Government Relations and Partnership Lead at One Acre Fund Nigeria

One Acre, founded in 2006, supplies smallholder farmers with the agricultural services they need to make their farms more productive. We provide quality farm supplies on credit, delivered within walking distance of farmers’ homes, and agricultural trainings to improve harvests. We measure our success by our ability to make farmers more prosperous: On average, farmers harvest 50 percent more food after working with One Acre Fund. We serve more than 800,000 farm families in Eastern and Southern Africa, with more than 7,500 full-time staff, and we aim to serve 1 million farm families by 2020.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Nigeria Government Relations and Partnership Lead

Location: Minna, Niger
Employment Type: Full-time
Preferred Start Date: As soon as possible

About the Role

• The Government Relations Associate will manage strategic relationships with government and other external partners including potential donors to create opportunities to better serve farmers and support our efforts to grow the Nigeria pilot.
• You will also meaningfully contribute to de-risking the country program through risk tracking and compliance management and ensuring that business operations run without regulatory infractions.
• The Government Relations Associate will report to the Nigeria Country Lead and provide insights to support decision-making based on analysis of the socio-political and economic environment.

Responsibilities

• Develop external relations strategy and lead the development of complex streams of work, including establishing relationships with essential players in the agricultural sector such as Ministries of Agriculture, NGOs, local authorities, research institutes and others to unlock opportunities.
• Fulfill regulatory and organizational compliance requirements, and complete other partner engagement tasks and requirements. Ensure that the program is compliant with relevant policies and regulations.
• Drive organizational risk management on essential issues related to political and regulatory trends.
• Build expertise on agriculture related, non-profit, social enterprise and microfinance policy issues (i.e. subsidy programs, extension, market access) that are relevant to One Acre Fund Nigeria's operations, and design strategies to respond to both opportunities and future risk.
• Produce communications materials to engage essential contacts and keep them informed of our work, including reports, briefing notes and official written correspondence.
• Guide participation in agricultural shows and other external events. Ensure government protocols are observed at all events.
• Build a pipeline of institutional donors, both domestically and globally to raise funds necessary to support One Acre Fund Nigeria's growth goals.
• Support program expansion through relationship management with relevant authorities in new or targeted areas of operation.

Career Growth and Development

• We have a strong culture of constant learning and we invest in developing our people. You’ll have weekly check-ins with your manager, access to mentorship and training programs, and regular feedback on your performance.
• We hold career reviews every six months, and set aside time to discuss your aspirations and career goals. You’ll have the opportunity to shape a growing organization and build a rewarding long-term career.

Qualifications
For this role specifically, you will have:

• Strong educational background - a Bachelor's Degree required, Master's added advantage. Degrees in Public Policy, Political Science, Public Administration, Law, International Development, or Business
• 4+ years experience working with governments on behalf of organizations or policy projects with experience managing people.
• Experience analyzing policies, legislation, and regulatory frameworks to produce meaningful, relevant briefing materials for senior management.
• Advocacy, communication and negotiation skills : We are looking for someone who can access important partners and foster collaboration among different partners to pursue our mission
• Experience managing a multi-year public or private partnership from ideation to implementation.
• Strong collaborator and project manager with demonstrated experience providing structured, support across different departments
• A record of success working with multiple external partners to achieve positive change in the agriculture and development sectors in Africa. Partners include government institutions, research institutes or other government agencies focused on agriculture and development in Africa.
• Languages: English

Eligibility:

• One Acre Fund can support a work permit for this role. However, nationals of (or those with an extensive professional background and work history in) our countries of operation are preferred.

Benefits
Health insurance, housing, and comprehensive benefits.

Application Closing Date
21st April, 2022.