Agriculture Sector Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist

Organizational Setting:

For more than four decades, FAO has been working with the Government of the Philippines, civil society, community-based organizations and the private sector to address challenges in the agriculture, fisheries and forestry sector. Joint efforts have included increasing sustainability in agricultural production, promoting value-adding practices, improving post-harvest management, enhancing productivity and increasing the resilience of agriculture-based livelihoods to natural disasters, climatic hazards and armed conflict.

Reporting Lines:

The Agriculture Sector Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist will be under the overall guidance of the FAO Representative in the Philippines ad interim, direct supervision of the Assistant FAO Representative (Programme), day to day guidance of the National Disaster Risk Reduction & Management and Climate Change Adaptation Specialist, and working in close coordination with the TCP/PHI/3803/C3 Project Team, the Technical Assessment Team of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Department of Agriculture (DA)

Technical Focus:

Philippines Agriculture and Fisheries Modernization Act (AFMA) of 1997 has mandated the Department of Agriculture (DA) to formulate an Agriculture and Fisheries Modernization Plan (AFMP) to develop the agriculture and fisheries sector and meet the country goals on food security, poverty alleviation, social equity, income enhancement and profitability, global competitiveness, and sustainability. In August 2019, the DA Secretary William Dar introduced the “New Thinking for Agriculture” as the Department’s strategy to achieve a food secure Philippines with prosperous farmers and fisherfolk. This strategy includes 8 paradigms: 1) modernization of agriculture, 2) industrialization of agriculture, 3) promotion of exports, 4) consolidation of small and medium, 5) infrastructure development, 6) roadmap development, 7) higher budget and investments, 8) legislative support. Anchored on this new strategy, the DA has initiated the formulation of the National Agriculture and Fisheries Modernization and Industrialization Plan (NAFMIP) 2020-2025 with the technical assistance of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). NAFMIP will represent a segment of the long-term efforts in support of the thrusts and priorities set in the Ambisyon Natin 2040 and more immediately the Philippine Development Plan (PDP) 2017-2022, Chapter 8 on “Expanding Economic Opportunities in Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries”.

Tasks and responsibilities

The Agriculture Sector Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist will review and recommend refinements in the plan level monitoring, evaluation and reporting within the Department of Agriculture for the implementation of the NAFMIP 2020-2025.

The Agriculture Sector Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist will carry out the following tasks:

1. Lead in the conduct of an assessment on the current systems for monitoring and evaluating the AFMP and AFMA in terms of reporting and addressing plan implementation progress, issues and concerns;
2. Provide recommendations on policy and operational enhancements in the existing plan performance management system, including indicators (social impact, etc.) baselining, report forms and deadlines, information flow, actions and decisions, feedbacking, and its other relevant components or features;
3. Play a lead role in the preparation of plan level logical frameworks for the NAFMIP, including co-facilitation of discussions and deliberation;
4. Work closely with DA Project Monitoring and Evaluation Division, the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) Monitoring and Evaluation services, and other
5. Lead in the writing of sections or sub-sections of the NAFMIP or component plans, integrating above technical inputs, as designated by DA;
6. Prepare presentation materials for various meetings, consultations, workshops;
7. Perform other tasks relevant to the technical specialization as deemed necessary by the project;

CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING

Minimum Requirements

• The candidate must have Advance University degree in Statistics, applied Statistics, Economics, development planning, development management, social science, or related fields
• At least eight (8) years experience in monitoring and evaluation or performance assessments
• A national of the Philippines

FAO Core Competencies

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

Technical/Functional Skills

• Familiarity with the Philippine agriculture and fisheries sector
• General knowledge and skills in the use of standard office software, such as MS Office (Word, Excel, Power Point)
• Language requirement: Excellent written and oral communication skills in English