Activity Specialist, Ghana

Project Background

The USAID Africa Trade and Investment (ATI) Activity is designed to bolster the U.S. Government’s ability to boost trade and investment to, from, and within the African continent. The continent-wide program is USAID’s flagship effort in support of the Prosper Africa initiative and will expand and accelerate two-way trade and investment between African nations and the United States.

Driven by market demand, ATI embraces innovative approaches to achieve its goals. ATI is designed as a small, core set of centrally coordinated technical and institutional support activities, and a large, flexible performance-based subcontracting and grants under contract facility designed to support the needs and opportunities that USAID Missions and the private sector identify.

Summary of Primary Duties

The Activity Specialist will possess both technical and administrative skills and capabilities to help drive DAI’s processes for grant and subcontract design, structuring & implementation management as well as budget management and financial forecasting. The Activity Specialist plays a pivotal role in evaluating, overseeing co-design and implementation of funded activities, with a focus on trade, investments, and improved business environment. Responsibilities include different facets of the activity design process, ensuring efficiency and success, encompasses prioritizing and reviewing applications, collaborating on with potential grantees throughout the application and implementation phase of the activities. The Activity Specialist will directly contribute to the co-design of grants applications, monitoring and evaluation of partners’ work, and communicating with ATI internal and external clients about implementation progress, results, and accomplishments. This role requires a proactive individual with experience working with private sector firms in facilitating trade and/or investment, it also requires a deep understanding of market trends, strong project management skills, and the ability to cultivate relationships with key stakeholders.

KEY DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

• Managing the grant application process by reviewing incoming applications for technical soundness and alignment with overarching ATI objectives and ensuring completeness of submission materials.
• Offering technical and process guidance to potential grantees on the application, eligibility criteria, and required documentation, supporting them to navigate the submission process effectively.
• Collect, analyze, interpret, and correlate industry/sector data to generate insights and recommendations for decision-making.
• Assist in designing and implementing monitoring and evaluation frameworks to track project progress, outcomes, and impact.
• Monitor the progress of grant-funded projects by collecting and analyzing project reports, tracking milestones, and ensuring compliance with grant requirements. Liaise with implementing parties to ensure proper M&E data capture and data quality to contribute to overall ATI project M&E reporting; and
• Assist in organizing and compiling all documentation provided by grantees to facilitate the evaluation of grant applications. This includes collating, reviewing, and verifying the completeness of the submitted documents and managing the overall submission process.
• Support knowledge management efforts for lessons learned, best practices, and success stories from the project implementation activities; Support development and review of technical deliverables (both contractual and from partnerships) and contribute to subsequent learning.
• Liaison between ATI and grantees, facilitating communication, addressing inquiries, and providing support as needed throughout the project lifecycle.
• Travel to review and monitor field activities as required.
• Carry out any other tasks as requested by the Activity Manager.

QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, Economics, International Development, or related field.
• 9+ years of experience working in/with the private sector facilitating trade and or investment or managing projects supporting firms to scale their capacity and operations. Demonstrated experience in managing complex budgets and multi-year programs preferred as well as managing budget, operations, and project management.
• Fluency in spoken and written English required.
• Fluency in French required.
• A background in project management, particularly within the context of grant-funded programs and working with the private sector actors.
• Strong analytical skills with the ability to collect, analyze, and interpret data related to grant applications, project progress, and outcomes.
• A customer-centric approach to understand and meet the needs of internal and external stakeholders. Providing timely support, responding to inquiries, and maintaining positive relationships.
• A solid understanding of financial principles and metrics, including budgeting, financial forecasting, and investments management.
• Proficiency in using Microsoft Office suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook) and other relevant software applications for data analysis, report generation, and communication purposes.
• Excellent communication, negotiation, and relationship-building skills, with the ability to engage effectively with diverse stakeholders, including private sector actors.
• Ability to work in a fast-moving, fluid team setting with multiple stakeholders.

LEVEL OF EFFORT/TIMELINE

This position is full-time with 40 working hours per week.

REPORTING

The Activity Specialist reports to the Senior Activity Specialist or designee.

ABOUT DAI

DAI is a global development company with corporate offices in the United States, the United Kingdom, EU, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Palestine and project operations worldwide. We tackle fundamental social and economic development problems caused by inefficient markets, ineffective governance, and instability. DAI works on the frontlines of global development. Transforming ideas into action—action into impact. We are committed to shaping a more livable world.

DAI and its employees are committed to confronting racism and holding ourselves accountable for positive change within the company and in the communities, cultures, and countries in which we live and work. DAI is committed to attracting and retaining the best employees from all races and backgrounds in our continued effort to become a better development partner.

DAI upholds the highest ethical standards. We are committed to the prevention of sexual exploitation, abuse, and harassment as well as other ethical breaches. All our positions are therefore subject to stringent vetting and reference checks.