Plantation Projects Lead, Agro-Industrial Projects at Fadac Resources

Job Purpose

• The Plantation Projects Lead, Agro-Industrial Projects is a programme-level execution andintegration lead responsible for driving the development, scale-up, and operational readiness ofthe Company’s agro-industrial plantation initiatives across multiple crops.
• The role combines hands-on project delivery discipline with strong agro-economic and commercial judgement, coordinating plantation development, field operations, research inputs, financinginterfaces, public-sector engagement, and technology adoption.
• The role will support a multi-crop portfolio including (but not limited to) cocoa, soya, maize, and cashew.
• This role serves as the economic, execution, and programme integrator, ensuring that specialistinputs into bankable, scalable, and operationally viable plantation businesses.
• The position is execution-led (not academic or purely research-driven) and is designed totransition seamlessly into steady-state plantation and agro-processing operations leadership asprojects mature.

Key Responsibilities
Programme & Project Delivery:

• Lead end-to-end delivery of plantation development projects from mobilisation throughoperational handover
• Develop and manage integrated programmes covering land acquisition, land preparation,nurseries, planting, infrastructure, and utilities
• Coordinate internal departments (PMO, Operations, Procurement, Finance, Legal) andexternal contractors to deliver against scope, schedule, cost, and quality
• Ensure plantation scale, phasing, and layout are aligned with long-term operational andeconomic objectives

Plantation Establishment & Field Operations Oversight:

• Oversee plantation establishment activities including site preparation, nursery scale-up,planting programmes, and early yield development
• Coordinate and integrate crop-specific technical guidance from research institutions andagronomy consultants
• Drive implementation of good agricultural practices (GAP) and field-operation systemssuitable for large-scale commercial farming
• Ensure plantation models are scalable, repeatable, and cost-disciplined across locationsand crops

Research, Benchmarking & Strategic Insights:

• Coordinate benchmarking of plantation models against leading global and regionalcomparators.
• Support study visits, trials, and external research engagements, ensuring outputs aretranslated into practical operational and economic decisions
• Lead product-market and value-chain analysis to inform crop prioritisation, phasing, andvalue-addition opportunities
• Support multi-crop SWOT, sensitivity, and scenario analysis to guide portfolio strategy

Financing & Investment Readiness:

• Support preparation of bankable plantation and agro-industrial business cases alignedwith DFIs, development finance, and climate-linked funding
• Interface with internal finance teams and external advisers on funding structures.
• Provide agro-economic inputs to investment memoranda, lender discussions, and financialsensitivity analyses
• Track plantation economics including cost per hectare, yield ramp-up, breakeventimelines, and return metrics

Public-Private Partnerships & Institutional Engagement:

• Support PPP frameworks and government engagement aligned with food security, exportgrowth, employment, and sustainability objectives
• Coordinate engagements with research institutes, commodity boards, private partners,and development programmes
• Support land acquisition and community engagement processes in coordination withinternal legal and government-relations teams
• Ensure institutional partnerships are commercially grounded and operationally executable

Technology, Mechanisation & Infrastructure Economics:

• Support evaluation of irrigation, mechanisation, and on-farm technology options from acost-benefit and scalability perspective
• Work with engineering and projects teams to prioritise technology investments alignedwith crop needs and economic returns
• Ensure technology adoption supports productivity, resilience, and long-term operabilityrather than pilot-only solutions

Operational Readiness & Transition:

• Build operational workflows, SOPs, staffing models, and performance standards forplantations and linked processing assets
• Support recruitment, training, and mobilisation of operations teams
• Lead structured transition from project execution into stable operations, ensuringownership, continuity, and accountability

Performance, Risk & Governance:

• Track key KPIs including yield per hectare, cost per hectare, throughput, and operationalreadiness milestones
• Identify and manage agronomic, execution, financial, and market risks
• Provide structured progress and performance reporting to the PMO and seniormanagement
• Ensure compliance with internal controls, safety, environmental, and regulatoryrequirements

Key Skills & Experience

• Degree in Agriculture, Agribusiness, Agricultural Economics, Agricultural Engineering,Industrial Engineering, or related discipline
• 8–12+ years’ experience in plantation development, agro-industrial projects, or integrated agribusiness programmes
• Demonstrated experience delivering projects that successfully transition into liveoperations
• Strong understanding of plantation economics, scaling models, and agro-industrial valuechains
• Proven ability to work effectively with specialist consultants, research institutions, andmultiple internal departments
• Practical, execution-oriented leadership style with strong coordination andproblem-solving capabilities
• Solid project management experience within complex, multi-stakeholder environments

Technical & Operational Competencies:

• Plantation Systems: Nursery scale-up, planting programmes, harvest planning, andearly-stage yield management
• Agro-Economics: Cost modelling, yield economics, investment trade-offs, and sensitivityanalysis
• Project & Operations Tools: MS Project, Excel, Microsoft Office Suite, dashboards, andERP-adjacent systems
• Sustainable Agriculture: Resource efficiency, ESG alignment, and compliance withcertification and regulatory standards.