Sustainable Commodity Value Chain Specialist

Volunteering

Overview

Support design and implementation of sustainable commodity programmes.

You have:

• At least 3 years of experience in sustainable agriculture, natural resource management, forestry, environmental management, climate action, rural development, agribusiness, or related fields.
• Demonstrated experience supporting the development, implementation or monitoring of projects related to landscape management and agricultural commodity value chains.
• Experience working on issues related to natural resource management, agroforestry, forest and landscape restoration, climate resilience, biodiversity conservation, or community-based resource management.
• Experience engaging with government institutions, private sector actors, farmer organizations, civil society organizations, development partners, or community-based organizations.
• Experience conducting research, value chain analysis, stakeholder consultations and technical assessments.
• Experience preparing technical reports, concept notes, project documents, donor reports or funding proposals.
• Experience supporting multi-stakeholder partnerships, policy dialogue processes or sustainable development initiatives is highly desirable.
• Skills in problem analysis, research and problem-solving.
• Skills in report writing and technical drafting.
• Skills in project design, planning, implementation and monitoring.
• Strong organizational skills and ability to manage multiple tasks and priorities simultaneously.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills in English.
• Skills in gender analysis, equality, social inclusion and sustainable development principles.

Contract

This is a UNV contract. More about UNV contracts.

UNDP Ghana is implementing a growing portfolio of programmes that promote sustainable agricultural commodity value chains, natural resource management, climate resilience, biodiversity conservation, and inclusive rural development. These efforts support Ghana's national priorities on sustainable land use, forest restoration, climate action, food systems transformation, and green economic growth. Current interventions focus on strategic commodities including cocoa, shea and soybean, while UNDP is actively exploring opportunities to expand its engagement in the cashew sector and other sustainable agricultural value chains.

The assignment offers an opportunity to contribute to the design and implementation of innovative programmes that strengthen commodity value chains and offers opportunities to enhance livelihoods while addressing environmental challenges such as deforestation, land degradation, biodiversity loss and climate vulnerability. The position will play an important role in supporting ongoing initiatives and identifying new opportunities for investment, partnerships and programme development, particularly in relation to sustainable cashew value chain development.

The Volunteer will be integrated within UNDP Ghana's Environment and Climate portfolio and will work closely with technical specialists, programme teams and national counterparts. The role will involve collaboration with a broad range of stakeholders, including the Forestry Commission, Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA), Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) and other key national stakeholders.

Under the direct supervision of Team Lead of the Environment and Climate cluster the UN Volunteer will support the design, implementation, monitoring, partnership development and knowledge management of UNDP's sustainable commodity and natural resource management portfolio, with a particular focus on cocoa, shea, soybean and emerging opportunities in the cashew sector. In this regard the UN Volunteer Specialist will undertake the following tasks:

1. Support the Implementation of Sustainable Commodity Programmes • Provide technical and coordination support to ongoing projects related to cocoa, shea and soybean value chains • Support the implementation of activities related to climate-smart agriculture, agroforestry, forest landscape restoration, sustainable land management, community re-source management and resilient livelihoods • Contribute to efforts aimed at strengthening community governance systems for sustainable management of forests, woodlands and other natural resources • Assist in the preparation and monitoring of annual workplans, activity schedules and project delivery targets. • Conduct field visits to project sites to support implementation, monitoring and stake-holder engagement activities.
2. Support Development of a Sustainable Cashew Programme • Undertake analyses and mapping of the cashew value chain in Ghana, including pro-duction systems, market opportunities, environmental challenges, policy issues and investment gaps. • Identify opportunities for sustainable cashew production, processing, value addition and market development. • Support stakeholder consultations with government agencies, private sector actors, farmer organizations, development partners and financial institutions. • Contribute to the preparation of concept notes, project documents, partnership proposals and resource mobilization efforts for future cashew-related interventions. • Explore opportunities to integrate cashew development with agroforestry, landscape restoration, biodiversity conservation and climate resilience objectives.
3. Support Value Chain Development, Private Sector Engagement and Sustainable Finance • Liaise with the Innovative Finance and Inclusive Growth Cluster to identify and develop public-private partnerships and innovative financing pathways, undertake assessments of financing needs and investment opportunities, and promote sustainable pro-duction, market access and innovative financing mechanisms for sustainable commodity value chains. • Support in engaging private sector actors, producer organizations, aggregators, processors and commodity buyers to strengthen value chain development for relevant commodities prioritized by the Ghana country office. • Support activities aimed at enhancing economic opportunities for women, youth and producer groups across targeted value chains.
4. Monitoring, Reporting and Knowledge Management • Support the collection, compilation and analysis of project data, results and lessons learned across commodity related work. • Assist in preparing technical reports, donor reports, briefs, presentations and communication materials. • Develop case studies, success stories and knowledge products documenting good practices and innovations in sustainable commodity development and natural re-source management. • Support the organization of workshops, stakeholder dialogues, field missions and knowledge-sharing events.

Accountability Adaptability and Flexibility Building Trust Commitment and Motivation Commitment to Continuous Learning Communication Ethics and Values Integrity Knowledge Sharing Planning and Organizing Professionalism Respect for Diversity Self-Management Technological Awareness Working in Teams

• At least 3 years of experience in sustainable agriculture, natural resource management, forestry, environmental management, climate action, rural development, agribusiness, or related fields. • Demonstrated experience supporting the development, implementation or monitoring of projects related to landscape management and agricultural commodity value chains. • Experience working on issues related to natural resource management, agroforestry, forest and landscape restoration, climate resilience, biodiversity conservation, or community-based resource management. • Experience engaging with government institutions, private sector actors, farmer organizations, civil society organizations, development partners, or community-based organizations. • Experience conducting research, value chain analysis, stakeholder consultations and technical assessments. • Experience preparing technical reports, concept notes, project documents, donor reports or funding proposals. • Experience supporting multi-stakeholder partnerships, policy dialogue processes or sustainable development initiatives is highly desirable. Skills in: • Problem analysis, research and problem-solving . • Report writing and technical drafting. • Project design, planning, implementation and monitoring. • Data analysis and use of Microsoft Office applications (Word, Excel, PowerPoint). • Excellent oral and written communication skills in English. • Strong organizational skills and ability to manage multiple tasks and priorities simultaneously. • Gender analysis, equality, social inclusion and sustainable development principles.

Ghana is widely regarded as one of the most peaceful and politically stable countries in West Africa and offers a welcoming environment for international personnel. The duty station for this assignment is expected to be Accra, the capital city, which serves as the country's administrative, commercial and diplomatic hub. Accra offers a wide range of housing options, reliable telecommunications services, good banking facilities, international schools, modern shopping centres, healthcare facilities, restaurants and recreational opportunities. English is the official language and is widely spoken throughout the country, making communication and integration relatively easy for international staff.

Conditions of Service:

The Conditions of Service, available here: https://explore.unv.org/cos, outline the policies and rules governing UN Volunteer assignments. Full information on entitlements at the duty station can be accessed here: https://app.unv.org/calculator.

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Potential interview questions

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