Horticulture/ Agronomy Specialist

Organizational Setting

FAO in collaboration with the government, UN organizations and development partners began serving both the host communities and the Rohingya population in building their livelihoods and skill development opportunities in Cox’s Bazar from October 2017.

As the continuation of the crisis response moving towards development intervention, the FAO is implementing the multi-donor funded programme in strengthening resilience through Agri-Food Systems Transformation in Cox’s Bazar. The programmatic approach for intervention promotes economic inclusion and strengthening of local supply chains and markets, as well as the development of private sector partners across the sub-sectors of the crop, livestock, and fisheries.

The Cox’s Bazar livelihood programme contributes to food security and households’ nutrition through improved farming practices in increasing farm productivity and profitability for the smallholder farmers. The farmers’ adoption of climate-smart agricultural technologies develops opportunities for host communities to economically benefit from the wider markets created due to the Rohingya influx. In addition, the strategies for integrated farm production and networking with the digital extension services reiterate the FAO’s commitment to sustainable and resilient livelihoods for the local communities.

Reporting Lines

The National Horticulture / Agronomy Specialist is an SC 08 position and he/she will work under the overall supervision and guidance of the Senior Emergency and Rehabilitation Officer, Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh and the direct supervision of the Senior Programme Advisor, in coordination with the operations, MEAL and other team members. The incumbent will be responsible for enhancing vegetable and cereal crop farming, developing strategies and providing support to improved and climate-smart farming practices to increase farm productivity as well as households’ income.

Technical Focus

The incumbent will be responsible for providing technical guidance in the planning, development and implementation of the agricultural farming systems through the adoption of innovative technologies for horticultural high-value and commercial crops under adverse climatic environments.

Tasks and responsibilities

• Promote climate resilient production technologies that will address food security increasing smallholder farmers’ participation, especially women, in agricultural production systems and markets in improving their nutritional levels and households’ income; • Adopt an integrated approach that links sustainable crop production, households’ nutrition and economic resilience efforts to the marginal and smallholder farming communities; • Oversee and guide agricultural production emphasizing the climate-smart agricultural practices and farmers’ high-value crop production in the project area in collaboration with the government and implementing partners; • Contribute to the planning of project activities and set high-quality performance targets ensuring adherence to technical standards, best practices and donor guidelines; • Use appropriate project management tools to plan, review and track progress on project implementation and utilization of project resources; • Identify training needs for the government and implementing partners’ staff and support the capacity building of the project farmers on improved crop production; • Provide technical support to partners on the best ways to plant, harvest, and cultivate crops in the challenging agro-ecological zones; • Contribute to the collection and dissemination of relevant data and information related to agricultural production, households’ income and food value chains including impacts, lessons and good practices; • Contribute to the organization of and/or participate in meetings, conferences, workshops, consultations and field visits as needed; • Assist the MEAL team in properly recording and archiving the field trial and demonstration data to support various audiences, while contributing to annual and semi-annual reports; • Assist in designing and implementing capacity-building strategies with an emphasis on developing appropriate training content and materials for different stakeholder groups; • Work closely with public and private sector partners to develop innovative approaches to extend and scale-out smallholder’s access to new technologies and management practices; • With a focus on on-farm research, coordinate participatory trials and demonstration of high-value crop production, efficient use of irrigation water and resource-conserving crop management in commercial climate adaptive farming systems; • Prepare journal-ready research results in peer-reviewed publications and /or conference proceedings; • Perform other related duties, as required.

CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING

Minimum Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in agricultural science with master / post-graduation in horticulture or agronomy; • Minimum of Seven (7) years of progressively responsible professional work experiences with the United Nations or international development organizations on horticultural crop production, food security and agricultural development • National of Bangladesh • Working knowledge of English

FAO Core Competencies

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

Technical/Functional Skills

• Experiences in working for value-added agronomic products, services, and recommendations to partners and stakeholders; • Knowledge in working for farm trials, demonstrations and research projects on climate adaptive crop production technologies; • Proven track record of successful teamwork, good presentation/facilitation skills; • Proficiency in MS Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook); • Experience in UN Agencies is preferred. • Ability to perform in multi-cultural and multi-disciplinary contexts; • Excellent verbal and written communication skills are required; • Ability to work independently and with minimum supervision;

Selection Criteria

• Experience in complex and emergencies environment would be an asset; • Experience in conflict-sensitive and peacebuilding programmes would be an asset; • Field experience in implementing activities and strategies with a multi-disciplinary team is required.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

• FAO does not charge a fee at any stage of the recruitment process (application, interview meeting, processing)
• Incomplete applications will not be considered. If you need help please contact: [email protected]
• Applications received after the closing date will not be accepted
• Please note that FAO only considers higher educational qualifications obtained from an institution accredited/recognized in the World Higher Education Database (WHED), a list updated by the International Association of Universities (IAU) / United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The list can be accessed at http://www.whed.net/
• For additional employment opportunities visit the FAO employment website: http://www.fao.org/employment/home/en/
• Appointment will be subject to certification that the candidate is medically fit for appointment, accreditation, any residency or visa requirements, and security clearances.