Livestock Specialist

Project Summary:

Land O’Lakes Venture37 is a subcontractor on the RTI-led consortium implementing the Feed the Future (FTF) Ethiopia Transforming Agriculture project funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). The purpose of the TA activity is to increase access to healthy diets, particularly for women and children, by improving competitiveness, inclusiveness, and resilience of the Ethiopian food and agriculture system. This program is the core component of a suite of food and agriculture activities funded by USAID. As such, TA must collaborate intensively with other USAID-funded projects working in the food and agriculture sector.

TA will build on previous USG-funded activities to sustainably improve access to healthy diets for all in the targeted communities using a food systems lens. Acknowledging that economic transformation tends to bring new malnutrition challenges, the Ethiopia Transforming Agriculture project will support transformation of the food systems so that a healthy diet is increasingly easy to access. TA will also support the food and agriculture systems to become more sustainable, resilient, and responsive, increasing its long-term capacity to adapt to change, shocks, and stressors. Finally, TA will facilitate increased public-private partnership and collaboration to spur a more favorable policy environment for private sector investment, sustainable and resilient food systems, and innovation that serves the population’s economic and dietary needs.

Position Summary:

The Livestock Specialist is responsible for ensuring implementation of TA activities related to the development of livestock activities in mixed farming and pastoral systems, with a particular focus on dairy, poultry, and small ruminant (sheep and goat) value chains across the different project target regions in Ethiopia. The Livestock Specialist will contribute to the development of the domestic livestock feed industry through market analysis and technical assistance and provide support to private sector investors and associations. He/she will provide leadership in the development of the feed production, processing, and distribution system that will provide livestock producers with sufficient quality feed to enable them to establish larger scale and more profitable operations – feed lots, poultry farms, dairy farms, and intensive commercial fish farming.

Reporting & Supervision:

• The Livestock Specialist will report to the Senior Livestock Market Systems Manager, TA, Ethiopia, and in close collaboration and back stopping support for regional livestock specialists.

Primary Responsibilities

• Strengthen commercial relationships between livestock producers and their input suppliers, buyers, and cooperatives.
• Act as an engagement manager for selected livestock grantees, the Livestock Specialist will oversee selected grantees on the quality of their deliverable based on the milestones set by the activity.
• Support and strengthen milk processors and MCCs to increase their capacity in terms of volume and value by upgrading technical and business practices.
• Support commercial forage seed multipliers and forage growers and link them with dairy processors and dairy producers through embedded services.
• Support livestock actors to get more accurate, timely, and readily available market information that will ultimately increase producers’ ability to meet market specifications for quality, safety, and other product characteristics.
• Facilitate access to finance for livestock actors.
• Strengthen and facilitate business development services for livestock MSMEs engaged in dairy, poultry, and small ruminant businesses.
• Increase product innovation and value addition to improve the convenience and desirability of animal source foods.
• Strengthen the enabling environment for livestock.
• Other duties and responsibilities given by his/her immediate supervisor.

Project Implementation Partners:

Research Triangle Institute (RTI) has over 30 years’ experience assisting governments, communities, and the private sector. As a not-for-profit, independent research institute based in North Carolina, USA, RTI has roughly 5,000 employees with global experience implementing international development projects. RTI's Sustainable Growth & Resilience (SG&R) technical unit within the International Development Group brings together RTI experts and capabilities across food security, agriculture, energy, environment, water, governance, and economic opportunity. SG&R will leverage RTI's experience designing and delivering multisectoral programming and technical solutions to respond to climate change, build resilience, and promote economic growth around the world.

SG&R’s Global Food Security and Agriculture portfolio is working to strengthen agricultural markets, engage youth and women as critical leaders of the on- and off-farm workforce, and tackle the dual burden of malnutrition around the globe. RTI’s work is helping foster stronger food systems, reduce malnutrition in all its forms, build resilience and engage the next generation of food security leaders. RTI is currently partnering on nearly 30 projects in East Africa, including activities focused on private sector-driven agricultural growth in Rwanda and market systems development in Kenya.?

Land O'Lakes Venture37 is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit helping communities around the world build economies by strengthening agriculture from farm-to-fork, helping businesses grow, and linking farmers to markets. Since our start in 1981, we have been leveraging nearly 100 years of expertise in dairy, animal nutrition, crop inputs and agricultural insights from our close affiliate, Land O’Lakes, Inc., a farmer-owned agribusiness committed to fulfilling its purpose of feeding human progress.

Our team is made up of nearly 350 employees who are committed to market-led approaches, and passionate about collaborating locally to create lasting inclusive economic growth. By unlocking the potential of agriculture for the last 36 years, the lives of more than 3 million people have been transformed through nearly 300 programs in more than 80 countries.

Required Skills and Qualifications:

• A bachelor’s degree in animal and veterinary sciences, livestock management, or another relevant field.
• A minimum of eight (8) years professional experience, including at least five (5) years of relevant experience in the livestock and forage sectors.
• Demonstrated technical experience in designing and implementation of different values chains related to livestock.
• Experience working with smallholder livestock producers in different agroecology and high potential dairy producing areas.
• Experience in training extension agents and farmers by organizing and facilitating through trainings and field days.
• Experience in working with different partners and farmers, demonstrating effective communication and professionalism with people of different backgrounds and viewpoints.
• Ability to collect and analyze data and information and draw valid conclusions.
• Good verbal and written communication skills in English.
• Demonstrated proficiency in Microsoft Office programs (e.g., Outlook, Word, Excel).

How To Apply

Interested and qualified applicants should apply through this link: Livestock Specialist - Ethiopia Transforming Agriculture Project - Careers (avature.net)