International Off Farm Business Development Specialist

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FAO is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender and nationality

People with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply

All applications will be treated with the strictest confidentiality

The incumbent may be re-assigned to different activities and/or duty stations depending on the evolving needs of the Organization

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In the Central Dry Zone (CDZ) of Myanmar, nearly 25 percent of the population is below the national poverty line and about 50 percent are landless. The lack of livelihoods in this region is the key driver of poverty and has led to high incidence of malnutrition and food insecurity. To assist the Government of Myanmar to develop sustainable solutions to mitigate the situation in the CDZ, FAO is delivering technical assistance as part of the Global Agriculture and Food Security Programme (GAFSP).The technical assistance is focused on (i) Good agricultural Practices, (ii) Household Nutrition Promotion, (iii) Monitoring and Evaluation, and (iv) Off-Farm Employment. The theory of change of the project is based on the fundamental premise that a market-driven approach is needed to help smallholder farmers sustainably increase their income and improve their livelihoods, food security and nutrition. To this end, FAOMM is seeking an International Off Farm Business Development Specialist to lead the implementation of the overall Technical Assistance (TA) package especially for providing support to off farm rural employment.

The incumbent will work under the direct supervision of the FAO Representative in Myanmar. S/he will work in consultation with Assistant FAOR (Programme) and closely collaborate with GAFSP Team Leader in Myanmar and key governmental counterparts including the Project Director of the PMU and other implementation partners. Technical guidance will be provided by the Lead Technical Officer from the FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific.

As significant proportion of households in central dry zone do not have access to land, development of off-farm businesses including livestock, contracting, services to other farmers and non-agricultural service provision provide opportunities for income generation. The role of the off farm business development specialist is to lead the off farm livelihood survey, provide strategic guidance and advice to these activities bringing relevant regional and international experience to the CDZ.

The international consultant/specialist will work with Department of Rural Development (DRD) under the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, and Irrigation (MoALI), Ministry of Industry (MOI), Ministry of Commerce (MOC), SME Development and TVET and Livestock Breeding and Veterinary Department (LBVD), Livelihood and Food Security Trust Fund (LIFT) funded project and other related departments, institutions and organizations in Myanmar to lead the implementation of the overall Technical Assistance (TA) package especially for providing support to off farm livelihood employment.

• Review the other current off-farm business projects / activities and opportunities within the target townships where GAFSP can align and enhance current activities and/or explore and address further opportunities and gaps in the current activities;

• Develop survey design, tools/formats and implementation strategy for an in-depth off farm livelihood survey to identify and validate feasible off farm livelihood interventions, packages and employable skills as well as microbusiness trainings in selected six (6) townships.

• Undertake necessary coordination with concerned stakeholders including relevant government departments (DRD, DoP, DoA, LBVC, SME, SOI, SOC), public private partners, regional and township level stakeholders, village development committees and lead farmer groups for sharing the plan and modality of off farm livelihood survey;

• Formulate strategy and Implementation modality for the selected off farm livelihood interventions as part of the survey report

• Undertake field based survey for off farm livelihood according to the agreed objectives and methodology;

• Collect, collate , analyse the data for generating survey report as per the agreed format but not limited to;

• Feasible off farm livelihood microbusinesses/enterprises and packages;

• Key employable and income generating skill trainings;

• Business management and sustainability plan for each of the trade/off farm business supported by relevant case studies/ success stories on each of off farm business;

• Presentation of the key findings of the off farm livelihood surveys to the concerned stakeholders as mentioned above for recommendations and endorsement;

• Submit final survey report to FAO review, analysis and comments, followed by revision/finalization for acceptance.

Submit filled questionnaires/formats as hard copies, final electronic datasets of the survey and other verifiable and reliable statistics/data, snapshots to FAO in acceptable and editable format.

• Advanced University degree in related technical areas plus higher degree and/or at least 10 years’ experience in design and implementation of off-farm business development projects for multi-lateral donors.

• Experience in design and implementation of off-farm business development and support in multi-disciplinary regional rural development projects with engineering, climate adaption, vocational skills trainings and technical value chain components.

• Working knowledge of English and limited knowledge of one of the other FAO languages (French, Spanish, Arabic, Chinese, Russian)

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

• The consultant must show his willingness to remain physically present in Myanmar and in close proximity of GAFSP team and concerned communities as well as other related stakeholders from initiation upto satisfactory completion of the assignment;

• Expertise in the field of off farm livelihood management in Myanmar or SE Asian countries, including experience with off farm livelihood surveys, assessments and impacts studies, off farm livelihood program development.

• Well versed with the knowledge about various off farm business and employable skills, off farm livelihood, innovative interventions, their integration and sustainability in the livelihood frameworks of communities;

• Experience engaging with diverse stakeholders, from land users/farmers to ministerial staffs.

• Extent of relevant experience with internationally funded projects.

• Experience in international, geographically dispersed, and inter-disciplinary teams.

• Prior preparation and submission of written reports for an international developmental agency, a governmental department, or a major NGO

Additional Selection Criteria

• Experience in conducting off farm livelihood surveys, studies, impact assessment in countries similar to Myanmar, or SE Asian countries

• Experience with UN agencies, especially FAO.

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

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