Economic Recovery Officer

The Economic Recovery Officer is responsible for implementing DRC's economic recovery program interventions in Assosa, Ethiopia, focusing on livelihoods, financial inclusion, and market systems development. The role involves managing Village Savings and Loan Associations (VSLAs), income-generating activities, and facilitating linkages to financial services and private sector actors to promote sustainable livelihoods and economic integration.

Responsibilities

• Provide technical support to the program manager in planning, coordination, and implementation of economic recovery activities, as well as supporting with implementation plans.
• Lead the expansion and sustainability of Village Savings and Loan Associations (VSLAs), including mentor training and ongoing support.
• Facilitate the planning and management of income-generating activities (IGAs) and promote VSLA/IGA strategies among communities and stakeholders.
• Facilitate delivery of integrated training packages covering entrepreneurship, market readiness, financial literacy, legal rights, and technical skills.
• Manage beneficiary identification & oversee distribution of startup kits, business grants, & livelihood inputs, ensuring compliance with targeting criteria.
• Provide technical support in developing of work plans, set targets, manage and establish performance measurement standards for effective program operations.
• Prepare periodical activity plans and field-level reports for submission to the Program Manager.
• Conduct mapping and analysis of market systems, private service providers (PSPs), and financial institutions to identify opportunities and barriers for refugees and host communities.
• Facilitate formal linkages between mature VSLA groups and Microfinance Institutions (MFIs), banks, or Digital Financial Services (DFS) platforms to promote financial inclusion.
• Work with the program manager to identify and engage private sector actors who are inclusive or willing to work with vulnerable groups as customers, suppliers, or employers.
• Work with the program manager to design market based solutions to address barriers to women’s economic participation, including workplace safety and mobility challenges.
• Work in collaboration multi-stakeholder with government bodies, UNHCR, IRC, NGOs, private sector actors, and financial service providers to harmonize interventions.
• Work closely with consortium partners (e.g., MCMDO, EWLA, MTI) to coordinate field activities and ensure smooth referrals.
• Apply inclusive systems programming principles to leverage local actors and structures for improved resilience across economic, social, and environmental systems.
• Collaborate with technical teams to build resilient and nutritious food systems through climate-smart agriculture interventions.
• Participate in local coordination platforms (Livelihoods, Protection, Economic Recovery working groups) and represent DRC in relevant field-level meetings.
• Provide tailored business development support and grant facilitation for income-generating activities, prioritizing women-led enterprises and micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs).
• Coordinate integrated training programs on entrepreneurship, legal rights, market readiness, financial literacy, and vocational skills based on labor market assessments.
• Conduct Training of Trainers (ToT) sessions for VSLA mentors and community facilitators covering methodology, soft skills, protection, and financial literacy.
• Provide technical supervision, daily guidance, and ongoing coaching to Economic Recovery Assistants.
• Build capacity of local partners and community-based structures to ensure long-term program sustainability.
• Utilize environmental and conflict sensitivity tools (e.g., Nexus Environmental Assessment Tool) during program design and implementation.
• Use monitoring data to track project progress, identify challenges early, and recommend adaptive management solutions to the Program Manager.
• Contribute to the preparation of high-quality weekly, monthly, and donor reports by providing accurate field data and narrative inputs.
• Document and share success stories, lessons learned, and best practices from the field.

Requirements

• Minimum 3 years’ experience in livelihoods, economic recovery, microenterprise development, market systems development (MSD), or financial inclusion programs with proven exposure in refugee, IDP, or host community contexts.
• Strong understanding and practical application of the Markets4Poor (M4P) approach and market systems development facilitation.
• Experience in designing and implementing financial inclusion initiatives, income generating activities (IGAs), VSLA & cooperative development programs.
• Strong knowledge of gender and protection mainstreaming in livelihoods and economic recovery programs.
• Proven skills in community mobilization, training facilitation, and partnership coordination.
• Good knowledge of local market dynamics, informal finance mechanisms, and private sector engagement.
• Excellent communication and reporting skills in English and Amharic.
• Strong organizational, time management, and interpersonal skills including working with diverse staff and stakeholders.
• Proficient in Microsoft Office, internet, email, and Windows.
• Personal integrity, ethics, and confidentiality in professional conduct.
• BA in Rural Development, Agriculture Economics, Development Management, Accounting and Finance, Agriculture, Rural Development, Entrepreneurship, Business Administration, Cooperative and SME Development, or other relevant fields.
• Proficient in English language.
• Knowledge of local language is an advantage.

Skills

• Livelihood Programming
• Economic Recovery
• Microenterprise Development
• Market Systems Development
• Markets4Poor Approach
• Financial Inclusion Knowledge
• Income-Generating Activities
• VSLA Development
• Cooperative Development
• Gender Mainstreaming
• Protection Mainstreaming
• Social Mobilization
• Training Facilitation
• Partnership Coordination
• Local Market Dynamics
• Informal Finance Mechanisms
• Private Sector Engagement
• Microsoft Office Suite
• Report Writing
• Time Management

Languages

English, Amharic