Deadline:17th January 2020 at 03:00 pm local time.
Rwanda Agriculture and Animal Resources Development Board (RAB) is an autonomous body established by law N°14/2017 of 14/04/2017. RAB has a general mission of developing agriculture and animal resources through research, agricultural and animal resources extension in order to increase agricultural and animal productivity as well as their derived. Its vision is to improve food security and livelihoods of all Rwandans by transforming agriculture from subsistence into modern farming through generating research and extension innovations that generate sustainable crop, animal husbandry and natural resource management
Under the support of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the following three (3) are implemented by the Single Project Implementation Unit (SPIU): Climate Resilience Postharvest and Agribusiness Support Project (PASP) and Rwanda Dairy Development Project (RDDP) implemented and managed by RAB, and the Rural Income through Exports (PRICE) implemented and managed by NAEB though SPIU of IFAD Funded Projects.
1.Project for Rural Income through Exports — PRICE (2011-2020)
PRICE helps smallholder farmers to increase benefits from key export-driven and sustainable agricultural value chains through greater production volume and quality, improved marketing and effective fanner organizations. The total cost of the programme is US$57.4 million. IFAD is providing US$48.7 million, including a grant of US$18.7 million. IFAD’s Executive Board approved supplementary financing of US$8.5 in April 2018. This project benefits approximately 128,700 households, especially woman-headed households and households with little land and which are involved in coffee or tea production, sericulture and horticulture.
2.Climate Resilient Post-Harvest and Agribusiness Support Project- PASP (2014-2019)
PASP aims at reducing post-harvest losses in key value-chain commodities (maize, beans, cassava, Irish potatoes and dairy) to increase incomes of smallholder and rural labourers, especially women and youth. The total project cost is US$83.4 million, and it is expected to benefit about 32,400 rural households. IFAD is financing approximately US$27 million, half in loan and half in grant form. The project is strengthened through an investment of US$7.0 million from the Adaptation for Smallholder Agriculture Programme (ASAP), which aims to increase smallholder resilience.
3.Rwanda Dairy Development Project — RDDP (2017-2022)
RDDP is meant to contribute to pro-poor economic growth and improve the livelihoods of resource-poor rural households. It aims to increase the dairy sector’s competitiveness and profitability through provision of quality products from small-scale producers to domestic and regional consumers, thus improving their livelihoods, food security and nutrition while building overall resilience.
The total project cost is US$65.1 million, including an IFAD loan of US$43.6 million and a grant of US$1.1 million. It is co-financed by Heifer International (US$4.0 million) and is expected to reach approximately 100,000 resource-poor rural households.
4.Upcoming projects
IFAD and the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources (MINAGRI) have agreed two new projects, namely: Kayonza Irrigation and Integrated Watershed Management Project (KIIWP) and Partnership for Resilient and Inclusive Small Livestock (PRISM), expected to start late December 2019. The Financing agreement for KIIWP was approved by IFAD and the Government of Rwanda in June 2019 and its ratification authorized by the law N° 31/2019 of 07/10/2019 published in Official gazette n° 44bis of 11th November, 2019. IFAD has committed US$ 54 million for the next allocation cycle (2019-2021). For PRISM, the negotiations of the financing agreement took place from 1 to 2 August 2019 in Rome, Italy. The total PRISM investment and incremental recurrent costs, including physical and price contingencies, are estimated at US$ 45.64 million (RWF 41.07 billion).
In the purpose of completing vacant positions, RAB — SPIU of IFAD Funded Projects wishes to recruit qualified and experienced candidates on the following positions in Kayonza Irrigation and Integrated Watershed Management Project (KIIWP): one Operations Manager, one Horticulture Specialist, one Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist and one Accountant at District level.
Position 1 : Kayonza Irrigation and Integrated Watershed Management Project (KIIWP) Operations Manager
a)About position
Job title : (KIIWP) Operations Manager, under contract
Job level . 2.V
Number of position : One (1) position
Direct Supervisor : SPIU Coordinator-IFAD Funded Projects
Duration : 2 years renewable performance based contract with a 3 months’ probation period.
b)Education and Experience
The Operations Manager must have a Master’s degree in in the following areas: Agriculture, Irrigation or Project management with 5 years of working experience or a Bachelor’s degree in similar areas with 10 years of working experience.
Key competences:
- Fluency in Kinyarwanda, English or French;
- Computer skills;
- Good communication skills;
- Ability to work with project’s implementing partners.
