Vacancy: Employment Officer [2 positions]
Type of Contract: Fixed term until 31st August 2023
Location: Belgrade, Serbia
Posting Date: September 20th, 2022
Closing Date for Applications: October 7th, 2022
Organizational Background:
The Roma Education Fund’s (REF) mission and goal is to close the gap in educational outcomes
between Roma and non-Roma. To achieve this goal, the organization supports policies and programs
that ensure quality education for Roma, including desegregation of education systems, through
scholarships, grant making, research and advocacy activities.
The objectives of Roma Education Fund include:
• Expanding Romani children’s access to quality early childhood education and care;
• Improving primary education outcomes for Romani children aged six to fourteen;
• Boosting academic performance and graduation rates for Romani students in secondary
education;
• Supporting access to tertiary education, improving graduation level and strengthening
indent of Romani university students;
• Expanding employment opportunities for young Romani adults.
The Roma Education Fund (REF) in Serbia implements the project “Employment Empowerment of
Young Roma – phase II” funded by German Financial Cooperation implemented by KfW on behalf of
the German Government – Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development.
The overall objective of the project “Employment Empowerment of Young Roma – phase II” is to
support the social inclusion of Roma in Serbia by increasing the completion rate of secondary
education Roma students and facilitating their transition into the labour market by increasing their
professional competencies through a series of activities implemented within three project
components: education, employment, and reintegration of Roma returnees.
Activities covered by the project include, but are not limited to, the provision of scholarships and
mentoring support to Roma secondary education students, providing support to Roma individuals in
retraining, vocational training and attending in-demand skills and language courses, providing paid
internships for successful Roma graduates, and facilitating employment through cooperation
agreements with employers from the private, public, non-governmental and international sectors.
Moreover, the project aims to provide specific support young Roma returnees and their families
through a grant scheme implemented in cooperation with local partners throughout Serbia.
The Project is supported by the German Financial Cooperation Program implemented by the German
Development Bank KfW on behalf of the Government of the Republic of Germany – Ministry of
Economic Cooperation and Development and implemented in Serbia.
We are looking for an agile, responsible, motivated and dedicated person to join and support our
team in implementation of the project by ensuring employment project component, which includes:
• ensuring that all aspects of the project component will be implemented in a timely manner
and in line with the project objectives;
• establishing cooperation with partners from public, civil and private companies;
• advocate for the Roma education to employment transition and full participation in public.
• involvement of Young Roma in activities under program components related to employment
empowerment.
This position is open for the duration of the project until 31st August 2023. The selected candidate will
sign a full-time fixed-term contract of employment for the duration of the project.
Duties and Responsibilities
The roles and responsibilities of the Employment Officer is to oversee implementation of the
employment project component, ensure its quality, coordinate and implement all program activities
in accordance with predefined program objectives.
The Employment Officer is responsible, but not limited to the following activities:
• Collecting and administering all data and information on employment project beneficiaries
in Serbia, including the creation of a database and its regular updating;
• Developing and implementing a work plan for support based on the requirements and
findings of the program user needs assessment, actively participate in the process of
identifying the program user needs;
• Drafting and implementing the process of identifying potential partners – employers
(including public and private companies), their motivation to join the program, as well as the
framework of cooperation with selected employers;
• Conceiving and managing comprehensive training programs and paid work placements, as
well as their monitoring;
• Communicating directly with the Program Manager regarding the aforementioned plans and
monitoring, including additional support for the unemployed high school graduates and
university student’s 3rd and 4th grades, as well as a small number of unemployed students;
• Cooperating and communicating with relevant institutions, donor organizations and nongovernmental organizations in the country, including lobbying and advocacy;
• Encouraging and supporting cross-sectoral partnerships to meet the various needs of the
immediate project’s beneficiaries;
• Creating and disseminating information on the Employment Project Component with
relevant institutions, partners, stakeholders and the media with the approval of the Program
Manager;
• Maintaining close communication with the implementing partners, staff members and other
stakeholders on a day to day basis;
• Assisting in the preparation of periodic projects reports for the both employment
component and the project in general;
• Performing other duties as required;
Required qualifications:
• B.A in the field of social/economic sciences or at least two years of experience in project
related to these fields;
• At least two years of relevant experience in the field of employment, minority affairs and
other related areas. Previous experience in working with CSOs, international organizations
and/or in supporting in the implementation of project;
• Proficiency in computer skills with practical skills in Microsoft Office applications. Experience
in using other digital tools will be considered an asset;
• Excellent oral and written communications in English and Serbian. Knowledge of Romani
languages will be considered an advantage;
• Experience in coordinating projects or program locally and regionally;
• High awareness and sensitivity to gender equality issues, as well as the ability to integrate a
gender perspective into all tasks and activities;
• Ability to adapt and respond in a flexible manner when needed;
• Actively strives to develop professionally and personally and to contribute to the growth of
the organization;
How to apply:
This position is open only for candidates with the citizenship of or permanent residence in the Republic
of Serbia. Interested candidates who meet the requirements set out in the Call for Applications are
invited to apply for the position electronically by sending their CV an Cover Letter (both in English) to
spetrov@romaeducationfund.org no later than 07 October 2022 [CoB] with the subject line:
Application: Employment Officer – KfW Project.
All received applications will be subject to a through administrative check. Applications submitted
after the specified deadline, incomplete applications (missing CV and/or Cover Letter), as well as
applications submitted in languages other than English will not be considered.
Only candidates whose applications meet the above listed requirements and the criteria set out in the
Call will be considered for the next step in the selection process. The selection process will consist of
a written test and a competency-based interview. Candidates selected for the written test will be
notified of the date and time of the test in a timely manner.
Roma Education Fund is an equal opportunities employer
