Position:                          Senior Project Officer II – Livestock 

Term of Employment:   One Year with the possibility of extension  

Duty Station(s):              Addis Ababa

Required Number:         One

Application Deadline:    October 19, 2023

BACKGROUND

The Agricultural Transformation Institute (ATI) was established by the Government of Ethiopia (GoE) to identify systemic bottlenecks, conduct studies, and provide recommendations, provide implementation support, manage projects, create linkages and coordination among activities and   agricultural development programs. The Institute is a strategy and delivery-oriented government institute created to help accelerate the growth and transformation of the country’s agriculture sector. The ATI envisions that, to be the leading centre of innovative solutions to catalyse and contribute to the transformation of the Ethiopian Agriculture by 2030 where smallholder farmers are commercialized with greater incomes, inclusiveness, resilience, and sustainability.

ATI provides a unique platform for people who want to achieve their highest potential and make a meaningful contribution in changing the country’s agricultural sector. The programmatic focus of the Institute responds to a core set of needs identified by the Ministry of Agriculture and other sectors along commodity value chains. Across the programs, the ATI engages public, private, and non-governmental stakeholders to support strategic planning, manage and strengthen implementation capacity and test innovative models. Currently, ATI is tasked to coordinate the revised Agriculture and Rural Development policy agendas of the sector and such sectoral level delegation requires high level expertise in the policy areas and skillsets in coordination and networking with multiple stakeholders.

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 team work to achieve excellent results.

At ATI, 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 Senior Project Officer II-Livestock will report to livestock director and support implementation of prioritized projects in the program. The livestock program is among the different programs of ACC initiatives of ATI engaged in undertaking studies to identify systemic bottlenecks and recommend solutions, provide implementation support, pilot projects, develop capacity of stakeholders based on demand etc. The Senior Livestock Project Officer -II will be involved in planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation, and reporting of prioritized project in the livestock program. He/she will provide day to day management and technical support for the effective implementation the project and other duties as listed out below.

Major duties and responsibilities

• Support management of the project in accordance with project documents, work plans and budgets and ensure that work is consistent with the project implementation document.

• Actively involve in effective annual planning, budgeting, tracking & target setting activities for  the prioritized project in the program.

• Support on the day-to-day management and implementation of the project activities.

• Ensure all project outputs, as listed in the project documents, are effectively achieved.

• Provide overall technical and management support for project implementation.

• Monitor, evaluate and report performance of the projects through key reporting systems and tools periodically.

• Contribute to ToRs, concept notes, studies, workshops, and training materials, directly related to prioritized project.

• Identify and analyse critical technical issues directly related to design and implementation of prioritized projects.

• Proactively engage with other team members of the ATI and external partners to develop solutions and recommendations to address identified technical issues.

• Identify and escalate challenges around implementation as well as solutions and recommendations, to project leader or Director of the program.

• Liaise with team lead and Director of the program and provide advisory service and capacity building to partners based on the identified gap.

• Undertake any other duties as assigned by the team leader and Director of the program.

Job Requirements

• MSc in Animal Science, Animal Production, livestock value chains, or other related disciplines.

• 8 years of relevant professional experience for MSc degree in the areas of livestock development, livestock value chain, livestock-related project management, and others directly relevant to the position.

• Deep understanding of Ethiopia’s agricultural sector, and specifically the livestock sector, with a broad perspective on how the entire system operates and how public, private, and non-government organizations operate in the system

• Expertise in planning, prioritizing, sequencing, managing, problem-solving, and reporting on projects

• Good track record of working relationship with and for smallholder livestock keepers, research institutions, public institutions at various levels, non-governmental organizations, and other partners.

• Understanding and experience in developing livestock value chains, particularly in Ethiopia and in developing countries, and addressing obstacles that hinder its effectiveness.

• Practical experience in implementing high-level interventions to address systemic bottlenecks of livestock development at the local level.

• Experience in creating public-private partnerships in livestock programs.

• Self-starter with strong motivation, ownership, and commitment to deliver results.

• Promotes data-driven and evidence-based problem-solving and decision-making.

• Strong team player with excellent relationship-building and communication skills.

• Desire to innovate and drive rapid change for Ethiopia’s livestock producers and other actors.

• Strong set of personal values including integrity and honesty.

• Highly developed interpersonal skills with a demonstrated ability to relate to and gain the confidence of the senior leadership immediately.

• Proven leadership ability, with the skills to manage a team and influence other leaders across an organization through informal guidance, coaching, and feedback.

• Ability to work effectively with the Regions and ensure timely data exchange and problem-solving between the Federal and Regional levels.

• Excellent communication skills (both oral and written) in English and Amharic with the ability to create and deliver compelling presentations to diverse groups of stakeholders.

• Ability to work under pressure and in a constantly evolving and challenging environment.

How to Apply

APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS

We invite all candidates meeting the required qualifications to submit (i) a cover letter and (ii) a CV (maximum 5 pages) to CLICK HERE

It is mandatory to mention the position title under the subject line of your cover letter.

Please DO NOT submit scans of certificates with your application.

Women are highly encouraged to apply.

NB. Only short-listed candidates will be contacted.