Recrutement de 01 Research Assistant – Agronomy, FRESH Project, One CGIAR Initiative

Recrutement de 01 Research Assistant – Agronomy, FRESH Project, One CGIAR Initiative
Niveau d'études: Non précisé
Expérience: Non précisé
Expire le: 08-07-2022

World Vegetable Center
Cotonou, Bénin
The World Vegetable Center (WorldVeg) is a non-profit, autonomous international agricultural research center with headquarters in Taiwan and five regional offices around the globe. WorldVeg conducts research and development programs that contribute to realize the potential of vegetables for healthier lives and more resilient livelihoods. For more information, please visit our website: worldveg.org

WorldVeg is seeking a Research Assistant - Agronomy to assist in implementing R&D activities aimed at adoption of good agricultural practices as well as safe and sustainable production of key and highly consumed vegetables under a 3-year project entitled Fruits and Vegetables for Sustainable Healthy Diets (FRESH). FRESH is one of the 33 initiatives of One CGIAR, with the objective of designing, testing and scaling end-to-end approaches to sustainably increase fruit and vegetable intake in Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs). FRESH is a project built on six Work Packages by more than twelve CG centers. It is led by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), co-led by the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) and co-developed by the World Vegetable Center with the active involvement of ten other research institutions across the world. From the six Work Packages, the Work Package 2 activities are led by WorldVeg, while the Work Package 3 activities are led by CIMMYT. The project will be implemented in Benin, Tanzania, Sri Lanka and the Philippines. FRESH, through an end-to-end approach will increase fruits and vegetables production and intake by developing and introducing improved vegetable varieties and production technologies for farmers’ adoption.

WorldVeg in collaboration with CIMMYT expects the Research Assistant to work in the Work Package 3 of the project, by handling a range of vegetable production activities including soil health issues mitigation, natural resources management, climate change effect limitation, and safer vegetable production for healthy consumption.
The Research Assistant – Agronomy will play a key role in implementing recommended vegetable production technologies aimed at increasing year-round availability of safer vegetables, yields of climate resilient vegetable varieties, and soil health improvement. The incumbent will work closely with the WorldVeg and CIMMYT Scientists, as well as public and private sector partners in meeting the project deliverables. The position will be based at WorldVeg’s Regional Center for West and Central Africa – Coastal and Humid Regions (WCA-CH) in Cotonou, Benin.

Key job responsibilities:
• Plan and implement field experiments and on-farm demonstration trials to assess agronomic, economic and environmental performances of a set of improved cultural practices (i.e., seed and seedling systems, diversified vegetable production systems, integrated pest management, etc.) for target vegetables of the FRESH project in target hubs;
• Work to raise awareness on system diversification of staple crops with vegetables in field, diets diversification in plate and more income for farmers;
• Supervise field assistants, farm laborers and other trainees, collect and analyze data, prepare reports, and contribute to publishing research results in peer-reviewed journals;
• Conduct and lead training of trainers of agricultural extension services and project beneficiary farmers on good agricultural practices;
• Lead and facilitate the organization of agronomic related outreach and promotional activities such as on-station demonstration trials, field days to promote the development and adoption of good agricultural practices;
• Contribute to the preparation of project annual reports
• Perform any other duties assigned by the immediate supervisor(s) at WorldVeg.

The Person:
The candidate shall have the following competencies, skills and experience and/or shall have successfully demonstrated these attributes in actual work situations:
• A minimum of a M.Sc. (BAC+5) in Horticulture, Agronomy, Plant Sciences or related discipline with at least 3 years post-graduation research experience.
• Experience in agricultural research for development within an international environment and in agronomic practices trials will be a strong asset.
• Hands-on experience in good agricultural practices, an experience as a farm manager related to vegetable production would be an advantage.
• Familiarity with the vegetable production sector in West Africa is desirable.
• Speak and write French fluently, with very good working knowledge of English.
• Experience in the usage of computers and office software packages (MS-Office, R, SAS etc.) is required.
• Understanding and knowledge of the R&D of International Agricultural Research Institutions (IARCs) preferred.
• Capacity to efficiently manage workloads and work independently.
• Willingness to travel frequently within the country
• Excellent interpersonal skills and ability to work as a member of an interdisciplinary team in a multicultural, multinational environment, and ability to interact effectively with project partners and stakeholders.

The Reward: This is a Nationally Recruited Staff position with competitive pay and benefits. The position is only open to Benin nationals or candidates with legal permission to work in Benin. The initial appointment is for one year and may be extended depending on requirement, funding availability, and performance of the incumbent. The position is expected to be available on or after August 1, 2022.