NGO JOBS

Organization: International Maize and Wheat Improvement
Country: Nepal
Closing date: 15 Nov 2013

We are seeking an outstanding, highly-motivated candidate for the position of Cropping Systems Agronomist in the Global Conservation Agriculture Program. The position will work across CSISA-Nepal objectives to couple seed sector activities with locally adapted agronomic best practices and scale-appropriate mechanization.

The International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center, known by its Spanish acronym, CIMMYT®, is a not-for-profit research and training organization with partners in over 100 countries. Please refer to our website for more information: www.cimmyt.org

The selected candidate will be based in either the mid or far-western development region of Nepal.

Specific duties of this position include:

1. Work with the Project Coordinator and hub teams as well as with the Nepal Agricultural Research Council (NARC), Department of Agriculture (DoA), the USAID prime contractee (KISAN), and other key partners to develop and implement agronomic trials and demonstrations across the target area.
   2.Contribute to rigorous trials, develop and provide feedback on experiment protocols, monitor trials, organize data according to data management guidelines and SoPs, analyze data, and graph results.
2. Develop, test, and refine manual and power machinery with project staff, NARC, DoA, farmers, and public and private sector partners, according to need, scale, local conditions, and gender.
3. Spearhead the demonstration of machinery adapted to local needs, and promising varieties via Baby trials, IRD, and other trials, coupled with well-organized and targeted field days and other learning opportunities for farmers and other partners.
4. Build awareness for farmers, service providers and other partners on the benefits of improved seed, management, and mechanization through the development of training modules and marketing tools (particularly targeting increased access for women).
5. Develop training modules to help nodal farmers, CBSPs, agro-vets, private seed companies, rice and pulse mills, and other promising actors in the seed value chain build entrepreneurship skills and linkages with public and private sector partners.
6. Catalyze partnerships between farmers and diverse partners in the seed and machinery sectors, including NARC and the DoA, manufacturers, dealers, service providers and repair agents, and those in the rural finance sector.
7. Assist in developing and conducting surveys, participatory appraisals, market chain analysis, and mapping institutional landscape.
8. Provide feedback to the BDS, who will lead participatory market chain analyses (PMCA), and efforts to map the institutional landscape to identify various actors in the seed value chain.
9. Work with DADOS, District Development Committees (DDCs), and Village Development Committees (VDCs) to identify and develop nodal farmers/champion farmers into seed entrepreneurs in the seed system.
10. Provide technical support and training to improve seed processing, packaging, and marketing, and helping arrange field days, trade fairs, and annual planning sessions involving key actors within the seed sector.
11. Ensure all seed sector activities are coupled with tested, locally-adapted agricultural management practices to maximize return on investments in inputs.
12. Work across other objectives as appropriate and liaising with the prime to ensure that seed, machinery, and management interventions adapted to local circumstances maximize return on investments, and broaden reach and adoption.

We are seeking candidates with the following academic qualifications, skills and attitudes:

1. PhD in crop production, soil science, agronomy, or other relevant agricultural-related discipline.
2. Minimum 2 years experience in managing agronomic trials effectively on-station and on-farm, with broad disciplinary expertise extending to seed and machinery interventions—particularly for maize, lentil, rice, and wheat.
3. Solid knowledge of agronomic concepts and measurements, process-based research approach, openness to new ideas, and ability to think critically about agricultural interventions appropriate for different scenarios.
4. Practical experience with conservation agriculture and scale-appropriate machinery in Nepal (or less ideally, South Asia), and the resourcefulness to find innovative solutions to problems encountered working in farmer fields.
5. Willingness and aptitude to follow project and institutional data management and communication guidelines; experience and good abilities in statistical analysis, preferably with the R statistical package.
6. Demonstrated expertise with farmer mobilization, participatory research in the seed sector (incl. Baby trials, IRDs etc) and mechanization.
7. Experience developing training materials and organizing and conducting trainings, field demonstrations, farmer fairs, etc.
8. Hands-on expertise with agricultural machinery, and demonstrated ability to trouble-shoot will be an advantage.
9. Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, experience working and interacting effectively with a variety of stakeholders (field assistants, farmers, extension workers, public and private sector entities), and demonstrated ability to collaborate well across disciplines and with key Nepali institutions and agencies.
10. Fluent English and Nepali (written and spoken).

We will offer an initial contract for two years, which may be renewable subject to continued need and funding for the position and performance of the staff member. Our internationally competitive salary and benefits include housing allowance, car, comprehensive health and life insurance, assistance for children’s education, paid vacation, annual airfare, contribution to a retirement plan, and generous assistance with relocation shipment.

CIMMYT is an equal opportunity employer. It fosters a multicultural work environment that values gender equality, teamwork, and respect for diversity. Women are encouraged to apply.

How to apply:

To apply for this position, please email cover letter and CV no later than Friday, 15 November, 2013 to HR, CIMMYT (Email: irsrecruitment@cgiar.org / Please indicate Position Reference number: 12327 in the header of your email).

For further information on the selection process, please contact Guillermo Flores, Staffing Specialist, at g.flores@cgiar.org.

Please note that only short-listed candidates will be contacted.

Organization: Africare
Country: United States of America
Closing date: 31 Aug 2013

Africare is an independent, non-profit organization working to improve the quality of life of the people in Africa. Since 1970, Africare has worked in partnership with 35 African nations to build sustainable, healthy and productive lives and communities. Headquartered in Washington, DC with 1,400 international staff working across 21 country offices, Africare is the largest non-governmental organization working exclusively in Africa. Since 1970 Africare has provided more than $1 billion in direct aid to Africa for agriculture and food security, health and water and sanitation programs and projects.

