The Farming for Resilience (F4R) Project renders support to the Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Land Reform (MAWLR) and other partner institutions, including small-holder farmers and agricultural cooperatives, to improve the climatic, economic and physical resilience of the Namibian food and agriculture sector.

Key Responsibilities

- Coordination and implementation of the day-to-day project operations related to agribusiness and marketing and regular consultation with project management and relevant staff
- Development of business plans and validation of business cases for producer associations, cooperatives and community gardens supported by the project
- Designing, planning and implementing of project interventions in the area of horticulture development, promotion of agribusiness and marketing as well as value-addition, including preparing budgets and M&E systems
- Research on horticulture development, climate-adapted agricultural practices and technology, as well as in agricultural business and value-chain development;
- Identify concrete intervention needs in consultation with partners (Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Land Reform, MAWLR) and counterparts and develop demand-driven, sustainable and impactful interventions;
- Communication and collaboration between the project and all involved partner institutions, particularly with the MAWLR and relevant partnering Directorates (i.e. the Directorate of Agricultural Production, Extension and Engineering Services (DAPEES), the Directorate of Water Supply and Sanitation Coordination (DWSSC) and Directorate of Water Resource Management (DWRM) and the Directorate of Planning and Business Development (DPBD)
- contributing to the project’s innovation and knowledge management
- supporting operational and financial planning processes

Key Tasks

- review of existing and develops new innovative training curricula on horticulture, agribusiness and value-chain development, farm management, agricultural economics,
value-addition and marketing
- Development of innovative agribusiness and marketing concepts for beneficiary communities, inter alia, producer associations, community gardens, etc.
- Assessment of ‘business case’ of F4R interventions
- Development of training materials and concepts that are adapted to local contexts and target small-holder farmers, small and medium-sized (SME) agricultural enterprises and producers’ organizations/cooperatives
- Design and implement participatory mentoring and capacity development approaches to capacitate SMEs, small-scale farmers and producer
associations/cooperatives with regards to business plan development, operational / financial management and marketing aspects along selected value chains
- Conduct market analysis and value-chain assessments to inform and guide the project’s interventions under component three
- Create business linkages within the sector and research innovative marketing and trade solutions (e.g. digital);
takes findings into consultations with the political partner,
the private sector, universities and target groups
- Supports the development, coordination and
implementation of the project’s M&E system; extracts and
analyses gathered data and compiles comprehensive info-graphs, tables and summaries for the project’s official
communication and reporting (related to agribusiness and marketing interventions)
- Provide technical inputs for the project’s annual reporting to the commissioning ministry in Germany (BMZ) and regular progress reports to the MAWLR
- Responsible for procurement of equipment required for the implementation of activities related to the promotion of horticulture, agribusiness and marketing (development of specifications/tender documents, evaluation of bids, supervision of installation and quality control)
- Preparation, implementation and documentation of training events, workshops, forums, team meetings and other project activities related to agribusiness and marketing
- Monitoring and reporting on agribusiness and value chain development programmes by the Namibian government and/or developmental actors and formulates proposals for synergistic project interventions
- Ensuring knowledge management and appropriate documentation of all activities conducted.

- University degree (equivalent to MSc) in Agribusiness, Agricultural Economics, Development Economics, Agriculture, Micro/Macro Economics or a related field with a particular focus on agribusiness in Southern Africa
- At least 3 years’ professional experience in Namibia in the development of agricultural value chains, farm management, business development or similar
- Previous practical experience in applied market analysis and mentoring of agribusinesses
- Excellent understanding of the Namibian agriculture sector, including the peculiarities of small-scale/subsistence production systems
- Extensive understanding of impacts of climate change in the Namibian context
- Strong capacity to work with actors of the private sector (financial institutions, input suppliers, processors, etc.)
- Profound expertise in agricultural and organizational development with a focus on operational and farm management in small-scale/subsistence set-ups, inclusive business models (contract farming), processing, marketing and cooperation with political partners, universities and private sector players
- Strong didactical skills and proven experience in adult learning
- Good working knowledge of ICT technologies and computer applications (e.g. MS Office)
- Strong managerial, organizational and time-management competencies
- Willingness to travel regularly
- Excellent knowledge of English, working knowledge of at least one vernacular and/or German will be an advantage
- Pronounced communication and cooperation skills
- Solution-oriented, independent and diligent work ethic
- ability to work under minimal supervision and time pressure
- willingness to up-skill and inherent interest in further professional qualification