Agriterra is the worlds leading not-for-profit agri-agency from-and-for agricultural cooperatives and farmer organizations. Our mission is to strengthen organized farmers in developing and emerging countries, given the importance of effectively organized farmers to sustainably address food security, economic development, climate adaptation and mitigation. We are financed and work via donor-granted projects and programs. These long-lasting strategic partnerships with a variety of donors are key for us in our day-to-day work. For more information, visit our website www.agriterra.org.
In Ethiopia, Agriterra has been active since 2015. It supports cooperatives in the dairy, coffee, cereal, and horticulture value chains in different parts of the country.
About the project and the job
BRIDGE+ is a five year programme (from November 2023 to December 2028) implemented by a consortium of partners composed of SNV Netherlands Development Organization (lead) and Wageningen University (WUR and Agriterra, with the financial support from the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands (EKN).
The overall objective of the BRIDGE+ programme is to contribute to a functioning dairy Value Chain that creates inclusive and sustainable benefits for all its participants, including wider society, with particular focus on smallholder farmers within the mixed farming system. To attain this objective, the project will operate at three levels: (1) smallholder farmers: increase benefits from dairy farming; (2) dairy value chain: improving functioning and food safety; and (3) at sector level: strengthening institutional structure.
In BRIDGE+ Agriterra will focus on building the capacities of dairy cooperative societies to deal with the changing market dynamics (including resilience) through reinforcing their governance structures, management and services.
Agriterra is looking for junior cooperative advisors who can work at its project location(Adama Hawass city). As a junior cooperative Advisor, you will provide expert advice, coordinate advisory trajectories with cooperatives, and have an advisory and broker role in closing business deals aimed at building well-organized and operational cooperatives. To achieve this, you initiate and maintain a network including cooperatives, financial institutions, traders, service providers, and other stakeholders in the dairy value chain. You successfully initiate and guide change trajectories with clients, lobby, mediate, support negotiation processes, and prepare business deals.
The junior cooperative advisor will be based at Adama city will support dairy cooperatives found at different milk sheds in the Oromia region
Key roles and responsibilities include, not limited to:
- Provide business development advice and facilitate change management that allow dairy cooperatives to realise their business growth potential.
- Advise dairy cooperatives on financial management (adequate bookkeeping and financial reporting); general proper recording (membership, volumes produce, minutes, etc), financial procedures, business development, marketing & sales, governance, business practices in cooperatives.
- Investigate opportunities to finance business plans of dairy cooperatives, support the establishment of contacts and negotiate business agreements with banks, investors, and other financiers (governments and the business sector).
- Contribute to the development of financially sustainable structures within cooperatives and farmers organisations to enhance their service provision and extension service to their members.
- Provide clients with guidance relating to change trajectories, to promote the interests of farmers, and cooperatives, with the authorities of the relevant developing countries.
- Collect and systematise information about clients and advisory processes, such as financial reports and annual overviews