Agricultural Economist at IITA - International Institute of Tropical Agriculture

Position Responsibilities:
The Agricultural Economist will undertake the following activities:
• Design and lead cross-country impact studies for tracking the adoption, outcomes, and impacts of production technologies and related innovations.
• Assemble secondary data on experimental yields and related parameters for a range of technology options promoted by the project which are needed for measuring and attributing impacts on crop yields and incomes.
• Assess the extent, determinants, and pathways of adoption of improved technologies.
• Develop and apply innovative methods for quantifying the impacts of improved technologies on food security and poverty reduction.
• Undertake strategic/ex-ante economic analyses of technology options for better targeting and priority setting of project interventions in the target countries and beyond.
• Develop and operationalize a mechanism for regular sharing of research results and other critical feedback information with project management and partners involved in technology development and dissemination.
• Translate research findings into recommendations for policy action for greater technology adoption and impacts.
• Publish research findings in international peer reviewed journals.
• Contribute to capacity strengthening of national partners; and
• Participate actively in annual review and planning meetings and resource mobilization.

Qualification and Experience
The candidate should have a PhD in agricultural economics, economics, or development economics from a highly recognized university.

Core Competencies:
• Demonstrated experience with impact evaluation of agricultural technologies, market or sub-sector studies, or value chain analysis.
• Knowledge of innovation systems, innovation platforms, and social network mapping. 
• Proficiency with econometric modeling methods and software (e.g. Stata).
• Knowledge of data collection tools and analytical methods for adoption and impact assessment as well as for value chain analysis.
• Demonstrated experience with large-scale technology adoption and impact surveys.
• A high degree of personal organization and ability to multi-task and work under pressure.
• Demonstrated ability to write and publish journal articles.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English (knowledge of French is an advantage); and
• Ability to work independently in a multidisciplinary and multi-cultural environment.