Associate Program Manager, Youth Engagement

About Mastercard Foundation

Mastercard Foundation is a global foundation based in Toronto, Canada with several offices in Africa. Our programs promote financial inclusion and advance education and learning in Africa, primarily for young people, and in Canada for Indigenous youth. The Foundation was established in 2006 through the generosity of Mastercard when it became a public company. From inception, the Foundation was designed to be a separate entity and independent from Mastercard. Our policies, operations, and funding decisions are made by our President and Board of Directors.

The Foundation believes that youth employment is key to unlocking prosperity, both for youth and their societies. Enabling young women and men from disadvantaged communities to secure dignified and fulfilling work will ensure inclusive development and economic growth in Africa.

Values are timeless, they transcend and rise above all. They guide everything we do, as employees of the Foundation.  We share a common vision of a world where everyone has the opportunity to learn and prosper. We make mistakes, we reflect, and we grow so that we can impact our world – it’s why we are here. We are ambitious and driven. We encourage you to bring your bold ideas, curiosity, and expertise to your work. We laugh at ourselves and with each other. We are a team. Our journey together makes our impact even more meaningful.

THE POSITION

Reporting to the Senior Program Manager, Youth Engagement and Networks, this newly created role within the Youth Engagement (YE) team will support the development of the Foundation’s youth engagement strategies and programs. Mastercard Foundation is committed to keeping youth at the center of all that we do, and therefore has created a team to support the efforts to engage young people in our programming. Specific activities include the building of alumni networks within countries, elevating youth voices and insights within our programs and supporting young people’s initiatives and ideas. This role will join a dynamic team looking to plan, organize and implement this alumni strategy. This role will be responsible for building and managing local partnerships, supporting the alumni leadership committees and ongoing tasks to make this work successful.

The successful candidate for this role will be proactive, collaborative, team player who is passionate about young engagement and community mobilization.

Specific Responsibilities

Alumni Engagement

• Working alongside YE team to provide oversight and guidance to the national alumni leadership teams.
• Planning and implementing the leadership onboarding week, which includes supporting agenda development, logistics, and communication with attendees.
• Supporting the Manager, Alumni Engagement on the oversight and implementation of the national fellowship program.
• Guiding and supporting to national committees to build connections with private, public, and civil networks.

Partnership Management

• Supporting the Manager, Youth Engagement in the sourcing of local African-based organizations to partner with and advance the objectives of the alumni strategy and country programs.
• Providing support to country office in areas of youth engagement and other technical support as needed and applicable.
• Developing training, programming and guidance alongside local partners that will support the Foundation in its programmatic objectives.
• Managing day-to-day communication and needs of partners while implementing strategic activities.

Events

• Supporting the logistics and coordination of alumni regional events in East Africa. Tasks will include creating the agenda, booking speakers, booking venues, communicating with attendees and organizing travel logistics for participants and speakers.
• Supporting Mastercard Foundation teams to feature youth at events, either as participants or speakers.
• Other duties as assigned.

Qualifications

• Degree/Diploma in a related discipline such as International Development, Community Engagement and/or Education.
• Minimum 4-6 years of relevant experience supporting young people, community mobilization, events and communications, preferably in a global context.
• Strong coordination skills and understanding of project management.
• Ability to communicate effectively with a broad range of stakeholders, including both internally and externally.
• Ability to interact across functional, organizational, and cultural lines and capable of working comfortably with all levels of individuals.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office suite (Word, PowerPoint and Excel). Familiar with Adobe Acrobat.
• Excellent written and spoken communication skills, proofreading skills with a high attention to detail.
• Excellent organizational skills and demonstrated ability to handle multiple tasks simultaneously.
• Ability to make sound judgement decisions.
• Ability to meet tight timelines and to work in a high-paced work environment.
• Ability to troubleshoot on the spot and in the moment.
• Bilingual (English/French) is an asset.
• High level of integrity and ethical standards.

TO APPLY

Please email your resume and cover letter explaining your interest in the position to humanresources@mastercardfdn.org, indicating “Associate Program Manager, Youth Engagement” in the subject line of your email. We appreciate your interest and advise that only candidates selected for an interview will be contacted directly.

The Mastercard Foundation values the unique skills and experiences each individual brings to the Foundation and are committed to creating and maintaining an inclusive and accessible environment for everyone.

Completion of satisfactory business references and/or proof of education, as well as background checks (criminal, credit and social media) are essential conditions of employment.

If you require accommodation during the recruitment and selection process, please contact the People and Culture Department at humanresources@mastercardfdn.org. We will work with you to provide a positive recruitment experience in a confidential manner.