The Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development who is in partnership with the international fund for agricultural development of the United Nations is calling for application and is desirous of using part of the credit to engage the services of individuals for the FGN/IFAD-VCDP (VCDP AF1) for the implementation and management of the programme in the nine states participating which are Benue, Enugu, Kogi, Nassrawa, Ogun, Taraba, Anambra, Niger, and Ebonyi.
Consequently, suitably qualified candidates who are interested is hereby solicited with the expression of interest to participate in the FGN/ IFAD value chain development programme with the capacity which is listed below;
Title of job: Agriculture officer.
Report: Directly to the advisor of Agricultural Production.
Job location: Abuja
Background: A three (3) year IFAD-assisted value chain development programme additional financing (VCDP AF1) is been implemented by the federal government of Nigeria as a follow-up to the six years successful VCDP in the nine states participating.
The programme is aim at reducing rural poverty, accelerated economic growth achieved, and food security increase.
The aim of the VCDP which was approved for an IFAD loan of Seven hundred and forty-four million dollars ($744,000,000) in 2021 is at improving the livelihood of approximately seventeen thousand four hundred and eighty thousand (17,480) households (fifteen thousand small holder farmers, one thousand six hundred and eighty processors and eight hundred traders), and to benefit indirectly approximately twebty-two thousand (22,000) households.
An additional financing (AF1) of eighty-nine million, one hundred thousand dollar dollars ($89,100,000) was approved by the IFAD in 2018 to;
- To support the mainstream of issues which were not considered at the VCDP design consistent with national, and policies of IFAD; climate-smart agricultural practices; conflict mitigation as the conflict between herdsmen and farmers for land resources, financial inclusion, and nutrition increases.
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Expanding of VCDP activities to three new states which are Enugu, Nassrawa and Kogi, and a meal government areas (LOAs) with a total of fifty-seven (57) from thirty (30) LGAs at the mid-term review of VCDP in the nine states entirely.
The Focus of the VCDP-AF1 is at enhancing the profitability and productivity of smallholder farmers who cultivate not more than 5ha of land under cassava/rice, and medium or small agro-processors scale with an average processing capacity of 2MT/day for cassava and 4MT/day for rice by improving their access to market and capacity to increase yield as well as add value to raw material locally produced through packaging and improving process. The implementation of the programme is through three (3) mutually reinforcing components which are; programme management and coordination, smallholder productivity enhancement, agricultural market development.
Contract details: A two (2) year contract, renewable based on satisfactory performance acceptable to IFAD, and FGN.
Main responsibility: The agricultural production advisor will be assisted by the agriculture officer in all the overall management of related activities to productivity of smallholder farmer improvement, in a close collaboration with the Agricultural production officer of the state.
Details: The Agricultural officer will work under the direct supervision of the agricultural production advisor.
Specific duties:
(i) Work directly under the Agricultural Production Advisor with the Extension service providers in training farmers in different aspect of crop varieties, post-harvest, market orientation technologies, agronomic practices, and climate resilience.
(ii) Assist in the setting up the overall distribution scheme of certified stems/seeds of improved varieties, herbicides and fertilizers as well as equipment at LGA levels, and state.
(iii) provide guidance to service providers/NGO hired to implement the activities.
(iv) carry out any other functions assigned by him/her by the agricultural production advisor.
(v) Contributing to the drafting of periodic project progress, and assisting in the collation of state progress reports with the agricultural production advisor.
(vi) Overseeing the overall process of beneficiaries in close collaboration with the rural institutions and selection of target farmers organizations and gender mainstreaming officer.
(vii) Assist the programme’s community seed producers in the establishing of seed multiplication systems comprising seed cleaning and farms and conditioning centers.
Assisting in the disseminating and promoting sustainable practices of agriculture through the farmer field business school approach and on-the-spot extension visits under the coordination, and guidance of the APA .
Work experience and qualification
- Excellent skills of communication in English language and writing.
- Must be conversant with the simple computer packages usage and a computer literate.
- First degree in agricultural production, crop science, horticulture, agronomy, agricultural science.
- A good experience/knowledge of rural development dynamics and challenges.
- A minimum of five (5) years post-qualification experience in addition to at least years in the implementation of projects of productivity enhancement using participatory approaches in gender mainstreaming and extension services.
- Proven record, and experience in the project implementation field of productivity projects.
Note: Women who are qualified and experienced are encouraged to apply for it.
Closing date of application: May 4th, 2021, as around 12 noon.
How to Apply for FMARD Agriculture Officer Job Recruitment
- Expression of interest of qualified and interested candidates should be sent in ten (10) copies which includes Nine photocopies and One original, clearly marked and sealed properly at the top right-hand cover.
- Expression of interest for the Recruitment of officers under the FGN/IFAD-VCDP project.
- An application letter, and CV should be included in each envelope with a cover letter suited for the applied position. The sealed envelope should be delivered and addressed to; The Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Agriculture, and Rural Development, C / O Director, Projects Coordinating Unit, No. 1, Eldoret Close. Abuja.