HAND IN HAND’S OVERVIEW

Hand in Hand Switzerland was founded in 2013 as an expert entity to support the activities of Hand in Hand India, Cambodia, Myanmar and Sri Lanka. 

• Our vision: Alleviating poverty by creating jobs and developing communities
• Our mission: Working toward economic and social responsibility by creating sustainable communities
• Our objective: Creating 10 million jobs by 2025 in India, Cambodia, Myanmar and Sri Lanka

For more information, visit our website: https://hihswiss.org 

Our Founding Organization 

Registered in 2004, Hand in Hand India, our founding organization, started its operations on a humble scale with a vision to eradicate child labour in Kancheepuram, a district in Tamil Nadu in South India known for its 500-year-old silk weaving industry.  Over the years, the organization has expanded geographically - from one small district to 16 large States of India and 7 countries globally - and thematically - from preventing child labour to addressing root causes of poverty through its 5 Pillar Programme. These include interventions on child labour and education; health; skills development; job creation and women empowerment; environment.

The list of prizes awarded to Hand in Hand is impressive and goes from the ‘Nari Shakti Puraskar’ (‘‘Woman Power” Award) from the Government of India to the United Nations ‘Princess Sabeeka Bint Ibrahim AI-Khalifa’ Global Award for Women Empowerment. For more information, you can visit: http://www.hihindia.org. 

Hand in Hand Switzerland’s Approach

As we expand our footprint globally, Hand in Hand Switzerland joins the efforts of its founding organization and other Hand in Hand entities worldwide to contribute in achieving the overarching organizational goals for a greater impact.  

Hand in Hand Switzerland’s primary focus is on a 3E approach, i.e. Education , Empowerment and Environment. We believe that these are the core focus areas that require utmost attention for creating an equal, sustainable and prosperous world. 

Education: We engage with vulnerable children and youth from remote and rural areas and provide them with access to quality education and opportunities through our residential and non residential programmes 

Empowerment: We financially empower women from rural communities so they can become self-sufficient entrepreneurs and bring about social change, command greater influence on their families and communities and make better decisions regarding their health and wellbeing. 

Environment: We create climate resilient communities through large scale environment initiatives that focus on climate smart agriculture and waste management programmes 

The Dream Village: Aside from these three core initiatives, we have a flagship programme, the Dream Village that is designed to holistically support an entire village with the requirements of the community. Directly addressing poverty, our dream village elevates rural spaces by improving social indicators of environment, education and empowerment through a community oriented participatory approach. The 30-month programme aims to build self-reliant communes through a linear development approach of assessment, awareness, activities, results and outcome leading up to sustainability.

VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITY DESCRIPTION

Main responsibilities

Support the work of Hand in Hand Switzerland’s team which includes: 

• Fundraising and Development team
• Project Managers in the field
• Monitoring and evaluation Managers in the field

Main tasks

• Following-up on the management of projects, mainly in India and Cambodia
• Support in compiling reports and ensuring compliance with our donors’ criteria
• Support in drafting new concept notes and proposals in English and in French
• Reviewing documents sent from the field
• Assist in the development of activities aiming at promoting Hand in Hand’s work in Switzerland
• Undertake background research and assist in the preparation of internal and external documents
• Supporting project-based fundraising activities 
• Representation of the association to events or meetings if required.
• Administrative support and other tasks, as necessary.

VOLUNTEER PROFILE

1. A first-level university degree in a relevant field (e.g. international development, political science, international relations) is preferred or being in the final year of such studies.
2. Strong knowledge of project management, project design and monitoring and evaluation methods.
3. Strong organizational skills and ability to prioritize multiple tasks.
4. Fluency in English and French. German is a plus.
5. Strong sense of responsibility and ability to work independently.
6. Good teamwork and communication skills.
7. A commitment and interest towards education, women empowerment and environment.
8. Computer literacy including Microsoft office suite. Experience with social media, WordPress and Google Forms and Docs (or willingness to learn) is a plus.
9. Understanding of the Indian context is a plus.

CONDITIONS

This is an unpaid volunteer position. 

We are requesting a commitment of minimum 6 months and 1 day per week. It is a remote volunteer opportunity with punctual meetings in Geneva.

Start date October 1st, 2022. 

BENEFITS

Hand in Hand is still a small organization in Switzerland, but a well-known and multiple times awarded NGO in India. The opportunities to grow and promote our work are unlimited, which gives a lot of space for co-creation and personal initiatives. 

Hand in Hand’s team values relationships and usually engage in long-lasting, mutually beneficial collaborations. 

This is a unique opportunity to acquire experience on the operational work of an NGO implementing large-scale and impactful projects. 

APPLICATION PROCESS

Please send a CV, a letter of motivation, along with a short writing sample by email to: emilie.compignie@hihswiss.org

Important: In the subject of your email, please indicate ”Programme Volunteer Position".

Please note that due to the number of applications, we will not review incomplete applications and only short-listed candidates will be contacted.

Deadline: Applications should be submitted via email by midnight of 7th September (CET time).