Input Supply Portfolio Manager

Description

• Program Title: Promoting Market Systems, Innovation and Resilience (PREMIER)
• Reports to: Technical Director
• Language: Portuguese, English
• Travel: Frequent domestic travels within the target region
• Project Grant/Funding: United States Agency for International Development 1234@123Da
• Grade: 09
• TechnoServe is a leader in harnessing the power of the private sector to help people lift themselves out of poverty. A nonprofit organization operating in 29 countries, we work with enterprising men and women in the developing world to build competitive farms, businesses and industries. By linking people to information, capital and markets, we have helped millions to create lasting prosperity for their families and communities. Founded over 50 years ago, TechnoServe has been named the #1 nonprofit for fighting poverty by the ImpactMatters charity ratings agency
• TechnoServe believes that achieving prosperity requires the full and free participation of women and girls. Our Gender Policy and our commitment to programmatic excellence requires that we involve, empower, and benefit both women and men, both at the level of our beneficiaries and at the level of our staff. By joining our team, you will benefit from a respectful working environment of women and men that believe in the professional development of each one
• Program Overview: The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) anticipates funding the five-year Promoting Market Systems, Innovation and Resilience (PREMIER) activity in Mozambique. The PREMIER activity will facilitate the development of an inclusive, resilient, and sustainable market system to boost agriculture-led economic growth in the Nacala corridor of northern Mozambique. The activity will use a market systems approach and will focus on minimizing barriers that disadvantage the vulnerable, women and youth and exclude them from economic opportunities within the agriculture sector. This activity is anticipated to cover a combination of staple and high value crops
• The activity will implement solutions including:
• Enhancing access to finance across sectors for the rural poor and SMEs
• Enhancing risk mitigation management
• Building the capacity of smallholder producers and agribusinesses
• Increasing incomes for smallholder farmers
• Establishing strong and transparent relationships between actors
• Expanding employment and entrepreneurship opportunities, especially for youth and women
• Position Overview: The Technical Team will be responsible for facilitating support to primarily private sector actors through three main components: a) exploit attractive market opportunities where the Nacala Corridor has a comparative advantage, b) catalyze and expand local agro-processing industries, and c) work with and through local third-party service providers as delivery partners. With strategic guidance from the COP, the technical team comprises the Technical Director and five Portfolio Managers (PMs). The PMs manage relationships with clients and related local delivery partners to reach Premier’s objectives for inclusive supply chains, food processing, route to market distribution, business development services, and access to finance

Duties

• The Input Supply Portfolio Manager (ISPM) will be part of a team of seven experts in charge of the implementation of project activities in the Nacala corridor. The ISPM will lead the formulation of the intervention vision and implementation strategy as well as the data collection to measure performance and impact. He or she will report to the program’s Technical Director and be supported by the program’s Technical
• Director and the Chief of Party with the following responsibilities
• Define and execute a strategy on improving access to agricultural inputs and input services to achieve increased production and income for small holder farmers
• Facilitate grants, public-private investments and partnerships for local agro-input production and distribution to mitigate the impact of high input prices and limited availability of inputs for small holder farmers
• Supporting agro-dealers to provide better inputs and input services to small holder farmers
• Establish input distribution models and expand agro-dealer networks that support innovative mechanisms to make inputs and fertilizer locally and regionally available as well as promote alternative sources of fertilizers and inputs
• Identify opportunities for and organise and supervise the delivery of capacity building services to agro-input providers
• Support access to input financing and the establishment of input financing schemes between financial institutions, agro-businesses and small holder farmers in collaboration with the access to finance portfolio coordinator, Establish partnerships with agri-SMEs and large agribusinesses supporting distribution of improved inputs – including seeds and crop- and soil-specific fertilizers – that minimize harmful effects on the soil, as well as advisory for climate-smart practices (e.g., crop rotation) that reduce the need and cost for fertilizers
• Contribute to the implementation of grants and partnerships related to improving input provision with intervention’s partners (e.g., private sector, government, NGOs)
• Responsible for identifying, negotiating and establishing partnerships with input distributors, manufacturers and dealers
• Contribute to the preparation of weekly highlights, quarterly and annual reports as required by the program; Contribute to team collaboration and learning

Requisites

• Bachelor's Degree + 7 years’ experience or a Master's Degree + 5 years experience
• At least three years of experience as the technical manager fDonothethe r-funded value chain, Making Markets Work for the Poor (M4P), and/or Market Systems Development projects or have worked for/had a managerial position for a leading input supply firm
• Demonstrated success using facilitation in at least one of the following: USAID value chain approach, M4P, or Market Systems Development, which led to greater competitiveness and inclusiveness in markets
• Fluency in both Portuguese and English and at least one relevant local language < UNK> Experience conducting value chain analysis and developing value chain work plans is preferred
• Fluency in Portuguese with excellent oral and written communication skills required
• Proficiency in English is preferred

Notes

• Only shortlisted applicants will be contacted
• We encourage all qualified individuals who share TechnoServe's vision of improving the lives of others through proven business solutions to apply With our commitment to diversity, we are proud to be an equal opportunity employer and affirmative action employer and do not discriminate on the basis of gender, race, color, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, HIV/AIDS status, protected veteran status, disability and all other protected classes
• We are also proud of our commitment to protecting staff, partners, and beneficiaries from abuse and exploitation and thoroughly vet all final candidates through rigorous background and reference checks. If you have a disability that affects your ability to use our online system to apply for a position at TechnoServe please contact the Human Resources at recruitment@tns.org or call +1 202 785 4515
• More information on TechnoServe at: Twitter: @TechnoServe