Senior Technical Advisor, Nigeria Farmers and Families Forward at Winrock International

Department: Agriculture & Enterprise
Reports To: Project Director

Position Summary

• Winrock International is currently recruiting Senior Technical Advisor candidates for the anticipated Nigeria Farmers and Families Forward activity.
• This will be a three-year, $1.6 million project, co-funded by USAID/Nigeria and Nestlé to support Nestlé’s cereals plan for maize and soybean in Nigeria's Kaduna State.
• The project will support broad-based, economic growth in Nigeria by improving the on-farm practices of smallholder farmer suppliers to arrest the growth of mycotoxin both pre- and post-harvest, and design viable drying practices that will reduce detected aflatoxin.
• The approach will support smallholder farmer suppliers to meet the increasing demands of Nestlé cereal factories in the region by reducing the high levels of aflatoxin and other contaminates.
• The Senior Technical Advisor position will be based in Kaduna State and is subject to a project award being made to Winrock International.

Major Responsibilities

• The Senior Technical Advisor will provide technical direction to the project.
• S/he will be responsible for developing and leading the project’s technical approach to pre- and post-harvest interventions, including scaling available technologies.
• The Senior Technical Advisor will provide capacity building to project partners, including farmers, farmers’ organizations, and private sector partners.
• S/he will be responsible for identifying technical interventions to reduce the presence of aflatoxin and other contaminants in the maize and soy value chains.
• S/he will also be responsible for identifying technical assistance needs and developing scopes of work for volunteer engagement in specific technical assistance interventions.

Requirements
Education:

• Minimum Bachelor of Science degree in agronomy, agribusiness, agricultural economics or related field.

Experience:

• Minimum of 7 years of progressively senior experience managing agriculture/value chain projects;
• Demonstrated experience in working closely with private sector partners, preferably in a public-private partnership framework;
• Demonstrated experience implementing pre- and post-harvest interventions in the maize and soy value chains;
• Proven record of achieving development impact in projects focusing on food safety and export quality standards in commercial agribusiness, service provision, market development and investment promotion.
• Experience in aflatoxin control projects/activities is desirable.

Skills & Knowledge:

• Demonstrated experience and leadership in the supply of technical assistance and inputs to smallholder producers and producer organizations.
• Excellent leadership and communication skills.
• Excellent budget management skills.
• Fluency in written and spoken English. Hausa also required.