Background information about the job or company (e.g., role context, company overview)

Mercy Corps is a global humanitarian aid agency engaged in transitional environments that have experienced some sort of shock: natural disaster, economic collapse, or conflict.

The Women’s Economic Empowerment (WEE) Manager for the Regional Livestock Programme will use their in-depth contextual understanding, technical and practical expertise and relationship building skills to lead the collective delivery of a gender transformative program for women’s economic empowerment in the drylands of Somalia, Ethiopia and Kenya.

Responsibilities or duties

The WEE manager will lead the design, implementation, and oversight of the program’s Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) strategy within a Market Systems Development (MSD) framework, ensuring that women, youth, and other marginalized groups benefit equitably from market opportunities. The role will provide technical leadership to integrate gender-transformative and socially inclusive approaches across all program components in targeted corridor, strengthen the quality and effectiveness of WEE interventions, and ensure that program strategies are informed by robust market systems, gender, and social inclusion analyses. Working closely with technical team, partners, and Monitoring and Results Measurement (MRM) teams, the WEE Manager will drive the generation and use of evidence to support adaptive management, learning, and decision-making; oversee the development of gender-responsive Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability, and Learning (MEAL) systems; and contribute to knowledge sharing, impact measurement, and external engagement to advance sustainable, inclusive, and scalable program Women Economic Empowerment outcomes.

Qualifications or requirements (e.g., education, skills)

MBA/MSc/MA

Experience needed

10 years

Any other provided details (e.g., benefits, work environment, team info, or additional notes)

Job Type: Full Time

Job Field: Agriculture / Agro-Allied , Project and Program Management

• Set strategic direction and provide leadership for the program’s Women’s Economic Empowerment (WEE) agenda across target livestock trade corridors, ensuring women and youth are recognized, engaged, and benefit as key economic actors within livestock market systems. The role will strengthen the capacity of program teams and partners to integrate gender-transformative approaches across livestock value chains and supporting sectors, including animal health, feed and forage, livestock trade, business development services (BDS), and financial inclusion (FI).
• Lead the implementation and continuous refinement of the program’s Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) strategy, ensuring that gender-transformative approaches are effectively embedded across priority interventions and market system activities. Working closely with Corridor Managers, the Deputy Director/Technical Lead, the Investment Manager, and the NRM Lead, the role will provide technical oversight and strategic guidance to address systemic gender constraints, strengthen inclusive market outcomes, and enhance women’s participation, leadership, agency, and economic benefits within livestock market systems.
• Support the Program Leadership Team in engaging and influencing key stakeholders, including government institutions, private sector actors, development partners, donors, and civil society organizations, to advance the program’s WEE objectives. She/he will support strengthen multi-stakeholder partnerships, donor engagement and resource mobilization efforts directed to WEE, contribute to policy dialogue and advocacy initiatives, and promote collaborative actions that expand sustainable, inclusive, and market-driven economic opportunities for women.
• Lead the development and implementation of the GESI/WEE learning, evidence, and knowledge management agenda to support adaptive management, advocacy, and thought leadership. This includes refining annual learning priorities and questions based on emerging evidence and program needs; leading qualitative and quantitative analysis to inform decision-making, donor reporting, stakeholder engagement, and capacity strengthening; and overseeing the development of internal and external communication products that highlight WEE achievements, lessons, and impact.
• Promote innovation, learning, and adaptive management by identifying emerging opportunities, encouraging innovative approaches to overcome barriers to women’s economic participation, and fostering an environment where diverse perspectives are valued. The role will champion a culture of continuous learning, reflection, and evidence-based adaptation to strengthen program effectiveness and WEE outcomes
• Matrix accountability with program director for overall performance, quality, and results of RLP’s WEE and GESI portfolio across all countries and trade corridors
• Lead the implementation of Mercy Corps’ Global Minimum Standards for Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) across the RLP, ensuring consistent integration of GESI principles throughout program design, implementation, monitoring, and learning processes.
• Provide strategic and technical leadership for the design and implementation of GESI and Women’s Economic Empowerment (WEE) interventions, investments, and activities across all program components. Ensure interventions are informed by robust gender and social inclusion analyses, technically sound, market-driven, and aligned with donor requirements and recognized good practices.
• Set annual WEE strategic priorities with program director
• Guide and support program teams and partners to effectively integrate GESI considerations across interventions, ensuring women, men, youth, and other marginalized groups are meaningfully included, participate equitably, and benefit from program outcomes within livestock market systems.
• Strengthen the capacity of program teams, partners, and stakeholders through training, coaching, mentorship, and technical support to foster ownership of GESI and WEE approaches and promote the application of gender-transformative and inclusive development practices.
• Provide technical oversight for field monitoring, learning, and adaptive management related to GESI and WEE, including leading periodic qualitative reviews to assess progress, identify emerging opportunities and challenges, and inform strategic adjustments to interventions.
• Lead the analysis, interpretation, and use of sex-, age-, and diversity-disaggregated data to generate evidence, strengthen program learning, and inform WEE strategies, intervention design, partnership development, and adaptive management decisions.
• Contribute to high-quality donor and program reporting, ensuring that progress, lessons learned, and evidence of gender-transformative change, social inclusion, and inclusive market development outcomes are effectively documented and communicated.
• Champion the integration of GESI across program operations, systems, and organizational practices, ensuring that internal policies, procedures, and ways of working reflect inclusive and gender-responsive principles.
• Serve as the RLP Safeguarding Focal Point, promoting safeguarding awareness, strengthening compliance with Mercy Corps policies, supporting prevention and risk mitigation efforts, and ensuring safeguarding concerns are appropriately managed and addressed
• Provide matrix management through technical supervision and mentorship of RLP’s GESI Focal Points and wider program team.
• Lead and coordinate cross-country GESI community of practice to share learning and best practices across corridors.
• Lead planning and coordination of WEE investments, in collaboration with budget holders to ensure GESI interventions are fully resourced. .
• Provide technical sign-off on WEE grants, investments and partnerships as appropriate
• Monitor value for money and effectiveness of WEE investments
• Ensure that program and country staff understand, are familiar with, and have the skills to contribute to the integration of Mercy Corps’ GESI Minimum Standards.
• Liaise with key external stakeholders to include their input on GESI, youth, and WEE perspectives in all aspects of program activities.
• Engage with the global GESI team and relevant internal communities of practice to share and benefit from lessons and best practices across the organization.

• Gender transformative program design and implementation
• Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) strategy development and implementation
• Market Systems Development (MSD) frameworks
• Relationship building
• Technical leadership
• Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability, and Learning (MEAL) systems development
• Knowledge management
• Stakeholder engagement
• Capacity building
• Data analysis (qualitative and quantitative)
• Communication and reporting
• Safeguarding principles

• MBA/MSc/MA
• In-depth contextual understanding of dryland economies and livestock value chains
• Proven experience in leading gender transformative programs
• Experience in Market Systems Development (MSD)
• Experience in designing and implementing Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) strategies
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills
• Excellent communication, interpersonal, and stakeholder engagement skills
• Experience in Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability, and Learning (MEAL)
• Experience in knowledge management and evidence generation
• Ability to work in transitional environments