Business Incubation Officer

Job Opportunities:

Senior Business Incubation Officer and Business Incubation Officer

Who we are:

Cadmus International UK Limited in partnership with Imani Consultants Limited, commenced implementation of Zantchito Entrepreneurship and Access to Finance in October 2022. Zantchito Entrepreneurship and Access to Finance (hereafter Zantchito Entrepreneurship) is a business incubation support programme under the Zantchito Skills for Jobs apex programme. It is financed by the European Union (EU) in Malawi and coordinated by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Malawi office and the Government of Malawi. The objective of the programme is to promote entrepreneurial culture, sustainable enterprise creation and decent, formal jobs.

Zantchito Entrepreneurship aims to enhance pre-incubation, incubation, post-incubation support and the provision of Business Development Services (BDS) to Technical, Entrepreneurial, and Vocational Training (TEVET) graduates and Micro and Small Enterprises (MSEs).

Reporting to the Team Leader, Zantchito Entrepreneurship is looking to recruit one (01) full time Senior Business Incubation Officer and one (01) Business Incubation Officer to be based in Lilongwe and in Blantyre – to support the on-going implementation of the programme.

Business Incubation Officer: What you’ll contribute:

The Business Incubation Officer will be responsible for undertaking the following activities:

• Verification of milestone claims submitted by business incubators (as set out in their individual UNDP contracts) and confirmation that documentation is as per the requirements of the contract.
• Supporting the development of incubate support plans and the provision of input for the revision of incubate business plans.
• Monitoring of the disbursement of grant funds to incubates through individual incubators and cross-verification of the work of the assigned Business Development Officer (BDO) at each incubator as per incubate support plans.
• Reconciliation of funds requisitioned for disbursement to incubates against actual expenditures incurred.
• Preparation of requests to UNDP for disbursement of the funds by the selected financial service provider, including whether funds should be paid in line with incubate support budgets.
• Reviewing the performance of the BDS providers to the incubator to ensure that they are in line with service delivery agreements.
• Highlighting any divergencies in BDS service agreements and incubate support plans and budgets to the Team Leader.
• Supporting the close monitoring of business incubators, ensuring the BDO and incubator manager report monthly on incubate progress, issues, and outputs.
• Ensuring that data is regularly inputted to the CommCare reporting system as guided by the monitoring and evaluation lead.
• Preparation and submission of work plans, budgets and reports on progress against agreed performance indicators for each stage of incubation to UNDP, as required.

Who we’re looking for:

• Minimum of a Master’s Degree in a related field (such as International Development, Economics or a relevant subject).
• 2+ years of experience working with early-stage entrepreneurs, MSMEs or in the entrepreneurial ecosystem.
• Experience in project management, including financial management (specifically creating and adhering to budgets, cashflow forecasting, financial documentation).
• Ability to monitor risks and provide timely solutions.
• A track-record of working within the entrepreneurship/business environment in Malawi with proven business development dynamics.
• Understanding of project monitoring and evaluation processes, including data collection, review and integration into programme logframes.
• Ability to write and communicate with a range of stakeholders – from rural entrepreneurs to organisation management – clearly and concisely.
• Competency in research, reporting and the presentation of results for both programme management purposes and analytical studies.
• Proactive, highly motivated and able to work with minimal supervision.
• Demonstrated proficiency in the Microsoft Office Suite – Word, Excel, PowerPoint is essential.
• Experience with data collection software such as CommCare / Kobo is beneficial.
• Spoken and written fluency in English is essential.

If you might be the right fit:

Please submit your CV and a cover letter to [email protected] by Monday the 20th of
January 2025. Applications will be considered on a rolling basis.