Project Coordinator

Govuka – Job Description

Position: Project Coordinator

---

About the Vuka uGovuke Campaign

The Vuka uGovuke Campaign is a Rotary Foundation Global Grant-funded initiative that aims to reduce new HIV infections, teenage pregnancies, and school dropouts among high school learners in Eswatini. Delivered across 15 secondary schools in all four regions of the country, the campaign trains young peer educators (aged 18-22) to deliver interactive, culturally grounded HIV prevention and sexual and reproductive health (SRH) education to approximately 2,500 Form 1 learners. The program is built on Govuka’s 2022 pilot and uses a human-centered design approach developed with young people. Each school receives three visits: an initial awareness and education session, a second visit integrating mobile SRH services provided by the Family Life Association of Eswatini (FLAS), and a third follow-up visit for message reinforcement and continued care linkage. Beyond health outcomes, the project invests in peer educators themselves through Govuka’s Career Pathways Mentorship Program, supporting their professional development alongside their service delivery role.

---

Position Overview

The Project Coordinator is the operational backbone of the Vuka uGovuke Campaign, a Rotary Global Grant-funded initiative delivering comprehensive HIV prevention education and sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services to approximately 2,500+ high school learners across 15 schools in all four regions of Eswatini. This is a high-responsibility role requiring an individual who can independently drive day-to-day project execution with minimal oversight but high accountability.

The ideal candidate is a self-starter who thrives in autonomous environments, demonstrates exceptional organizational skills, and has a genuine commitment to youth health and development in Eswatini. They must be comfortable managing multiple stakeholders simultaneously, including school administrators, partner organizations, Rotary Club representatives, peer educators, and government officials, while maintaining meticulous records and meeting strict grant reporting deadlines.

This person will serve as the primary point of contact for all in-country project activities, representing Govuka with professionalism and credibility. They will be entrusted with significant decision-making authority for operational matters and must exercise sound judgment, cultural sensitivity, and proactive communication to ensure the project achieves its goals on time and within budget.

---

Core Responsibilities

1. Project Management and Implementation

• Develop and maintain a detailed project work plan with milestones, timelines, and deliverables for all four phases of the campaign, from partner consolidation through final reporting.
• Coordinate the logistics of the three-week Peer Educator Training in collaboration with FLAS and other partner organizations (i.e. Bantwana, Young Heroes, Kwakha Indvodza, Likusasa Letfu), including scheduling trainers, securing venues, preparing materials, and managing attendance.
• Plan and execute school visits across all 15 targeted secondary schools in four regions, managing transport, scheduling with school administrators, and ensuring peer educators are prepared and equipped for each visit.
• Oversee the development and finalization of the Peer Educator Training Manual in collaboration with partner organizations, ensuring content is evidence-based, culturally relevant, and aligned with the project’s theory of change.
• Manage the procurement of 7,600 Vuka uGovuke Booklets, 7,500 pens, and 100 teacher notebooks, coordinating with local vendors and ensuring quality and timely delivery.
• Troubleshoot implementation challenges in real time, escalating strategic or reputational issues to the Executive Director in a timely manner.
• Proactively identify and mitigate risks to project delivery, adapting plans as needed while keeping stakeholders informed.

2. Financial Management and Grant Compliance

• Manage the project budget of approximately SZL 932,036 (USD 51,211), tracking expenditures against budget lines and ensuring all spending aligns with Rotary Global Grant financial management guidelines.
• Process payments to vendors, peer educators, and service providers, maintaining complete documentation (receipts, invoices, contracts) for every transaction.
• Prepare monthly financial summaries and flag any budget variances or projected shortfalls to the Executive Director and Rotary Clubs promptly.
• Work with the Host Rotary Club (Mbuluzi-Mbabane) on financial oversight, including bank statement reconciliation, and ensuring funds are disbursed appropriately.
• Support the preparation of progress and final financial reports required by The Rotary Foundation, ensuring accuracy, completeness, and adherence to reporting timelines.
• Manage the 10% contingency fund responsibly, documenting justification for any contingency spending.

3. Stakeholder Management and Partnership Coordination

• Serve as the primary liaison between Govuka and partner organizations, primarily with FLAS, and other relevant partners such as Bantwana, Young Heroes, Kwakha Indvodza, Likusasa Letfu, ensuring each partner delivers on their commitments and ongoing support.
• Coordinate with FLAS specifically on mobile clinic scheduling for the second visit to each of the 15 schools, ensuring mobile testing, counseling, and prevention services are available and well-integrated with peer educator sessions.
• Manage relationships with school administrators, head teachers, and guidance counsellors at all 15 schools, conducting pre-implementation briefings and maintaining ongoing communication throughout the project.
• Liaise with the Host Rotary Club committee (at least three members) for project oversight, providing regular updates and facilitating their participation in school visits.
• Coordinate with the International Rotary Sponsor (Petaluma Sunrise, District 5130) as needed, particularly in preparation for the delegation visit planned for 2027.
• Engage with government stakeholders to ensure institutional support and alignment with national education and health policies.

