Grant Manager – AEDIB 2.0

JOB DETAILS

Direction: Operations

Department: Sustainable and Inclusive Economy (EDI)

Unit: Entrepreneurship and innovation

Type of contract: Fixed-term contract 

Contract: Wage portage

Contract duration: 12 months (renewable for up to 30 months)

Geographical areas of the project: Sub-Saharan Africa

Country of the mission: Rwanda

City of the mission: Kigali

Expected start date: 01/06/2025

Description of the project

Expertise France is the French public international cooperation agency. It designs and implements projects which aim to contribute to the balanced development of partner countries, in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the 2030 Agenda and the priorities of France’s external action.

AEDIB 2.0

African European Digital Innovation Bridge (AEDIB 2.0) is an ambitious regional project that aims to strengthen digital transformation and the green transition between Africa and Europe, with the long-term goal of creating a single market for digital innovation between the two continents. It seeks to position the EU as a key partner for Africa by developing digital businesses, supporting innovation, and building on existing partnerships between the two regions.

The Overall Objective of the Action is to strengthen digital transformation and the green transition in Africa through enhanced partnerships for digital entrepreneurship and innovation in order to integrate them into the sustainable development strategies of African countries.

Consequently, three Specific Objectives (outcomes) have been defined as follows:

• Specific Objective 1: Enhance digital entrepreneurship and innovation policies, by strengthening processes and capacities of policymakers and ecosystem leaders
• Specific Objective 2: Strengthen Digital Innovation Ecosystems for Digital Transformation and Green Transition,by enhancing Innovation Support Organisations’ capacities
• Specific Objective 3: Improve access to finance for innovative (including women-led) ventures supporting Digital Transformation and Green Transition, by enhancing support mechanisms for early-stage and scaling ventures

Consortium structure and key partners :

The project is jointly implemented by six European development agencies and financed by five European donors:

Expertise France leads the consortium and is responsible for the Project Management Unit (PMU), which oversees all project components and ensures coordination among the implementing partners.

The project is scheduled to run from April 15, 2025, to January 31, 2030 (57 months).

JOB DESCRIPTION

As part of the Digital for innovation Team Europe Initiative, funded by the EU and implemented with Expertise France, Enabel, ESTDev, GIZ, Haus Institute and RVO, Expertise France is looking to hire an experienced Grant Manager to oversee the financial and contractual management of the AEDIB 2.0 project.

Key Responsibilities (non-exhaustive list)

The project is jointly implemented by a consortium of six implementing partners, with Expertise France serving as the lead organization. The role involves ensuring compliance with EU grant regulations, particularly for partners that are not accredited and do not belong to the MPCA.

One of the project’s key challenges is that one of the implementing partners is not accredited by the EU, which means Expertise France carries the grant on their behalf. This specificity requires additional tasks related to compliance, reporting, and risk mitigation, ensuring that all financial and contractual obligations are met according to EU regulations.

Part of the Project Management Unit based in Kigali (8 people dedicated to AEDIB’s project) and under the hierarchical responsibility of the Team leader, the Grant Manager will play a key role in ensuring the smooth financial execution of the project, focusing on compliance, reporting, and risk mitigation for implementing partners.

Grant Compliance & Financial Oversight

• Ensure that the execution and management of grants comply with EU funding regulations and contractual obligations
• Oversee financial and administrative processes related to non-accredited agency, ensuring adherence to EU requirements
• Monitor grant expenditures across the consortium, ensuring alignment with the approved budget and cost eligibility rules
• Work closely with financial teams and project coordinators to implement best practices in financial management
• Ensure compliance with all subsidy-related obligations for the non-accredited organization
• Follow up the grant agreement process, ensuring all required validations et approvals are obtained
• Confirm with the juridical direction all steps to be followed

Consortium Support & Risk Mitigation

• Support non-accredited partners in meeting EU compliance requirements, ensuring financial and administrative alignment with the lead organization.
• Identify potential financial and compliance risks and implement mitigation strategies
• Analysing risks and implementing actions to mitigate and minimize them (especially the risks of expenditure ineligibility)
• Develop and enforce internal procedures to facilitate smooth grant execution for all consortium members
• Oversee the execution of granted activities and initiatives, ensuring proper financial follow-up of grantees.
• Validate expenditure reports submitted by partners and lead the management of follow-up committees, meetings, and field visits.
• Ensure partners correctly apply up-to-date procedures and fulfill their contractual obligations.
• Maintain ongoing monitoring and control over the correct execution of procedures.

Reporting & Documentation

• Prepare and submit financial reports, ensuring accuracy and compliance with EU deadlines and templates
• Maintain clear and structured documentation of all financial transactions, grant agreements, and supporting evidence for audits
• Support the preparation of interim and final reports for the European Commission
• Prepare for EU and other donors’ periodic audits of grants, ensuring all documentation and reports are available.
• Provide regular updates to the management team on the financial and operational status of grants.

Capacity Building & Project Coordination

• Provide training and guidance to consortium partners on EU grant management rules and procedures
• Act as a liaison between consortium members and the EU funding body, addressing compliance-related queries
• Ensure proper communication and coordination between financial, administrative, and technical teams within the project
• Ensure that non-accredited partners have adequate support and resources to comply with EU grant requirements.
• Support for the implementation of monitoring and evaluation

DESIRED PROFILE

• Master’s or equivalent university degree in the field of project management, management control, international cooperation, or another relevant discipline
• Interest in the field of intervention: innovation, entrepreneurship support, support to the private sector
• Knowledge of the European Union’s management procedures is an asset
• Experience in team management
• Proficiency in accounting software (SAGE) and reporting tools
• Proficiency in office tools, especially Excel
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills, with proficiency in English. Knowledge of local languages is an asset.

Specific knowledge, experience, skills or competencies

• A minimum of 3 years of professional experience in grant management, preferably in EU-funded projects
• Experience working with international consortia is an asset

Soft skills

• Strong work ethic, precision, and organizational skills
• Thoroughness, responsiveness, and autonomy
• Ability to prioritise, delegate and organise work
• Good interpersonal and communication skills

WHAT WE OFFER

• Exciting work in an international environment
• A 12-month contract, renewable up to December 2027 based in Kigali, Rwanda, with possible missions in Sub-Saharan Africa
• The exact remuneration will be defined according to the experience recognized for the position

Planned Start Date: June 2025

How to apply:

GEX link : https://expertise-france.gestmax.fr/12966/1/grant-manager-h-f/en_US 

Deadline: 30th April 2025

We reserve the right to commence recruitment interviews before the closing date of this advertisement.