Postdoctoral Fellow, Yam Tissue Culture Ref: DDG-R4D/PDF-YTC/02/14 at IITA - International Institute of Tropical Agriculture

Responsibilities
In coordination with the Yam breeder:

•     Refine the procedures to use effective tissue culture techniques to improve interspecific hybridization of yam.
•     Develop and validate a protocol for production of haploid plants in yam.
•     Improve in vitro micropropagation protocols in yam.
•     Manage team, finances, and the procurement of lab equipment and supplies for the project.
•     Contribute to training of staff and students working at the Bioscience center of IITA.
•     Publish research findings.
•     Ensure research planning and design.
•     Report activities and results using templates from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan.
•     Facilitate communication between IITA and Japanese government.

Requirements

•     The candidate should have a Ph.D. (or expected Ph.D. by March 2014) in Agriculture/Horticulture/Plant breeding/Biotechnology/Molecular Biology/Biochemistry/Plant Science or related field.

Core Competencies

•     Good knowledge and experience in plant tissue culture.
•     Knowledge of plant breeding.
•     Demonstrated ability to write and publish journal articles.
•     Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
•     Ability to work in a multidisciplinary and multi-cultural environment.
•     Good knowledge of Japanese is required for writing project reports in Japanese.

Remuneration and Conditions of Service

• The contract is for a period of one year from 1st April 2014 (flexible).
• This is renewable subject to continued availability of funding.
• IITA offers a competitive remuneration package paid in US dollars.