Fresh Jobs at The International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA)

Position / Responsibilities:

• The IITA has established a Business Incubation Platform ("IITA BIP") located within the IITA
• campus headquarters in Ibadan, Nigeria. IITA BIP aims to develop profitable agribusiness activities
• that may be replicated by, and absorbed within the private sector after a period for exploring and
• fine-tuning different production approaches. IITA BIP provides incentives and opportunities
•  for the accelerated commercial development of proven and profitable technologies, in particular
• those developed within IITA or jointly with collaborators, along the entire agricultural value chain.
• IITA BIP currently has four initial start-up businesses at various stages of development, with businesses
• relating to seed breeding, aflatoxin bio-control, legume inoculant and agri-services consulting.
• IITA is looking for a suitably experienced person to fill the position of full-time
• Chief Executive Officer of the IITA BIP to manage and coordinate the activities of IITA BIP.
• The CEO will be entrusted with the responsibility of overseeing and growing the
• IITA BIP activities.

Key Responsibilities & Duties

The primary responsibilities for the CEO will include:
1. Providing leadership in the development, execution and achievement of IITA BIP's strategic objectives;
2. Developing and implementing an operational plan for the IITA BIP, to ensure the IITA BIP business
are able to operate within their pre-approved business plans and develop/monitor key financial controls;
3. Developing and implementing a marketing and sales strategy to help each of the IITA BIP business
improve their cashflow positions;
4. Assist with donor fundraising activities; and
5. Reporti to the IITA Deputy Director General for Partnerships and Capacity Development  using
agreed on plans, budgets, and other key performance indicators to ensure the prudent financial
management of the IITA BIP and its start-ups, including the monthly and quarterly progress reporting.

Qualification and Experience
Minimum university degree qualified; ideally specialising in business, agribusiness or related agricultural fields, an MBA will be an added advantage.

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Position/Responsibilities:
The Outreach Project Coordinator will lead the ATASP-1 Outreach Program Implementation Team  and in that capacity will be responsible for overseeing the implementation of all outreach activities and ensuring the delivery of expected project results. He/she will coordinate outreach activities, supervise and manage project outreach personnel.

Specific duties shall include:
• Oversee day-to-day implementation of ATASP-1 project outreach program activities.
• Coordinate the preparation and submission of  project work plans and budgets.
• Arrange the timely transfer of project resources to relevant implementing partners in support of eligible interventions.
• Coordinate the preparation and submission of mandatory project reports, including quarterly activity reports, annual activity reports, and audit reports.
• Ensure that funding eligibility criteria are followed by the implementing partners.
• Ensure implementing units/partners account for funds accurately and at the appropriate time.
• Monitor and report on implementation progress and the use of project resources;
• Ensure project procurement is efficiently undertaken and according to the AfDB rules.
• Coordinate project activities including procurement, financial management, special studies, mid-term and project completion reviews within the outreach program of the project.
• Liaise and follow up with the three outreach program Commodity Specialists to develop annual work plans for all three value chains, monitor progress towards outputs and ensure their timely completion.
• Ensure that the youth are actively involved in project implementation as a way of reducing unemployment in Nigeria.
• Liaise among other projects with similar objectives to ensure the coordination of related activities.
• Organize ATASP-1 outreach program meetings;
• Liaise with Project Commodity Specialists for the publication of results; and
• Undertake any other project-related task assigned by the Director General of IITA or his designated representative.

Qualification and Experience

Education:  Postgraduate degree in agriculture or a related field.
Working Experience: At least 15 years of continuous work experience, with least five years at managerial level
with track records in Africa.

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Position/Responsibilities:
• Lead the technical work on cassava and along the value chain.
• Lead the preparation of the technical reports of the cassava value chain as required by the donor and in conformity with the IITA requirements.
• Make necessary arrangements and work out logistics for project workshops, meetings, and monitoring tours related to the cassava value chain.
• Work out logistics for all training activities related to the cassava value chain planned under this project.
• Lead a series of regional trials of near-finished cassava cultivars in all participating countries.
• Provide leadership in designing, planning, and implementing on-Farm/Demonstration Trials.
• Include the youth in project implementation as a way of generating jobs in agribusiness.
• Present the activities, results, and impacts of the cassava value chain of the project at scientific meetings within and outside the region; and present scientific papers for publication in peer- reviewed journals s appropriate.
• Assist and collaborate fully with specialists involved in project areas such as Socio-Economics, Farmer Participatory Research, Agronomy, Natural Resource Management and External Advisory Committees; and
• Undertake any other project-related task assigned by the Outreach Program Coordinator or the Director General of IITA or his designated representative.

Qualification and Experience
Education: PhD in agriculture with a major in plant breeding, agronomy, or a related field.
Working Experience: A minimum of 10 years experience in tropical agriculture, five of which will be with the development of cassava value chains in Africa.

The ideal candidate must: i) have the capacity to work effectively in a team; ii) be competent in the use of Microsoft Office applications such as Word, Excel, and PowerPoint; iii) have demonstrated evidence of the ability to lead research work with clear results on this; and iv) experience in working with the youth in agribusiness would be an additional asset.

Language: The candidate should communicate fluently (orally and in writing) in the English language.