Program Manager Market Systems for Employment (MS4E) promoting Resilience (PROPEL program) - Dakar, Senegal

Location: Dakar, Senegal

Position Status and duration: Full-time, estimated duration up to 3 years contingent on funding

Salary: Francs CFA 1M540K - à valoriser en fonction de l'experience professionelle

Travel: up to 70% in country

Language: Required language fluency in French and English proficiency

Eligibility: This role is open to nationals of Senegal and residents with independant right to work in Senegal.

Closing date: Please submit your application and CV in English by end of July 20, 2026

Risk Level : Level 2: Some contact with participants; unplanned non-direct contact with children.

About Mercy Corps

Mercy Corps is a leading global organization powered by the belief that a better world is possible.

In disaster, in hardship, in more than 40 countries around the world, we partner to put bold solutions

into action — helping people triumph over adversity and build stronger communities from within.

Now, and for the future.

The Program

PROPEL is a multi-country youth employment and market systems development program implemented across Uganda, Senegal, Liberia, and Tanzania. The program adopts a market-driven, private sector-led approach to addressing the persistent challenge of youth unemployment and underemployment, with a deliberate emphasis on reaching young people who are not in employment, education, or training (NEET). PROPEL addresses systemic constraints to youth employment and supports the development of scalable and sustainable livelihood pathways. The program is implemented by Mercy Corps in partnership with Junior Achievement Africa.

The Position

The Program Manager Market Systems for Employment (MS4E) provides overall leadership for in-country implementation of PROPEL, ensuring that program delivery is adaptive, market-driven, and results-oriented. The role is responsible for translating regional strategy into context-specific implementation while embedding Political Economy Analysis (PEA), advancing private sector-led models, and applying targeted youth segmentation approaches with a focus on NEET populations. The Program Manager Market Systems for Employment (MS4E) ensures that interventions are responsive to local incentives and constraints, aligned with labor market demand, and capable of generating sustainable employment outcomes at scale.

Essential Responsibilities

STRATEGY AND PLANNING

The Program Manager Market Systems for Employment (MS4E) leads the development and execution of country-level strategies by translating regional priorities into context-specific informed interventions. The role ensures that planning is grounded in a deep understanding of local market systems, institutional dynamics, and Labor market realities, enabling adaptive and results-oriented implementation.

• Lead the development of annual and quarterly work plans aligned with PROPEL’s regional strategy and country context
• Conduct and continuously update Political Economy Analysis (PEA) to understand incentives, power dynamics, and constraints affecting youth employment systems
• Integrate PEA insights into program design, partner selection, and adaptive management processes
• Align program interventions with labor market demand and private sector needs
• Ensure strategic coherence between youth employment pathways, market systems development, and program outcomes

PROGRAM IMPLEMENTATION & PRIVATE SECTOR ENGAGEMENT

The Program Manager Market Systems for Employment (MS4E) oversees the implementation of program activities with a strong emphasis on private sector leadership as the primary driver of sustainable employment outcomes. The role ensures that interventions are demand-led, market-oriented, and designed to crowd in rather than substitute private sector participation;

• Lead day-to-day implementation of all PROPEL activities in-country, ensuring quality, timeliness, and results delivery. Identify, engage, and manage partnerships with lead firms and private sector actors to co-create employment opportunities
• Facilitate private sector-led models such as apprenticeships, job placements, and business service provision
• Promote co-investment and ownership by private sector partners to ensure sustainability
• Ensure a shift from supply-driven training approaches to demand-driven employment pathways

YOUTH SEGMENTATION & INCLUSION (NEET FOCUS)

The Program Manager Market Systems for Employment (MS4E) ensures that program delivery is informed by clear youth segmentation frameworks that enable targeted and effective interventions, particularly for NEET populations. The role emphasizes differentiated pathways that respond to varying levels of vulnerability, readiness, and opportunity among young people.

• Apply structured youth segmentation frameworks to categorize target groups based on employability and vulnerability

• Design and implement tailored pathways for NEET youth, including foundational skills, job readiness, and enterprise development

• Prioritize inclusion of women, marginalized groups, and displaced populations where relevant

• Establish systems to track youth progression across employment pathways and outcomes

• Ensure interventions are responsive to barriers faced by NEET youth, including access, mobility, and skills gaps

PARTNERSHIPS & ECOSYSTEM DEVELOPMENT

The Program Manager Market Systems for Employment (MS4E) plays a central role in building and strengthening partnerships and market systems that support sustainable youth employment. The role goes beyond individual partnerships to focus on improving the overall functioning of the ecosystem.

• Serve as the primary in-country representative of PROPEL in engagement with stakeholders
• Build and manage strategic partnerships with government, private sector, training institutions, and financial actors
• Strengthen ecosystem functions such as skills development systems, market information flows, and access to finance
• Facilitate coordination with implementing partners and align interventions across stakeholders
• Promote collaboration and alignment with national priorities and sector strategies

MEAL (MONITORING, EVALUATION, ACCOUNTABILITY & LEARNING)

The Program Manager Market Systems for Employment (MS4E) ensures that robust MEAL systems are in place to track performance, measure system-level change, and inform adaptive management. The role promotes continuous learning and evidence-based decision-making.