- Ability to meet deadlines;
- Working experience with IFAD funded project is an advantage.
c) Duties and Responsibilities:
Under the authority of the SPIU Coordinator, the Project’s Operations Manager is in charge of the management of KIIWP’s daily activities according to the financing agreement signed between the Government of Rwanda and IFAD. He (She) will respect all documented agreements in relation to the management of the project (aide memoire, back to office report, audit report, evaluation reports, midterm review, and completion report). He (She) is responsible of the subsidiary agreements between the Project and different service providers. S/he will report to the SPIU Coordinator and RAB DG especially ensuring timely physical progress report and financial statements in the required format. The Project Operations Manager will perform the following duties:
- Provide orientations for the implementation of the project
- Ensure the project performance in accordance with the Rwandan policies on performance contracts and IFAD procedures;
- Coordinate the project team and ensure partnership with key stakeholders;
- Ensure synergies between project components to maximize the project’s impact;
- Supervise the project planning and implementation according to the financing agreement, the recommendations of the steering committee as well as the recommendations of the supervision missions;
- Timely coordinate the preparation of the annual work plan and budget as well as progress reports;
- Supervise the preparation and negotiation of the MoUs, contracts and other agreements with partners and service providers;
- Execute the approved plan and budget;
- Identify areas which require external support and recruit suitable consultants;
- Guide the consultants, experts and contractors toward the realization of planned project outputs and evaluate their performance;
- Monitor the project implementation progress;
- Support the implementation support missions and the follow up missions.
Expected outputs:
- Project general objective, specific objectives and activities timely reached within the frame of the financing agreement;
- Project planning and budgeting processes implemented timely with the full participation of key partners in a participation approach;
- Project physical and financial report timely submitted to the relevant authorities in accordance to the provision of the financial agreement;
- Disbursement procedures done in accordance to the project design report;
- The Project impact data updated regularly and disseminated to project partners for measuring the results across all project components;
- Excellent relations with line ministries, implementing agencies, project beneficiaries and other key partners.
Position 2 : Horticulture Specialist
a)About position
Job title: Horticulture Specialist
Job level: 3.V
Number of position: One (1) position
Direct Supervisor: KIIWP Operations Manager
Duration : 2 years renewable performance based contract with a 3 months’ probation period.
b)Education and Experience
- Possess at least a Bachelor’s degree in Crop Science or horticulture with a minimum of 5 years `experience in agricultural productivity with particular attention to horticulture production;
- Fluency in English is required; French fluency an advantage;
- Experience in working in cross-functional teams and groups;
- Strong client orientation with ability to identify clients needs and provide appropriate solutions;
- Prior work with forecasting, planning and data analysis and data management;
- Ability to work in a team and collaborate with institutions of different nature.
c) Duty and Responsibilities
Reporting directly to KIIWP Operations Manager, the horticulture Specialist will be responsible for:
- Monitor and advise on horticulture plantation technologies and practices;
- Identify, study and recommend improvement or development of projects and programs for horticulture production development;
- Support and facilitate farmers to access clean planting materials in order to increase quality products by developing clean seedlings in nurseries or acquire them from secured sources;
- In collaboration with the Cooperative Development Specialist, promote horticulture producers organization;
- Promoting and coordinating production, innovation and extension of horticulture production
- Facilitate and promote collaboration and linkages between different stakeholders in relation to horticulture production;
- Coordination of workshops and seminars in relation to horticulture production;
- Identify and promote proven agricultural technologies and support services that have proven potential to increase horticulture production;
- Work with farmers and producer groups to increase their knowledge and usage of improved horticulture farming techniques for primary agricultural products, including their understanding of and access to improved seed varieties, planting and harvesting methods, timing and input usage, including organic or chemical fertilizer, water through irrigation, etc.
- Conduct training and mentoring of District Agronomists and oversee related training delivered to horticulture farmers in new techniques, environmental considerations and other productivity-related areas all aimed at increased horticulture production;
- In collaboration with senior agronomist, initiation of mechanisms aimed at availing affordable agricultural inputs to horticulture farmers, on time; and put in place mechanisms for horticulture pests and diseases control;
- Maintain an accurate database of activities, targets, outputs/achievement, expenditure, lessons learnt and period of implementation as per agreed formats to be updated and presented monthly in the meetings and have an effective coordination with the MIS unit;
- Prepare periodic reports in the agreed format outlining and providing qualitative and quantitative analysis of his / her performance in relation to outlined plans;
- Provide technical input to project reports and studies during the inception phase in line with Horticulture;
- Contribute to the preparation of work plan;
- Be prepared to conduct additional duties as instructed by his/her Supervisor.
Position 3 : Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist
About position
Job title: Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist, under contract
Job level: 3.IV
Number of position: One (1) position
Direct Supervisor: Head of the Management Information System Department
Duration: 2 years renewable performance based contract with a 3 months’ probation
period.
