Palladium is a global leader in the design, development and delivery of Positive Impact – the intentional creation of enduring social and economic value.  We work with governments, businesses, and investors to solve the world’s most pressing challenges. With a team of more than 3,000 employees operating in 90 plus countries and a global network of over 35,000 experts, we help improve economies, societies and, most importantly, people’s lives.

Project Overview and Role:

CATALYZE is a $250 million 5 to 8-year program designed to mobilize $2 billion in private capital, especially to underfinanced social sectors, such as education, and higher risk countries around the globe, particularly low-income and post-conflict countries. The program is complemented by a cross-cutting inclusion of gender-lens investing and will provide services to many missions and bureaus that “buy in” to tap the CATALYZE investment and pay-for-results project management expertise. Our aim is for investors to explore and find commercially viable opportunities and approaches to creating jobs, developing sustainable social services, tightening, and rationalizing supply chains, and advancing inclusive growth.
USAID CATALYZE Ethiopia: MS4G is designed to benefit the Ethiopian people, build community resilience, and strengthen rural-urban linkages in the areas of food security and WASH. MS4G invests in developing strong relationships with private sector players, co-investing in inclusive business models, advisory services, digital solutions, and market-based initiatives that increase the resilience and sustainability of Ethiopian enterprises and employment for women and youth.
MS4G uses a market systems approach to address key food security and WASH sub-systems and the impact of economic shocks, including COVID-19 and political instability, by stimulating adoption, adaptation, broad expansion, responsive institutionalization, and scaling of approaches and business models to transform the lives of Ethiopians.

Primary Duties and Responsibilities:

The Grants Manager, CATALYZE: MS4G will be responsible for overseeing all aspects of the grants program under the Market Systems for Growth activity. The Grants Manager will ensure the project’s compliance with Palladium and USAID policies, rules and regulations. S/he reports primarily to the Deputy Chief of Party, Operations & Compliance with secondary reporting to the Grants Manager, CATALYZE (US).

• Provide team with guidance on and interpretation of USAID regulations as they relate to the procurement life cycle
• In accordance with Palladium’s USAID-approved Grants Under Contract (GUC) manual, develop and execute all aspects of the GUC process
• Provide staff with guidance on and interpretation of USAID regulations, terms, and conditions as they relate to the grants life cycle and administration of grants
• Coordinate with the Grants Manager, CATALYZE (US) to ensure process standardization and compliance with Palladium policies and procedures
• Ensure effective liaison between project staff and grant recipients and refer technical issues encountered during grants implementation to the Director of Finance & Administration, CATALYZE: MS4G.
• Monitor completion of grants milestones and report issues hampering the smooth implementation of grants to the Director of Finance & Administration, CATALYZE: MS4G.
• Monitor activity expenditures and updating grants activity and expenditure trackers.
• Facilitate the evaluation of grant proposals by organizing the evaluation committee, preparing the necessary scoring sheets and negotiation memo and ensure that required grant documentation is maintained and complete for each grant activity
• Conduct reviews of grant application budgets and monitoring of same during grant implementation.
• Review and approve draft grants agreement in compliance with applicable Palladium policies and procedures and USAID conditions.
• Maintain audit-ready grant files and facilitate external grants audits as required.
• Serve as the primary point of contact for all disputes with CATALYZE: MS4G grantees.
• Resolve in a timely manner internal and external issues/problems related to grants administration.
• Conduct training and capacity building, as needed, for grantees and those unfamiliar with USAID funding.
• Contribute to the project’s financial forecasts by closely tracking grantees’ expenditure projections.
• Participate actively in periodic meetings to assess compliance with terms and conditions of awards and assume leadership in ensuring that deficiencies in compliance are corrected.

Requirements

Required Qualifications:

• Track record in developing large budgets;
• Strong financial and operational management experience;
• Expert level knowledge of various types of Grants (ADS 303).
• Experience building relationships with local organizations and building their capacity to administer large donor grant funds.
• Professional level of oral and written fluency in English language.
• Relevant computer software skills and familiarity with standard applications in MS Office.

Desired Qualifications:

• A bachelor’s degree in relevant field; Business Administration or other related field is preferred relevant to the position requirements.
• At least 8 years of work experience in grants administration on large-scale, donor-funded projects, including 4 on a USAID-funded project.