• Oversee implementation of MEAL systems that capture both program outputs and systemic change
• Track changes in private sector behaviour, youth employment outcomes, and effectiveness of intervention models
• Integrate learning loops informed by ongoing analysis, including updates from PEA
• Ensure timely and high-quality reporting to regional teams and donors
• Promote a culture of learning, reflection, and continuous improvement within the country team

FINANCIAL & OPERATIONAL MANAGEMENT

The Program Manager Market Systems for Employment (MS4E)is responsible for overseeing all financial and operational aspects of the program at the country level, including budget management, procurement processes, and the administration of grants and sub-awards. The role ensures full compliance with donor requirements and Mercy Corps policies while promoting efficiency, accountability, and value for money in the use of resources.

RISK MANAGEMENT

The Program Manager Market Systems for Employment (MS4E) proactively identifies and manages risks associated with program implementation, drawing on key stakeholder views/Political Economy Analysis to anticipate market distortion. Appropriate mitigation strategies shall be developed and implemented to safeguard program integrity and ensure that interventions remain inclusive, transparent, and aligned with intended outcomes.

GENERAL OFFICE MANAGEMENT

• Provide overall leadership and management of the office, ensuring a well-run working environment that supports staff productivity and wellbeing.
• Oversee staff presence, and adherence to office policies, fostering a culture of accountability, collaboration, and engagement across teams.
• Direct day-to-day office operations, including ensuring systems and resources are in place for smooth functioning.
• Serve as the senior point of accountability for office compliance with organisational policies and local regulations.
• Approve payments for Senegal-based projects in line with delegated financial authority and internal control procedures (AAM).
• Liaise with senior leadership and country/regional teams to align office operations with broader organisational priorities and represent the office in relevant internal and external forums.

SAFEGUARDING RESPONSIBILITIES

The Program Manager Market Systems for Employment (MS4E) actively integrates safeguarding principles into all aspects of program delivery, ensuring that the dignity, safety, and well-being of participants and staff are prioritized. The role promotes a culture of openness, accountability, and adherence to Mercy Corps values, while encouraging the use of established reporting mechanisms for any concerns.

Supervisory Responsibility

The Program Manager – Market Systems for Employment (MS4E) provides leadership and management of the country program team, including program and MEL officer to ensure clear accountability and strong performance management.

Accountability

Reports Directly To: Regional Program Director – PROPEL
Works Directly With: Country Director, Regional Technical Teams, Finance and Operations Teams, and PROPEL program lead at Junior Achievement Africa, the major consortium partner.

Accountability to Participants and Stakeholders

Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our program participants, community partners, other stakeholders, and to international standards guiding international relief and development work. We are committed to actively engaging communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects.

Minimum Qualification & Transferable Skills

• Master’s degree in economics, Development Studies, Business Administration, or a related field

• Minimum of 7–10 years of progressive experience in market systems development (MSD), youth employment, or livelihoods programming

• Demonstrated experience engaging and partnering with the private sector to design and implement market-driven interventions

• Strong experience managing multi-partner, donor-funded programs, including implementation oversight and reporting

• Solid understanding of labor market systems and youth employment dynamics, particularly barriers affecting NEET populations

• Demonstrated leadership experience managing multidisciplinary teams and coordinating diverse stakeholders

• Fluent in French, English, knowledge of local language is a plus.

Success Factors

The successful candidate will demonstrate strong systems thinking and the ability to navigate complex and dynamic environments with a high degree of adaptability. They will be skilled in building and managing partnerships, particularly with private sector actors along with a results-oriented mindset focused on achieving sustainable employment outcomes for youth.

Living Conditions / Environmental Conditions

The position is based in Dakar, and it requires up to 70% travel to support field level implementation programs, which may include travel to insecure locations where freedom of movement is limited and areas where amenities are limited.

Ongoing Learning

In support of our belief that learning organizations are more effective, efficient and relevant to the communities we serve, we empower all team members to dedicate 5% of their time to learning activities that further their personal and/or professional growth and development

Team Engagement and Effectiveness

Achieving our mission starts with how we build our team and collaborate. By bringing together individuals with a variety of experiences, backgrounds, and perspectives, we strengthen our ability to solve complex challenges and drive innovation. We foster a culture of trust and respect, where every team member is valued for their contributions, empowered to reach their full potential, and motivated to do their best work.

We recognize that building a strong and effective team is an ongoing process, and we remain committed to learning, improving, and growing together.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Mercy Corps is an equal opportunity employer committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all employees and qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, sex, sexual orientation, religion or belief, national origin, age, disability, marital status, veteran status, or any other characteristics protected under applicable law.

Safeguarding & Ethics

Mercy Corps is committed to ensuring that all individuals we come into contact with through our work, whether team members, community members, program participants or others, are treated with respect and dignity. We are committed to the core principles regarding prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse laid out by the UN Secretary General and IASC and have signed on to the Interagency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme. We will not tolerate child abuse, sexual exploitation, abuse, or harassment by or of our team members. As part of our commitment to a safe and inclusive work environment, team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner, respect local laws and customs, and to adhere to Mercy Corps Code of Conduct Policies and values at all times. Team members are required to complete mandatory Code of Conduct e-learning courses upon hire and on an annual basis.

As an applicant, if you witness or experience any form of sexual misconduct during the recruitment process, please report this to Mercy Corps Integrity Hotline ([email protected]).