Project Coordinator at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA)

The International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) is a not-for-profit institution that generates agricultural innovations to meet Africa’s most pressing challenges of hunger, malnutrition, poverty, and natural resource degradation. Working with various partners across sub-Saharan Africa, we improve livelihoods, enhance food and nutrition security, increase employment, and preserve natural resource integrity. IITA is a member of CGIAR, a global agriculture research partnership for a food secure future.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Project Coordinator

Ref: IITA-HR-NRS2020-0017
Location: Ibadan, Oyo
Recruitment Type: National (3-year renewable contract)

Duties
Successful candidate will among other things perform the following duties:

• Coordinate and supervise IMAGE in-country operation on household surveys and plant sample collections for DNA analysis.
• Ensure project SOPs are followed and report discrepancies as part of the continuous improvement process. Participation in development of project SOPs is expected.
• Serve as one of the focal persons for IMAGE project in Nigeria, Tanzania and
• Ethiopia and maintain frequent communication with project leadership team.
• Support IMAGE project in organizing training workshops for household surveys and eventually lead the effort within respective countries.
• Manage in-country operational budget and provide financial and progress reports to project leadership and donor (BMGF).
• Liaise with local government partners, national research institutions and CGIAR centers from time to time to ensure smooth operation of the project and new technologies or solutions can be applied and scaled appropriately.
• Actively contribute as a member of the IMAGE project network to streamline and optimize household surveys. This may include knowledge sharing and supporting project members when necessary.
• Identify challenges and opportunities in in-country operation and provide  leadership as part of local capacity development effort.
• Perform any other job-related task as may be assigned by the supervisor.

Qualifications

• Master’s in plant Breeding, Molecular Biology or Agriculture or related field with minimum of five (5) years experience in a well-structured environment or donor funded organization.

Competencies:
The ideal candidate must have:

• Strong understanding of local culture and work environments, particularly in the context of rural development and smallholder farmer practices.
• Ability to communicate effectively in English is a must and local dialect(s) is a plus.
• Service oriented mindset and strong problem-solving skills.
• Seed industry/private sector experience is desired.
• Project management experience and ability to work under strict deadlines and budget requirements.
• Logistic management experience in agriculture research.
• Experience in multi stakeholder engagements and demonstrated ability to collaborate to achieve common goals.
• Ability to work independently with minor supervision and a career driven mindset.
• Ability to travel locally with occasional international travels.

Remuneration

• We offer highly competitive salary with equally attractive benefits and excellent working conditions in a pleasant campus environment.

Application Closing Date
14th June 2021.