Development Grants & Donor Communications Associate

About Imagine Worldwide

All children have immense potential, but hundreds of millions don’t have access to the learning they need. Imagine Worldwide’s mission is to empower millions of children across Sub-Saharan Africa with the literacy and numeracy skills they need to reach their full potential. We provide an innovative education technology solution and implementation model to the global literacy/numeracy learning crisis using the onebillion application and various toolkits and systems to support implementation. Nine Randomized Controlled Trials (RCTs) across multiple countries and settings have shown dramatic learning gains, increased school attendance, and gender parity, all for less than $7 per child per year.

Imagine Worldwide partners with governments, organizations, and communities to provide child-directed, tablet-based learning that is accessible, effective, and affordable. We are a California-based (United States) nonprofit organization operating across seven Sub-Saharan African countries. Learn more on our website.

About the Role

The Development Grants & Donor Communications Associate plays a critical role in advancing the organization’s resource mobilization efforts. This position is responsible for drafting high-quality proposals, reports, concept notes, and donor communications for institutional funders and high-net-worth individuals.

The ideal candidate is a strong writer with a keen attention to detail, the ability to synthesize complex programmatic and technical information, and a collaborative mindset. This role is well suited to someone early in their fundraising career who wants to develop deep expertise in grant writing, donor reporting, and philanthropic communications within an international development context. They are able to translate complex program information into compelling, donor-ready materials and enjoy collaborating with colleagues across countries and functions. They bring a proactive, learning-oriented mindset and are eager to develop deep expertise in proposal writing, donor reporting, and philanthropic communications within an international development organization.

This role reports to the Executive Head - Development and Communications

Key Responsibilities

Proposal & Report Writing

• Draft compelling, tailored proposals, concept notes, and grant applications for foundations, prizes and individual philanthropists.
• Produce high-quality narrative donor reports that communicate program progress, impact outcomes, and financial performance.
• Synthesize information from programs, research, finance, and country teams into clear and persuasive content.

Donor Communications & Stewardship

• Support development of a donor communications calendar, including donor updates, briefings, pitch decks, and email communications.
• Gather program stories, field insights, data points, and photos in collaboration with programs and communications teams.
• Ensure donor materials uphold organizational voice, evidence standards, and ethical storytelling guidelines.

Grant Coordination

• Track proposal and reporting deadlines, ensuring timely submission of all deliverables.
• Support internal review processes and coordinate feedback, version control, and formatting.
• Maintain a library of standard organizational language and program descriptions.

Team Support

• Assist in preparing materials for donor meetings and internal strategy discussions.
• Help maintain CRM records, grant files, and donor communication logs.

Requirements

The successful candidate will possess the following competencies, experiences, and qualities:

• Bachelor’s degree in international development, English, communications, public policy, education, or a related field; or equivalent experience.

• 2–4 years of experience in fundraising, grant writing, communications, program support, or research.
• Exceptional writing, editing, and information-synthesis skills.
• Ability to manage multiple deadlines and produce detail-oriented, high-quality work.
• Strong interpersonal and cross-cultural communication skills.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office and Google Workspace.

Specific skills (required)

• Clear, engaging writer with a strong instinct for engaging narratives.
• Collaborative and responsive, with strong relationship-building instincts.
• Curiosity and a learning orientation; comfortable asking questions and seeking clarity.
• Highly organized with strong project coordination skills.
• Commitment to equity, ethical storytelling, and evidence-based work.

Compensation & Benefits

Salary is competitive and commensurate with experience.

Location

The Development Insights & Data Manager must be based on the African continent with a preference for the countries that Imagine is already operating in. Regional travel to field sites may be required.

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Imagine Worldwide is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. All applicants will be considered for employment without attention to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran or disability status.