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Women for Women International recruits for the position of Cooperative Development Consultant at its headquarters in Washington DC





Title:                    Cooperative Development Consultant
Area:                    Headquarters
Dept:                    Global Programs Unit
Status:                  Consultant
Location:               Washington, DC
Reports To:           Economic Development Specialist

BACKGROUND:

The women in the WfWI program receive extensive training in, among other topics, household budgeting, saving, and a vocational skill.  For those women in rural areas, the vocational topic is almost always agriculture, and as we encourage them to move from sustenance agriculture to commercial farming, we also encourage them to work together.  Our trainers tell them that by pooling their resources, both money and labor, they will be able to produce more in fewer work hours.

As a result, in places like Rwanda and Kosovo, WfWI graduates are forming "local cooperatives".  These are groups of 20-40 women who jointly farm a hectare or two and either sell the produce or divide it among themselves.

As they progress, it will be in their interest to create formal cooperatives, to register their collaborative activity as a legal entity.  In some countries this is easy enough to do;  in others not so.  In any case, the women in the program do not know very much about forming a cooperative, about managing one, or about membership.

While WfWI is beginning a series of classes in business skills which will improve some basic commercial skills, the specifics of cooperatives are not included.

The women need basic and practical sessions, tailored to their level of education, to their likely application of the principles, and to the legal, regulatory, and cultural norms of their societies.  They need to have a practical understanding of what distinguishes a cooperative from other forms of business entities;  the various types of cooperatives;  purchasing & marketing through cooperatives;  the structure, control, and finance of co-ops;  the responsibilities and duties of cooperative members;  and how to make decisions concerning membership.

The objective is to foster profitable commercial enterprises.

DUTIES and RESPONSIBILITIES:

The consultant will work with WfWI staff in Washington to prepare two sets of training materials.  The first training should be broad-based to serve as an introduction to all cooperative members.  We envision this as quite short.  The second training will be for a much smaller number of women, the potential managers of the cooperatives, and be much longer.

These training curricula will be the consultant's deliverables, and local experts in each country will adapt this training material to the legal, regulatory, and cultural norms of their societies.

Essentially, what we are looking for is an existing, complete, high quality training program which has been expertly revised to meet the needs and learning levels of our participants.

The participants are socially excluded women and often the most vulnerable members in their societies.  They have been victims of conflict, and many have lost family members to violence and disease.  Most of the women have received little or no education.  Illiteracy is high among our participants--  in Sudan, for example, 94% of women are illiterate.  Many women are also innumerate.  Participants earn their income primarily through agriculture, day labor, and petty trading.

QUALIFICATIONS and SKILLS:

    * Extensive experience in cooperative development internationally.
    * A beneficiaries-focused approach.
    * Demonstrated skills in creating training and implementation plans.
    * Understanding of conflict environments.
    * Understanding of economic development work in areas of severe poverty.
    * Fluency in English and excellent English writing skills.
    * Ability to meet tight deadlines.
    * Experience with illiterate beneficiaries valued.
    * Demonstrated ability to develop sound recommendations and effectively plan, direct and evaluate the work of others.

TO APPLY:

Interested parties should send a CV, references, and a brief description of the proposed approach to Jon Thiele, Economic Development Specialist, via:

         1. Email (preferred, with “Cooperative Development Consultant” in the subject line of the email) to: [email protected],
         2. Fax: 202 293 0853 or
         3. Regular mail:

ATTN: Human Resources Department
Women for Women International
4455 Connecticut Avenue, Suite 200
Washington, DC  20008

Interviews will be scheduled on a rolling basis.

The position will remain open until filled. Applicants will be contacted directly to schedule an interview.

Please respect our “no phone calls” policy.

Non-US citizens applying for regular positions based in the U.S. must possess work authorization which does not require sponsorship by the employer for a visa.

Women for Women International is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, ethnicity, national origin, political affiliation, religion, gender, disability, and/or sexual orientation.

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