CHOSA (Children of South Africa) is calling for applications for the position of Fundraising/Project Coordinator. She/he will split time between the Cape Town office and various townships to further CHOSA’s mission, which is to identify and support communities and community-based organisations (CBOs) that reach out and take care of orphans and other vulnerable children in South Africa.

Currently, most of CHOSA’s fundraising occurs in the US. With this position, CHOSA is widening its reach within South Africa to fundraise and network in and around Cape Town. For this reason, the successful applicant must be an innovative self-starter with a track record of successful fundraising and/or networking strategies. She/he must also be able to build rapport and humbly interact with marginalized communities, as this role will be complemented with direct work providing capacity-building and other support services to our partners. For more details, see “Full List of Responsibilities” below.

• Time commitment: 40 hours per week (including occasional work on weekends)
• Start Date: January 12, 2017
• Duration: Permanent contract with a minimum commitment by the employee of 18 months.
• Salary: R10,064 per month plus compensation for CHOSA-related expenses (petrol, car maintenance, telephone, internet, printing, office supplies).

More about CHOSA: CHOSA, established in 2005, takes a holistic and non-directive approach to community development. CHOSA’s goal is to facilitate the empowerment of marginalised people as they seek to serve the orphaned and vulnerable children in their communities. Through community participation and ownership of the development process, CHOSA promotes local action, self-empowerment, and peer-to-peer networking as essential strategies for community-driven development. Visit www.chosa.org for more.

Job requirements

• Drivers license: To qualify for the position, you must have a valid drivers’ license. Please indicate in your motivational letter that you are in possession of a valid drivers’ license, and bring it to any subsequent interview.
• Languages: Fluency in English. Fluency or willingness to learn isiXhosa.
• Computer literacy: Fluency in use of internet, email, office programmes (in particular command of spreadsheets and word processors);
• Experience: Volunteer/research/work experience with community organisations;
• Fundraising skills: Strong understanding of best practices in raising funds amongst individual donors as well as charitable foundations;
• Writing skills: Strong writing skills and ability to write thoughtful letters, proposals, articles and other types of documents in English;
• Communication skills: Ability to work well with and communicate with people in a non-domineering or authoritarian manner. Ability to navigate and stay out of personal disputes while still maintaining open lines of communication;
• Respect for others: Able to respect and treat equally people of different cultures and ethnicities. Should not discriminate based on gender, sexual orientation, origin, etc. Should treat each individual as an equal;
• Strong work ethic: Able to work independently and creatively without someone telling you what to do. Able to set own appointments, manage own schedule and report back on work;
• Cooperation skills: willingness and ability to work in a cooperative environment with a flat structure and based on consensus decision-making.
• Democratic process: Should have an understanding of and predisposition towards advocating for democratic forms of community governance.

To apply, submit the following:

• CV with three contactable references
• short motivational letter specifically addressing how your qualifications relate to the requirements above
• writing sample (maximum 200 words) from an academic paper, blog post, etc. (If you do not have one of these, a 200 word viewpoint on children’s issues in South Africa will suffice.)

Send all of the above to [email protected]. Incomplete applications will not be considered. The application deadline is the 2^nd of December 2016.

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. Candidates who have received no response within two weeks of the closing date should assume their application was unsuccessful.

Full List of Responsibilities

(Note: Responsibilities 1-2 will constitute 24 hours, i.e. 3 working days per week. Responsibilities 3-7 will constitute 16 hours, i.e. 2 working days per week. All responsibilities will add up to 40 hours per week.)

1. Fundraising and Networking

• Work with CHOSA’s US-based Fundraising Coordinator and Board Members on all aspects of fundraising
• Plan, organise and coordinate CHOSA fundraisers in Cape Town
• Seek out and apply for grant opportunities in South Africa (with the assistance of US-based Fundraising Coordinator)
• Seek out relationships and network with like-minded organisations and potential funders
• Liaise with CHOSA major donors with updates from the ground, etc.
• Organise and deliver in-kind donations
• Connect local donors to projects they can support directly, when opportunities arise
• Show current/potential donors around to visit the projects
•  Represent CHOSA at certain events (community events, events of like-minded organisations, networking opportunities, etc.)

2. Financial bookkeeping (shared responsibility)

•  Coordinate all aspects of CHOSA’s financial bookkeeping (in partnership with one other staff member)

3. Find partner communities and organisations for CHOSA

• Look for and connect with active communities who have set up their own child-related CBOs or intend on setting up child-related CBOs
• Establish a relationship with communities and/or CBOs
• Encourage relationships with communities that have set up democratic governance structures in order to oversee the development of children’s projects in their communities
• Encourage relationships with small grassroots CBOs that want to set up strong accountable structures

4. Work with partner CBOs and communities that CHOSA supports in Cape Town. (Both CBOs and communities are referred to as “partners” below.)

• Hold regular meetings with each relevant partner. Frequency dependent on the needs but should not be less than once every two weeks with each partner. The purposes of these meetings are:
• To continue/build open and trusting relationships with the partner;
• Receive updates on the progress of the partner;
• Receive accounting for funds if there is a CHOSA grant in place;
• Work with the partner to develop their organisation in ways that fit with their goals for development and assist in this process of growth. This is also a time to discuss internal/external problems, and ways in which CHOSA can support the project either directly or through referrals;
• Participate in annual meetings with each CBO’s Board of Directors;
• Ensure that the partner is able to prepare a financial report back to CHOSA. If the partner lacks the ability to prepare such a statement, then the coordinator should request more frequent (preferably monthly) engagement with the organization’s bookkeeper to ensure the project’s finances are in order;
• Attend community and committee meetings where asked, including meetings after hours and on weekends
• Facilitate informal and sometimes formal discussions and workshops with community members. Where necessary, find individuals and/or NGOs to facilitate these discussions and workshops
• Report back to the partner where necessary and where requested. Report back to CHOSA on each partner’s finances and general progress.

5. Liaise amongst CHOSA staff and to CHOSA general membership (board)

• Write up summary report every two months to CHOSA general membership about all on-ground work.
• Attend weekly CHOSA staff meetings
• Attend all CHOSA General Membership (Board) Meetings via Skype

6. Organise networking events

• Work with CHOSA staff to determine needed workshop themes based on community needs;
• Work with other staff to organise four networking workshops per year that bring together the staff and management of many CHOSA-supported projects.

7. Other shared responsibilities amongst staff

• Promote and manage CHOSA social networks (website, twitter, facebook)
• Manage the CHOSA email account