., capacity gap assessments), capacity development initiatives, mentoring, and performance monitoring to ensure quality implementation and sustainability. The role promotes collaboration, learning, and local ownership while ensuring compliance with donor and HELVETAS requirements. The officer contributes to monitoring, documentation, reporting, and knowledge management and supports conflict-sensitive and inclusive project implementation. Based in Bahir Dar, the position supports project activities in both the Amhara and Sidama regions.

Key Responsibilities:

Strengthen Partnerships and Local Ownership for Effective Project Delivery:

• Participate in the identification, due diligence, selection and onboarding of sub-grantees in accordance with HELVETAS policies and donor requirements.
• Establish and maintain productive working relationships with local CSOs, CBOs, government signatories, councils, technical bureaus, and other key stakeholders.
• Support the development and implementation of partnership management plans, partnership agreements, and performance monitoring mechanisms.
• Facilitate coordination platforms, learning events, interface meetings, GO-NGO forums, communities of practice (CoP), and other multi-stakeholder engagements.
• Promote collaboration, experience sharing, and joint problem-solving among project partners and stakeholders.
• Ensure partners understand and comply with project objectives, donor requirements, safeguarding standards, gender and social inclusion commitments, and HELVETAS procedures.
• Contribute to partner performance reviews and support implementation of agreed improvement actions.

Build Institutional and Technical Capacities of Partners and Local Governance Actors:

• Conduct organizational capacity assessments, training needs assessments, and partner performance analyses to identify institutional and technical capacity gaps.
• Design, organize, facilitate, and monitor capacity-building interventions for sub-grantees, councils, CBOs, CSOs, citizen platforms, and relevant government actors.
• Provide technical guidance and coaching on participatory governance approaches, including Integrated Community-Based Participatory Planning (ICBPP), accountability mechanisms, citizen engagement, gender and social inclusion, advocacy, and leadership.
• Support councils and government institutions to strengthen oversight, accountability, financial transparency, and participatory planning practices.
• Develop, adapt, and disseminate training materials, guidelines, tools, and learning resources.
• Provide continuous follow-up, mentoring, and technical backstopping to ensure that acquired skills and approaches are effectively institutionalized and applied.
• Promote organizational learning, sustainability, and local ownership by strengthening existing structures and systems.

Ensure Quality Implementation, Learning and Accountability of Partnership and Capacity Development Interventions:

• Monitor and document partnership and capacity development activities against approved work plans, budgets, indicators, and project targets.
• Follow up and support sub-grantees to ensure timely and quality implementation of project activities and compliance requirements.
• Identify capacity-related, operational, partnership, and contextual risks and recommend appropriate mitigation measures.
• Work closely with the Governance Officer, MEAL Officer, Project Manager, and partners to track progress, measure results, and improve performance.
• Document lessons learned, success stories, innovations, and best practices from project implementation.
• Prepare technical reports, assessments, capacity development plans, partnership updates, and contributions to monthly, quarterly, semi-annual, and annual reports.
• Support joint monitoring visits, review meetings, evaluations, audits, and learning events, and ensure findings are incorporated into future programming.

Educational Studies and Further Training:

• Bachelor’s degree in development studies, Sociology, Social Work, Political Science, Public Administration, Governance and Development Studies, Law, Project Management, Rural Development, Community Development, or other relevant social science fields.
• Master’s degree in a relevant field is an advantage.
• Additional training in partnership management, organizational capacity development, local governance, decentralization, social accountability, civic engagement, conflict-sensitive programming, Do No Harm (DNH), Gender and Social Equity (GSE), safeguarding, and project cycle management is desirable
• Certification or specialized training in facilitation, coaching, institutional development, monitoring and evaluation, or adult learning methodologies is an asset.

Professional Experience:

• Minimum 5 years of relevant professional experience in governance, partnership management, capacity development, or community development.
• Experience working with CSOs, CBOs, government institutions, and development partners.
• Experience managing and supporting sub-grantees and partnerships.
• Proven experience conducting organizational capacity assessments and delivering capacity-building interventions.
• Experience in donor-funded development programs.
• Experience working in conflict-affected, fragile, or volatile security environments.
• Experience promoting citizen participation, transparency, and accountability.
• Experience with social accountability initiatives (e.g., Ethiopia Social Accountability Project) is desirable.
• Knowledge and experience of Integrated Community-Based Participatory Planning (ICBPP) and/or similar participatory governance approaches is an an added value.
• Experiences of applying gender and social equity (GSE) and conflict-sensitive project management (CSPM) or do no harm (DNH) principles is required.

Organizational and Methodological Competencies:

• Strong partnership and stakeholder engagement skills.
• Competence in organizational assessment and capacity development planning.
• Strong training, coaching, mentoring, and facilitation skills.
• Sound project planning, implementation, monitoring, and reporting skills.
• Ability to analyze institutional performance and identify capacity gaps.
• Experience applying results-based management approaches.
• Strong analytical, documentation, and report-writing skills.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities and meet deadlines.
• Understanding of governance, accountability, and citizen engagement approaches.
• Ability to integrate conflict sensitivity, gender & social equity (GSE), and safeguarding into project implementation.

Leadership Competencies:

• Demonstrates initiative and accountability for results.
• Ability to influence and facilitate change without direct authority.
• Build trust and constructive partnerships with diverse stakeholders.
• Promotes collaboration, learning, and knowledge sharing.
• Supports capacity development and empowerment of partners.
• Make informed decisions in complex situations.
• Demonstrates adaptability and resilience.
• Promotes transparency and ethical conduct.
• Encourages innovation and continuous improvement.
• Manages challenges and conflicts constructively.

Social and Personal Competencies:

• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills.
• Strong facilitation and networking abilities.
• High integrity and professional conduct.
• Commitment to inclusion, participation, and local ownership.
• Sensitivity to cultural, political, and social contexts.
• Ability to work independently and within multidisciplinary teams.
• Strong problem-solving and negotiation skills.
• Commitment to Gender and Social Equity principles.
• Ability to work effectively under pressure.
• Willingness to travel frequently within project areas.
• Excellent written and spoken English and Amharic Languages.
• Knowledge of Sidaminya language is an advantage.

IT Skills:

• Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and Teams).
• Experience using digital data collection, reporting, and knowledge management platforms (e.g., Kobo Toolbox, Power BI).
• Knowledge of digital solutions that support participatory planning, citizen engagement, accountability, and grievance redress mechanisms.