Palladium is looking for a Junior Professional to support the East Africa Team on the Investments in Forests and Sustainable Land Use Programme – Phase 2 programme. The role is based primarily in Kenya, working on a global sustainable land-use programme funded by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO).

This is a professional development opportunity, designed to enable you to develop knowledge, skills and competencies required to pursue a successful career within the sector. You will support our East Africa Team to develop and manage projects in the regional Business Incubation (BI) / Design Side Measures (DSM) / Enabling Conditions (EC) portfolio. You will support with the technical aspects of project development and management, and delivering administrative, research and compliance tasks. You will also support the Regional Team with programme coordination, working closely with the MEL (Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning), Grants, and Communication & Stakeholder Engagement teams, offering you excellent oversight of the programme structure.

The role is offered full-time (40 hours), at 5 days per week, based out of our Nairobi, Kenya office, with some homeworking permitted. The start date is expected to be early 2026.

Palladium is a global company working to design, develop and deliver positive impact on the lives and livelihoods of people around the globe; broaden access to health, water, power, and infrastructure; build enduring, sustainable, and transformative institutions and market systems to address global challenges; and conserve the natural world. We operate in over 90 countries and have a workforce of 3,200 talented, motivated, and diverse staff of all religions, races, languages, and gender identities.

The second phase of Partnerships for Forests (P4F) is the flagship programme in the Nature Based Capital and Climate, Environment and Natural Resources practice area at Palladium. Building on the strong foundations of P4F (which ran from 2015 to 2024), the second phase will catalyse investment into inclusive, sustainable businesses, that support growth and livelihoods, and protect and restore forests, ensuring that value flows back to forest-based communities and smallholder farmers across the tropical belt. The programme will operate in five globally important forest regions: East Africa, Latin America, Southeast Asia, West Africa and Central Africa, with a strengthened focus on the latter in this new phase of operations. In all regions, the programme aims to foster long-term sustainability, prosperity and resilience in local economies.

P4F will run for 5 years from 1 February 2025. Depending on performance and subject to funding, the programme may be extended for a further 5 years (up to 2035). The second phase of P4F is funded by the UK government and is one of several activities that sit within the broader Investments in Forests and Sustainable Land Use (IFSLU) Programme.

Primary Responsibilities

The Junior Professional will support the East Africa Team through responsibilities outlined below:

Project development:

• Conduct research to inform the development of the strategy for the East Africa portfolio and to inform the design of specific projects in the portfolio.

• Participate in relevant stakeholder meetings to build knowledge and engage with key stakeholders, including taking notes, helping to keep track of follow up actions, and maintaining records of engagement in Monday.com

• Support the development of Idea Notes and Project Concept notes, including drafting initial content based on discussions with potential partners and with steer from the Regional Manager

• Conduct initial review of draft Idea Notes and Project Concept Notes (PCNs) developed by grantees and work with grantees to help to bring it to the standard required for approval processes.

• Work with the Grants team to review and prepare DD, budget, contract and risk documents.

• Work with the Regional and Global MEL teams to identify and review project’s potential results.

• Manage the document and information flow with prospective grantees, ensuring budgets, PCNs, idea notes, risk registers, etc are received on time and coordinating the process of review and iteration.

Project management:

• Provide support to the regional team to ensure effective management of projects under implementation and ensure timely reporting and monitoring to achieve project outcomes and impacts.

• Work with the grants team to review and quality assure budget and risk reporting and work with grantees to resolve queries / issues that arrive.

• Conduct initial review of technical / financial reports and work with grantees to bring them to the required standard.

• Help grants team with payment process, including verifying payment values, preparing disbursement letters, follow up approval requests, and submitting finalized payments for processing.

• Work with Grantees and Regional MEL and Comms teams to identify, log and share lessons and impact stories for projects under implementation.

• Potentially, for a select number of projects in the portfolio, be the point of contact for regular reporting and engagement as well as ad hoc issues.

Reporting:

• Assist in the production of client reports, internal reports and updated project reports/updates

• Ensure all records are up to date on Monday.com

• Scheduling / convening / meeting support / event coordination and management

• Convene and document meetings of the Project Approval Committee, Risk Committee, and any other meetings as required;

• Convene, document and follow up on client management meetings;

• Collate and distribute relevant documentation required for project level approvals and other programmatic decision making;

• Upload research notes and documents to the programme management tools e.g. SharePoint and Monday.com.

• Support progress against programme milestones;

• Support the drafting of quarterly, annual and extraordinary reporting;

•  Contribute to client technical reports and deliverables;

Reporting

You will report directly to the Senior Project Officer EA, with an indirect reporting line to other workstreams’ leads (MEL, Comms & Stakeholder Engagement, and Grants).

Ideal Candidate

The ideal candidate is interested in how a complex, global programme with a successful track record is managed and is pursuing a potential career in the international development, environment or land use sector. The ideal candidate has the following skills and attitudes:

Essential

• Experience or interest in international development, climate, nature, forestry or stakeholder management.

• Advanced Microsoft Office user (including but not limited to good working knowledge of Excel).

• Fluency in English and Swahili – excellent written and verbal communication skills

• Adaptable (keen to try new approaches, employs agile thinking, flexible and open to change).

• Innovative (intellectual curiosity, solution-based problem solving).

• People skills (communication, follow through, respect for individual, interpersonal relationships, networking).

• Strong organisational skills and attention to detail.

• Passionate and committed to the sector.

• Accountable (ensures work quality, organisational skills).

• The right to work in Kenya without sponsorship.

Desirable

• Experience in an organisation or private company running FCDO-funded or other large international development programmes.

• Educational background with a qualification(s) in a subject relevant to the sector, including Environmental

• Studies, Economics, Public Policy, International Development or Relations etc.

• Fluency in French

Equity, Diversity & Inclusion

• Palladium is committed to embedding equity, diversity, and inclusion into everything we do. We welcome applications from all sections of society and actively encourage diversity to drive innovation, creativity, success and good practice. We positively welcome and seek to ensure we achieve diversity in our workforce; and that all job applicants and employees receive equal and fair treatment regardless of their background or personal characteristics. These include: (but are not limited to) socio-economic background, age, race, gender identity and expression, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation, disability, nationality, veteran, marital or Indigenous status. 

How To Apply

Should you require any adjustments or accommodations to be made during the recruitment process (due to disability, neurodiversity, or for any other circumstance), please email rowena.clay@thepalladiumgroup.com and we will be in touch to discuss.