Working directly and closely with primary cooperative leadership and members, Strengthening Cooperatives & Livelihoods capacity around governance, operations, planning and financial management, including business plans, operational planning, produce quality management and staff training.
Cooperative Capacity Building and Support
· Facilitate access to finance based on the realities and capabilities of the cooperative and banking partner
· Provide practical support and troubleshooting and advice to cooperatives to support them to effectively aggregate and market their produce (coffee, honey and/or spices)
· Facilitate relevant and tailored trainings for cooperatives on business plans, financial management, good governance, post-harvest handling and quality
· Develop and closely manage relationships with local government agencies, and other key stakeholders
· Supports/facilitate growth in cooperative membership, services offered to members
· Support cooperatives to officially register as well as develop business plans and operational plans in a detailed and structured way
· Support formation of a Cooperative Union
Establish and implement Farm College
· Recruit Farmer Trainers; train Farmer Trainers
· Support the development/adaptation of training materials
· Form Farmer Groups and establish training schedule, reporting
· Oversee implementation with regular training observations and spot checks of demo plots
Support Analysis of Market System for Strategy design and planning
· Research relevant market systems and value chains (coffee, honey and spices) and establish relationships with key market actors, including buyers, in support of the larger program research plan;
· actively contribute to evolving project strategy and plan with new insights, learning and questions
Management and Reporting
· Submit weekly field reports to the Senior Business Advisor and support impact monitoring and evaluation activities;
· Participate in regular team training activities to build own training skills, including monthly team meetings in person;
· Perform other duties as assigned by the Senior Business Advisor
REQUIRED SKILLS & EXPERIENCE:
· Willingness to be based in one of the three assigned remote locations: in Mejang Zone, Mengeshi Woreda or Godere Wordea and willingness to spend significant time in rural areas; · Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field – business, agriculture, the sciences, economics, etc. May accept experience in lieu of four-year degree; · At least two to four years of professional experience— ideally private sector— in one or more of the following areas: business or cooperative management, SME development, agriculture, training or extension, finance, or engineering · Strong planning skills and experience working to strict time-guidelines; · Strong interpersonal and cross-cultural skills and well as negotiation and problem solving skills; · Willingness to drive a motorcycle; · In addition to Amharic, excellent English oral & written presentation skills · Computer literacy, including Word and Excel · Business acumen |
PREFERRED SKILLS:
· Familiarity with Mejang/Gambella area
· Ability to speak in relevant local language(s) & Motorcycle license