Opportunities to Excel
The Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) is a not-for-profit organization formed in 2006 to work with African governments, farmers, donors, NGOs and the private sector to reduce hunger and poverty in Africa through agricultural development targeted at resource-poor farmers. AGRA has its headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya and an office in Accra, Ghana.
Opportunities to Excel
The Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) is a not-for-profit organization formed in 2006 to work with African governments, farmers, donors, NGOs and the private sector to reduce hunger and poverty in Africa through agricultural development targeted at resource-poor farmers. AGRA has its headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya and an office in Accra, Ghana.
AGRA is seeking to recruit experienced and exceptional individuals to fill the following position:
Program Officer - Extension Research (Eastern and Southern Africa Region) - Soil Health Program
REF: PO - ER/03-12
The Soil Health Program’s (SHP) main aim is to regenerate degraded farmland by providing support to national institutions. Increasingly, the research and extension activities on major food crops are taking a value-chain approach. This means taking a holistic approach to balanced Integrated Soil Fertility Management (ISFM). The
program’s core function is grant-making and management in the areas of soil health research and extension, fertilizer supply, training of agronomists and soil scientists and policy development.
This position is internationally recruited and will be based in Nairobi, Kenya, on a 3 year renewable contract and will report to the Director, Soil Health Program. This position will require the job holder to travel up to 30% of the time.
Specific responsibilities will include:
- Identifying grants opportunities using various approaches such as making public ‘requests for proposals’, reviewing them including the engagement of appropriate external reviewers, and presenting them to
AGRA’s Grants Review Committees; - Making grants in the area of ISFM practices that could be brought to scale in 8 countries through adaptive research and innovative extension approaches using the value chain approach of focus crops;
- Initiating the contracting of grantees and the transfer of monies once the grant is approved by AGRA’s Board;
- Providing, on a continuous basis, quality supervisory oversight and backstopping to the awarded grants.This will involve visiting grantees periodically, reviewing progress against the Projects Implementation Plans, and determining what corrective measures are needed to achieve the desired goals and outcomes;
- Convening workshops and forums for the grantees and their partners to meet periodically and share experiences on what is working well or not in terms of ISFM research and extension;
- Documenting key impacts and lessons emerging from the grants and investments made on ISFM research through various reports that are needed by different stakeholders including donors of the program;
- Contributing to the development of knowledge products that are deemed essential for the sustainable scaleout of ISFM technologies. This will be done through close collaboration with other strategic partners and projects they support;
- Contributing to the overall development of SHP and AGRA by effectively engaging in the program’s integration processes, review of proposals, resource mobilization, and communication;
- Strengthening partnerships with various organizations that are deemed essential to advance and sustain the investments made in ISFM research and extension, using existing country-level soil health consortia in most of the focal countries; and
- Managing staff and consultants effectively for results.
Key Qualifications, Knowledge & Experience
- An MSc. or PhD degree in Soil Science, Agronomy, Agricultural Extension, Rural Development or equivalent;
- A minimum of 10 years’ successful post-qualification experience in agricultural research and extension, 5 of which should have been spent working on issues pertaining to soil health research and development preferably in Africa;
- Strong conceptual and analytical skills in research and extension approaches related to integrated soil fertility management technologies;
- Demonstrated ability in creating strong research and extension linkages, and putting in place operational mechanisms to bring agricultural and particularly ISFM options to scale;
- Proven track record of effective supervision of grants, including proven problem-solving skills; and
- Outstanding written and oral communication skills in English and with a good knowledge of French.
The ideal candidates should be attentive to detail, have excellent oral and written communication, interpersonal and relationship-building skills with the ability to work analytically, both with autonomy and with a team in diverse cultural contexts. The candidates should also have high levels of integrity and objectivity. Attractive
remuneration packages commensurate with the positions’ responsibilities will be negotiated with the successful candidates.
If you believe you can clearly demonstrate your abilities to meet the relevant criteria for these roles, please submit your application with a detailed CV, stating your current position, remuneration, e-mail and telephone contacts and quoting the relevant reference number on the application letter.
For more information on these positions, applicants can visit http://www.agra-alliance.org/
To be considered, your application must be received by 13th April, 2012 addressed to:
The Director
Executive Selection Division
Deloitte Consulting Limited
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