Business Development Officer at IITA - International Institute of Tropical Agriculture

Position/Responsibilities:
Successful candidate will among other things perform the following duties:

•     Participate in the implementation large-scale development interventions that utilise research outputs and outcomes at each level of the HQCF value chain (VC) to transform the entire value chain.
•     Target a critical number of actors in the VC to transform them from semi-commercial to full commercial operations by:

1.         Promoting productivity enhancing and processing technologies,
2.         Testing organizational innovations that improve their access to input and output markets,
3.         Supporting information flow and awareness creation

•     Provide business development services such as preparation of business plans, feasibility studies, cost-benefit analysis and assistance in dealing with financial institutions; Provide support and train value chain actors on business management.
•     Design innovative employment creation opportunities and encourage youth to take up the opportunities on purely business basis.
•     Provide market linkage opportunities between small-scale processors and end users;
•     Gender empowerment: Ensure broad participation of women entrepreneurs and other marginalized groups (youths and the physically challenged) in the project to ensure an increased resource control by them.
•     Determine business financing requirements of the actors (e.g. equipment purchase or upgrade for bread bakers, etc); Identify interested community banks to provide credit lines, negotiate and agree terms and conditions for accessing the credit lines for bread bakers; Set up credit line with the selected community banks; Monitor utilization of the fund as well as procurement and installation of equipment and repayment of credit provided to the bakers and caterer.
•     Promote market access for secondary cassava products
•     Be responsible for developing reputable brand name for Nigeria Cassava Flour in the global market.
•     Continuously assess and identify new market demands for cassava and their products;
•     Develop and operationalize the engagement of new generation of business-oriented cassava farmers in cassava production investments (as out-growers, cooperatives or youth groups)
•     In collaboration with the Cassava Transformation project, develop and test efficient institutional arrangements and divisions of labour for the production and timely supply of high quality/low-cost fresh cassava to processing plants;
•     Coordinate with the Capacity Development Unit and Cassava Transformation project to train, on a continuous basis, out-grower farmers, youth and other stakeholders in modern production techniques and business management;
•     Investigate and support new approaches to alleviate the current complex industry logistics and improve the competitiveness of cassava products.
•     Design and test an effective marketing strategy and institutional mechanisms for a durable HQCF and product marketing and suggest appropriate policy framework to increase the efficiency, effectiveness and sustainability marketing system for HQCF and its products to increase competitiveness in Nigeria and for export. Specifically:

1.         Explore the use of warehousing and receipt systems for HQCF);       
2.         Investigate the most effective marketing strategy for composite bread;       
3.         Test new approaches for positioning of composite bread in the market place, segmenting the market,       
4.         Use different advertising avenues, print media, mass media, leaflets etc

•     In partnership with the Cassava Transformation project, test new innovations for scaling-up and scaling-out market-oriented fresh cassava production. Specifically,
•         Develop appropriate partnership with State Governments & ADPs to establish out-grower schemes around HQCF processing plants in at least 5 Nigerian states under their youth empowerment and job creation schemes
•         Work with state ADPs and supply chain consultants: Form and train out-grower farmer networks to foster mutually beneficial long term market-driven relationships among farmers, processors, and trade intermediaries.
•         Support the development of farmers’ cooperatives for organised marketing and for collective access to inputs through (i) farmers’ mobilisation; (ii) training of farmers in group dynamics; (iii) bulking and organised marketing (iv) improved management practices necessary for the cassava enterprises.
•         Develop farmers’ capacity for improved harvesting and post-harvest handling of cassava;
•     Carry out cost benefit analysis of composite bread production and develop a precise costing of raw materials, cost of labour, storage costs, and pricing.
•     Document and disseminate the most successful technological and institutional arrangements that promote high productivity and reduces production cost for cassava
•     Communicate the research results in the form of reports, peer-reviewed publications and oral presentations at conferences or seminars.
•     Perform all other related duties that may be assigned from time to time by the supervisor.

Qualification, Experience and Skills:

•     MBA with a degree in Agriculture Economics or Food Technology
•     Minimum of 5-8 years relevant working experience in banking, business development services or business management research

The ideal candidate must be:

•     Familiar with agricultural economics principles, agricultural project financing, and assessment of micro-credit worthiness of agricultural enterprises;
•     Familiar with cassava value chain commercialization issues; good skills in documentation, report writing and communication ability; team player on a similar role
•     Good skills in MS Office and general knowledge of computer