INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE OF TROPICAL AGRICULTURE (IITA)
TECHNOLOGIES FOR AFRICAN AGRICULTURAL TRANSFORMATION (TAAT) PHASE II
TAAT CASSAVA COMPACT
REQUEST FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST
INDIVIDUAL CONSULTANT SERVICES
SECTOR: Agriculture
CONSULTANCY SERVICES: Technology Transfer Officer
Financing Agreement reference: 2100155041681
Project ID. P-Z1-AA0-139
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This Request for Expression of Interest (REOI) follows the General Procurement Notice for this Project that appeared on the African Development Bank Group’s Internet Website(www.afdb.org) 12th August 2022.
The International Institute for Tropical Agriculture (IITA) has received financing from the African Development Bank toward the cost of the Technologies for African Agricultural Transformation (TAAT) Phase II and intends to apply part of the agreed amount for this grant to payments under the contract for TAAT Technology Transfer Officer, Cassava Compact who will be based in Kinshasa.
The Consultant will assist the Cassava Compact Leader in the day-to-day transfer of climate smart agricultural technologies and innovations that guarantee economic benefits to the users; facilitate the partnership with NARES, private sector, and community-based organizations in the project countries to ensure smooth and accelerated project implementation; participate in country missions and represent the Compact Coordinator at government and donor meetings, national and international workshops, and other relevant events. Specifically, the consultant will be required to carry out the following services; assist the Cassava Compact Coordinator in preparing agreements with partners and service providers detailing each actor's required targets, timeline, material, and human resources; In consultation with the Cassava Compact Coordinator, ensure the implementation of agreed actions by partner organizations and the private sector; follow up with partners to collate the data on key performance indicators of the project and maintain the database on the TAAT program's data repository system; provide support to early generation seed (EGS) production in ways that develop the seed system at the national level; assist in identifying, mobilizing, and registering all the key cassava value chain actors; facilitate collaboration with public agricultural research and extension institutions, development partners, NGOs, other innovation service providers, and the TAAT ecosystem partners to implement services that can bolster the success of food production compacts of project countries; organize meetings, training, and workshops for national partners in seed production and provide technical support to the private sector to produce certified cassava seeds; participate in technology transfer outreach campaigns at country and regional levels; organize the public and private extensionists at innovation platforms (IPs) for training on various productivity-enhancing technology toolkits (s), including post-harvest management practices that enhance the quality and competitiveness of processed cassava products; facilitate the cooperation between Cassava Compact and the TAAT ecosystem entities (FARA, AATF, IWMI, IFDC, WorldFish, ILRI, etc.) and other technology or innovation service providers to deliver country-level training courses to beneficiaries; develop and implement strategies to empower youth and women to benefit from climate-smart cassava technologies and innovations; facilitate the production and distribution of technology dissemination tools, including print, audio, and video materials; document and disseminate the Compact achievements and successes as inputs into the TAAT Information Portal and website; assist the Compact Coordinator in collating all quarterly, semi-annual, and annual reports for submission to the Program Management Unit, IITA management, or the TAAT Clearinghouse; carry out any other tasks assigned by the supervisor.
The selected consultant should possess a postgraduate degree in Agronomy, Plant breeding, Agricultural Extension, Business Management, or a closely related field with at least five years of experience working with smallholders in Africa on technology dissemination; good knowledge of cassava seed systems in at least one country; experience in building the capacity of smallholder farmers, agro-dealers, processors, and other agriculture value chain actors; experience in developing and implementing youth empowerment models will be an added advantage; demonstrated ability to write, publish, and disseminate technical reports, success stories, and promotional materials; proficiency in the French language and working knowledge of English languages are compulsory; excellent interpersonal skills and ability to work in a multi-disciplinary, multi-institutional, a