CALL FOR APPLICATIONS FOR THE RECRUITMENT OF AN EXPERT CONSULTANT IN THE MANAGEMENT UNIT OF THE ENABLE – YOUTH CAMEROON COMPONENT OF THE AGRICULTURAL VALUE CHAIN DEVELOPMENT PROJECT (AVC-DP)

The African Development Bank (AfDB) has given a Non- Concessional loan (AfDB loan) to the Republic of Cameroon for the implementation of the agricultural value chain development project (AVC-DP). The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development is the Contracting Authority of this project which includes a youth entrepreneurship component called ENABLE - Youth Cameroon (EYC) to be implemented by the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA).

In view of this, the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture calls for applications to the position of International Expert Consultant in Business Development opened in the Management Unit of the EYC Project based at IITA Cameroon Station in Nkolbisson, Yaoundé.

The detailed terms of reference of these positions are available and could be consulted and/or collected at IITA Cameroon Station in Nkolbisson, Yaoundé; requested by email to IITA-Cameroon@cgiar.org ; or downloaded from the IITA website (http://www.iita.org/about /jobs)

1. Application folder: The application folder shall include the following documents:

• a letter of motivation (2 pages maximum) including imperatively the full names of the candidate, his full address, phone number and email address, and precising imperatively when the candidate could be available to assume duty, if recruited;
• a detailed curriculum vitae, well-structured but brief and highlighting the relevant experience of the candidate in a similar position (5 pages maximum);
• a copy of the passport;
• a list of three referees including their contact information i.e telephone number, email address and postal address

Applications shall be exclusively submitted online on the IITA Website: (http://www.iita.org/about/jobs/ ) latest by November 09th, 2018 at 16h:00 (Cameroon time).
Or ten (10) working days after the date of publication;
No application submitted by other means will be considered.

2. Selection Modality: The selection will be done in 2 steps: i) shortlist through file analysis based on predefined criteria; and ii) oral interview on dates and hours which shall be communicated later to the candidates. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

Note: This is an international position opened to all nationalities. Applications from women are highly encouraged.

TORs for the Business Development Expert Consultant (IRS)

A- Duties

1. Lead the identification and mapping of agribusiness opportunities along agricultural value chains of relevance to Enable Youth Cameroon (EYC);
2. Support youth in the development, implementation and monitoring and evaluation of their financially viable business plans; 3. Contribute to the selection of financial providers and prototypes of basic financial services;
4. Contribute to the assessment of the financial needs of EYC agripreneurs and develop prototypes of financial services for them;
5. Provide extension to young beneficiaries of the program using the application dedicated to financial education to strengthen the financial capacity of young people and women;
6. Facilitate access to financial services tailored to value chain actors through close collaboration with funding institutions;
7. Scaling up developed financial services by integrating financial education;
8. Overseeing the provision of credit-backed grants, supplemented by personal input and financial education, to support individual job-creating initiatives;
9. Overseeing the provision of performance-based, credit-backed grants supplemented by personal contributions and financial education to support agribusiness creation;
10. Develop comprehensive strategies contributing to the self-employment and employment of young people especially women in modern agriculture, value addition, marketing, agriculture services and other agriculture trades;
11. Promoting agribusiness development actions to contribute to the employment of young people especially women in in modern agriculture, value addition, marketing, agriculture services and other agriculture trades;
12. Contribute to the evaluation of business plans developed by EYC agripreneurs and provide guidance to ensure they be bankable;
13. Support the development of training modules for EYC agripreneurs on their needs in the areas of business management and financing;
14. Contribute to the promotion and development of individual or associative agribusiness based on proper analysis of the strength, weakness, opportunities and constraints of the agribusiness environment;
15. Establish and maintain a network of trainers in agribusiness development and business plan development;
16. Participate in planning of EYC activities including budget information;
17. Participate in various workshops, seminars and conferences among others organized by Enable Youth Cameroon;
18. Contribute data to monitoring and evaluation, and communication;
19. Mobilize human resources to strengthen the capacity of agripreneur candidates in business development;
20. Contribute to identification of hosting enterprises for EYC agripreneurs’ internship
21. Contribute to developing prototype contracts for use by EYC agripreneurs when entering into business partnership
22. Monitor and evaluate businesses established by graduated interns
23. Contribute to quarterly and annual reports of EYC
24. Document lessons learned and ensure good visibility of the program.
25. Assume any other duty as assigned by the supervisor for Enable Youth Cameroon success

B – Qualification

1. Education and working Experience: A PhD degree in agribusiness or agriculture economics, with a minimum of a recent three-year- experience in agribusiness. A Master degree (Minimum MBA or so) in agribusiness with at least 8 years of experience in agribusiness would be considered.

2. Language: The candidate should communicate fluently (orally and in writing, including reading) in both the French and English languages. Perfect bilingualism would be a great asset; hence, it is highly recommended to demonstrate it in the letter of motivation (i.e. cover letter).

C - Competencies:

1. Core competencies: The successful candidate shall be a result-oriented person and have strong abilities in teamwork, communication, building effective relationships and knowledge sharing and continuous improvement

2. Technical/Functional Skills: The Business Development Expert Consultant shall have:

i. Theoretical and practical knowledge of the agribusiness development;
ii. Good knowledge in financial analysis of projects and business plans of companies
iii. Good knowledge of credit scoring tools in Cameroon;
iv. Good knowledge of the tools and approach of market analysis and marketing strategy
v. Proficient in the use of MS Word, Excel, Access, Power-point, and Internet communication;
vi. Practical knowledge of one or several project management software
vii. Practical experience of development, maintenance, and management of databases would be a great asset;
viii. Proven experience of scientific writing and publication in Thompson journals with impact factors
ix. Practical knowledge of one or several software of statistical analysis in social science
x. Experience in conducting value chain assessments and determining appropriate interventions to enhance agricultural productivity and market access;
xi. Experience in designing, implementing and managing business plans aimed at improving agricultural value chains and business opportunities;
xii. Experience in the field of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) financing, especially in the sectors of agriculture, and agribusiness;
xiii. Experience in developing and managing capacity building activities for individual and group enterprises;
xiv. Strong working experience with key value chain actors (producers, traders, enterprise groups, rural financing institutions/banks, and research/policy associations);
xv. Excellent network in the private sector in Cameroon;
xvi. Excellent communication skills, especially written communication and group facilitation skills;
xvii. Ability to pay attention to detail and accuracy;
xviii. Ability to adapt himself to changing and variable situations;
xix. Objective judgment of opinions and facts

D - Workplace

The incumbent of the position will be based at IITA Cameroon (Nkolbisson, Yaounde) with regular travels in and outside Cameroon.

E - Restriction

The position is an internationally recruited position opened to all nationalities. All applications are welcome, but only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

F - Remuneration

An internationally-recruited staff (IRS) competitive remuneration package will be offered.

G - Equity in employment

IITA encourages applications from women, men, young people who believe meet the requirements of the position. All applications will be assessed in a fair and objective manner.