Programme Officer, Agricultural Productivity Program for Southern Africa (APPSA), Gaborone, Botswana

Background

The Centre for Coordination of Agricultural Research and Development for Southern Africa (CCARDESA) is a sub-regional organization (SRO) whose mission is to increase the productivity and competitiveness of smallholder agriculture by supporting the implementation of Pillar IV of CAADP for the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) region. It enjoys substantial support from the SADC Member States, as well as from other stakeholders in the SADC region and development partners.

CCARDESA is facilitating the implementation of the Agricultural Productivity Program for Southern Africa (APPSA), a World Bank funded initiative which seeks to improve technology generation and dissemination within and among participating southern African countries. It aims to invest in agricultural technology generation and dissemination by supporting and strengthening regional centres of research leadership that will work on commodities and commodity systems of regional importance. The development objective of APPSA is to increase the availability of improved agricultural technologies in participating countries in the SADC region. APPSA will pursue this objective by: (i) establishing Regional Centers of Leadership on commodities of regional importance, thereby allowing regional specialization around priority farming systems and more strategic investment in agricultural research capacity; (ii) supporting regional collaboration in agricultural research, technology dissemination, and training; and (iii) facilitating increased sharing of agricultural information, knowledge, and technology among participating countries.

APPSA is a six-year project that was approved by the World Bank on March 14, 2013. Three countries are currently participating in the initial phase of the program: Malawi which is focusing on maize-based farming systems, Mozambique on rice-based farming systems, and Zambia on food legumes-based farming systems (involving beans, cowpeas, groundnuts, pigeon peas, and soybeans) and sorghum. It is expected that additional countries within the SADC region will join in future as APPSA evolves and expands. CCARDESA seeks to appoint a qualified and experienced Programme Officer to support the APPSA Coordinator in implementation of APPSA activities.

Main Responsibilities

The key responsibility of the Programme Officer will be to provide technical backstopping and support to the APPSA Programme Coordinator in implementing APPSA work in the APPSA implementing countries. The main duties for the position are:

• Provide technical backstopping services to the RCoLs in the APPSA implementing countries.
• Monitor and track APPSA progress in the RCoLs by obtaining and reviewing periodic reports and providing timely feedback.
• Ensure effective communication and collaboration among the RCoLs, and between RCoLs and other key R&D stakeholders
• Participate in planning of APPSA regional activities and coordinate the convening of APPSA Regional Workshops (logistical arrangements, facilitation and documentation)
• Assist in preparing annual work plans and budgets for APPSA in consultation with the Programme Coordinator
• Effectively document and publicist all the outputs and impacts of the project, including the sharing on best practices and lessons learnt under APPSA
• Support the work on out-scaling of APPSA to other countries in the region

Person specifications

The minimum qualification requirement for this position is a Bachelor's degree in agriculture, agricultural economics, or a closely related relevant field. The successful candidates will have:

• At least 5 years of experience in agricultural development work, preferably dealing with multi-disciplinary projects;
• Good understanding and appreciation of regional agricultural issues
• Ability to execute project implementation plans
• Experience in supporting monitoring and management of agricultural development projects;
• Strong report writing and communication skills;
• Ability to analyze data and extract reporting material
• Good experience in the use of common computer software for agricultural development work
• Innovative individual with ability to work with minimal supervision

Reporting

The APPSA Programme Officer will work under the direct supervision of the APPSA Programme Coordinator, who will provide overall guidance and support. Upon taking up the offer, the successful candidate will sign a performance agreement which will provide detailed result areas and performance indicators.

Duty Station and Tenure of the Office

The selected candidate will be based at CCARDESA headquarters in Gaborone, Botswana, and will be offered a 3-year fixed term renewable performance-based contract.

Remuneration

A very attractive remuneration package shall be offered to the successful candidate.

Submission of Applications

Applications including a cover letter and detailed curriculum vitae, together with the names, titles, addresses, and email and telephone contacts of three referees should be sent by email to: jrumanyika@ccardesa.org and copied to bmaapatsane@ccardesa.org. Alternatively, applicants may post their application letters to:

The Human Resource and Administration Manager,

CCARDESA Secretariat, Ground Floor, Red Brick Building, Plot 4701, Station Exit Road,Private Bag 00357, Gaborone, Botswana;

Deadline for receipt of application letters is Friday, 11^th July 2014. CCARDESA is an equal opportunity employer.