Bahir Dar University Jobs Vacancies 2018 for Agricultural development, Project management – Jobs in Ethiopia
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Bahir Dar University Jobs Vacancies 2018
Vacancy announcement
Rural Development expert (scaling expert) for REALISE
The Bilateral Ethiopia – Netherlands Effort for Food, Income and Trade (BENEFIT)
Job description
Category: Agricultural development, Project management
Location: Mekelle, Woldia, Bahir Dar, Haramaya, Assela, Hawassa, Chiro and Arbaminch
Career Level: Mid-career Level (5+ years’ experience)
Employment Type: Full time
Salary: Based on the Scale of BENEFIT experts.
Background
The Bilateral Ethiopia Netherlands Effort for Food Income and Trade (BENEFIT) partnership is a portfolio of five
programmes (ISSD Ethiopia, CASCAPE, ENTAG, SBN and REALISE), which is funded by the Government of the
Kingdom of Netherlands through its Embassy in Addis Ababa. REALISE: ‘Realising Sustainable Agricultural
Livelihood Security in Ethiopia’ is the new programme under BENEFIT. REALISE Programme is designed to take
the achievements of CASCAPE (Capacity building for Scaling up of evidence-based best Practices in Agricultural
Production’ (CASCAPE) programme and the ‘Integrated Seed Sector Development’ (ISSD) Ethiopia programme
to new areas and target groups in Ethiopia.
REALISE is a three – year (2018-2022) programme that will align with the Government of Ethiopia’s (GoE)
Productive Safety Net Programme (PSNP). This GoE flagship programme currently reaches 8 million chronically
food insecure Ethiopians with a wide array of instruments to smooth consumption, prevent asset depletion and
promote livelihood diversification including uptake of imp
4. A conducive environment exists for the institutionalisation of evidence-based system innovations.
The implementation model is based on the experiences of the CASCAPE and ISSD Ethiopia programmes in that
REALISE will partner with the Regional Agricultural Research Institutes, Bureaus of Agriculture and Livestock
Resources/food security offices and a number of Ethiopian Universities that will each manage so called clusters:
Hawassa, Haramaya, Arsi, Bahir Dar, Woldia and Mekelle. There are two satellite Universities: Odabultum
University that will collaborate with Haramaya University and Arbaminch University that will collaborate with
Hawssa University. The REALISE programme will validate and scale best fit practices, will assure the availability
of quality seed, will train related GoE and NGO partners in the proper scaling of the practices and will work with
its partners towards the institutionalization of evidence-based system innovations. As the REALISE programme
is part of the BENEFIT portfolio of programmes, close collaboration with the sister programmes and their
activities in the respective clusters is expected.
Rural development expert- scaling expert
The scaling expert works as rural development expert (RDE). The expert is based in the University cluster and
is supervised by the Cluster Manager. The team of the RDEs (agricultural economics expert, seed expert, scaling
expert, social inclusion and capacity building expert, and agronomist) will be the front-line representatives of
REALISE in the woredas. They will introduce REALISE promoted technologies and approaches that are aimed at
increasing food security of small holder farmers – and more specifically PSNP clients. To this end, they will work
closely as a team of experts together with their Cluster Manager and the colleagues in the other clusters. The
RDEs will work closely with his/her colleagues from the CASCAPE and ISSD programmes. The scaling expert is
mainly responsible for scaling related activities socio-economic studies. He/she will work as a focal person for
social inclusion and capacity building where and when necessary.
Depending on the different skills and specific experiences, he/she may get additional assignments for:
Data management
Documentation
Climate change related issues
Any other theme that may be pertinent
Key responsibilities
1. Participate in the implementation of the annual planning cycle: prepare succinct annual work plans
and budgets, progress reports and annual reports;
2. Ensure a truly bottom up planning process and ensure continuous community participation in the work
at hand;
3. Work with woreda staff and or NGOs and community organisations on:
a. Recommendation mapping;
b. Training needs assessments;
c. Training (of trainers) in various skills related to community development, seed, agriculture
(best fit practices);
d. Innovative pilot activities;
e. Institutionalization and scaling of best fit practices preferred by PSNP beneficiaries
4. Responsible for ensuring that men, women and youth participate in and benefit from project activities;
5. Maintain close and collaborative relations with key programme partners, including (but not limited to)
the woreda level PSNP staff, the Bureau of Agriculture and Livestock Resources staff, the agricultural
research partners (RARI’s and if applicable EIAR) and the collaborating NGOs;
6. Strategically position the project in the playing field in the area covered by the cluster, make sure the
strategic choices of the programme are aligned with those of the partners. Make sure the
programme’s results are used to accelerate discussions on pertinent policy issues in the region.