Africare is searching for an accomplished and highly motivated technical expert in agriculture, to provide technical assistance and guidance to Africare’s agricultural programs in Washington and in the field. The professional in this position will lead project design in agricultural and food security proposals and identify and develop new opportunities; monitor implementation of agricultural programs; mentor, trains and provide guidance to field agriculture technical staff; develop appropriate literature, white papers and analyses for internal and external knowledge sharing; scale up successful Africare initiatives in the sector; forge strong strategic partnerships with public and private sector actors in agriculture and food security, donor agencies, foundations, think tanks and advocacy organizations; represent Africare at major national and international conferences, and help establish Africare as a leading innovator in the field. This key role on Africare’s management team is based in Washington, DC and will report to the Director of Agriculture, Food Security, Enterprise Development and Gender (AFSEG) Programs.

Key Responsibilities and Tasks:

Oversee Technical Support for Implementation of Agricultural Projects and Programs:•Ensure the quality and timely delivery of the work of Africare’s technical teams and subject matter experts in Washington and in the country offices and Africare’s roster of more than 30 technical consultants supporting project and program implementation.•Build knowledge and learning systems to ensure the spread of agricultural and farming innovations and agricultural best practices across the portfolio and their documentation and publication.•Significant travel to the field to supervise and train on applications of scientific methods and appropriate cultivation on various climates; tech assistance in soil fertility, seeds, fertilizer use, production plans, land conservation, agro-ecology, pest and parasite control, agricultural machinery and technology. S/he will represent Africare with relevant ministries including Ministries of Agriculture, Planning and Rural Development as local as local government and community leaders. Will work with extension works and supervise livestock plans. •Review donor reports for agricultural programs and set up systems of reporting to ensure effective monitoring of program quality and results. •Create opportunities for field/headquarters mutual learning and collaborating in sharing best practices and telling Africare’s story.•Participate in monthly country team meetings and quarterly portfolio performance and pipeline review meetings and in positioning projects to meet quarterly targeted in workplans. Contribute to development of monitoring and evaluation tools, and compile and enter data for program monitoring, evaluations and surveys.

Mentor, train and provide guidance to field agriculture technical staff and contribute to the appropriate planning for agricultural growth within Africare’s strategic planning:•Supervise the work of Africare’s 30 – 35 ag experts with different levels of expertise developing and implementing Africare’s agricultural programs across 21 countries. Ensure that Africare hires and trains a high quality corps of agriculture and extension staff and establish systems for drawing on the expertise of agriculture staff across the organization.•Advise our Farming as a Business (FaaB) and bring value to our value chain, post harvest, livelihoods programs, improving nutrition in agriculture projects and processes, incubating innovations and scaling up pilots.•Contribute to development of strategic plans and ensure effective budgeting and planning for growth of Africare’s agriculture and food security sector. Identify and develop new opportunities; lead project design in agricultural and food security proposals and grow Africare’s book of business:•Develop strategy papers for Africare’s work in agriculture and food security and update those annually.•Build and manage strategic technical partnerships with other organizations to strengthen our technical capabilities meet ambitious new business goal. •Participate in proposal development, serving as technical writer on agriculture proposals.•Identify new business opportunities consistent with those strategies and help Africare close on them.•Lead project design, modification and re-vision of Africare agricultural and food security programs.•Develop appropriate literature, white papers and analyses for internal and external knowledge sharing;Position Africare Externally as a Leader, Research Partner and Innovator:•Build and sustain Africare’s partnership opportunities for cooperation and coordination with agricultural research institutes, technical and agricultural university programs and land grant institutions. Create programs at Africare that create bridges to those institutions.•Represent Africare in professional fora and to the media on African agriculture and food security. Work with Africare staff to publish Africare's technical work and feature our technical work on the internet and social media.•forge strong strategic partnerships with public and private sector actors in agriculture and food security, donor agencies, foundations, think tanks and advocacy organizations; represent Africare at major national and international conferences.

Administration:•Review and develop budgets and monitor spending against budget for agricultural programs•Supervise headquarters based extension or agricultural staff based.

Education Requirements:•Minimum Master's Degree in agronomy, PhD is preferred; courses and training in areas outside of specialization to include water and sanitation, agro-ecology, land and water management and livestock management.•Training in a rural development discipline outside of agronomy to include economics, business administration or management is highly desirable.

Experience/Skills Required:•At least 7 years field experience in successfully designing, implementing and managing agriculture and food security programs in Africa or other developing countries with experience that is directly relevant to Africa.
•Field experience with local and community driven development projects preferably within an NGO context.•Training and experience using participatory methods such as PRA and RRA.•Experience working in Africa with African extension programs and with ministries of agriculture and rural development etc.•Demonstrated technical knowledge of agriculture and food security issues of Africare work.•Documented grant writing ability and successful project design experience.•Experience with USG grants including USAID and USDA.•Experience working with the private sector.•Documented experience in personnel management.•Excellent written and spoken communication skills•Fluency in English required; working knowledge of French required.

How to apply:

Applications should include a CV and cover letter. In the cover letter (no more than two pages in length) the candidate should briefly describe his or her motivation for the position and highlight relevant experience.

Please send CVs to resumes@africare.org and include the title to the position for which you are applying in the subject line.

Africare offers a competitive salary along with a benefits package that includes paid time off, retirement plans with a generous employer contribution, and health plans for medical and prescription drugs.

For more information about Africare, please visit www.africare.org .

Africare is an Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action employer committed to workplace diversity.