Climate Resilient Agriculture (CRA) - Farmer Field School (FFS) Training Specialist

Cotabato

Organization: FAO - Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Location: Cotabato
Grade: Consultancy - Consultant - Contractors Agreement
Occupational Groups:
- Environment
- Meteorology, Geology and Geography
- Humanitarian Aid and Coordination
- Agriculture and Forestry
- Education, Learning and Training
- Internal audit, Investigation and Inspection
- Climate Change
- FAPHI
Closing Date: Closed

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FAO seeks gender, geographical and linguistic diversity in its staff and international consultants in order to best serve FAO Members in all regions.
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Qualified female applicants and qualified nationals of non-and under-represented member countries are encouraged to apply.

Persons with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply.

All applications will be treated with the strictest confidence.
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Organizational Setting

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

Reporting Lines

The Climate Resilient Agriculture (CRA) - Farmer Field School (FFS) Training Specialist will be under the overall supervision of the FAO Representative in the Philippines ad interim, the direct supervision of the Assistant FAO Representative for Programme and the Team Leader of the Mindanao and Emergency Response and Preparedness Group (MERG), and close coordination with the Project Team Leader/Farming Systems Specialist and Disaster Risk Reduction/Climate Change Adaptation (DRR/CCA) Specialist.

Technical Focus

FAO has been implementing various projects in Mindanao which are guided by the FAO Mindanao Strategic Programme for Agriculture/Agribusiness (MSPAA). One of the projects being implemented in Mindanao funded by FAO is the project entitled “Technical Support in Enhancing Climate Resilient Agriculture in Vulnerable Communities in the Bangsamoro”. The overall objective of the Project is to enhance the technical capacities of provincial and municipal agricultural personnel and farmers on resilient farming systems/climate resilient agriculture in Maguindanao province, in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).

Tasks and responsibilities

The Climate Resilient Agriculture (CRA) - Farmer Field School (FFS) Training Specialist will support the efficient, coordinated and timely implementation CRA FFS and pilot-testing of CRA technologies in the target areas in three municipalities in the province of Maguindanao.

The CRA-FFS Training Specialist will carry out the following tasks:

In coordination with the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Agrarian Reform (MAFAR) of BARMM and the project team, prepare a detailed work plan, in line with the cropping seasons and within the framework of climate resilient agriculture (CRA), including design of FFS curriculum and methodologies for pilot testing of CRA technologies;
In coordination with local training teams, serve as resource person during the conduct of CRA-FFS and provide technical inputs in setting-up of CRA demo areas;
Provide feedback to relevant officers and managers on progress of CRA FFS and demo areas implementation;
Ensure technical quality of FFS training and CRA demonstration fields. Monitor thosethat require immediate attention, and provide recommendation/options to address it;
Assist in maintaining an up-to-date database information system on the conduct of season-long CRA FFS; and
Provide technical advice and inputs to the Project Team Leader/Farming Systems Specialist and Disaster Risk Reduction/Climate Change Adaptation (DRR/CCA) Specialist in consolidating best CRA options and preparation of terminal report; and
Carry out other relevant duties within his/her technical competence as requested by FAO.

Minimum Requirements

University Degree in in any field of agriculture or rural development;

At least three (3) years of relevant and progressive experience in facilitating season-long Farmer Field School Training of Trainers (FFS ToTs); and

A national of the Philippines.

FAO Core Competencies

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

Technical/Functional Skills

The candidate should be knowledgeable about the Maguindanaon culture
Ability to speak Tagalog and understand Visayan (Cebuano) and Maguindanaon dialect is preferable
Relevant experience in facilitating as a resource person/lead trainer in season-long ToTs and FFS for rice and vegetables crops;
Commitment to placing accountability to people affected by disaster framework at the core of FAO’s emergency policy and practice, from preparedness up to the onset of an emergency, embedded in all phases of the programme cycle (in line with FAO policy)
Familiarity with UN administrative, operational and financial procedures is an asset;
Ability to plan and guide the work of others and work under pressure and within tight deadlines;
Language requirement: Excellent written and oral communication skills in English and Tagalog;
He/she must have intermediate to advance computer skills skills in the use of standard office software, such as MS Office (Word, Excel, Power Point)