Postdoctoral Fellow, Genetic Resources at IITA - International Institute of Tropical Agriculture

Description

• The Genetic Resources Centre (GRC) has important collections of a number of the staple crops of SSA and in particular, has a very large collection of cowpeas (Vigna unguiculata) which is a key legume of agricultural systems in SSA. In recent years, significant progress has been made in developing and characterising core and mini core subsets of this collection.
• This work will focus on combining genotypic information and passport data to identify alleles of potential importance for climate adaptation in cowpea. 
• The successful candidate will liaise with the cowpea breeding team in IITA with the goal of incorporating such alleles into new varieties.

Position Responsibilities
The tasks of the Postdoctoral Fellow, Genetic Resources are to:

• Undertake a program of work to identify alleles in cowpea germplasm of potential importance for climate adaptation (e.g., drought tolerance, heat tolerance).
• Manage all operations on a day-to-day basis including plant growth, sequencing, and interactions with service providers and partners.
• Interact with the cowpea breeding team at IITA to ensure the smooth flow of selected germplasm and data.
• Contribute to resource mobilization in plant genetic resources.
• Provide guidance and direction to national staff.
• Publish research results in reputable international journals.
• Co-supervise research of postgraduate students.
• Perform any other job-related duties as may be assigned by the Project Manager.

Educational Qualifications

• The candidates should have a Ph.D. Degree in Plant Genetic Resources or other relevant fields from a highly recognized university with two to three years of work experience in a similar role, preferably in an international non-profit & non-governmental setting.

Core Competencies:

• Experience in plant genetic resources research and management.
• Good understanding of data collection in field/screen-house and management in the context of plant genetic resources.
• Good understanding of the application of genomics to the analysis of genetic diversity.
• Demonstrated experience in the field, screen-house, and laboratory studies.
• Ability to manage staff effectively.
• Ability to work to deadlines and achieve milestones.
• Ability to work comfortably in multicultural environments.
• Develop strong national, regional, and international partnerships and collaborate within existing networks.
• Good capacity to work with multidisciplinary and international research teams and research projects.
• Effective communication internally and externally, including report writing.
• Fluency in written and spoken English.

General information: 

• The contract will be for an initial period of two years. IITA offers an internationally competitive remuneration package paid in US Dollars.