International consultant in adaptation of Agriculture to climate change at Food and Agriculture Organization Of the United Nations

GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF TASK(S) AND OBJECTIVES TO BE ACHIEVED
In West Africa, agriculture remains highly vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change and variability as it is mainly rainfed. The implementation of ECOWAP requires that emerging issues related to the resilience of vulnerable populations and adaptation of agriculture to climate change are taken into account. The integration of these emerging issues in policies, strategies and projects implemented under ECOWAP requires the involvement of all stakeholders. Project formulation and dissemination and sharing of experiences of these actors and lessons learned are ECOWAS priorities.

In order to support the ECOWAS Directorate of Agriculture and Rural Development to address issues of adaptation of agriculture to climate change, FAO recruits a climate change expert within the framework of the project 'Building capacity of ECOWAS for the implementation of ECOWAP'. This project is funded by the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID) and implemented by FAO.

Duties and Responsibilities

The incumbent will contribute to the achievement of project goals and provide support to improve the quality of products and services to be delivered under the project.

In particular, s/he will support the execution of the tasks below

• Identify and define the priorities required on climate change within the framework of the implementation of ECOWAP / CAADP interventions;
• Facilitate technical dialogue with countries requesting support for the formulation of investment projects related to the adaptation of agriculture to climate change;
• Provide technical support and advice to the ECOWAS Director of Agriculture and Rural Development on the challenges and programming of actions related to climate change in the implementation of ECOWAP.
• Organize and conduct seminars / workshops to enhance analytical and methodological capacities of national experts from the member countries of ECOWAS and the West African regional organizations capabilities. This activity will be conducted in collaboration with other FAO initiatives working on climate change.
• Strengthen the capacity of national and regional experts in estimating costs and prioritizing adaptation options in agriculture to climate change. This activity will be conducted in collaboration with other FAO initiatives working on climate change and the formulation of investment agricultural projects.
• Drafting of detailed terms of reference for Consultants to be mobilized for the formulation of investment projects for the operationalization of the ECOWAP.
• Participate in the review of the policy and institutional environment for the implementation of regional and national investment's project for Agriculture adaptation to climate change.
• Prepare guidance and recommendations to taking into account climate change in the implementation of ECOWAP
• Participate as a member of the multidisciplinary team in the preparation of detailed regional investment projects;
• Organize and facilitate sessions of methodological discussion, analysis, evaluation and validation of investment project documents formulated for the mobilization of resources from technical and financial partners;
• Facilitate a network of knowledge sharing, best practices and sharing of experiences on adaptation of agriculture to climate change through the development and dissemination of briefings focused on climate change.
• Strengthen the coordination of FAO programs on climate change.
• Perform any other activities related to the project objectives and mission of the adaptation agriculture to climate change Expert in ECOWAS.

The consultant will work under the direct supervision of the Coordinator of GCP/RAF/461/SPA 'capacity of ECOWAS for the implementation of the ECOWAP' project based in Lomé (Togo). He will work closely with the ECOWAS Director of Agriculture and Rural Development. He or she will support the strengthening of activities and synergies between ECOWAS departments working on environment and agriculture.

KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS

Expected Outputs

• Seminars /workshops organized and conducted
• Drafting of detailed terms of reference
• Project goals achieved
• Improvement of the quality of products and services delivered under the project Required Completion Date: 2016 REQUIRED COMPETENCIES

• Master degree in agricultural economics, climate science or any other related field;
• Have five (5) years minimum experience in the field of agriculture and climate change in the West African context
• Be familiar with institutional environment of West African regional organizations (ECOWAS, UEMOA, CILSS, CCRE, ECREEE, etc.);
• Have excellent knowledge on the agricultural projects and issues concerning climate change and its impact on agriculture in West Africa and the process of implementation of ECOWAP Have knowledge of design, formulation and analysis of investment projects in the agricultural sector;
• Have a good knowledge of the tools and methods for environmental assessment and plan development of climate change adaptation;
• Be familiar with the National Action Programs for Adaptation (NAPA);
• Have a good ability to handle unexpected situations and adjust priorities accordingly;
• Have a sense of teamwork and proven capacity for critical analysis;
• Have a perfect command of one of the two official languages of the United Nations (French or English) and be able to work comfortably in the other language.