4. Team Leadership and Supervision

• Directly supervise the M&E Officer and two Peer Educator Leads, conducting regular check-ins, providing mentorship, and holding the team accountable to performance standards.
• Oversee the recruitment and on-boarding of 16 peer educators (aged 18-22) from Govuka’s waitlist and institutions of higher learning, ensuring selected candidates meet the profile and commitment requirements.
• Foster a positive, professional team culture that aligns with Govuka’s values of youth empowerment, evidence-based practice, and collaborative problem-solving.
• Manage peer educator performance, including attendance tracking, quality assurance during school visits, and addressing any conduct or performance issues swiftly and fairly.
• Ensure peer educators receive their stipends and wages on time, managing payroll logistics in coordination with Govuka’s finance processes.
• Support the professional development of peer educators through the Govuka Career Pathways Mentorship Program, helping them explore career interests and build confidence.

5. Monitoring, Evaluation, and Reporting

• Work closely with the M&E Officer to ensure all data collection instruments (pre/post knowledge assessments, surveys, observation tools, referral trackers) are developed, piloted, and administered on schedule.
• Oversee the administration of pre- and post-program knowledge assessments to track changes in HIV prevention knowledge, SRH service awareness, and confidence in negotiating safer relationships among learners.
• Ensure referral tracking systems are functioning effectively, monitoring the number of learners accessing youth-friendly SRH services following school sessions and the percentage successfully linked to testing, treatment, and prevention services.
• Review M&E data regularly to identify trends, flag implementation quality issues, and inform adaptive management decisions.
• Contribute to progress reports (every four months) and the final grant report, providing narrative on implementation activities, challenges, and lessons learned.
• Support data collection for longer-term outcome indicators, including reductions in teenage pregnancies and school dropouts in program schools.

6. Communications and Reporting to the Executive Director

• Provide weekly written updates to the Executive Director covering progress against the work plan, upcoming activities, emerging risks, financial status, and any decisions requiring input.
• Participate in scheduled virtual weekly check-ins and ad hoc calls as needed to discuss strategic issues, partner dynamics, or escalated challenges.
• Prepare clear, concise briefing documents and decision memos when Executive Director input is required, presenting options with recommendations rather than open-ended problems.
• Document all major decisions, agreements, and commitments made on behalf of Govuka, maintaining an accessible project file.
• Manage the project’s media and publicity activities, including coordination with the Eswatini Observer for print advertising and oversight of social media content. Delegate tasks to Peer Educator Leads or other relevant personnel as needed.

---

Required Qualifications

• Master’s degree in public health, M&E, or a related field. Candidates with a Bachelor’s degree with extensive experience may be considered.
• Minimum of 4 years of experience managing community-based or school-based health or development projects in Eswatini or the Southern Africa region.
• Prior experience in HIV prevention, sexual and reproductive health programming, or adolescent health.
• Demonstrated experience managing project budgets of at least SZL 500,000 or equivalent, including procurement, expense tracking, and financial reporting to donors.
• Proven track record of working with multiple stakeholders simultaneously, including NGOs, government entities, schools, and community organizations.
• Experience supervising teams of 5 or more people, including field staff and/or community workers.
• Strong written and spoken proficiency in both English and siSwati.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint) and comfort with digital tools for communication (email, WhatsApp, video conferencing platforms like Google Meets and Zoom).
• Valid driver’s license and willingness to travel extensively across all four regions of Eswatini.

---

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with Rotary Foundation grants or other international grant mechanisms with strict compliance and reporting requirements.
• Experience working with peer educator models or youth-led programming.
• Familiarity with human-centred design approaches.
• Experience coordinating mobile health service delivery.

---

Key Competencies

• Autonomous execution: Ability to drive a complex, multi-site project to completion with minimal day-to-day supervision, exercising sound independent judgment.
• Organizational excellence: Highly systematic approach to planning, scheduling, and tracking. Nothing falls through the cracks.
• Accountability: Takes full ownership of deliverables and deadlines. Proactively communicates when issues arise rather than waiting to be asked.
• Stakeholder management: Skilled at building trust and maintaining productive relationships with diverse partners, from school head teachers to Rotary Club members to government officials.
• Financial stewardship: Careful, transparent, and diligent in managing grant funds, with a strong sense of fiduciary responsibility.
• Cultural competence: Deep understanding of Eswatini’s cultural, educational, and health landscape, particularly as it relates to youth, gender, and HIV/SRH.
• Adaptive problem-solving: Comfortable navigating ambiguity and adjusting plans when field realities differ from the work plan, while keeping the Executive Director informed.
• Communication: Clear, timely, and structured in both written and verbal communication. Able to produce professional reports and represent Govuka credibly.
• Youth engagement: Genuine and demonstrated passion for working with and empowering young people, and ability to relate to peer educators aged 18-22.

---

Working Conditions

• Based in Eswatini with frequent travel to schools across all four regions (Hhohho, Manzini, Shiselweni, Lubombo).
• Some after-hours work may be required during training periods and school visit windows.
• The Executive Director provides strategic oversight remotely from Kenya. The Project Coordinator should expect to operate with a high degree of independence on operational matters.
• Regular virtual check-ins with the Executive Director, with additional calls as needed.

---

Contact Information

Email: info@govuka.org
Website: www.govuka.org
Facebook & Instagram: @govukango
LinkedIn: Govuka