Research & Development Director at Cultivating New Frontiers in Agriculture (CNFA)

Cultivating New Frontiers in Agriculture (CNFA) is an international non-profit organization headquartered in Washington, D.C. and Brussels, Belgium with offices in 16 countries throughout Africa, Asia and Eastern Europe.

We work with businesses, foundations, governments and communities to build customized local and global partnerships that meet the world’s growing demand for food. Since our inception in 1985, we have designed and implemented enterprise-based, agricultural development initiatives to facilitate market access, enhance agribusiness competitiveness, increase productivity and improve access to inputs and credit across 45 countries worldwide.

We are recruiting to fill the vacant position below:

Job Title: Research & Development Director

Location: Abuja

Position Summary

• The West Africa Trade & Investment Hub (WATH) will seek to improve private sector competitiveness in Nigeria and West Africa with a focus on increasing the agricultural productivity and profitability of smallholder farmers in Nigeria and promoting West Africa’s regional and international trade.
• Toward this end, the Trade and Investment Hub Activity is jointly established and funded by USAID/Nigeria, USAID/West Africa, USAID/Cote d’Ivoire, USAID/Senegal, and other USAID Missions. The Activity comprises two main components: (i) design and administration of a Grant-making Facility for private sector partnerships and (ii) technical assistance (TA) that directly supports, coordinates, and engages with qualifying recipients (i.e., partners and grantees) to achieve USAID’s trade and food security objectives.

Duties and Responsibilities

• The R&D Director will identify and establish relationships with potential businesses to form partnerships to scale, commercialize, disseminate and market new technologies, with a focus on breeding and genetics of major crop varieties and aquaculture species.
• He/She will maintain liaisons with both public and private partners that have committed support to the project and innovative win-win partnerships.

Minimum Requirements

• Master's degree in Agriculture, Economics, Business Administration or related field;
• Minimum of 7 years of experience in agribusiness, ag research and/or related sectors. 
• Must demonstrate relevant experience in Nigeria.
• Demonstration of strong communication skills
• Must demonstrate a capacity to form innovative win-win partnerships.
• Experience with challenge fund or other fund management is a plus.

Application Closing Date
Not Specified.

How to Apply
Interested and qualified candidates should:
Click here to apply online