Project Assistant

The Project Assistant will provide essential financial, logistical, and administrative support to the project "Safeguarding Zanzibar’s Forest and Coastal Habitats for Multiple Benefits" implemented by the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation, Natural Resources and Livestock in partnership with UNDP. The role supports project planning, financial management, procurement, monitoring, reporting, and coordination to ensure effective implementation and achievement of conservation and development targets.

Responsibilities

• Support implementation of project activities in line with the approved Project Document and Annual Work Plans (AWPs).
• Assist in the preparation, consolidation, and revision of AWPs, budgets, and implementation schedules.
• Compile and organize project data and information to support planning, monitoring and reporting.
• Support financial management processes, including budget tracking, preparation of payment requests and monitoring of advances and liquidations.
• Assist in monitoring budget utilization and flag variances or risks to the Project Manager.
• Contribute to the preparation of financial and narrative reports, including quarterly, annual, and GEF reporting inputs.
• Support implementation and tracking of the Annual Procurement Plan (APP).
• Assist in procurement processes, including preparation of technical specifications and solicitation documents, vendor follow-up and contract tracking.
• Maintain procurement records and ensure compliance with UNDP procurement procedures.
• Support inventory management, asset tracking, and verification processes.
• Maintain complete, accurate, and compliant project documentation in accordance with UNDP rules and POPP procedures.
• Maintain project logs, including risk logs, issue logs and action trackers.
• Support monitoring of project progress against the results framework and agreed indicators.
• Ensure that project documentation is audit-ready and compliant with UNDP internal control requirements.
• Assist in preparation of inputs for Project Steering Committee reports, GEF Project Implementation Reports and other corporate reporting requirements.
• Provide secretariat support for PSC meetings, technical working groups, missions, and workshops.
• Prepare agendas, meeting materials, minutes, and follow-up action matrices.
• Coordinate travel and logistics for project staff, consultants, and stakeholders, including travel authorizations and related arrangements.
• Support coordination with government counterparts, UNDP units, and project stakeholders.
• Maintain stakeholder databases and communication records.
• Maintain organized project records, including reports and documentation.
• Support knowledge management, training, and capacity-building activities, including capturing lessons learned.
• Perform other duties within their functional profile as deemed necessary for the efficient functioning of the Office and the Organization.

Requirements

• Secondary education is required.
• OR University degree (Bachelor’s degree) in Project Management, Environmental Studies, Natural Resources, Administration, Development Studies or related fields will be given due consideration, but is not a requirement.
• Minimum five (5) years (with secondary education) or two (2) years (with bachelor’s degree) of relevant professional experience in the field of project administration, logistics, M&E support, operations or related areas.
• Experience in the use of computers, office software packages (MS Word, Excel, etc.) and web-based management systems, and advanced knowledge of spreadsheet and database packages.
• Experience working with government, UN agencies or donor funded projects (desired).
• Experience in preparation of financial reports and overviews (desired).
• Experience using tools of monitoring and evaluation (desired).
• Experience in project management processes (desired).
• Experience in procurement procedures of national / international organizations (desired).

Skills

• Project Administration
• Logistical Support
• Monitoring and Evaluation
• Operations Support
• Financial Reporting
• Spreadsheet Software Knowledge
• Database Management
• Procurement Procedures
• Project Management Processes
• Office Applications
• Web-based Management Systems

Languages

English, Kiswahili