Senior Project Officer I – Cooperative Based Seed Production (CBSP) 99 views

ETHIOPIAN AGRICULTURAL TRANSFORMATION INSTITUTE

Job Description and Job Specification

 BACKGROUND:

The Ethiopian Agricultural Transformation Institute (ATI) is a strategy and delivery-oriented government Institute created to help accelerate the growth and transformation of the country’s agriculture sector. The ATI envisions to be the leading center of innovative solutions for the transformation of Ethiopian Agriculture by 2030.

The Institute focuses on two primary national approaches to catalyze agricultural transformation. First, we support the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA), its affiliate institutions, and other partners to identify and address systemic bottlenecks within an Agricultural Transformation Agenda. Second, we support Regional Governments to accelerate the development of high-priority commodity value chains in clearly defined geographic clusters, through the Agricultural Commercialization Clusters (ACC) Initiative.

Our major activities include conducting strategic and analytical studies, providing technical implementation support, coordinating platforms to better integrate partners and projects, and designing and directly leading a number of implementation projects. Our headquarters are in Addis Ababa, and we have regional offices in Amhara, Oromia, SNNP, Sidama, South-West, and Tigray regional offices, allowing us to work closely with a wide range of public, private and development sector partners across the country.

Our Culture

We have an exceptional team of highly competent employees with a proven track record of success in managing complex activities and achieving transformational results.  Our culture is one where talented, dedicated and adaptable individuals are committed to doing their best and exhibit great team work to achieve excellent results. 

At ATI, we provide an exceptional platform for people who want to achieve their highest potential and make a meaningful contribution in changing the country’s agricultural sector.  We offer rewarding work in a young, fast-paced growing organization with passionate, committed, motivated colleagues and excellent career development and training.  We recognize our most valuable assets are our staff and are committed to providing our employees with the tools, training and mentorships necessary to achieve their career goals.

 POSITION SUMMARY:

The Cooperative Based Seed Production (CBSP) SPO-I will report to CBSP Team Lead and work on both Private and Cooperative based Seed Production (PCBSP). The officer has the responsibility to coordinate, provide technical guidance and support; and conducting capacity-building activities in relation to new CBSPs establishment, upgrading of local private seed producers to small and medium seed producers, establishing of matching CBSPs with key stakeholders; and work on development and upgrading of high-quality horticulture seed and seedlings production sites. The CBSP Officer will be responsible for ensuring that seed unions, private seed producers and cooperatives developed a business plan, and have access to early-generation seeds and output financing. The CBSP Officer is also responsible for providing technical support to the unions, primary cooperatives and private seed producers throughout the seed value chain and liaising the unions with partner organizations.

The major duties of the Senior Project Officer include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Organize and provide high level technical and strategic guidance for regional officers
• Organize basic data related to the project including detailed profiles of the beneficiaries at the national level
• Conduct biweekly, monthly, quarterly, and annual progress updates and problem-solving sessions to ensure planned activities stay on track.
• Maintain oversight of budget and resource requirements of ongoing activities.
• Conduct periodic assessment on implementation and challenges and disseminate findings from diagnostic study to relevant stakeholders.
• Help design evaluation study and specific KPIs to measure success of CBSP scale-up, working closely with regional ATCs and other implementing partners.
• Provide ad hoc support to seed program and senior management team as required on issues relating to planning and implementation of other seed program interventions.

The candidate is expected to have extensive background knowledge and experience in the production and distribution of improved seeds and cooperative development. In addition, s/he would likewise possess the operational and entrepreneurial ability to mobilize stakeholders across the seed system and drive practical change on the ground. This position will be part of a dedicated private and CBSP special project team and officially report to the PCBSP project team lead.

