Enterprise/Agribusiness/Marketing Specialist

FAO’s approach to development assistance in Mindanao focuses on supporting the rehabilitation of agriculture and fisheries-based livelihoods, accelerating agriculture-based enterprises and increasing access to sustainable energy, and resilience to risk in municipalities affected by natural disasters and conflict. FAO interventions will include, among others\:

• Introduction of various productivity enhancing technologies to improve household incomes and promote sustainable agricultural practices.

• Technical assistance to government in reviewing existing policies that promote equitable agribusiness venture arrangements between farmers and agribusiness firms and capacity building activities for farmers that are anchored on the value chain approach.

• Capacity building on enterprise development and agribusiness that will allow farmers, fisherfolk and local government units to maximize potential market opportunities.

• Restoring and increasing the productivity of agriculture and fisheries-based livelihoods of smallholder farmers and marginalized fishers, decommissioned Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) combatants and their families
Enhancing the competitiveness of farm households, particularly women, to establish and manage microenterprises

• Facilitating the establishment of agribusiness enterprises with production-market contract agreements or similar arrangements

The Enterprise/Agribusiness/Marketing Specialist will be under the overall guidance of the FAO Representative in the Philippines, general supervision of the Assistant FAO Representative (Programme), the direct supervision of the Project Team Leader and in collaboration with the Mindanao and Emergency Response and Preparedness Group Leader and relevant partners.

FAO has been implementing various projects in Mindanao which are guided by the FAO Mindanao Strategic Programme for Agriculture/Agribusiness and an emergency/rehabilitation project for Marawi City and other affected municipalities.

The Enterprise/Agribusiness/Marketing Specialist will be responsible for the following tasks\:

• Provide technical assistance to service provider for the conduct of local value chain analyses for chosen priority commodities and identify suitable marketing and purchasing arrangements and agreements for buyers and producers;
• Propose an ideal platform and models for negotiations and pricing of commodities in order to develop sustainable buyer- producer relationships;
• Review past and-going programs on agribusiness and enterprise development to benchmark practices and identify approaches to strengthen and enhance private sector participation to scale up identified enterprise models, emerging ones and other potential market-led enterprises appropriate for areas affected by natural and human-induced disasters;
• Coordinate with relevant government agencies including, among others the Department of Agriculture, Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Agrarian Reform (MAFAR), Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), Department of Science and Technology (DOST), local government units and other key counterparts, to ensure coherent designing of programmes and interventions by all actors;
• Develop tools necessary in capturing inputs and information from various stakeholders involved for a more collaborative project planning;
• Assist in the formulation of policies for creating an enabling environment for promoting an inclusive economic growth focusing on agribusiness, more inclusive and demand-driven value chains and investment in post-conflict situation;
• Assist in the identification of capacity building needs to lift bottlenecks in the value chain;
• Develop Activity Design Documents, Training Modules and Training reports for all capacity building activities related to marketing and agribusiness;
• Undertake consultations and workshops with relevant institutions including the private sector to agree on the appropriate enabling mechanisms and their implementation for the private sector investment in agribusiness ventures in conflict-affected communities;
• Carry out any other relevant duties within his/her technical competence as may be requested by FAO.

• The candidate must have an advanced university degree in Agribusiness and Management.
• Minimum of five (5) years in research and practical experience in agribusiness, rural livelihood, and community development
• The candidate should have at least 5 years practical experience in the planning and implementation of rural development and emergency rehabilitation programme at the field level projects
• Language requirement\: Excellent written and oral communication skills in English and Tagalog
• A national of Philippines

• Results Focus
• Teamwork
• Communication
• Building Effective Relationships
• Knowledge Sharing and Continuous Improvement

Technical/Functional Skills

• Must be familiar with the local rural setting in Central Mindanao and Bangsamoro areas;
• Ability to work effectively as part of a multidisciplinary team is of importance as is the ability to take leadership when appropriate;
• General knowledge and skills in the use of standard office software, such as MS Office (Word, Excel, Power Point).
• Must be familiar with the local rural setting in Central Mindanao and Bangsamoro areas;

Please note that all candidates should adhere to FAO Values of Commitment to FAO, Respect for All and Integrity and Transparency.