Entrepreneurship in the territories: is it the right time?
CONTEXT
Would you like to work on projects that make sense and have a real impact?
Do you want to work towards a fair and sustainable energy transition? Then join us!
Set up in 1976, Geres is a French based international development NGO which works to improve the living conditions of the poorest and tackle climate change and its impacts. As a grassroots actor, Geres considers the energy transition as a major lever in all its actions. In order to drive societal change, Geres promotes the development and dissemination of innovative and local solutions, supports climate-energy policies and actions, and encourages everyone to commit to Climate Solidarity by taking action and supporting vulnerable populations.
In West Africa, Geres has been working mainly in the sphere of energy poverty and access thereof, development of productive use of electricity and support for SMEs, energy efficiency in building, and overall better natural resource management, following as much as possible inclusive market-based approaches and access to finance.
Geres is currently implementing projects in Benin, Mali, Niger, Senegal and Togo, and our main donors in West Africa are European Union, AFD (French Agency for Development), World Bank and private foundations.
The recruitment for this position is concomitant with the opening of a new Geres representation in Sierra Leone from the beginning of 2025, in the wake of a new 4-year project financed by AFD (French Development Agency) with 4.8 million euros for budget, project named “Energy 4 Access”.
For Geres, acting in this new country is an important strategic issue, and it will be necessary to meet challenges of a new installation in a country that accumulates many difficulties.
Among the challenges to be met in 2025, it will be necessary :
- to obtain authorizations from national authorities to operate in the country as an INGO,
- to recruit a competent team invested in our actions,
- In collaboration with an administrative and financial manager, set-up the administrative, financial, logistical ans sceurity processes in Freetown and in two secondary cities close to the project,
- while launching the “Energy 4 Access”project’s activities starting by a first step dedicated to fine tune the project based on participatory work with all stakeholders and potential partners.
With the lowest rate of access to electricity in West Africa and a high poverty rate, the populations and businesses of Sierra Leone need support to ensure the sustainability of their productive activities.
The overall objective of the project is therefore to contribute to the low-carbon economic development of rural areas in Sierra Leone, by promoting productive uses of electricity (PUE), particularly in the agricultural sector, and energy efficiency.
Through this project Geres will work in 5 places in Sierra Leone bringing its previous experience : dependently of the local context configuration, Geres will determine either it is more relevant i) to built some autonomous minigrids exclusively dedicated to host local micro-entreprises or to make micro-entreprises benefiting from a connection to electricity by mini-grid already existing and opering in Sierra Leone as concessionaires recognized by the State. Working with these private operators already established locally will allow them to optimize the energy consumption of their power plants. In addition, by facilitating SMSEs productive electrical equipment acquisition Geres will act in synergy with existing local economic players and serving the development of local populations.
Geres, a committed organisation !
In accordance with our ethical charter, we apply the following principles:
➔ Respect for the environment
➔ Improving living conditions
➔ Respect for cultures and ways of life
➔ Respect for the principles of fairness and transparency
➔ Respect for legality and employees' rights
➔ Principle of safety
In practice, we strive on a daily basis, and therefore also in our practices to:
⚤ Promoting respect for women's rights and combating gender-based discrimination. We have also introduced an internal policy to combat sexist behaviour and sexual harassment.
☕ Maintain and develop cohesion between our employees through social events organised by a dedicated committee.
💡 Seek to improve and innovate, including in our administrative management.
🔎 Respect the law and employees' rights : transparency in our recruitment process, company agreements.
Mission
The Country Representative/Project Manager will have the mission of launching Geres activities in Sierra Leone, by structuring the country representation from a logistical, legal, HR and communication point of view. Meanwhile, She/He will have to implement the Energy4Acces project, starting with a 6-month first period aimed at carrying out some territorial and energy uses diagnostics, to better understand SMSEs activities, business plans and needs, at having a better knowledge of existing mini-grid operators results depending of the local economic dynamics.
Under the hierarchical management and with the support of the West Africa Director, She/He will be in charge of declining and rolling out Geres regional strategy at national level with the project team. She/he will represent Geres in country, established and maintained administrative and institutional links. She/he will liaise with the NGO and IO networks, and coordinate Geres communication and advocacy towards national and local authorities. She/he will also be in charge of security.
With the operational support of a team of around twenty nationals and internationals employees that must be recruited, She/He will manage the country team, and will directly lead the Energy 4 Access project as Project Manager. She/He will specifically be defining relevant objectives/activities and ensuring their achievement, through proper project cycle management, efficient financial management & smooth partnerships management. She/He will assure representation towards donor and ensuring the quality & impact of the project. She/He will ensure compliance, quality of implementation, monitoring and reporting.