ACCOUNTABILITY:

The SPO-I Private and CBSP is accountable for providing analytical and technical support to the Project Team Leader I-CBSP to effectively enable the delivery of key private and cooperative seed production strategically and effectively. The SPO-I is accountable for providing seed production related analytical and technical support to ensure the seed value chain components (both grain & horticulture) of the ACC and FPC Project effectively delivered its desired goal and objectives:

• Develop federal level seed producer’s (private and CBSPs) project operational plan.
• Follow up and oversee implementation of specific seed producer’s project
• Monitor activity progress monthly, quarterly, and biannually.
• Document and share best practices of private and CBSPs project implementation.
• Provide capacity building, mentoring and coaching on financial management and business planning to regional officers and program beneficiaries over the life of the project
• Provide training, mentoring and coaching services regarding the new approach on the private and CBSP project for regional staff, technical support to the owners and managers as required
• Build capacity of private and CBSPs to become self-sustained effective seed producer enterprises
• Ensure the project physical and budget and follow utilization are according to the plan.
• Responsible for compiling and submitting data and monthly update, quarterly and annual reports of all activities to ensure alignment on project implementation and identify potential risks that could affect the overall performance of the project.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

Duties and responsibilities for the SPO-I CBSP, but not limited to:

·  Assist the Project Team Leader I-CBSP in managing the private and CBSP Project team workload to ensure on time completion of deliverables. Activities include:

• Assist the Team Lead in detailed planning, implementation, and resource allocation for Private and CBSP Project
• Ensure effective operational planning of interventions and activities, budgeting, reporting, monitoring and evaluation
• Ensure effective day-to-day management and execution of relevant ATI-owned interventions implemented by the private and CBSP Project. Oversight and tracking of relevant ATI-owned interventions implemented by other ATI teams
• Follow up and facilitate ground level Private and CBSP implementation and ensure needs-based seed production is in place
• Provide follow-up and higher-level assistance to regional CBSP officers, unions, cooperatives, and private seed producers and share companies
• Review project progress and develop and monitor actions to ensure timely and effective delivery of project outcomes

·       Assist the Team Lead in managing stakeholders to get prioritized support from the government agricultural ecosystem and other implementers for private and CBSP to function smoothly. Activities include:

• Follow up and provide implementation support in resolving strategic and operational problems that arise over the course of the project’s lifetime
• Liaison with the MoA, EAA, EIAR, CPA and other key federal stakeholders and partners and perform higher-level preparation of annual private and CBSP plans and guide regions in the collection of private and CBSP indicator data at agreed time intervals

·       Responsible for compiling and submitting data and reports to ensure alignment on project implementation and identify potential risks that could affect the overall performance of the project, and perform any other tasks:

• Prepare and submit regular and periodical reports on own KPIs, Workstreams, Millstones and/or Activities and guide regional officers and teams for similar way of report writing and official submission to the federal through the regional ATI working structure Prepare all biweekly, quarterly, and annual performance reports required by the ATI.
• Support the Federal Project Lead for FPC Project in all FPC and end-to-end crops value chain activities both at federal and regional levels
• Responsible for additional tasks assigned by the Project team Lead, Director, and SD to meet the team’s building, spirit, and functions.

• Master of Science Degree in Plant Science, Crop Science/Agriculture Science, agricultural economics, agribusiness, Development Economics or Cooperatives or other relevant fields with broad level experience in the agricultural input system.
• Minimum of 6 years’ experience with a good understanding of the agriculture sector in areas related to on-the-ground community seed initiatives, e.g., working alongside farmer’s cooperative unions, in community seed banks, small and medium enterprise (SME) development, cooperative development, value-chain development, and other related disciplines.
• Understanding of Ethiopia’s agricultural system with a broad perspective on interactions between public, private, and informal actors in the seed system
• Deep knowledge of different community-based seed production modalities, e.g., farmers’ unions, primary cooperatives, private sector seed production organized out-growers, farmer entrepreneurs, etc. and associated regulatory issues.
• Expertise in SPV in cereal crops like wheat and tef, as well as in other focus crops, i.e., pulses, oilseeds, horticulture, and tubers
• Experience in prioritizing and sequencing both programmatic and operational activities
• Experience in program design, performance management, stakeholder management, contract management, and Monitoring Learning and Evaluation (MLE) systems
• Knowledge of analytical methods such as different statistical tools
• Practical experience in developing and maintaining linkages between producers and markets.
• ·Ability to thrive in a fast-moving, start-up environment, with an emphasis on high-performance, teamwork and accountability.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills
• Strong set of personal values including integrity, honesty, and desire to be of service.
• Fluency in Amharic and proficiency in English are essential.