Starting Date: 1st September 2025

Contract type: One Year Consultancy. Renewal Possible

Salary: €3,000 per month

Location: Benin, Côte d´Ivoire

Application closing date: 25th July 2025

About the Job 

Are you passionate about advancing social impact across cotton-producing communities in Benin, Côte d´Ivoire, Mali, Egypt and Mozambique? As our Decent Work Coordinator for Better Cotton’s African Country Programmes, you’ll play a key role in Better Cotton’s mission to advance Better Cotton’s Decent Work agenda in cotton production. You’ll work closely with our existing Programme Partners, foster new partnerships, and drive multi-stakeholder engagement across our growing African Country Programmes. 

In this role, you’ll provide technical support, design capacity strengthening materials, develop practical tools, foster new partnerships and engage in setting up innovative projects that improve working conditions, advance rights protection, and enhance the collective voice and representation of farming communities. Working alongside cross-functional teams and field experts, you’ll play a critical role in driving meaningful, on-the-ground change through our Country Programmes.  

We’re looking for someone who is proactive, collaborative, and passionate about human rights and social impact. If you have experience in supporting rights-based Programmes with rural communities, and a passion for multi-stakeholder partnerships, we’d love to hear from you! 

Responsibilities

• Provide hands-on support to Programme Partners to implement Better Cotton’s Standard on Decent Work (Principle 5) across five African country programmes.
• Identify capacity strengthening needs and contribute to the development of training materials, tools, and technical guidance, in collaboration with country teams and the Capacity Strengthening unit.
• Capture and share good practices from Programme Partners, supporting cross-organisational learning on Decent Work.
• Support the identification, development, and management of partnerships focused on Decent Work, including stakeholder mapping and contributions to fundraising and proposal development.
• Help design and manage Decent Work-related projects, including pilot initiatives, ensuring close coordination with internal teams and external stakeholders.
• Conduct needs assessments to inform country-level priorities and guide programme activities.
• Serve as a key focal point for Decent Work within the Africa team, contributing to strategic planning, thematic working groups, and regional collaboration.
• Represent Better Cotton in relevant regional and cross-sector initiatives, advocating for improved labour standards and rights-based approaches in the cotton sector.

What we are looking for

We are seeking a committed and knowledgeable professional to lead our Decent Work efforts across African country programmes. The Decent Work Coordinator will play a central role in supporting partners and country teams to strengthen labour standards, adapt our Standard to local contexts, and drive initiatives that improve working conditions in cotton farming communities. The role involves close collaboration with the Global Decent Work team, partnerships development, and contribution to fundraising and knowledge-sharing activities.

The ideal candidate will bring solid experience in human rights, labour standards, and rural development, ideally within the African context. You should have strong project management skills, experience working with diverse stakeholders, and a passion for advancing fair, safe, and inclusive agricultural practices.

Required Skills and Competencies

• Higher education in human rights, international development, sustainability, or related fields, or equivalent professional experience. 

• At least 5-years of work experience in rural development, with some experience related to Decent Work, Human Rights or rights-based Programmes.  

• Experience in partnership-building, multi-stakeholder engagement, and project management within the region.  

• Strong understanding of labour and human rights issues in the agricultural sector. 

• Ability to work effectively within a dispersed team and adapt standards to specific country contexts. 

• Excellent cross-functional coordination skills, with the ability to align initiatives with the organisation’s broader decent work, gender equality, and livelihoods approaches. 

• Fluency in English and French (Portuguese is an asset)  

• Experience working in multi-cultural and international settings. 

• Proven project management experience, with the ability to prioritize tasks and manage deadlines effectively.  

• Proven ability to work autonomously with a high level of personal effectiveness and ability to adapt to changing priorities 

• Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite, Salesforce and other project management tools. 

• Previous experience in a voluntary sustainability standard or certification desirable; 

What we offer

• Remote working 

• Flexible working. 

• Continuous learning and development 

• Provision of IT equipment including a laptop and headset 

• A warm, positive working environment where everyone is valued 

• The opportunity to make your mark and make a difference. 

Working arrangements

The position is full-time (40 hours per week) and will be based remotely in Africa. Better Cotton offers flexible working, with core hours being 10 am – 4 pm.

The position will require some international travel within Africa, and possibly Europe. 

Apply now

To apply, please submit your CV (maximum 2 pages) and a cover letter (maximum 1 page) by 25^th July 2025.

In your cover letter, please include an explanation of why your experience is specifically relevant to this role at Better Cotton. We want to see your personal style – what makes you tick and why you think your next opportunity is here with us. 

Our hiring process

Initial Screening:

Applicant screening is a crucial step in our recruitment process. This stage may involve a brief phone interview or video call to evaluate your suitability for the position. During this screening, we review resumes and cover letters, and may conduct initial background checks to narrow down the pool of applicant. Internal candidates are encouraged to inform their line manager about their application to promote transparency and help facilitate a smooth transition if selected.

Interviews:

If you successfully pass the initial screening, you will be invited for interviews. The interview process at Better Cotton may include one or more rounds of interviews with various stakeholders, such as the hiring manager, team members, and potentially senior management. As an internal candidate, you may have discussions regarding your current responsibilities and how they will transition to the new position.

Assessment and Testing: 

Depending on the role, you might be required to complete assessments, technical tests, or skills evaluations to gauge your competency and suitability for the position. Internal candidates may have the option to demonstrate their existing skills through current job performance or past project outcomes.

Reference Checks: 

Once you progress further in the process, reference checks are conducted to validate your work history, skills, and qualifications, and for some roles, your education and criminal history. Internal candidates may be asked for references from current or previous supervisors within Better Cotton to provide insights into their performance and capabilities.

Offer stage:

After completing interviews, assessments, and reference checks, the hiring team evaluates your performance and fit for the role. If you are selected and your references are relevant and satisfactory, you will receive a formal job offer letter outlining the terms of employment, compensation, benefits, and any other relevant details. For internal candidates, the offer process may include a discussion about how your transition to the new role will be managed and any support needed for a smooth handover.

About Better Cotton

Better Cotton is a global not-for-profit organisation supporting the production of more equitable and sustainable cotton at farm level. We exist to catalyse the cotton farming community with partners, governments and others to continuously drive positive impact by setting standards and facilitating the supply and demand of more sustainable cotton from farm to brand. In just 15 years we have aligned more than a fifth of the world’s cotton with our standard and helped farmers and farming communities thrive. Join us in building a better, more sustainable future for cotton worldwide.

About our Values

The post holder will be expected to operate in line with our workplace values which are:  

• Trustworthy (including honest, transparent, credible) 
• As having Integrity (including responsible, authentic) 
• Positive (including problem-solving, pragmatic) 
• Engaging (including adaptable, inclusive, holistic) 
• Daring (including courageous, innovative, game-changing)  

Being you @ Better Cotton

Better Cotton is committed to creating a diverse environment and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer with a strong commitment to good practice and transparency in the management of natural, human, and financial resources.

We have a zero-tolerance approach to any attitudes or behaviours that put children or adults at risk of harm. Safeguarding incidents are acts of serious misconduct and are grounds for disciplinary action, up to and including, dismissal and referral to relevant authorities for criminal prosecution. Therefore, all offers of employment are subject to satisfactory references and appropriate screening checks.