She/He will work in close coordination with West Africa Financial Controller and technical experts based in HQ.
activities
As Energy4Access Project Manager:
1/Oversee Project Cycle Management
-Lead and support project staff in planning, coordinating, implementing and monitoring activities
-Support the monitoring and evaluation process, in particular by developing methodologies M&E tools to measure the results and impacts of the projects (particularly highlight gender’s positive impacts indicators)
-Smoothly tackle implementation constraints and put in place the necessary corrective measures in consultation with stakeholders (including authorities, partners, and beneficiaries)
-Supervise and ensure compliance in the use of external service providers and internal support missions
-Ensure quality and timely preparation of internal and external reports
-Ensure and maintain a knowledge management system, incl. archival and sharing, enabling capitalization
-Ensure ownership and capacity building of the team across the entire project cycle management
2/Manage project partnerships
-Lead, monitor, assess and facilitate the work with the implementing partners; Understand their mandate and agendas, nurture their involvement in the project
-Ensuring commitments of Gerestowards its partners are dully filled and reciprocally, that project partners abide by their respective commitments towards Geres
-Prevent and, if need be, solve issues and disputes with partners
3/Supervise administrative, logistical, and financial management of the project
-Develop and/or guarantee a framework of operations and responsibilities between the stakeholders in accordance with the rules of the financial partners
-Supervise the planning and delivery of financial expenditures and accounting flows in collaboration with the Administrative and Finance Officer
-Communicate to teams and ensure compliance with logistical, administrative, and financial procedures
As Sierra Leone Country Representative:
1/Organizing and structuring the launch of Geres in Sierra Leone
-Obtaining administrative and legal authorizations to operate as an INGO from the national authorities, concluding an MOU with the Ministry of Energy of Sierra Leone, obtaining work visas for expatriate staff, ensure mandatory tax and social security registrations
-Search for functional offices at the best price in Freetown and in 2 secondary cities close to the project activities, acquire activities equipments and vehicles necessary for the implementation of the project
-Structure the antenna's operating processes in all areas and have them applied by the team and ensure that all practices and processes are in line with the rules developed by the Finance and Admin Direction of Geres
-Prepare a security risk analysis and propose security plans, processes and rules in the respect of the Geres Security management Policy.
2/Structuring of human resources, team management, administrative and financial supervision
-Recruit the team for the HR structuring of the national representation and the implementation of the project, in accordance with the organization chart established for the project
-In line with Geres HR policy and for national colleagues, supervise the elaboration of the Country-level HR policy, submit it to Regional Direction/HR at HQ for validation
-Initiate a team dynamic committed to the success of Geres in Sierra Leone, ensure ownership of the team across the entire project cycle management, maintain a team atmosphere and ensure information flows amongst the members of the team, ensure the well-being and proper work conditions for the team
-Ensure hierarchical management of Sierra Leone team (integration, training, appraisal, workload, work planning and prioritisation); Develop skills and competencies, support and include members of national team
-Ensure the good management of offices related to Human Resources, logistics, administration, and finance/accounting. Make sure that the national legislation is duly respected
-Organise and regularly check the quality/consistency of the budget planning, disbursement plans, financial and accounting reporting
3/National representation, leading and animating the country strategy and partnerships
-Analyse the country context, strengths/weaknesses/challenges/opportunities; implement the country strategy in coherence with Geres Regional Strategy; evaluate and update if deemed necessary
-Relay key relevant information to Regional Director and HQ, liaise with resource persons at HQ and in other West African countries of intervention; monitor, assess, and facilitate current and prospective partnerships
-Facilitate the identification and formalisation of partnerships at country level, nurture the relationships ahead of funding opportunities in a long-term strategic perspective
-Ensure proactive and regular communication with institutional partners and development stakeholders, develop networks and identify strategic partnerships with donors, international NGOs, national entities, national and local authorities, private sector
-Manage the external communication of Geres in country, with the support of HQ Comms Department
4/Management of in-country Security
-Continuously assess and analyse context, key actors, and incidents; integrate relevant national networks follow-up on these contextual analyses (incl. political) and liaise with Regional Director and Executive Director
-Keep up to date the required security documents/processes, ensure proper diffusion to members of the team
-Ensure security, law and internal rules are respected in country and by everyone
-Manage incidents (with Executive Director for critical incidents), relay information to Regional Director and HQ
5/Fundraising & project portfolio development in coherence with the country strategy
-Perform prospective work and develop field understanding of the country
-Prospectively identify donors, donors’ trends & strategies and related funding opportunities
- Identify partnership opportunities in order to prepare swiftly concepts and consortium for calls for proposals
-Ensure & organise the development of funding proposals with the Regional Director and HQ
