JOB DESCRIPTION

 

JOB TITLE:	Agricultural Research and Technology Specialist (ARTS)	PROJECT:	Ghana Market Systems Resilience Activity (MSR)
DEPARTMENT:	Capacity Building	LOCATIONS:	Tamale
REPORTS TO:	Capacity Building Team Lead	GRADE:
START DATE:	November 01, 2024

Summary of Responsibilities: The Agricultural Research and Technology Specialist (ARTS) will be responsible for coordinating the activities of research and technology institutions to deliver agricultural-related content that impacts upon and improves knowledge, skills and behavior change for enhanced productivity, efficiency, profitability, and competitiveness of market actors within northern Ghana’s agricultural sector. She/he will develop and strengthen sustainable relationships and collaboration among and between research and technology institutions and end users to function as an innovation platform providing sustainable access to agronomic and agribusiness information by stakeholders that promotes the adoption and scaling of impactful agriculture research and technologies.

 Essential Duties and Responsibilities

The Agricultural Research and Technology Specialist (ARTS) shall employ the appropriate technical strategies and methodologies to achieve short and long-term MSR Activity goals in the areas of innovation and adoption of improved technologies and practices. This includes, (but is not limited to the following bullets). 

• Support the mapping of roles and relationships of research and technology institutions involved in the production, packaging, and dissemination of agricultural related content for use by stakeholders. The ARTS will lead interactions with the relevant stakeholders in the agricultural sector towards the process of establishing a research pipeline.
• Work with MSR’s sub-contractors, to develop and operationalize a sustainable ICT4Ag-based content sharing system in line with MOFA agricultural extension and e-Agricultural policies. This system will give multiple stakeholders access to agricultural-related materials and content to improve professional agronomic knowledge and skills.
• Facilitate the Research and Extension Liaison Committee (RELCs) in the ZOI to ensure seamless roll out of innovative technologies.
• Coordinate and engage with USAID’s Innovation Labs, local research institutes, Outgrower Businesses (OB), and smallholder farmers (SHFs) to ensure innovative technology is introduced and scaled within the MSR Activity ZOI. The coordination should create a pipeline of new risk-reducing technologies, tools, and instruments, including improved on-farm water resources development and management practices.
• Work with agricultural institutions to introduce agribusiness related short courses that will incentivize male and female youth to actively participate in the market system.
• Delineate and document existing productivity enhancing crop production and management technologies in the areas of Climate Smart Agriculture, soil health, plant health, drudgery-reducing/labor saving mechanization, crop harvesting and post-harvest storage technologies. Specific technologies required and used by women and youth should receive special attention
• Manage and/or support Short-term Technical Assistance (STTA) assignments, budgets and Partnership and Innovation Fund (PIF) grant instruments related to his/her component and work assignment
• Work with other MSR project specialists to enhance efficient access to technology, information, finance, networks, and other services
• Collect data pertinent to impacts realized through applied research and technologies adoption and scaling for integration with MSR’s MIS and M&E systems
• Working with MSR’s M&E and Technical Teams, produce reports for integration into MSR’s bi-annual and annual required reporting to USAID and ACDI/VOCA’s Home Office 

1. Required Skills and Experience:

• Bachelor’s degree in development studies, agricultural development, agricultural education and/or extension / innovation process, agriculture economics, mechanical engineering, or another relevant area of study.
• Five or more years’ Experience in agricultural research and development, agricultural value chains, and productivity improvement.
• Excellent communications skills and ability to interact with diverse individuals/organizations

• Experience working with smallholder farmers, women and youth, government institutions, civil society organizations, private agriculture and financing companies and groups, and other stakeholders.
• Excellent communications skills and ability to interact with diverse individuals/organizations
• Should be a dynamic, motivated, energetic individual
• Proficient in Microsoft office applications, particularly MS Word, Excel & PowerPoint
• Good report writing skills
• Demonstrated capacity to work in teams with colleagues

HOW TO APPLY:

Interested candidates should please forward their applications and CVs with at least three referees to: recruitmentteam360@outlook.com

 APPLICATION DEADLINE: Closing date for applications is October 15, 2024.

Only shortlisted applicants will be contacted.