Helvetas is an organization specialized in development cooperation and humanitarian response, anchored in Switzerland. Our vision is a just world in which all people determine the course of their lives in dignity and security, using environmental resources in a sustainable manner.
Helvetas Swiss Intercooperation is implementing the Education for Employment (E4E) project in North Macedonia, which aims to address structural labour market mismatches by strengthening the relevance, inclusiveness, and market orientation of the Vocational Education and Training (VET) system.
The project focuses on demand-driven skills development, stronger engagement of private-sector and public-sector institutions, and improved pathways to decent employment for young people, with particular attention to inclusion. E4E applies a Market Systems Development (MSD) approach and works closely with national and sectoral stakeholders to support sustainable, systemic change in the Vocational Skills Development (VSD) system. The project is currently entering its Phase 3 /Exit Phase (2026-2029), with a strong focus on institutionalisation, sustainability, transfer of ownership, and consolidation of learning.
The expected start date for this position is June 15, 2026, or as soon as possible thereafter.
MAIN TASKS
Provide overall strategic, technical, and managerial leadership for the E4E project in North Macedonia.
Ensure high-quality project implementation in line with the approved intervention logic, donor commitments, and Helvetas standards, while steering the project through its exit phase with a focus on sustainability and transfer of ownership to key national actors.
Lead and supervise the project team, ensure effective planning, coordination, and risk management.
Oversee sound administrative and financial management and compliance with donor and organisational requirements.
Manage relationships and advise key project partners, particularly public-sector institutions and relevant private-sector actors, monitor the implementation of their activities, and ensure alignment with agreed objectives and roles.
Guide the consistent application of the MSD approach and adaptive management across project interventions.
Oversee monitoring, results measurement, learning, and knowledge management.
Ensure that learning, good practices, and evidence of systemic change generated by the project are properly documented, consolidated, and disseminated, preserving the knowledge base beyond the project’s lifetime.
Represent the project externally and maintain strong working relationships with donors, government institutions, private-sector partners, and other strategic stakeholders.
Perform Country Manager functions for 20% of your time. In this capacity, you will contribute to ensuring a conducive organisational environment for Helvetas in North Macedonia, including oversight of compliance with organisational policies, coordination with the Regional and Head Office teams, and support to sound administrative, financial, and HR processes.
Support the positioning of Helvetas as a credible development partner and knowledge broker in the country, contribute to institutional relationship management with key stakeholders and donors, and promote cross-project learning, knowledge sharing, and coherence in line with regional strategies.
YOUR QUALIFICATIONS
Minimum bachelor’s degree in economics, social sciences, development studies, education, or a related field; professional certification in project management is an asset.
At least 8–10 years of experience in development cooperation or related fields, including senior project management roles.
Proven experience in Vocational Skills Development, labour market interventions, or private-sector engagement.
Demonstrated ability to manage project exit phases, including institutionalisation, handover of responsibilities, and consolidation and transfer of learning to national partners
Demonstrated experience in applying systemic or Market Systems Development (MSD) approaches in complex programmes.
Strong understanding of the North Macedonian context, including public-sector and labour-market institutions.
Excellent command of English; working proficiency in Macedonian or other relevant local languages, enabling independent communication with national stakeholders.
Strong leadership, communication, and stakeholder management skills.
Proficiency in standard office and digital collaboration tools.
OUR OFFER
At Helvetas, you will be part of a purpose-driven organization where your work creates meaningful global impact. We foster a caring and collaborative culture built on trust, flexibility, and accountability. You will grow in a professional environment that values integrity, empathy, and continuous learning. → We care. We commit.
The position is open to North Macedonian nationals and international applicants from the Western Balkans region. International applicants must demonstrate strong knowledge of the local context and the language skills required to communicate effectively with national stakeholders. Remuneration and contractual conditions will be applied according to the applicable Helvetas national or international compensation scheme, depending on the selected candidate’s profile.
We look forward to receiving your complete application including motivation letter, CV, and relevant certificates via our online recruitment system by March 01, 2026. For additional information, please contact Anastasia Bekish (anastasia.bekish@helvetas.org), Regional Economy Portfolio Manager, or visit our websites www.helvetas.org and Education for Employment @ Mk
Helvetas, Swiss Association for International Cooperation, founded 1955 as Switzerland’s first private organization for development cooperation, is registered as a denominationally and politically independent, non profit oriented, specialised development association.
Helvetas is primarily committed to working towards the elimination of the causes of poverty and marginalization in the South and the East. Its mission is to actively contribute to the improvement of the living conditions of economically, socially and politically disadvantaged people within the frame of the Human Rights, with a focus on self-initiative activities and self-help in rural areas.
Together with some 44’000 members and their local groups, Helvetas is as well actively engaged in Switzerland with respect to solidarity in development, to promoting fair trade, and raising public awareness of the cultural wealth of development and transition countries.
