INTERNAL/EXTERNAL VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT

Market Linkage Advisor(RE- Advertised -2nd )

CARE is an international NGO with local staff and community partners in more than 90 countries. We create local solutions to poverty and inequality and we seek dignity for everyone every day and during times of crisis. These solutions have a broad range, from clean water to access to education; from microfinance to ensuring that everyone has nutritious food; from agriculture and climate change to disaster response. CARE puts women and girls at the center of everything we do because they have proven to be the best hope for creating lasting change in the world. Our staff live where they work, which makes us effective at understanding the challenges they face. We’ve been doing this for over 70 years, since World War II. It started with the world’s first CARE Package® of food for the post-war hungry in Europe. Our work today is as important as ever, we believe that poverty and inequality are historic injustices that we can end within a generation, for good. If you share our core beliefs: poverty is an injustice; poverty is solvable; and together, we have the power to end it, join us.

Date of Announcement: May 20, 2022

Vacancy No.: 067/22 

Grade: 9C

Salary: $1564

No of positions:1                   

 Duty Base: Addis Ababa

Closing Date: Ten days for the date of announcement                  

Job Description

I.  JOB SUMMARY: 

The position holder will work closely with and report to the Senior Agriculture and Livelihoods Advisor. The position holder provides technical assistance and capacity building on marketing and value-chain development to the SPIR II/ RFSA project consortium partners and staff in the operational woredas and zone/s. The position holder will coordinate market assessment studies, identify key marketing and promotional gaps and provides high quality marketing training and develop guideline, and also coordinate the design, planning and implementation of agricultural marketing and value-chain and market linkage activities under the designated project operational areas. S/he will work with other technical areas to ensure harmonization and appropriate sequencing of interventions to ensure that approaches are suitable for the households targeted by SPIR II/ RFSA and are based on facilitating long-lasting relationship building. 

II. Roles and Responsibilities

1. Provide technical assistance/Program planning and implementation (40%)

·      Provide quality technical support to consortium partners, government counterparts, private sector actors and project participants.

·      In close collaboration with the Senior Agriculture and Livelihoods Advisor, and other technical consortium staff, develop and lead the design and implementation of a gender and youth sensitive market assessments, identify key marketing and promotional gaps and design a high quality approaches including coaching, relationship building, business understanding and innovation- including avenues for timely market information delivery system to beneficiaries:- The specific role and responsibilities of the position holder will be as follows

·      Conduct market assessment and identify value chain commodities in operational woreda of SPIR II/ RFSA

·      Produce market assessment report and share to implementing partners and donor

·      Prepare value chain implementation guideline for each value chain commodities,

·      Organize value chain training for field level staff and key stakeholders,

·      Prepare sample business plan for the selected value chain commodities and share to field level staff to use it as sample for loan application and monitoring the progress

·      Lead the day-to day implementation of the value chain activities of SPIR II/ RFSA at consortium level and frequently update the field level staff and vise versa.

·      Lead the establishment/ strengthen process of private and public organization that support the value chain intervention of SPIR II/ RFSA.

·      Lead the facilitation of the value chain related forums like multi-stakeholder platforms (MSPs), business-to-business meetings, and agro-dealer ship regular forums.

·      Produce guidelines, modules and reports together with technical leads that relate to value chain interventions.

·      Participates in SPIR II/ RFSA detailed implementation planning (DIP), and annual reviews, to ensure that proper practices, tools and guidelines are adopted throughout the life of the project.

·      Establishes all necessary relationships with market actors to ensure that buy-in for evidence based and sound practices and share lessons.

·      Support social change processes in relation to changing attitudes related to markets and market actors.

·      In collaboration with the Gender and Youth technical leads, ensure that all guidelines and implementation tools resonate with the needs of and are uniquely placed to facilitate empowerment of women and youth.

·      Support identification and promotion of innovative approaches and interventions to achieve project objective and suited to the conditions and needs of diverse target groups in diverse geographic location and social norms.

·      Support with the implementation of appropriate monitoring systems and provide/compile report on program activities.

·      Ensure SPIR II/ RFSA incorporates innovative, cost effective and equitable practices and mechanisms that have potential for social transformation, learning and scaling up.

·      Monitor progress and provide on-going feedback and recommendations to project management.

·      Actively engage with, maintain a productive relationship and be deeply familiar with all aspects of the relevant service providers, input suppliers and the wider input and output market system (formal and informal) supporting poor households and are in a position to provide market expansion options.

·      Support coordination and linkages among private sectors actors and business stakeholders, including government offices to support sound implementation of sound and fair market facilitation approach.

·      Proactively engage with the learning agenda partners to identify and explore learning opportunities and issues.

·      Advise and ensure technical area initiatives are consistent with sustainable development principles and are equitable.

2. Capacity building and Monitoring (40%)

·      Conduct capacity assessment and based on the findings advise or plan for consortium partners to develop key competencies and skills to produce quality results and nurture commitments to apply new skills.

·      Establish on-going induction and training processes on the technical area for field level staffs and private market actors and other governmental and non-governmental partners on facilitative market system development.

·      Provide support, guidance, and training to program staff to understand the technical requirements, standards, and best practices that promote and support behavioral changes to enhance productivity, investment in inputs/ technologies and output market relationships.

·      With the leadership of the technical lead, closely works with the SPIR II/ RFSA M & E staff and Collaborative Learning partners and CARE program quality and Learning (PQL) unit to ensure that learning and monitoring evaluation systems are in-sync with global agendas and needs, as required.

