Location: Accra, Ghana
Job Reference: DO/CTE/01/2024
AGRA and its Work
AGRA is an African-led institution that actively supports the drive towards inclusive agricultural transformation and sustainable food systems. We do this by empowering the continent’s 33 million smallholder farming households to transform their agriculture from a struggle to survive to profitable businesses. The continent’s farmers regularly face challenges, and we aspire to provide uniquely African solutions that respond to their agricultural and environmental challenges, leading to increased harvests for reduced hunger and more income.
Working in alignment with the development priorities of our focus countries, we enable farmers to access improved and high-yielding seeds, gain knowledge on sustainable farming, and linkages to profitable markets.
In our work, we aspire to build the alliances, partnerships, and networks required to drive an inclusive agricultural transformation. We work with our partners to create an equitable youth-friendly environment that harnesses the youth dividend on the continent to drive growth and facilitate open employment opportunities for young women and men. We achieve our key objectives through a focus on the following four areas of intervention:
- Policy and state capability – We support governments in creating an enabling environment for private sector involvement in agricultural transformation.
- Seed systems – We trigger higher productivity by increasing the availability and access to improved seeds by farmers allowing them to increase their harvests for food security and better incomes.
- Sustainable farming – We support farmers in building resilient farming systems for sustained high yields through interventions such as mechanization and irrigation.
- Inclusive markets and trade – We work to increase the linkages between farmers, and other market actors for a positive, sustained cycle of commercialization and reinvestment.
Implementing Our New Strategy Through People
People are the heart of our organization and remain the true drivers of our delivery and our impact.
We work with incredible people and partners who have roots in farming communities across the continent combined with an inclusive and diverse workforce from over 24 nationalities. Our commitment to a call to action goes beyond ourselves as we arise to catalyze African Food Systems transformation by being Deeply collaborative, Executing Excellently, Sincerely Constructive and Increasingly Entrepreneurial aligned with our values of (I-RISE; Integrity, Respect, Innovation, Stewardship and Equity).
We are looking for people who are passionate about Africa to join our innovative, growing, and multidisciplinary team. Together, we can grow Africa’s food systems improving the livelihoods of smallholder farmers. Want to join us?
The Position
Digital Officer, West Africa, Job Reference: DO/CTE/01/2024, Based in Accra, Ghana with frequent travel, approximately 30% .
The Digital Officer – West Africa is responsible for creating new value through the smart use of digital tools, platforms, technologies, services, and processes supporting AGRA’s 3.0 strategy. S/he supports the implementation of AGRA’s Digital Agricultural Strategy with improved digital systems and solutions for farmers to achieve higher yields, farmers and SMEs access better marketing opportunities to improve their productivity and profitability; and improved food systems and food security decision making for national and regional mandated institutions.
Key Duties and Responsibilities:
- Supports the review and assessment of the digital agriculture landscape at AGRA and its partners to identify gaps, opportunities, and areas for strengthening in consultation with stakeholders.
- Integrate digital data and enhance the use of available ICTs for discovery research, decision support, development, delivery, and knowledge sharing to ensure widescale adoption for impact.
- Develops partnerships strategic plan to ensure that organizational goals and objectives are met.
- Advocates for the positive outcomes resulting from AGRA’s interventions and programs.
- Reviews and analyzes data to determine if it can be used to improve operations.
- Develops positive interactions and effectively conveys ideas, information, and messages through various communication channels.
- Represents AGRA in technology for development forums and workshops and continuously updates partners and teams on state-of-the-art solutions and new technologies.
- Builds and maintains positive relationships with various stakeholders and partners involved in AGRA’s initiatives and projects.
- Supports AGRA staff and partners in identifying opportunities to introduce and strengthen digital technologies to support agriculture research, development, and delivery, facilitate market access for farmers and entrepreneurs, including youth and women, and exchange information.
- Identifies partnership opportunities for enhanced implementation of digital systems and solutions to reach last mile delivery of the organization’s goals.
- Identifies training needs of partners and delivers trainings and technical backstopping where needed to AGRA’s grantees within the priority countries.
- Supports program teams to drive farmer and stakeholder education and awareness on digital technologies that exist to enhance production and productivity and increase incomes for rural households.
- Compiles quarterly and annual reports and other reports, as needed, in compliance with the requirements of relevant stakeholders and donors.
- Monitors and controls the operation budget to ensure that set goals and objectives are met.
- Supports the development of computing applications in agriculture linked to developing successful farmer-centered and scalable digital agriculture tools.
- Documents and disseminates the best practices and successful cases on developing and implementing digital systems and solutions for agriculture.
- Supports ICT Community of Practice (iCOP) at AGRA and coordinates its activities including nurturing new ideas, designing promotional campaigns, conducting capacity development activities.
Key Qualifications and Experience required:
- Background education in industrial economics, private sector development, agricultural economics or inclusive market systems development
- Demonstrated ability in creating partnerships and linkages, to facilitate and co-develop technology and digital solutions, and implement operational mechanisms to successfully increase user adoption and sustainably bring agricultural ICT technologies to scale.
- Experience managing complex initiatives with proven ability to develop high impact partnerships.
- Experience working with digital systems and solutions, strategies, and analytics.
- Excellent and up to date knowledge of the digital applications used for or transferable to agricultural development solutions.
- Knowledge in Agribusiness experience and French is an added advantage.
If you believe you are the right candidate for this position, kindly submit your application with a detailed CV (including your e-mail and telephone contacts) to recruit@agra.org. Please quote the job reference number in the subject line of the application e-mail.
Applications must be received on or before 2nd February 2024. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.
For more information on the AGRA, visit www.agra.org.
AGRA is an Equal Opportunity Employer