Key Skills

Job Description

This is an opportunity to work with an Ashoka Fellow Ashoka Fellows are leading social entrepreneurs that have been taken through a rigorous selection process, testing the quality of their ideas and character, to become part of the Ashoka Fellowship and Network. Ashoka Fellows take on the challenges of building innovative system change ideas to make and spread social impact in a world wrought with challenges. They refuse to let the ‘impossible’ stand in their way to creating a better world. This is an unpaid, volunteer opportunity About The Affiliated Organization Vision: To empower individuals and organizations to achieve their full potential through innovative capacity-building solutions. Mission: We deliver transformative training and development programs that foster growth, inspire excellence, and create a positive impact on society. Bridging the gap between theory and practice thereby producing job creators not job seekers. The reality thousands of Nigerian youth face today are that we carry paper certificates built on theoretical, outdated curricula, while modern employers are searching for practical, digital, and technical competence. We designed to grant skill, craftsmanship, and mental sharpness for the marketplace today's. We are preparing young people for the global economy by bridging the gap between academic theory and practical value. For more information, please visit www.hopebuildersconsult.org Job Description What is the Specific Project? HER FORWARD KADUNA: Removing Care Barriers to Women’s Skills, Enterprise and Economic Independence Across Kaduna State, many young women want to learn, work, establish businesses and become economically independent. Yet for young and nursing mothers, opportunity is frequently constrained not by lack of ambition but by the absence of practical systems that enable them to participate. Young women who become mothers following adolescent pregnancy, early marriage or other circumstances may experience interrupted education, limited qualifications, stigma, low access to finance and increased dependence on informal livelihoods. Some young women may additionally be survivors of gender-based violence, conflict or displacement, while others may be engaged in or transitioning from sex work and other highly vulnerable livelihood situations. For these women, childcare represents a significant but frequently overlooked barrier to skills development and employment. Conventional training programmes typically require participants to attend classes or practical sessions for several hours each day, yet rarely provide safe arrangements for infants and young children. A nursing mother without reliable childcare may therefore be eligible for a programme while remaining practically excluded from participating in it. HER Forward Kaduna will demonstrate a different approach. The initiative will establish an integrated economic empowerment pathway through which vulnerable young and nursing mothers can access market-responsive skills development while their children receive safe, quality childcare within or close to the training environment. Childcare will not be treated as the project’s end product. It will function as economic inclusion infrastructure that removes one of the structural barriers preventing young mothers from acquiring skills, entering employment and building sustainable enterprises. The programme will combine: safe childcare + market-relevant skills + entrepreneurship + financial capability + mentorship + psychosocial and protection referrals + employment and enterprise transition support. Over three years, approximately 450 young and nursing mothers will participate in differentiated livelihood pathways based on their skills, circumstances, interests and market opportunities. Success will not be measured simply by the number of women trained. The programme will measure whether women: remain in and complete training; acquire market-relevant competencies; enter employment or sustainable self-employment; increase income and savings; strengthen or establish viable enterprises; improve their control over productive resources and financial decisions; and become less economically vulnerable. At the same time, HER Forward Kaduna will generate practical evidence on the effectiveness and cost of integrating childcare into women’s skills and livelihood programmes, providing a model that can be replicated through vocational institutions, NGOs, employers and government programmes across Nigeria. Nigeria Has a Young Population And Significant Demand For Employment, Technical Skills And Entrepreneurship Opportunities. However, Young Women’s Ability To Participate In These Opportunities Is Shaped By Gender, Poverty, Education, Care Responsibilities And Social Norms. The 2024 Nigeria Demographic