BACKGROUND:

The Agricultural Transformation Agency (ATA) has been established by the Government of Ethiopia (GoE) with the objective of identifying and addressing systemic bottlenecks to Ethiopia’s agricultural development. The Agency does this through problem-solving, implementation support, and capacity building of stakeholders involved in implementation of interventions that address the systemic bottlenecks. The Agency reports to the Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources Development and is Secretary to the Transformation Council chaired by the Prime Minister. 

The programmatic focus of the Agency responds to a core set of needs identified by the Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources Development and the Transformation Council. Within the Agency, issues are divided into four different pillars:  Crops & Natural Resources which includes Inputs and Plant Protection, Livestock, Soil Health & Fertility, Irrigation and Drainage, and Mechanization; Cross Cutting Initiatives, which includes Inclusive Growth, Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation, and Planning and MLE; Livestock, which includes Animal Health and Genetic Improvement and Feed & Feeding; and Agribusiness and Markets including Market Development, Rural Finance, ICT, Private Sector, and Organizational and Human Capacity. In addition, the Agricultural Commercialization Clusters Initiative is another critical focus area for the Agency.  Across the programs, the ATA engages public, private and non-governmental stakeholders to support strategic planning, manage and strengthen implementation capacity and test innovative models.

Our Culture

We have an exceptional team of highly competent employees with a proven track record of success in managing complex activities and achieving transformational results.  Our culture is one where talented, dedicated and adaptable individuals are committed to doing their best and exhibit great teamwork to achieve excellent results. 

At ATA, we provide an exceptional platform for people who want to achieve their highest potential and make a meaningful contribution in changing the country’s agricultural sector.  We offer rewarding work in a young, fast-paced growing organization with passionate, committed, motivated colleagues and excellent career development and training.  We recognize our most valuable assets are our staff and are committed to providing our employees with the tools, training and mentorships necessary to achieve their career goals. 

POSITION SUMMARY:

The PO will lead the Irrigation and Drainage Program in working with RATA Integrated Shallow Groundwater Irrigation Development (ISGWID) Project lead to implement national priority initiatives within the household irrigation sub sector. The PO will be responsible for coordination and execution of high impact initiatives across the entire value chain, as well as systemic activities in ISGWID Project.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES

The Irrigation and Drainage Project Officer will be responsible for

•         Problem Solving: Support the effort in the identification of critical bottlenecks, designing of different components  of ISGWID project ,and defining implementable recommendations in ISGWID project

•         Implementation support: Identify areas where there is a need to support partners and design an implementation support strategy to enable partners execute their deliverables with the required quality and timely manner

•         Work plan execution: manage the execution of the work plan with the support of a high performance team of coordinators and contact persons from external implementing institutions, mainly the Ministry of Agriculture and LR, Ministry of Water, Irrigation and Electricity, and Regional Bureaus of Agriculture and LR, Regional Bureaus of Water and other stakeholders through Regional ATA’s.

•         Coordination: Ensure alignment of different stakeholders and follow up implementation of interventions of different components of the project.

•         Capacity building: ensure sharing of competencies for building the capacity of implementing institutions

•         Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning:  support design and execution of MEL for each activity in Irrigation and Drainage sector in accordance  with ATA’s overall MEL framework

•         Serve as an  SPO, responsible for the overall implementation, values, culture and management of the ISGWID  project

•         Develop effective and collaborative partnerships with stakeholders across the ISGWID project (government, business, civil society, universities, cooperatives, farmers’ organizations, farmers, donors, etc.) in delivery of priority sector objectives

•         Proactively identify opportunities to support stakeholders so that they can execute against their missions in the ISGWID project  and support them in the mobilization of needed financial, human or organizational resources for project execution

•         Regularly report to the ISGWID project lead  on progress, challenges and constraints of the work

•         Support the project lead in the preparation  and manage ATA ISGWID Project budget; obtain approval from the Director and monitor budget utilization against allocation

•         Work collaboratively with other ATA programs to achieve synergies that impact the broader agricultural system

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

•         BSC or MSC Degree in Agriculture science and its application to agriculture,  or other relevant subject

•         At least 6 years’ experience for BSC & 4 years for MSC in agricultural development, with deep expertise in household and/or small-scale irrigation

•         Demonstrated expertise in the full value chain for high-value crops and energy efficient and water saving technologies.

•         Deep understanding of Ethiopia’s agricultural system, with a broad perspective on how the entire system operates and how public, private, NGO and informal actors operate within the system

•         Experience in piloting and scaling up relevant solutions at both national and local levels, while building productive partnerships across sectors

•         Strong in-country network in Ethiopia in the agricultural sector, both at the national and the regional levels

•         Oral and written fluency in English and local/regional language is essential.  Fluency in at least one additional Ethiopian language is a plus

•         Highly facilitative and collaborative style with the ability to build relationships with across diverse cultures and organizations

•         Passion for participation in cultivating and developing high-performance peer teams while incorporating cooperation, open communication, and social relationship

•         Excellent adaptive problem-solver in a challenging environment, with the ability to think strategically and prioritize program activities under dynamic  conditions

•         Strong set of personal values including integrity, honesty and desire to be of service

•         Excellent stakeholder management skills including thorough extensive experience with government institutions, development partners, private sector stakeholders, and farmer groups

Demonstrated team player with good people management skills