·      Provide support, guidance, and training to farmers organizations like producer marketing groups, formal cooperatives, and collectors.

·      Work with financial linkage advisor to facilitate financial service to ensure timely accessibility of finance for the poor 

·      Actively participate in regular team planning and review meetings; identify follow up activities based on findings of previous activities and implementation.

·      Ensures productive relationships are established and maintained with all consortium partners, market actors, governmental and non-governmental organizations at all levels and with expert institutions.

·      Proactively develop and maintain a good learning platform with all stakeholders and ensure that good practices are shared widely.

3. Learning, documentation and sharing (15%)

·      With the support of the technical lead and supervisor, identify, record, and share lessons on program processes, practices and results with internal staffs, consortium partners and other stakeholders.

·      With support of the technical lead ensures productive relationships are established and maintained in the area of market linkage with all consortium partners, donors other SPIR II/ RFSA implementing partners, governmental and non-governmental organizations at all levels and with expert institutions.

·      Lead market linkage activity of SPIR II/ RFSA consortium and represent CARE and other consortium partners on market linkage and value chain forums at different levels.

·      Ensure the program captures and responds to up-to-date information about market and regulatory developments.

·      Establish and ensure proper sex and age disaggregated database is in place to track the effective engagement with private market actors.

·      Organize opportunities and forums for experience sharing and learning.

·      Prepare and maintain up to date information on the livelihood situation of each operational area.

·      Prepare reports as deemed necessary.

4. Perform other duties as assigned (5%)

III. GENDER EQUALITY

Understanding and demonstrated commitment to the importance of gender, youth and social inclusion issues.

Demonstrated commitment to principles of Gender Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and PSEAH (safeguarding), as evidenced in previous positions / programming 

Job Requirements

IV. Qualifications

A) Education/Training

Required:

·      B.A. Degree in agricultural economics, local economic development, marketing, or other closely related field with experience on the agricultural marketing, value-chain, and livelihood promotion.

Desired:

·      MSC/MA in agricultural economics, local economic development, marketing, or other closely related field with experience in agricultural marketing, value-chain, food security and livelihood promotion.

B) Experience

Required:

·      5-7 years of work experience in the agricultural marketing, value-chain development, local economic development and familiarity with food security, rural development.

Desired:

·      Experience in business development and entrepreneurship development programs and working in the NGO sector.

C) Technical Skills 

Required:

·      Language proficiency in written and spoken English.

·      Proficiency in computer (Word, Excel & Access).

·      Knowledge on marketing and value-chain.

·      Effective interpersonal skills, maturity, initiative, tact and a high sense of responsibility. 

·      Ability to work harmoniously with people of different educational and cultural backgrounds.

·      Ability to analyze technical issues, to write clear and concise reports and make effective oral presentations.

·      Demonstrated technical ability and skills to work effectively with project staff and partners at all levels.

·      Firm belief in teamwork, gender equality, and empowerment.

·      Good understanding of participatory approach and sustainable development.

·      Proven training and facilitation skills.

Desired:

·      Knowledge of agricultural marketing and value-chain.

·      Strategic and operational planning experience.

·      Knowledge of Afan Oromo.

·      Training materials development and facilitation skills.

·      Project design, monitoring and evaluation skills.

D) Competencies: CARE core values (respect, accountability, courage, and excellence), building partnerships, and managing performance for success, initiating action, interpersonal skills, contributing to team success, pro-active problem solving, organizing and flexibility.

V. Contacts/Key Relationships

The incumbent is expected to establish and maintain good relations with all CARE, and SPIR II/ RFSA consortium partners’ staffs at all levels. S/he will also be expected to have productive and professional relations with operational and functional units in CARE office and other key stakeholders (e.g., government counterparts, civil society, and private sector). S/he will be expected to work from World Vision and CARE offices within agreed days in a week. 

VI. Level of Travel Required

This position is based in Addis Ababa with 30 % travel to SPIR II/ RFSA implementation areas under the three consortium partners.

CARE Ethiopia is committed to preventing all unwanted behavior at work. This includes sexual harassment, exploitation and abuse, and child abuse. We expect everyone who works for us to share this commitment by understanding and working within the CARE Safeguarding Policy and related framework. CARE Ethiopia has a zero-tolerance approach to any harm to, or exploitation of, a vulnerable adult or child by any of our staff, representatives or partners.

CARE Ethiopia reserves the right to seek information from job applicants’ current and/or previous employers about incidents of sexual exploitation, sexual abuse and/or sexual harassment the applicant may have been found guilty to have committed or about which an investigation was in the process of being carried out at the time of the termination of the applicant’s employment with that employer.

By submitting the application, the job applicant confirms that s/he has no objection to CARE Ethiopia requesting the information specified above. All offers of employment will be subject to satisfactory references and appropriate screening checks.

How to Apply

If you are interested to be part of our dynamic team, exciting work environment and contribute to CARE Ethiopia’s mission and vision, please send your CV (not more than 3 pages) and cover letter (not more than one page) through CLICK HERE

Only short-listed candidates will be contacted.

Passionate and dedicated candidates who meet the requirement are strongly encouraged to apply, especially women!

CARE seeks to improve the lives of the most marginalized, particularly women and girls. Our diversity is our strength. We encourage people from all backgrounds and experiences to apply.