Project Officer - Isiolo (ASCEND Project)

Industry: Nonprofit/International Development/Social Entrepreneurship

Employer: Village Enterprise

Job Title: Project Officer

Department: Programs.

Position Type: Full-time.

Reports to: Program Officer.

Direct Reports: None

Location: Isiolo.

About Village Enterprise

Village Enterprise Kenya is a leading economic inclusion organization dedicated to ending extreme poverty through entrepreneurship, financial inclusion, and access to markets. Village Enterprise is implementing ASCEND - Advancing Scalable, Cost-Effective Entrepreneurship through Digital Innovation - a three-year, multi-country initiative across Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda and Ethiopia.

ASCEND will scale Village Enterprise's digitally enabled approach to poverty graduation, combining entrepreneurship and livelihood development with digital learning, savings, coaching, financial inclusion and market access. The project will use technology and data to increase the reach, quality and cost-effectiveness of delivery while maintaining strong participant engagement and programme quality.

The project will support 21,600 businesses and 64,800 households, reaching an estimated 388,800 lives across the four countries. At least 80% of direct participants will be women.

ASCEND is both a major delivery initiative and an important opportunity for Village Enterprise to demonstrate how digitally enabled Graduation programming can achieve quality, scale and cost-effectiveness across diverse operating contexts.

Project and Position Overview:

Village Enterprise is implementing ASCEND - Advancing Scalable, Cost-Effective Entrepreneurship through Digital Innovation - a three-year, multi-country initiative across Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda and Ethiopia.

ASCEND will scale Village Enterprise's digitally enabled approach to poverty graduation, combining entrepreneurship and livelihood development with digital learning, savings, coaching, financial inclusion and market access. The project will use technology and data to increase the reach, quality and cost-effectiveness of delivery while maintaining strong participant engagement and programme quality.

The project will support 21,600 businesses and 64,800 households, reaching an estimated 388,800 lives across the four countries. At least 80% of direct participants will be women.

ASCEND is both a major delivery initiative and an important opportunity for Village Enterprise to demonstrate how digitally enabled Graduation programming can achieve quality, scale and cost-effectiveness across diverse operating contexts.

Position Summary

The Project Officer is a frontline implementation professional responsible for directly delivering Village Enterprise’s SPRINT digital Graduation methodology in assigned communities. The role manages the full participant and enterprise journey from community entry and targeting through digital learning, business formation, savings, coaching, financial and market linkages, and graduation follow-up while maintaining strong participant engagement and implementation quality.

Each Project Officer is expected to support the establishment of approximately 300–600 businesses during a 16-month implementation cycle, subject to approved country and project targets, geographical conditions, and resourcing. The role reports to the Program Officer, works independently across dispersed field locations, and coordinates community Tech Champions and partners without holding formal line-management responsibility unless specifically delegated.