National Farming Systems Specialist

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FAO - Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

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Application deadline 3 years ago: Wednesday 17 Mar 2021 at 22:59 UTC

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Organizational Setting:

For more than four decades, FAO has been working with the Government of the Philippines, civil society, community-based organizations and the private sector to address challenges in the agriculture, fisheries and forestry sector. Joint efforts have included increasing sustainability in agricultural production, promoting value-adding practices, improving post-harvest management, enhancing productivity and increasing the resilience of agriculture-based livelihoods to natural disasters, climatic hazards and armed conflict.

Reporting Lines:

The Farming Systems Specialist will be under the overall guidance of the Deputy FAO Representative in the Philippines ad interim, the direct supervision of the Assistant FAO Representative for Programme. He/she will also collaborate with Mindanao, Emergency Response and Preparedness Group (MERG), receive day-to-day guidance from the National Emergency Coordinator.

Technical Focus:

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in the Philippines, has joined the humanitarian community in responding to the needs of those severely affected in the recent aftermath of tropical cyclone Ulysses damaging agriculture and fishing livelihoods in North Luzon with the Region II being the hardest hit.

FAO has partnered with WFP to provide agriculture and fisheries inputs and cash-based interventions as part of early response in order to hasten the transition back to normalcy. The provision of agriculture and fisheries inputs will enable farmers and fishers to resume agricultural and fisheries livelihoods while waiting for the corn harvest season next year. On the other hand, the use of unconditional cash transfers, cash plus and cash for work schemes are widely used in emergency, resilience and development projects globally. Among others, this is supported by the growing evidence that affected populations in the aftermath of a disaster need cash and cash, combined with livelihood support to rebuild sources of income, diversify food options, increase access to on-food basic items and ultimately and reduce reliance from emergency relief. Commonly used to address food insecurity and nutrition in emergencies, cash can also be seen as a means of facilitating access to health care, and veterinary services. In addition, the influx of financial support also fuels the rehabilitation of local economies that are essential to rebuilding livelihoods.

Tasks and responsibilities

The Farming Systems Specialist in close coordination with the Department of Agriculture Region Field Office II (DA-RFOII), World Food Programme (WFP), and local government units (LGUs) will carry out the following tasks:

  1. Conduct consultations on appropriate agriculture and fisheries inputs and determine vulnerabilities to natural hazards due to climate change;
  2. Prepare the technical specification of agricultural and fisheries inputs for technical clearance;
  3. In collaboration with project partners and stakeholders, formulate detailed criteria for selection of priority areas and farmer-beneficiaries;
  4. Establish an input distribution plan and establish input delivery points, and oversee the timely distribution of the required agriculture and fisheries inputs, observing minimum health safety protocols;
  5. Monitor the distribution and use of the agricultural and fisheries inputs and ensure proper use;
  6. Collaborate with WFP in the cash pay-out to beneficiaries;
  7. Organization and coordination for the conduct of trainings on building resilient farming systems, provincial training on Damage Assessment Reporting System (DARS) and on local anticipatory action/Early Warning-Early Action (EWEA);
  8. Prepare and submit progress reports mentioning activities undertaken (e.g. actual purchases made, number of hectares planted with FAO inputs, list of beneficiaries in each municipality, problems encountered and actions undertaken if any, etc.);
  9. Prepare and submit project terminal report, and end-of-assignment report in English according to FAO's guidelines;
  10. Participate in technical and sectoral meetings and working groups involving non-government organizations (NGOs) and all inter-governmental institutions, in particular, in the agriculture and livelihoods working groups/clusters; and
  11. Perform other tasks that may be assigned by the FAO Representative.

Minimum Requirements

  • The candidate must have an Advanced Degree in Agriculture specializing in farming systems and other related fields with complementary knowledge in agricultural development planning;
  • The candidate should have at least five (5) years practical experience in the implementation of projects on crop production or farming systems at the field level;
  • A National of the Philippines.

FAO Core Competencies

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

Technical/Functional Skills

  • Must be familiar with the local rural setting in Region II areas;
  • Ability to work effectively as part of a multidisciplinary team is of importance as is the ability to take leadership when appropriate;
  • Language requirement: Excellent written and oral communication skills in English and Tagalog; and
  • General knowledge and skills in the use of standard office software, such as MS Office (Word, Excel, Power Point).

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
  • Only language proficiency certificates from UN accredited external providers and/or FAO language official examinations (LPE, ILE, LRT) will be accepted as proof of the level of knowledge of languages indicated in the online applications
  • For additional employment opportunities visit the FAO employment website: http://www.fao.org/employment/home/en/
Added 3 years ago - Updated 3 years ago - Source: fao.org