And Health Survey Found That 15% Of Young Women Aged 15–19 Had Experienced Pregnancy. Adolescent Pregnancy Is Considerably Higher Among Rural And Economically Disadvantaged Young Women. More Than One-third Of Nigerian Women Aged 20–24 Were Married By Age 18. Early Motherhood Can Contribute To Interrupted Education And Substantially Alter a Young Woman’s Pathway Into Employment. For Some Young Women, These Disadvantages Overlap With Other Vulnerabilities, Including: early or forced marriage; gender-based violence; family rejection or stigma; single parenthood; poverty; disability; displacement and conflict; economic exploitation; and engagement in highly vulnerable forms of informal work or sex work. These Circumstances Should Not Define Women. However, They Affect The Opportunities And Choices Available To Them. The Overall Goal Is To Increase The Economic Independence, Agency And Livelihood Resilience Of Vulnerable Young And Nursing Mothers In Kaduna State By Removing Childcare And Other Structural Barriers To Skills Development, Employment And Entrepreneurship. The Programme Targets Approximately 450 Young And Nursing Mothers Over Three Years, With Final Annual Cohorts Determined Through Childcare Capacity, Market Assessment And Implementation Planning. Priority Will Be Given To Economically Vulnerable Women, Particularly Those Whose Childcare Responsibilities Significantly Restrict Their Participation In Education, Skills Development Or Work. Participants May Include: young mothers affected by adolescent pregnancy; women affected by early or forced marriage; single, divorced or separated young mothers; survivors of gender-based violence; women with disabilities; displaced and conflict-affected mothers; young mothers from extremely low-income households; women engaged in or transitioning from sex work or other economically exploitative situations; and women operating vulnerable nano- and micro-enterprises. The programme will not publicly classify or label women according to experiences such as GBV, sex work or early pregnancy. Selection will be based on economic vulnerability, childcare needs and barriers to economic participation. What tasks will you do? Funder Prospecting & Research: Map Funding Landscape: Identify international donors, corporate foundations, and development agencies with active calls for women's economic empowerment, early childhood development, or vocational education in Sub-Saharan Africa. Track Application Calendars: Maintain a grant tracking pipeline with upcoming deadlines, submission requirements, and award sizes aligned with the project's general operational budget. Proposal Development & Adaptation: Tailor Pitch Decks & Proposals: Adapt the HER Forward Kaduna case for support into structured concept notes, full grant proposals, and customized pitch decks for specific prospective partners. Draft Grant Narratives: Articulate the core model—combining co-located crèche facilities, market-aligned skills (agro-processing, digital, leadership), and the 3-year self-sustainability strategy—into compelling grant applications. Collaborate on Budgets & Logic Models: Work alongside project leads to build clear project logic frameworks (logframes) and map financial requests directly to grant line items (e.g., crèche retrofitting, starter kits, tuition). Donor Relations & Reporting: Formulate Donor Communications: Write impact updates, tailored cover letters, and outreach emails for Founding Anchors, Annual Sponsors, and Monthly Allies. Develop Grant Reporting Frameworks: Draft template progress reports to highlight key milestones—such as participant completion rates (>90%), employment transitions (80%), and internal revenue generation. Your work of a Grant and Proposal Writer is vital to HER Forward Kaduna because it bridges the gap between a proven, high-impact model and the capital needed to scale it. While the project has already trained over 529,000 young people, removing the specific barrier of childcare for young mothers requires dedicated, upfront funding. A skilled proposal writer turns the initiative's vision into the structured language, metrics, and financial frameworks that institutional donors and corporate sponsors require. Unlocking Seed Capital for the Crèche Infrastructure Upfront Retrofitting Costs: Reaching self-sustainability by Year 3 requires initial capital to build, equip, and accredit the co-located crèche facility. A proposal writer targets high-value institutional grants and Founding Anchors to secure this foundational capital. Articulating a Unique, High-Return Model Distinguishing the Approach: Childcare in this project isn't just a welfare service—it is economic inclusion infrastructure. A proposal writer communicates this subtle yet critical distinction to funders who prioritize systemic, sustainable