The position:
With a position of seed Expert, you will function within a team of individuals with complementary expertise in seed sector development. You will be supervised by the regional scientific coordinator, who will be assisted by a regional project manager. The regional project manager will supervise you on a day to day basis. Expertise, guidance, and support in gender; informal seed systems; business development; project implementation strategy; monitoring and evaluation (M&E); and data management will be provided by the Addis Ababa based ISSD Ethiopia project management unit (PMU). A team of experts from Wageningen University and Research Centre (Wageningen UR), the Netherlands will support PMU. Regional activity planning will be conducted with the participation of PMU and often in collaboration with other projects united by the BENEFIT partnership. You will be an active participant in seed related issues with the teams based at other duty stations.
Key Responsibilities:
ISSD Ethiopia aims to improve access to quality seed
The goal of ISSD Ethiopia is to improve female and male smallholder farmer access to and use of quality seed of new, improved and/or farmer preferred varieties to sustainably increase agricultural productivity. The project builds upon more than eight years of existing experiences in supporting the development of a vibrant, pluralistic and market oriented seed sector in Ethiopia. In its current (2016-2019), it will strengthen seed producers in three different seed systems (informal, intermediary and formal); enhance the performance of seed value chains within these seed systems; and contribute to the improvement of an enabling environment for seed value chains in the different seed systems. In addition, the project will strengthen the professional capacities for implementing the ISSD approach.
ISSD Ethiopia is implemented in four regions of Ethiopia through multiple partnerships
The ISSD Ethiopia project is one of four projects united under the BENEFIT Partnership in Ethiopia. BENEFIT stands for Bilateral Ethiopia-Netherlands Effort for Food, Income and Trade. It is a partnership among four projects in the country, including ISSD Ethiopia, and with the Ethiopian agricultural sector itself, funded by the Dutch Government. ISSD Ethiopia is implemented by five regional ISSD units hosted at four universities (Bahir Dar, Haramaya, Hawassa and Mekelle) and Oromia Seed Enterprise in four regions of the country, supported by the ISSD-PMU and BENEFIT Partnership Coordination Unit (PCU), both located in Addis Ababa, and by Wageningen UR, the Netherlands. Regional implementing partners are: Bahir Dar University; Haramaya University and Oromia Seed Enterprise; Hawassa University; and Mekelle University, operating in Amhara region; Oromia region (divided into eastern and south & western, respectively); Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples’ Region (SNNPR); and Tigray region, in corresponding order of mention.
Number of Position: 1 (One)
The kind of person we are looking for:
We are looking for an energetic and enthusiastic hard worker, who is a team player and can work independently. Working in interdisciplinary team, good interpersonal communication, mediation and facilitation skills are required. Acting as a vital member of a dynamic team, the candidate is expected to be flexible, reasonable, accommodating, and constructive and to actively contribute to making the working environment a happy one. We are also looking for a person with a demonstrated interest/passion in developing Ethiopian seed sector and with excellent communication skill (speaking, listening, reading and writing) in English, Amharic and Tigrigna is absolutely a requirement.
Experience, knowledge, and skills required:
The Seed Expert should have knowledge, experience, and skills in:
Applicants must satisfy at least all of the following minimum requirements: