Job Description

The Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT on behalf of IITA Recruiting:

CONSULTANT - ISPARK SOIL HEALTH AND ISFM SPECIALIST

The Organization

The Alliance of
Bioversity International and the International Center for Tropical Agriculture
(CIAT) delivers research-based solutions that harness agricultural biodiversity
and sustainably transform food systems to improve people’s lives. The Alliance
solutions address the global crises of malnutrition, climate change,
biodiversity loss, and environmental degradation ( https://alliancebioversityciat.org/ )

With novel
partnerships, the Alliance generates evidence and mainstreams innovations to
transform food systems and landscapes so that they sustain the planet, drive
prosperity, and nourish people.

The Alliance a
member of the CGIAR Consortium ( www.cgiar.org) a global research partnership for a
food-secure future.

THE INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE OF TROPICAL AGRICULTURE
(IITA)

The
International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) is a not-for-profit
institution that generates agricultural innovations to meet Africa’s most
pressing challenges of hunger, malnutrition, poverty, and natural resource
degradation. Working with various partners across sub-Saharan Africa, we
improve livelihoods, enhance food and nutrition security, increase employment,
and preserve natural resource integrity. IITA is a member of CGIAR, a global
agriculture research partnership for a food secure future. Please visit http://www.iita.org/ for more information on IITA.

BACKGROUND

The
iSPARK project is implementing climate-smart soil nutrient management and
irrigation advisory solutions across western Kenya. A core component of this
work is AgWise, an ML-based fertilizer recommendation engine that integrates
trial data, soil covariates, topography, and climate descriptors to generate
site-specific nutrient recommendations for maize.

AgWise
currently has an integrated soil fertility management (ISFM) module, which now
needs to be adapted to the soil, climate, and farming-system conditions of
western Kenya. This adaptation focuses on the module's organic fertilization
component, whose recommendations need to be tested and calibrated against
existing soil organic carbon (SOC) data and field data from the region. This
work will strengthen the diagnostic and recommendation logic underpinning the
soil health innovation of the iSPARK results framework. Beyond the module work,
the project requires technical support to generate and communicate soil health
evidence, including investment cases, scientific publications, policy briefs,
and farmer advisories that link soil fertility management with irrigation and
intercropping, and to engage partners such as GIZ, KALRO, and county
governments on scaling..

OBJECTIVE

To engage a
consultant to support the testing, validation, and refinement of the organic
fertilization component of the AgWise ISFM module for western Kenya, using
existing soil datasets, to contribute to the module's integration into the
broader ML-based recommendation workflow, and to engage with external partners
(e.g., KALRO, county governments, and other research and development partners)
to advance project implementation.

SCOPE OF WORK

The consultant
will:

  • Identify and review existing SOC and
    related soil fertility datasets available within the project, partner
    organizations, and the wider region, document their coverage and access
    conditions, and assess their suitability for calibrating the organic fertilization
    component of the ISFM module.

  • Support the integration and
    harmonization of field data from western Kenya with existing datasets for
    module testing.

  • Test the prediction logic of the ISFM
    module's organic fertilization component against observed outcomes, applying
    appropriate statistical and machine learning validation methods.

  • Identify and document data quality
    issues, gaps, or inconsistencies affecting module performance.

  • Work in R to conduct data processing,
    model testing, and validation analysis, consistent with the existing AgWise
    codebase and workflows.

  • Engage with relevant project
    stakeholders (e.g., AgWise technical team, KALRO, county governments, and other
    research and development partners) to validate data interpretations, gather
    feedback on testing results, align module refinements with field realities, and
    advance project implementation.

  • Collaborate with the AgWise technical
    team to adapt model parameters and recommendation logic to western Kenya
    conditions based on testing outcomes.

  • Document methodology, testing
    results, and recommendations in a structured technical note.

  • Provide technical input to soil
    health and fertilizer investment cases, including evidence on costs, benefits
    and adoption feasibility.

  • Support data analysis, interpretation
    of findings and preparation of scientific articles.

  • Review soil management
    recommendations and farmer advisories, including links to irrigation and
    intercropping.

  • Contribute to policy briefs and
    practical guidance on integrated soil fertility management.

  • Support engagement with GIZ, research
    institutions and relevant government partners on soil health evidence and
    scaling opportunities.

  • Contribute to documenting project
    results, lessons, and recommendations for future implementation.

  • Participate in virtual and in-person
    iSPARK meetings, technical discussions and dissemination events.

DELIVERABLES

Deliverable Timeline
Inceptionnote outlining data review approach and testing plan Endof Month 1
Dataquality assessment report (existing SOC and field data from western Kenya) Endof Month 2
Moduletesting and validation report, including R scripts used Endof Month 4
Stakeholderand partner engagement summary (findings shared with the iSPARK team andexternal partners) Endof Month 5
Technicalinputs to soil health and fertilizer investment cases (evidence on costs,benefits, and adoption feasibility) Endof Month 5
Draftscientific article(s) based on project data analysis and findings Endof Month 6
Policybrief(s) and practical guidance on integrated soil fertility management Endof Month 4
Reviewof soil management recommendations and farmer advisories, including links toirrigation and intercropping Endof Month 5
ISFMmodule adapted and tested for western Kenya conditions, with a finaltechnical note documenting the methodology and results Endof Month 6

QUALIFICATIONS
AND EXPERIENCE REQUIREMENTS

  • Advanced degree (MSc or
    higher) in soil science, agronomy, or a related discipline — required.

  • 3-5 years of relevant
    professional experience in soil science, agronomy, or a closely related field.

  • Demonstrated knowledge of
    integrated soil fertility management (ISFM), including organic soil amendments
    and soil organic carbon dynamics.

  • Proficiency in R
    programming for data analysis, including experience with statistical or machine
    learning packages relevant to agronomic modeling.

  • Experience engaging with
    technical and non-technical stakeholders (e.g., researchers, development
    partners or government partners) to communicate findings and incorporate
    feedback into technical work.

  • Familiarity with
    fertilizer recommendation systems or digital agronomy tools is an advantage.

  • Experience working with
    field trial or geo-referenced agricultural datasets.

  • Experience with
    cost-benefit or investment analysis of soil fertility interventions is an
    advantage.

  • Strong written
    communication skills, with a track record of peer-reviewed publications and
    experience preparing policy briefs or farmer-facing advisory materials

DURATION AND LEVEL
OF EFFORT

6 months on a full-time basis

FINANCIAL PROPOSAL AND PAYMENT
SCHEDULE

Candidates must submit a financial proposal in USD that
details the cost of each deliverable listed in Section 4, together with the
total cost of the assignment. Payment will be made in three installments, each
linked to the deliverables shown below and released upon submission and written
acceptance by IITA of those deliverables. The amount of each installment will
equal the sum of the proposed costs of its linked deliverables.

Payment Amount (USD) Linked deliverables Due
1 Sum of proposedcosts of linked deliverables Inceptionnote outlining data review approach and testing plan; Data quality assessmentreport (existing SOC and field data from western Kenya) Endof Month 2
2 Sum of proposedcosts of linked deliverables Moduletesting and validation report, including R scripts used; Policy brief(s) andpractical guidance on integrated soil fertility management Endof Month 4
3 Sum of proposedcosts of linked deliverables Stakeholderand partner engagement summary; Technical inputs to soil health andfertilizer investment cases; Review of soil management recommendations andfarmer advisories; Draft scientific article(s); ISFM module adapted andtested for western Kenya conditions, with a final technical note Endof Month 6

DUTY STATION

Nairobi, with travel to western Kenya as required for
field activities, partner engagement, and dissemination events.

The
Alliance Bioversity-CIAT is committed to fair, safe, and inclusive workplaces.
We believe that diversity powers our innovation, contributes to our excellence,
and is critical for our mission. Recruiting and mentoring staff to create an
inclusive organization that reflects our global character is a priority. We
encourage applicants from all cultures, races, colors, religions, sexes,
national or regional origins, ages, disability statuses, sexual orientations,
marital status, and gender identities.

Applications

Applicants are invited to visit https://alliancebioversityciat.org/careers to get full details of the position and to submit their applications. Applications MUST include reference number REF: CONSULTANT - ISPARK SOIL HEALTH AND ISFM SPECIALIST as the position applied for.

The
Alliance collects and process personal data in accordance with applicable data
protection laws.
Application and CV should be saved as one document using the candidate’s last
name, first name for ease of sorting. Also submit the financial proposal as
indicated above

Note: The Alliance does not charge a fee at any stage of the
recruitment process (application, interview meeting, processing or training).
The Alliance also does not concern itself with information on applicants' bank
accounts.

Applications
closing date: 28TH October 2026

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