
UNDP
Job Description
Saameynta: Scaling-Up Solutions to Displacement in Somalia is a joint UN programme which responds to large-scale displacement in Baidoa. This is to be done through urban planning, local taxation systems to raise revenues in support of local actions, housing, and economic development to generate livelihoods and employment. UNDP is responsible for actions in economic development.
Baidoa’s economy is severely influenced by insurgency. This affects access to farmland, water resources, movement of people, transit of goods, and infrastructure development. Travel in and out of Baidoa town is for many people only possible by air, with road access now curtailed for more than 10 years.
About 80% of employment in Baidoa is in agriculture, 17% in services, and 2% in industry. Trade, marketing, and services dominate while salaried employment is limited, with casual labour the norm. Almost all firms are micro and family-owned, although there is a handful of small companies and a few medium sized companies. Many livelihoods are found in agricultural trade.
It seems unlikely that manufacturing will grow while insurgency enclaves Baidoa. Informal taxation of goods entering and leaving Baidoa pushes up cost and means that goods made in Baidoa may not compete elsewhere in Somalia. Industry and construction’s contribution to GDP in Somalia (4%) is anyway not far below that in neighbouring countries.
Construction is a bellwether of the local economy with growing prosperity driving up demand for construction of houses and commercial premises. The sector is constrained by skills shortages and hence there is a need for vocational training for the construction industry. Hospitality is also a bellwether, with demand for hotel rooms in Baidoa city (as opposed to the secure rooms at the airport) mainly from business travellers.
Petty services scale to the local economy and have mainly neighbourhood markets. They are likely to remain informal since turnover is too low to justify formalisation. Petty services will form the core of necessity entrepreneurship that provides basic livelihoods for many. Interventions in support are unlikely to be required since this is mainly low skilled work, without investment needs, and with working capital from retained revenues.
UNIDO has established credit facilities in Beledweyne, Baidoa, Mogadishu and Kismayo, with UNDP funding in Baidoa and Beledweyne. These aim to correct limited bank lending to firms for investment and working capital. Shortage of bank loans means that businesses finance costs from revenues or loans from friends, family, other business contacts and from supplier credit. Commercial banks instead focus on short-term trade finance through guarantees (performance, shipping, and payment guarantees) and letters of credit. They also lend for cars and real estate. Financing costs are high, procedures complex, and usually without grace periods. The diversification of lending portfolios to include business financing outside trade will lead to growth in banking and finance and, prospectively, employment in the sector (which is predominantly salaried).
The support also includes business development services. UNIDO works with the Federal Ministry of Commerce and Industry and Ministries of Commerce and Industry at state-level in establishing Enterprise Development Units. Hosted by the local offices of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Baidoa, Mogadishu, Kismayo, and Beledweyne and with staff trained by UNIDO, they provide companies with support to start, rehabilitate and upgrade operations, access new technologies, and find markets and financing.
UNDP as one of the implementing agencies of the project Saameynta: Scaling-Up Solutions to Displacement in Somalia is seeking to recruit an Enterprise Development Assistant to be based in Baidoa. The Assistant works under the direct supervision of the UNDP Project Coordinator.
Duties and Responsibilities
Summary of Key Functions:
The Assistant will support the Project Coordnator design, implementation, and monitoring of support to enterprise development as part of UNDP’s actions on growth, livelihoods, and employment in Baidoa.
In doing this, s/he will:
Provide regularly updated information to Project Cooridator on policy and strategy by the SW State government and other public bodies on enterprise development in SW state.
Compile data on enterprise development in Baidoa and SW State. This will include support to the design and implementation of surveys for labour market needs, feasibility analysis, action planning and monitoring.
Identify and liaise with stakeholders in the public and private sector to collect information and to facilitate discussions with UNDP staff and consultants face-to-face and online.
Contribute to periodic project reports, preparing briefs on specified actions as required.
Institutional Arrangement
The Incumbent will report directly to the UNDP Saameynta Project Coordinator
Skills and Qualifications
Core Competencies:
- Achieve Results -LEVEL 1: Plans and monitors own work, pays attention to details, delivers quality work by deadline
- Think Innovatively -LEVEL 1: Open to creative ideas/known risks, is pragmatic problem solver, makes improvements
- Learn Continuously – LEVEL 1: Open minded and curious, shares knowledge, learns from mistakes, asks for feedback
- Adapt with Agility- LEVEL 1: Adapts to change, constructively handles ambiguity/uncertainty, is flexible
- Act with Determination -LEVEL 1: Shows drive and motivation, able to deliver calmly in face of adversity, confident
- Engage and Partner- LEVEL 1: Demonstrates compassion/understanding towards others, forms positive relationships
- Enable Diversity and Inclusion- LEVEL 1: Appreciate/respect differences, aware of unconscious bias, confront discrimination
Cross-Functional & Technical competencies
- Business Direction & Strategy- Business Acumen: Ability to understand and deal with a business situation in a manner that is likely to lead to a good outcome. Knowledge and understanding of the operational frameworks in the organization and ability to make good judgments and quick decisions within such frameworks
- Business Direction & Strategy- Entrepreneurial Thinking: Ability to create clarity around UNDP value proposition to beneficiaries and partners and to develop service offers responding to client needs based on UNDP’s organizational priorities and mandate
- Business Management Communication: Ability to communicate in a clear, concise, and unambiguous manner both through written and verbal communication; to tailor messages and choose communication methods depending on the audience. Ability to manage communications internally and externally, through media, social media, and other appropriate channels
- Business Management Digital Awareness and Literacy: Ability and inclination to rapidly adopt new technologies, either through skillfully grasping their usage or through understanding their impact and empowering others to use them as needed.
Business Management Customer Satisfaction/Client Management: Ability to respond timely and appropriately with a sense of urgency, provide consistent solutions, and deliver timely and quality results and/or solutions to fulfil and understand the real customers’ needs. Provide inputs to the development of customer service strategy. Look for ways to add value beyond clients’ immediate requests. Ability to anticipate client’s upcoming needs and concerns
Education
- High school Certificate
- Bachelor’s degree in economics with relevant field is desirable but is not a requirement.
Experience
- Minimum of 5 years (with High school certificate) or 2 years (Bachelor degree) of progressively relevant experience and working in an enterprises based in Baidoa, preferably
Required skills
- Enterprise development
- Experience in the usage of computers and office software packages (MS Word, Excel, etc.)
- Experience working with UN organizations / international NGOs in Somalia or other countries of the region
- Experience in projects implementation in post-conflict situations
- Proven ability to deliver results in complex and challenging environments, and to translate strategies and good practices into practical and feasible solutions
Desired skills in addition to the competencies
- Support to economic sustainable growth, livelihoods, and employment projects
Language
- Fluency in written and spoken Somali and English.
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