Agribusiness Advisor at Rikolto [ Mpanda ]

Agribusiness Advisor in Mpanda

Rikolto in East Africa (formerly known as VECO) is part of the Rikolto network, an international NGO with more than 40 years of experience in partnering with farmer organisations and food chain actors across Africa, Asia, Europe and Latin America. Rikolto aims to contribute to the development of a dynamic, sustainable and inclusive agricultural sector with family farmers providing quality produce for own consumption and for diverse markets (national, regional and international markets). In its programme in Tanzania, Rikolto currently is implementing a food system programme in three regions of Northern Tanzania targeting three crops namely Rice, Horticulture and Pulses.

Rikolto in Tanzania has secured funding from the European Union for the implementation of its four years project named as ‘Building Inclusive and Competitive Horticulture Businesses in Tanzania’s Southern Highlands’. The project aims at improving directly livelihoods of 30,000 smallholder farmers and 500 off-takers, with ultimate goal of improving the performance of Tanzania’s horticulture sector, the inclusion of smallholder farmers in it, and its contribution to job creation and nutrition security in five regions of the southern highlands (Iringa, Njombe, Mbeya, Songwe and Katavi) through targeted interventions. The project will address mainly four systemic constraints in the horticulture sector which include: Poor access to sustainable business development services; poor margins for value chain actors due to high transaction costs; Weak sector governance and coordination mechanisms; and high level of malnutrition in the selected regions.

Job purpose

To enhance the inclusion of smallholder farmers in durable and fair-trading relationships with private companies in national, regional and export markets for horticulture and enhance structural changes to improve competitiveness of the agricultural sector.

Reports to: Food Smart Cities Cluster Coordinator

Geographic scope: Country Regional Level

Rikolto Grade: BG-9-DPM: Programme Officer

Contract Duration: 3 years renewable

Duty Station: Mpanda

Responsibilities

Plan, implement, monitor and adjust innovation/change pathways in inclusive business models in the horticulture chains
Plan, coordinate, implement and monitor actions leading to set structural changes for inclusion of smallholder farmers at national level
Develop, strengthen and support business linkages between Farmer Business Organisations (FBOs) and private companies
Strengthen the entrepreneurial attitude, skills and capacities of Farmer Business Organisations
Provide strategic and technical guidance to FBOs ensuring their inclusion in the chains
Design, test, and validate change/innovations in the linked business models
Monitor and document the change/innovations processes in the business models, the changes in behavior at the level of the involved FBOs and companies, and the results of these in terms of improved small-holder livelihoods, and draw lessons
Document and translate the outcomes of the pilots as evidence for achieving structural changes and upscaling at national level
Coordinate/implement the actions of/with the various partners in the achievement of the structural change agendas
Build up a close relationship with private companies interested in sustainable sourcing from smallholder farmers
Network with other organizations that have a stake in the structural change agendas
Analyse and document the changing national context in relation to the business environment, the value chain, the market
Provide information, analysis, lessons learned to allow programme management to readjust its programmes
Collaborate and work closely with M&E specialist to collect and synthesize all programme data and report accordingly
Develop plans, budgets and monitors expenditure of both Rikolto and partners in area of jurisdiction

Expected Outputs

Innovative pilots that contribute to the desired planned structural changes and business models
Strong business linkages between FBOs and private companies
Strong entrepreneurial attitude, skills and capacities of FBOs
High quality analysis of trends and opportunities in relation to the business environment
Strong network and coordination with partners and key stakeholders
Significant and sustainable benefits for farmers working in the pilots
Effective learning processes which lead to improvements in programme design
Effective multi-stakeholder platforms which strengthen smallholder farmer voice
Meticulous documentation and translation of the outcomes of the pilots

Education and Experience

Master’s Degree in Agriculture, Agribusiness, Economics, Business or Cooperative development.
At least 5 years in Horticulture or high value crops value chain development, working with a variety of stakeholders.

Knowledge and Skills

Strategic thinker who is able to see problems from different angles
Results orientated
Communicates clearly in a variety of settings and styles and has good networking skills
In-depth understanding of value chains development approaches including gender empowerment approaches.
Knowledge and good understanding of food safety standards, certifications and quality management systems
In-depth understanding and development of sustainable non-financial (BDS development) and financial services including market information systems
Vast experience working with FBOs and facilitation of collective action (including marketing where necessary)
Proven track record of developing FBO or SME business models and business plans
Good understanding of sustainability environment issues and is ability to interpret the information to stakeholders
Understands national, regional and global market dynamics of high value crops and grains
Good computer operation Word, Excel, PowerPoint
Good proficiency in English (speaking and writing)
Licensed and able to drive a manual car
Competitive salary and benefits package are available for those candidates who show the desire, commitment and skills to change the way in which our food is produced, traded, sold and consumed.

!! Please submit your application by 6th March 2020, to eastafrica@rikolto.org. Clearly indicate that you are applying for the Agribusiness Advisor position in Mpanda.