In its international programme, Helvetas concentrates its actions in four working areas:
1. Infrastructure in Rural Areas including initiatives regarding water and sanitation, access and mobilization, livelihood, rehabilitation and construction of basic infrastructure,
2. Sustainable Management of Natural Resources, also comprising projects in the fields of climate, disaster risk mitigation and sustainable livelihood management,
3. Education and Culture, including a number of successful initiatives in Vocational Education and Training (VET), support to and lobbying for reforms in the VET System, improvement of teaching and learning environments, modernization of curriculum, assessment and development of learning materials, human resource development, development of alternative financing approaches, awareness-building and income generation through artistic forms of expression, promotion of cultural exchange and diversity of cultural expressions.
4. Civil Society and the State, which integrates projects supporting good governance, decentralisation and civil peace building/conflict sensitivity.
Helvetas’ development initiatives are guided by five approaches: striving for equality between men and women (gender), learning through dialogue between different cultures, protecting the environment, acting with economic and social responsibility and conflict prevention.
Helvetas is not only oriented towards material needs, such as procuring food and improved living conditions, but also towards aims regarding social, cultural, and spiritual aspects. These include the overcoming of paralysing dependence, reduction of inequality between the sexes, ethnicity, castes, building up of self-confidence or the strengthening of responsibility towards other human beings and the environment. Helvetas acts on the basis of human rights and makes every effort that these are also respected by its partner organizations. Also important are the promotion of democratic, decentralised structures, opportunities for participation, and joint responsibility as citizens.
For its international programmes, Helvetas’ mission is:
- to cooperate on a partnership basis with and in favour of the poor and disadvantaged population groups in the poorer regions of development and transition countries
- to share knowledge and experiences between Switzerland and partner countries as well as to further promote mutual exchange between partner countries
- to strengthen local structures and sustainable development and to promote human rights
- to develop suitable measures that prevent or mitigate violent conflicts
Wherever indicated, Helvetas applies a multi-stakeholder approach involving partners of civil society, the state and the private sector in reaching development goals. On the basis of participatory approaches, Helvetas strengthens its partner organizations. Their institutional sustainability is a key concern which is addressed through capacity building of the partner organizations. Furthermore, to leverage the best utilisation of its knowledge, to strengthen internal learning and to share experience and lessons learnt with other development actors, Helvetas (in 2000) elevated Knowledge Sharing (KS) to a strategic level. Helvetas nowadays plays a leading role in KS for Development, striving for continuous learning through an intranet and face-to-face workshops. Helvetas supports facilitation of international Communities of Practice (CoP), e.g. the “Water-for-food”-network () or the “KM4Dev” (Knowledge Management for Development) (www.km4dev.org).
Helvetas currently employs 77 staff (56 full-time posts) at the Head Office in Switzerland, and 45 expatriates (42 full-time posts) and 630 local staff in 20 developing and transition countries. In 2009, Helvetas had a turnover of around 64.3 Mio CHF; 54.2 Mio CHF for programme support abroad, 3.4 Mio CHF for information and advocacy activities in Switzerland, and 6.7 Mio CHF for administration and fundraising in Switzerland.
Helvetas’ Board of Directors (15 members) determines the overall strategy based on the bylaws and executes financial control functions. The operational implementation is with the Secretary General and the Management Board (7; Heads of Departments and Secretary General) based on department and working area strategies and financial plans. The International Programmes Department (19 full-time posts) at the head office is divided into a geographic team (steering, coordination, controlling of the country programmes) and the thematic team (technical assistance and expertise, monitoring). In the partner countries, programme offices with programme directors (15) are responsible for the implementation of projects and country strategies. The finance department (4) at the head office operates the financial control system. The Programme direction and programme country projects are audited yearly by an external, independent auditing company (KPMG, Zurich). Helvetas is ZEWO certified, avails a risk analysis system and a well elaborated monitoring and evaluation system.
Helvetas’ monitoring and evaluation system pursues three objectives: a) to provide information for strategic steering, b) to allow organisational learning and c) to assure accountability to its constituencies, donors and the ultimate beneficiaries. Helvetas conducts therefore a) periodic monitoring, b) internal and external evaluations, c) qualitative case studies and d) impact assessments in a set of selected projects. For the periodic monitoring Helvetas has developed an electronic Project Monitoring System (pms), which is linked to its Internal Control System.
Helvetas introduced a decentralized management system in 1990, delegating a high degree of autonomy to the country programme directors. A project monitoring system enables the programme directors to delegate operational responsibility to national project managers and staff. The Helvetas programme offices are responsible for coordination and strategic issues.
Helvetas has links with networks and partner organisations, e.g. being actively involved in the SDC governance network, the KOFF (Competence Centre for Peace Building) intervision group on conflict sensitivity and gender network at university of Bern. Strategic partnership agreements exist particularly with SCA, SKAT and KOFF.
