Aquaculture Value Chain Consultant – St. Kitts and Nevis

Organizational Setting

The Sub-regional Office for the Caribbean (SLC) is responsible for developing, promoting, overseeing and implementing agreed strategies for addressing sub regional food, agriculture and rural development priorities. It develops and maintains relations with sub region-wide institutions including Regional Economic Integration Organizations (REIOs). The Sub-regional Office is a subsidiary of FAO’s Regional Office for the Latin America and the Caribbean (RLC).

Among the activities that SLC is currently supporting in the Caribbean, include the CARICOM-FAO-Mexico Initiative “Cooperation for Climate Change Adaptation and Resilience in the Caribbean”, which is a project being implemented by SLC in 14 countries. Its purpose is to promote climate change adaptation solutions and increase climate resilience among small-scale producers in the Caribbean. Out of the three project components, Component 1 has three sub-projects that are being implemented on a demand-basis in target countries relating to i) the water-energy nexus; ii) school feeding, and iii) aquaculture.

These TOR refer to the implementation of subproject iii) aquaculture, which seeks to promote the development and expansion of aquaculture value chains through capacity development (production, financial literacy and postproduction) and establishment of new farms and expansion of existing farms. Specifically, four National aquaculture value chain consultants are being recruited to analyse constraints and opportunities on Aquaculture Value Chains in four of the participating countries (Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts and Nevis, and Trinidad and Tobago).

The sub-project will focus on promoting the expansion of aquaculture for rural livelihood resilience and climate smart food production for the Caribbean region. The sub-project will build on the success and lessons learned from the Climate Change Adaptation of the Eastern Caribbean Fisheries Sector (CC4FISH) project in offering capacity training to farmers and extension officers on best production practices, best post-production practices and financial literacy and through the expansion and establishment of aquaculture farms in the participating countries. While this sub-project will focus on implementing changes in said countries, it is expected that the impact of activities and the lessons learned will have a positive effect on the aquaculture industry regionally.

Stakeholder involvement

The active participation of stakeholders will be critical to the achievement of results and sustainability over time. The beneficiaries at the institutional level include the Ministries of Agriculture, Ministry of Environment, and Ministry of Climate Change (depending on each country). As well as aquaculture groups and academia.

Reporting Lines

The Aquaculture Value Chain Consultant will report directly to the FAO Project Coordinator of the CARICOM-FAO-Mexico Initiative and the Lead Technical Officer of the sub-project on “aquaculture”, based in the FAO Sub-regional Office in Barbados.

The FAO country Representative of each of the participating countries and the FAO Sub-regional Coordinator for the Caribbean will provide general oversight. The National project coordinator will work closely with the national focal point designated by the government and other FAO personal in the country.

Technical Focus

The aquaculture sub-project aims at promoting the growth of the Caribbean aquaculture industry by identifying and addressing underlying barriers, supporting capacity development, and supporting aquaculturists and prospective aquaculturists with farm development or improvement. The value chain assessment activity will be an important first step in identifying and addressing sector-wide barriers and bottlenecks. At the end of the project, the results should be discussed, reported and disseminated in the Caribbean region.

Tasks and responsibilities

The consultant will be responsible for the following tasks:

• Value chain analysis of the national aquaculture value chain according to FAO’s methodology
• Identification of issues that limit the development of the aquaculture value chain (including but not limited to the availability of supplies, government policies, qualified personnel and appropriate technology)
• Research on innovative approaches and technologies for aquaculture production, storage and distribution
• Consultation and engagement with local stakeholders
• Develop recommendations for policies and strategies to support strengthening of aquaculture development
• Support business training opportunities and policy development for aquaculturists
• Provide technical assistance to the national focal point, partners and beneficiaries of the project
• Provide recommendations to strengthen the Caribbean Aquaponics Association, including national chapters
• Participate in discussions with relevant Mexican experts and SLC staff and support related project activities as necessary
• Carry out other activities as directed by the Initiative Project Coordinator to achieve the project objectives
• Preparation of periodical reports and communication materials

CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING

Minimum Requirements

• Advanced university degree in Aquaculture, Agribusiness, Economics or related fields
• Five (5) years of relevant experience in value chain assessments
• Working knowledge of English and limited knowledge of one of the other FAO official languages (French, Spanish, Arabic, Chinese, Russian) for Consultants. Working knowledge of English for PSA.SBS.

FAO Core Competencies

• Results Focus
• Teamwork
• Communication
• Building Effective Relationships
• Knowledge Sharing and Continuous Improvement