WASH Secretariat Special Assistant

USAID CATALYZE MS4G WASH Secretariat Special Assistant 

About Palladium:

Palladium is a global company working to design, develop and deliver positive impact on the lives and livelihoods of people around the globe; broaden access to health, water, power, and infrastructure; build enduring, sustainable, and transformative institutions and market systems to address global challenges; and conserve the natural world. We operate in over 90 countries and have a workforce of 4,000 talented, motivated, and diverse staff of all religions, races, languages, and gender identities.

Project Background

Palladium International, LLC is implementing the $250 Million, 5-year USAID CATALYZE contract which offers a facilitated partnership model that will craft solutions to crowd in $2 Billion in blended finance (i.e., blended concessional and commercial finance) to USAID partner countries; it can work in any development sector or region. Launched in October 2019, CATALYZE is a buy-in mechanism that allows USAID Bureaus and Missions to efficiently deploy investment facilitation solutions that respond to the needs of specific sectors, issues, and geographies.

USAID CATALYZE Market Systems for Growth (MS4G) focuses on creating transformative outcomes in the food security and WASH sectors to benefit all Ethiopian people. To achieve these goals, the activity engages youth, mobilizes capital, increases access to finance, connects enterprises to markets, and supports stakeholders to self-advocate towards policy change which will promote opportunities for the private sector community. The project supports activities in Addis Ababa and secondary cities.

To strengthen the private sector in the food security and WASH sectors, MS4G uses a market-based approach to enhance enterprises’ performance, product/service delivery, and inclusion. The activities are designed to build institutional capacity, enhance knowledge and skill transfers through workforce development initiatives, advance the business enabling environment, accelerate digital transformations and scale best practices to increase productivity and quality.

 

This Opportunity:

The WASH Secretariat Special Assistant is responsible for supporting the operational and policy work of the Secretariat and will support development of the administrative and technical capacity of the secretariat. S/he provides office services by implementing administrative systems, procedures and policies and managing and documenting the Water and Energy Sectors Working Group Secretariat work and meetings.

Reporting and Supervision:

The WASH Secretariat Special Assistant will report to the CATALYZE: MS4G WESWG Secretariat Coordinator.

Primary Duties and Responsibilities: 

Specific responsibilities of CATALYZE MS4G WASH Secretariat Special Assistant include, but are not limited to:

• Maintain workflow by implementing cost reductions and efficiency enhancements; and developing reporting and documentation procedures.
• In consultation with the Coordinator, prepare provisional agenda for the secretariat and subgroup meetings
• Record minutes and decisions during the WESWG meetings and during the meetings of the subgroups, facilitate information sharing including upcoming missions and schedule of events, ideally by means of a website/email and other related duties as determined by the Chair of the WESWG and Co-Chairs of the subgroups
• Establish a repository of GoE policies, strategies, guidelines, laws and regulations and lessons from the past and on-going programming from WASH, WRM and Energy
• Establish and maintain database of donor, NGO and private sector supported WASH/WRM/Energy programming.
• Use Knowledge Management as a facilitating tool for monitoring and follow-up on the donor support, for solving coordination problems, for solving complementary and synergy with other sectors, for harmonizing databases, for spreading and gathering information needed in order to correctly implement WASH/WRM/Energy programmes and plans of the different government agencies, NGO’s, private sectors and donors etc
• Provide support to the WASH/WRM/Energy subgroups in their need of training and information support.
• Provide support for information gathering, analysis and sharing through undertaking knowledge events and showcasing best practice with a view to promoting policy dialogue and sharing best practice and lessons learnt.
• Create and revises systems and procedures by analyzing operating practices, record-keeping systems, forms control, budgetary and personnel requirements, implementing changes.
• Support the secretariat in the follow-up of routine activities in writing, compiling and filing documents
• Ensure operation of equipment by completing preventive maintenance requirements; calling for repairs, maintaining equipment inventories; evaluating new equipment and techniques.
• Provide information by answering questions and requests.
• Complete operational requirements by scheduling and assigning administrative projects; expediting work results.
• Contribute to team effort by accomplishing related results as needed.
• Facilitate communication between the secretariat, Donors, GOE WASH sectors.
• Assist the Secretariat Coordinator in organizing WASH Secretariat meetings, workshops, fora, and other convenings, including national events (eg MSP, JTR)
• Ensure all Donor Members and GOE stakeholders are invited and participate in the meeting.
• Support the development of reports for USAID, MS4G Country Director, donor partners, Ministry of Water and Energy and other GOE stakeholders.
• Coordinate subgroup activities and report the meeting outputs.
• Facilitate learning event field visit(s)
• Conduct other duties as assigned.

Equity, Diversity & Inclusion:

Palladium is committed to embedding equity, diversity, and inclusion into everything we do. We welcome applications from all sections of society and actively encourage diversity to drive innovation, creativity, success, and good practice. We positively welcome and seek to ensure we achieve diversity in our workforce; and that all job applicants and employees receive equal and fair treatment regardless of their background or personal characteristics.

These include: (but are not limited to) socio-economic background, age, race, gender identity and expression, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation, disability, nationality, veteran, marital or Indigenous status.

Should you require any adjustments or accommodations to be made due to a disability or you are a neurodivergent individual or for any other circumstance, please email our team at accessibility@thepalladiumgroup.com and we will be in touch to discuss.

Safeguarding – We define Safeguarding as “the preventative action taken by Palladium to protect our people, clients and the communities we work with from harm”. We are committed to ensuring that all children and adults who come into contact with Palladium are treated with respect and are free from abuse.  All successful candidates will be subject to an enhanced selection process including safeguarding-focused interviews and a rigorous due diligence process.