Actively participate in a wide range of fora pertinent to the programme;
7. Actively participate in the REALISE programme endeavours and the BENEFIT portfolio, interact with
the other CASCAPE and ISSD teams at cluster levels and contribute to joint activities;
8. Within reasonable limits, respond to pertinent technical assistance requests from other BENEFIT
projects (most likely CASCAPE and ISSD);
9. Any other assignments given by the REALISE Cluster manager; and
10. Serve as an ambassador of the REALISE programme in the area covered by the cluster.
Professional requirements:
1. A M.Sc. in rural development and agricultural extension;
2. At least 5+ years of professional experience in positions pertinent to the assignment;
3. Experience with research and development issues;
4. Experience in working with or within the GoE structure for agriculture, especially at woreda level;
5. Experience with bottom-up planning processes;
6. Proven experience with gender mainstreaming (not necessarily as gender expert but working in
projects that mainstream gender);
7. Experience with participatory approaches and stakeholder networks;
8. Experience in the management of partnerships with a wide array of partners, including government at
the woreda level, NGOs and local community organisations.
Additional skills and qualities:
1. Excellent team player, able to bring out the best in the team members as well as collaborating with
the sister programmes within the BENEFIT portfolio. Able to inspire colleagues;
2. Excellent connector to the world around REALISE, creating a strong institutional and personal
professional network that will contribute to the success of REALISE;
3. Adhering to the highest standards of integrity, honesty and loyalty, and demanding the same
standards from the REALISE team;
4. Affinity with and dedication to the goals of the REALISE programme: providing support to the poorest
in rural Ethiopia through the introduction of more productive agriculture practices and seed;
5. Understanding and commitment to the REALISE project vision of achieving a vibrant, commercial, and
pluralistic seed sector. Knowledge of seed and the Ethiopian seed sector is an advantage;
6. Able to work independently while still maintaining good contact with the REALISE cluster manager;
7. Able to express him/herself in English in speaking and writing;
8. Ability of local languages: Tigrigna for those who want to apply for Mekelle University position and
Oromo Language for those who want to apply for the position of Haramaya, Arsi and Odabultum
Universities is a mandatory.
9. Up to date computer skills; and
10. Proven ability to work in multidisciplinary research teams.
Additional tasks and requirements for the scaling rural development expert are:
Develop scaling strategies that balance uptake of best practices between both PSNP and non PSNP
clients;
Develop methods – and apply these methods – that ensure integration of REALISE promoted practices
in woreda and kebele level planning and plan implementation.
Specific professional requirements:
At least 5 years of experience in applied rural development research and development;
Knowledge of statistical software such as SPSS and/or other packages;
Knowledge of survey designs and data analysis;
Knowledge of participatory approaches to research.
Other:
Number of experts: eight (8), one each for the eight Universities (Mekelle, Woldia, Bahir Dar, Haramaya, Arsi,
Hawassa, Odabultum and Arbaminch).
Duty station: Respective University
Travel: Able to travel frequently to the project partners in the area covered by the cluster. Travel may include
visits to the field under challenging circumstances.
Oversight: Not applicable.
Remuneration: Commensurate with the responsibilities based on the salary scale of BENEFIT. Benefits
include participation in the pension scheme and communication allowance. The salary will be adjusted on an
annual basis to the cost of living in Ethiopia.
The position of REALISE Senior Expert M&E of the REALISE programme requires a full-time commitment of the
successful candidate. No additional professional engagements will be allowed.
Application procedures: Interested candidates are invited to send a well-formulated letter of motivation of
no more than one page and their up-to-date CV by within eight days from the date that the application is first
posted on the web site by email:
For Mekelle University REALISE send to <[email protected]>/ <[email protected]> with copy to
<[email protected]>;
For Woldia University REALISE send to <[email protected]> with copy to
<[email protected]>;
For Bahir Dar University REALISE send to <[email protected]> with copy to
<[email protected]>;
For Haramaya University REALISE send to <[email protected]> with copy to
<[email protected]>;
For Arsi University REALISE send to <[email protected]> with copy to
<[email protected]>;
For Hawassa University REALISE send to <[email protected]> with copy to
<[email protected]>;
For Odabultum University REALISE send to <[email protected]> with copy to
[email protected];
For Arbaminch University REALISE send to <[email protected]>/ <[email protected]>
with copy to [email protected].
Please do not attach your credentials to the application, which is required to be delivered in hardcopy only at
the time of interview.
Note Only short-listed candidates will be contacted for face-to-face interview. Short listed candidates are required to
submit true copies of their academic credentials.