Education and Experience
Qualifications: Bachelor’s degree in Project Management, Rural Development, Agricultural Economics or Business Administration with 3 years of working experience.
Key competences
- Fluency in Kinyarwanda, English or French;
- Good communication skills;
- Proven knowledge and practical experience of at least 3 years in project M&E; Computer literacy (Microsoft office and statistical software);
- Communication and result oriented management skills.
- Ability to work in an interdisciplinary team and meet crucial deadlines; Working experience with IFAD funded project is an advantage.
Duties and responsibilities:
Under the direct supervision of the Head of the MIS Department, the specific duties of the M&E specialist are the following:
- Developing and establishing a pragmatic and participatory project learning system (PLS) within the project in order to capture input-output data as well as impact on project objectives;
- Identify appropriate monitoring indicators for each component and ensure that they are used in measuring the Project progress;
- Compilation of quarterly comprehensive progress reports;
- Analyzing data (linking inputs to outputs, and outputs to impact) and preparing analytical reports for project management on implementation progress, performance and impact;
- Establishing and managing the framework for any baseline survey;
- Measuring achievements against targets and measuring the impact of project activities on beneficiaries through agreed indicators;
- Facilitate the project’s planning process in collaboration with other staff, and also monitoring performance of all project parties;
- Ensuring that all participating institutions and project officers maintain updated records on their activities and feed this information into the overall MIS;
- Carrying out regular internal evaluations, so as to give early warning on project performance;
- Developing a simple reporting system in monitoring all project’s activities;
- In collaboration with project’s staff, support the development of targeting and gender strategies;
- Assess and report on project’s activities related to gender, youth and targeting aspects;
- Identify opportunities for strengthening project’s implementation from a gender perspective and ensuring target groups’ participation in project’s activities.
Expected outputs:
- Simple, efficient and cost effective M& E;
- Planning and budgeting process implemented timely through a participatory approach;
- Project’s AWPB submitted timely to MINAGRI and IFAD;
- Quarterly project progress reports available to all project partners;
- Project impact information regularly updated and available to all project partners;
Position 4 : Accountant at District level
About position
Job title: Accountant at District level
Job level: 4.IV
Number of position: One (1) position
Direct Supervisor: KIIWP Chief Accountant
Duration: 1 year renewable performance based contract with a 3 months’ probation period.
Education and Experience
The Accountant should have at least a bachelor’s degree in accounting or finances with a practical experience of at least 3 years in financial management.
Key competences:
- Fluency in Kinyarwanda, English or French;
- Skills in accounting applications such as TOMPRO, PASTEL, SUN; Good communication skills;
- Fluent in Kinyarwanda, English or French (reading, writing and speaking) Ability to meet crucial deadlines.
- A previous experience with IFAD-funded projects would be an advantage.
Duties and responsibilities
Under the direct supervision of the Chief Accountant, the specific duties of the Accountant are as follows:
- Capture in the books and files all supporting documents of expenditures paid from the petty cash;
- Prepare all documents that are required for the payment of suppliers’ invoices duly approved by his/her supervisor;
- Monthly declaration of withholding taxes deducted from suppliers’ invoices;
- Verification of supplier’s invoices before payment;
- Timely posting all project accounting vouchers on the accounting software;
- Exercise proper custody of all posted vouchers and other accounting documents;
- Verify and check bank statements and accounting software printouts;
- Supervise and direct the accounting and logistical functions in order to ensure efficiency;
- Prepare and submit periodical financial reports on deadlines;
- Prepare Withdrawal Applications;
- Regular spot check of petty cash fund and other reconciliation reports;
- Timely replenishment of operation account with project bank account;
- Authorization of payments vouchers;
- Acting on the position of the Chief Accountant in his/her absence;
- Facilitate financial audits and implementation support missions;
- Regular follow up of smooth functioning of the accounting software, and make contact with ICT staff and software suppliers;
- Submit account printouts by components to the heads of components for analysis and comments;
- Advice the project team on accounting and administration matters;
- Implement any other relevant duties assigned by the Chief Accountant.
Expected outputs:
- Financial reports prepared and submitted on time;
- Withdrawal applications prepared and submitted for replenishment; Accounting documents maintained properly.
How to apply
Interested candidates must submit their updated and detailed Curriculum Vitae, relevant certificates, required Academic Degrees, a copy of National Identity card and a motivation letter stating the position applied for in the subject.
All application letters must be addressed to the Director-General of RAB and submitted in hard copies at the Central Secretariat of SPIU/IFAD Funded Projects (former MINAGRI buildings-Kacyiru, KG 563 ST not later than 17th January 2020 at 03:00 pm local time.
For more details please download Official advert (pdf)