impact over temporary aid. Proving Financial Viability: Donors favor projects with clear exit strategies from donor dependence. The writer effectively highlights how internal enterprise revenue (from LilyDan organic spices and Dinerite nutritional foods) will sustain operations beyond the grant cycle. Translating Complex Social Issues into Clear Metrics Cross-Sector Appeal: The project intersects early childhood development, gender-based violence recovery, vocational education, and micro-entrepreneurship. A proposal writer tailors narratives to resonate with diverse grant portfolios—whether a donor focuses on child protection, women's empowerment, or agricultural value chains. Measurable Outcomes: Grant writers frame the project's ambitious goals—such as a >90% completion rate and 80% transition into employment—into verifiable grant milestones and logical frameworks that build donor confidence. Ensuring Long-Term Donor Retention Impact Reporting: Securing a grant is only the first step. By developing clear impact reports and updates, the writer maintains strong relationships with Monthly Allies and Annual Sponsors, ensuring sustained partner trust and future funding cycles. Volunteer Logistics Estimated hours required per week: 6 hours The estimated duration of the project is: 6-12 months This position is Virtual (Remote) Language Requirements English Desired Skills And Experience HER Forward Kaduna is not primarily a childcare project. It is an investment in women’s productive capacity. The proposition is simple: Remove the care barrier. Build her capability. Connect her to opportunity. Support her transition. Advance her economic independence. HER Forward Kaduna therefore seeks not simply to train vulnerable young mothers, but to demonstrate what genuinely inclusive women’s economic empowerment can look like. A Grant and Proposal Writer for an initiative like HER Forward Kaduna needs a blend of technical writing precision, strategic research capability, and domain knowledge in international development. Core Technical & Writing Skills Persuasive & Structural Writing: Ability to write clear, compelling, and jargon-free narratives that clearly articulate the problem, proposed solution, and social return on investment. Logic Model & Logframe Development: Competence in creating Theory of Change diagrams, Logical Frameworks (logframes), and Monitoring & Evaluation (M&E) matrices that align project activities with measurable outcomes (e.g., tracking graduation rates, income increases, and childcare usage). Budget Development & Financial Literacy: Capability to work with finance teams to build detailed project budgets, cost proposals, and financial justifications that match donor-specific templates and guidelines. Grant Research & Prospecting: Expertise in navigating donor databases (e.g., FundsforNGOs, DevelopmentAid, Devex), interpreting Notice of Funding Opportunities (NOFOs), and identifying alignment between funder priorities and project goals. Strategic & Domain Expertise Understanding of Development & Social Sectors: Familiarity with key themes in Sub-Saharan Africa—specifically Women’s Economic Empowerment (WEE), Early Childhood Development (ECD), TVET (Technical and Vocational Education and Training), and gender-inclusive programming. Sustainability & Social Enterprise Literacy: Ability to communicate blended-value models, explaining how revenue-generating streams (like agro-processing or fee-for-service crèches) transition projects from donor reliance to financial self-sufficiency. Donor Compliance & Relationship Management: Knowledge of compliance requirements for bilateral/multilateral agencies (e.g., USAID, EU, FCDO) and major private foundations, alongside skill in drafting impact reports that retain long-term partners. Soft Skills & Execution Project & Time Management: Ability to manage strict submission deadlines, coordinate input from multiple stakeholders (program managers, finance officers, leadership), and manage multiple proposal pipelines simultaneously. Attention to Detail: Meticulous approach to reviewing guidelines, ensuring strict adherence to page limits, formatting, required attachments, and submission protocols.

Core Responsibilities

The role involves researching international donors and drafting compelling grant proposals and pitch decks to secure funding for the HER Forward Kaduna project. Additionally, the writer will develop donor communication strategies and impact reporting frameworks to ensure long-term partner retention.

Requirements

Candidates need strong persuasive writing skills and experience creating Theory of Change diagrams and logical frameworks. Knowledge of international development themes in Sub-Saharan Africa, specifically women's economic empowerment and vocational training, is highly desired.