Youth & Social Inclusion Expert

Position Summary

The Ministry of Youth and Sports (MoYS), in collaboration with the World Bank (WB), is implementing the 30 -months Economic Acceleration and Resilience (EARN) project to engage NEET (not in education, employment, or training) youth, with a special focus on women, in rural and semi-urban areas of Bangladesh. The project aims to economically empower NEET youth through education, skills development, employment, and enterprise support. It provides women centric facilities, enhances employability by building employer linkages, and offers upskilling in Socio-Emotional Behavior (SEB) and Entrepreneur Development (ED). Additionally, incubation support for employment and entrepreneurship will be provided. To ensure the inclusion of women and underserved groups, the project will create an enabling environment through awareness raising, community engagement, family-based planning, and monitoring.

About the Role

The Youth & Social Inclusion Expert will lead the design and implementation of strategies to foster social inclusion of NEET youth, addressing barriers rooted in social norms and community attitudes. Working closely with the Project Director, community groups, local authorities, and implementing partners, the Expert will conduct social and youth-focused analyses, develop inclusive engagement frameworks, and integrate social-norms interventions across all project activities.

Major Responsibilities

• Social Norms & Youth Analysis: 

Conduct baseline and periodic assessments of social norms, gender biases, and youth specific barriers in target communities. Use findings to shape inclusion strategies and community engagement plans. 

• Program Design & Implementation: 

Develop and pilot inclusive frameworks, guidelines, and toolkits that embed social-norms change and gender sensitivity into vocational training, life-skills curricula, and enterprise 

• Community & Family Engagement: 

Design and facilitate awareness-raising sessions, dialogues, and workshops for families, community leaders, and peer groups to build supportive environments for NEET youth participation. 

• Capacity Building: 

Train project staff, community mobilizers, and local partners on social-norms change methodologies, participatory facilitation techniques, and inclusive communication. 

• Partnerships & Advocacy: 

Liaise with local NGOs, government departments, civil society, and media to advocate for youth inclusion, secure resources, and amplify success stories that model positive social change. 

• Monitoring & Evaluation: 

Define inclusion-specific indicators; work with the MIS Expert to integrate them into project MIS. Track and report on gender balance, participation rates of marginalized groups, and outcomes of social-norms interventions. 

• Stakeholder Coordination: 

Collaborate with Upazila Coordination Committees (UCCs), Community Groups (CGs), and VLTC teams to ensure transparent and inclusive beneficiary selection, prioritizing women and disadvantaged youth. 

• Reporting & Knowledge Sharing:

Prepare analytical reports, case studies, and policy briefs on social-inclusion outcomes; present findings to project management, donors, and government stakeholders.

Safeguarding Responsibilities

• Implement and champion the project’s safeguarding policy to ensure a safe environment for all participants. 
• Provide guidance, training, and resources on safeguarding issues to the project team and partners.
• Promptly follow the safeguarding reporting procedure for any incidents, ensuring confidentiality and compliance with policy.

Qualifications

Education:

• Master’s degree in Sociology, Anthropology, Development Studies, Social Work, or a related field.

Experience:

• At least 10 years of experience working in donor-funded development programmes
• Minimum 10 years of progressive experience in youth development, gender equity, social protection.

Skills and other competencies

• Proven expertise in social norm analysis, youth needs assessments, and gender inclusion strategies. 
• Demonstrated ability to design, facilitate, and scale community engagement initiatives, with sensitivity to rural and indigenous contexts (e.g., Chattogram Hill Tracts). 
• Strong skills in training delivery, participatory facilitation, and the use of creative tools for  behavior change. 
• Familiarity with monitoring inclusion indicators, qualitative assessments, and contribution to impact evaluations. 
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills in Bangla and English, and working knowledge of local dialects or indigenous languages will be an asset.
• Commitment to equity, dignity, and social justice, with a deep understanding of the socio cultural landscape of the project areas.