Business Advisor 1- Horticurity Project at TechnoServe

Job Summary:

The Business Advisor will work under the supervision of the project manager to provide capacity building and aftercare coaching support to the businesses and other participants. S/he will facilitate business linkages, gather market intelligence and monitor performance. It should be understood that the tasks outlined below are the key responsibilities, but the employee will be expected to perform any tasks that are necessary within the context of the evolving needs of the project.

Program/Practice/Department Overview:

The Horticurity project seeks to increase the accessibility, and availability of fruits and vegetables while improving the resilience to climate and economic shocks, of low-income communities of Delta and Kaduna States. The project will deploy a combination of innovative pilots and scale up already proven solutions to address the food security challenges in the project states by improving access to, availability and affordability of nutritious foods for select low-income communities in the project states while improving their incomes building their resilience to price and climate-related shocks and stresses..

Primary Functions & Responsibilities:

Project Inception Phase

• Area mapping, mobilization and recruitment of program beneficiaries using set criteria.
• Support the project manager and MEL in developing the project work plan and MEAL tools
• Support the rapid assessment and baseline evaluation activities.
• Identify local community trainers in the assigned communities.

Project implementation

• Lead on community sensitization, mobilization and enrollment of smallholder farmers and micro retail vendors playing in the fruit and horticulture value chains.
• Supervise the local community trainers and ensure that their capacity is deepened through train-the-trainer sessions, and green and brownfield days.
• Support the project manager in developing training materials for the production cycle of the focus value chains in fruits and horticulture.
• Support the LCTs during step-down training and monitor attendance according to the program guidelines.
• Lead on the implementation of simple storage technology such as the zero-energy cooling chamber (ZECC) and other simple innovative technologies.
• Support the enrolled micro retailers in completing the online modules and graduate them into the aftercare phase.
• Support the PM in identifying online market platforms that connect producers to off-takers and onboard the agreed number of beneficiaries on the platforms.
• Monitor all innovative pilots and ensure data quality
• Support the PM in identifying private-sector organizations that would partner with the project
• Support all monitoring and evaluation activities, surveys and reporting as well as develop success stories and lessons learnt.
• Understand, respect and promote Techno Serve’s values, vision, and strategy in the implementation of assigned duties.
• Perform other duties in line with the evolving needs of the program.

Basic Qualifications:

• Bachelor's Degree or equivalent in Agronomy, Agribusiness, and Agric Economics with minimum of 2 years’ experience working with rural communities and supporting producers and micro retailers in the fruit and /or horticulture value chain in Nigeria. Alternatively, 4 years’ experience.
• Demonstrated understanding of the fruit and horticulture value chains in Nigeria
• Ability to engage and advise a broad range of stakeholders, including senior management of private sector companies, community leaders, and others;
• Demonstrated experience in data collection and analyses.
• Demonstrated experience with digital training and delivery mechanisms.
• Demonstrated experience in report writing.
• Demonstrated ability to communicate and train in the Hausa or Igbo language.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Ability to engage and advise a broad range of stakeholders on the field.
• Must have strong interpersonal skills.
• Proven skills with Microsoft Office software (Excel, Word, PowerPoint). Knowledge of the use of Comcare, KoBoCollect will be an advantage.
• Excellent communication skills.