Technical Assistant (Seeds)

About Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

Organizational Setting

FAO Afghanistan is investing, across all 34 provinces, in resilience reinforcing actions that focus on protecting agriculture livelihoods and local ecosystems, boosting local production of nutritious foods and cash-incomes, and safeguarding critical agriculture sectoral development gains achieved over the past couple of decades through revitalizing rural markets and economy. In 2022-2023, FAO will, under the life-saving assistance Outcome (1) of the UN Transitional Engagement Framework (TEF), focus on the following four priority actions: (i) Safeguarding Wheat Seed Security, (ii) Enhancing Local Production of Nutritious Food, (iii) Livestock Protection and Dairy Sector Support, and (iv) Restoring Irrigation Structures to Boost Cash Incomes. Additionally, FAO will contribute towards resilience building activities under Outcome 2 of the TEF.

Job Summary

Reporting Lines

The Technical Assistant (Seed) will work under the overall supervision of the FAO Representative and the direct supervision of the National Professional Officer (Programme) / Emergency Response Coordinator.

Duties & Responsibilities

Tasks and responsibilities

• Oversee and contribute to all technical matters related to seed procurement, technical specifications, including supplier-level seed processing and packaging, quality assurance and safe storage at the distribution point;
• Develop contextualised technical specifications for various seeds (i.e. wheat, fodder, pulses and vegetables);
• Follow-up, in collaboration with Procurement colleagues, with seed suppliers who are contracted by FAO about timely seed inspection, packaging, seed treatment and delivery to the project locations;
• Coordinate between superintendence company and seed suppliers for timely seed quality control and provision of lab results;
• Contribute towards the seed delivery to all the project areas and coordinate with implementing partners about safe storage and timely distribution;
• Provide technical advice, and in collaboration with Communication colleagues prepare modules/fliers and messages to the beneficiaries about seed cultivation timing and other technical aspects;
• Develop training materials and provide training to FAO implementing partners in essential technical aspects of wheat, vegetable, pulses and other crops seed production on the farmers;
• In collaboration with Communications and Learning colleagues, support with capacity building in seed-related matters for FAO personnel, beneficiaries and implementing partners;
• Provide technical guidance and develop materials (in collaboration with Communications colleagues) to ensure that the best agronomic practices are adopted in the field and that post-harvest handling operations, including processing and packaging of seed, are adopted at the farmers’ level;
• Closely engage with the seed certification authorities to ensure timely and appropriate field inspection from the seed enterprises, collection of seed sampling, seed testing and availability of test results to the seed enterprises;
• Work closely with private sector/seed enterprises regarding certified wheat seed production, quantity, variety and its supply chain;
• Ensure close working relations with the seed certification services/authorities regarding wheat and other seed quality assurance measures;
• Ensure proper management of FAO seed storage to avoid quality deterioration and effective seed delivery to relative areas when necessary;
• Assess/evaluate the current state and the development perspectives for wheat seed sector of Afghanistan;
• Participate and/or lead assessments of the situation, market surveys and capacity assessments of agriculture inputs (seeds and etc.) suppliers;
• Develop an assessment plan for a rapid capacity assessment of various agriculture inputs suppliers;
• Develop and pilot qualitative tools to support data collection at the provincial and district level for the supplier capacity assessments;
• Travel to sub-national locations to facilitate Key Informant Interviews (KIIs) and Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) as part of the various assessments and analyse the applicable data;
• Support and/or lead the data analysis and formulation of reports of the various assessments and analyse the applicable data;
• Perform any other tasks as required.

Job Requirements

CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING

Minimum Requirements

• University degree in Agriculture, agronomy, agriculture research or closely related field;
• A minimum of three years of relevant experience in the seed sector of Afghanistan;
• Working knowledge (level C) of English and the local languages (Pashto and/or Dari); 
• National of Afghanistan.

FAO Core Competencies

• Results Focus
• Teamwork
• Communication
• Building Effective Relationships
• Knowledge Sharing and Continuous Improvement

Technical/Functional Skills

• Demonstrated experience to conduct technical training in essential technical aspects of wheat, vegetable, pulses and other crops seed production to Farmers and Implementing Partners;
• Basic understanding of agriculture research;
• Previous experience conducting assessments and with data collection is desirable;
• Previous work experience with the UN is an advantage;
• Willingness to travel extensively to remote areas, to conduct meetings and awareness-building campaigns;
• Strong professional command of Microsoft Office, in particular Word and Excel.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

• FAO does not charge a fee at any stage of the recruitment process (application, interview meeting, processing)
• Incomplete applications will not be considered. If you need help please contact: Careers@fao.org
• Applications received after the closing date will not be accepted
• Please note that FAO only considers higher educational qualifications obtained from an institution accredited/recognized in the World Higher Education Database (WHED), a list updated by the International Association of Universities (IAU) / United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The list can be accessed at http://www.whed.net/  
• For additional employment opportunities visit the FAO employment website: http://www.fao.org/employment/home/en/ 
•  Appointment will be subject to certification that the candidate is medically fit for appointment, accreditation, any residency or visa requirements, and security clearances. 
• FAO is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality, background and culture
• Qualified female applicants, qualified nationals of non-and under-represented Members and person with disabilities are encouraged to apply
• Everyone who works for FAO is required to adhere to the highest standards of integrity and professional conduct, and to uphold FAO's values
• FAO, as a Specialized Agency of the United Nations, has a zero-tolerance policy for conduct that is incompatible with its status, objectives and mandate, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination
• All selected candidates will undergo rigorous reference and background checks
• All applications will be treated with the strictest confidentiality

FAO seeks gender, geographical and linguistic diversity in its staff and international consultants in order to best serve FAO Members in all regions. 

Submission Guideline

• To apply, visit the recruitment website at Jobs at FAO and complete your online profile. We strongly recommend that your profile is accurate, complete and includes your employment records, academic qualifications, and language skills

• Candidates are requested to attach a letter of motivation to the online profile

• Once your profile is completed, please apply, and submit your application

• Candidates may be requested to provide performance assessments and authorization to conduct verification checks of past and present work, character, education, military and police records to ascertain any and all information which may be pertinent to the employment qualifications

• Incomplete applications will not be considered

• Personal information provided on your application may be shared within FAO and with other companies acting on FAO’s behalf to provide employment support services such as pre-screening of applications, assessment tests, background checks and other related services. You will be asked to provide your consent before submitting your application. You may withdraw consent at any time, by withdrawing your application, in such case FAO will no longer be able to consider your application

• Only applications received through the FAO recruitment portal will be considered

• Your application will be screened based on the information provided in your online profile

• We encourage applicants to submit the application well before the deadline date.

If you need help, or have queries, please contact: Careers@fao.org

Qualified female candidates are highly encouraged to apply.

Functional Area

Agriculture

Research/Survey

Countries

Attachments

Quick Guide_ Applying for AVacancy At FAO.pdf

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