The African Capacity Building Foundation (ACBF) is the leading institution for capacity development in Africa. It has a membership of 40 African countries as well as the African Development Bank (AfDB), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the World Bank.

ACBF’s focus is on human capital development and institution building to address current and future development challenges.  While it provides services to all sectors; public, private, civil society, and academia, to name a few, ACBF pays attention to improving the effectiveness of Africa’s public sector institutions at country, regional and continental levels to become effective systems’ integrators and catalysers of sustainable and transformative change.

The Foundation was established in 1991 to address Africa’s severe capacity gaps. To date, ACBF has supported over 70 higher education institutions, including universities across all sub-Saharan Africa regions, to reform curriculums that address the economic requirements of their countries and equipped universities with libraries which enabled students to carry out research online. The Foundation has trained more than 50,000 personnel in civil service, most of which hold key positions in Ministries of Finance, Planning or Economic Development and Central Banks across the continent.

ACBF has also established a network of over 35 think tanks that support evidence-based policy making across Africa and produces critical policy research/analysis which informs economic management and help establish benchmarks for success. As a thought leader, ACBF has generated over 500 knowledge products in the forms of research, studies, and publications covering over 200 development topics.

The Foundation has a current five-year strategy (2023-2027) which focuses on human capacity development and institution building in four impact areas, which are Climate Change & Green Energy, Economic Governance, Agribusiness & Food Security, and Trade.

ACBF has internship opportunities in Harare-Zimbabwe, Accra-Ghana and Nairobi-Kenya for recent graduates to join the Foundation.

The internship offers opportunities to:

• Work with a major international institution driving Africa’s capacity development.
• Participate and gain a deeper understanding of ACBF’s work in Africa.
• Work collaboratively with experienced professionals in a multicultural environment.
• Develop the individual’s career path with practical work experience as they contribute to ACBF’s work.

SELECTION CRITERIA (required skills and knowledge)

Selection will be on a competitive basis, and the following minimum qualifications and competencies are required.

Interested candidates must have a Bachelor’s degree. A Master’s degree will be an added advantage in a wide range of fields, such as Business Administration, Communication, Finance, Economics, Library and Information Science, International Development, Marketing, Public Administration, Records Management, or any related Social-Sciences field.

• Ability to work independently under minimum supervision and be accountable.
• Fluency in at least one of the Foundation’s working languages (English or French).
• Excellent writing, research, critical thinking, and analytical skills.
• Excellent interactive and interpersonal skills and the ability to work in a multicultural environment.
• Excellent computer skills (MS applications)
• Demonstrated mastery of subject matter.
• Efficient in meeting commitments, deadlines and achieving results
• Good communication skills.

The Foundation will provide the interns with a monthly allowance. Interns shall be responsible for their own medical insurance coverage, transport (air travel where applicable), and living accommodation expenses.

APPLICATION PROCESS

Applications, quoting the reference “Internship – 2025,” including curriculum vitae (maximum two pages) and a personal statement (one page) with three (3) referees, should be received at the address below by 31 January 2025.

The Executive Secretary

The African Capacity Building Foundation

P.O. Box 1562

HARARE, Zimbabwe

E-mail:  [email protected]

Please note that only candidates under serious consideration will be contacted.

We strongly encourage qualified female candidates to apply.

ACBF is a smoke-free environment.