•    Facilitate the formation of the learning alliance, including identification of the relevant policy actors, organizing and facilitating learning alliance meetings and joint development of policy actions for further engagement;•    Spearhead the learning alliance processes (policy engagement actions and capacity building initiatives) to ensure that evidence-based policy engagement actions translate into changes in existing government policies.•    Engage with key public and private policy stakeholders to promote implementation of policy actions, including capacity strengthening and joint learning activities.•    Document learning alliance processes, workshop/ event proceedings, and lessons learnt along the way and feed them back to the research teams;•    With support from the Communication Specialist, develop a communication mechanism that brings together different project outputs/activities, package messages and feed them into the learning alliance;•             The candidate should have an MSc Degree with relevance to policy action in the agricultural sector (e.g. development management, rural sociology, community development, political sciences) with a minimum of five years of related work experience.•    Practical experience in facilitating multi-stakeholder platforms•    Ability to stimulate and foster cooperation between various stakeholders (government ministries, research, CSOs, public and private sector agencies) and drive the process that advocates for enabling policies for climate change adaptation.•    Ability to document, synthesize and present findings to different audiences, including learning alliance actors and the scientific community.• Ability to work independently, take initiative and deliver under minimum supervisionApplications must include a covering letter, curriculum vitae, and names and addresses of three professional referees. Applications should be addressed to:International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) - Uganda,Please indicate the following on the envelope: East Africa Flagship 4 application.

Job Title: Project Coordinator (Systems Agronomist) (Ref: R4D/PCSA/05/13)

Background: The International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) invites applications for the position of Project Coordinator (Systems Agronomist).

IITA is an international non-profit research-for-development (R4D) organization created in 1967, governed by a Board of Trustees, and supported primarily by the Consultative Group of International Agricultural Research (CGIAR). Our R4D is anchored on the development needs of sub-Saharan Africa. We develop agricultural solutions with our partners to tackle hunger and poverty by reducing producer and consumer risks, enhancing crop quality and productivity, and generating wealth from agriculture. We have more than 100 internationally recruited scientists from about 35 countries and 900 nationally recruited staff based in various stations across Africa.

IITA seeks a qualified person for the position of project coordinator in Uganda to coordinate a new BMZ-funded project and conduct agronomic systems research on coffee and cocoa.

Position/Responsibilities:

The primary responsibility will be to coordinate the research project ‘trade-offs and synergies in climate change adaptation and mitigation in coffee and cocoa systems’ and conduct research on this topic.

Specific responsibilities:

    stakeholders on important coffee/cocoa areas that need strong adaptation efforts.
Characterize existing diversity of coffee/cocoa production systems along climate and intensification gradients, in terms of production efficiency, climate change adaptation, and climate change mitigation.
Provide scientific backstopping to research support staff and two PhD students.
Identify productive coffee/cocoa systems by using biophysical response functions and models.
Develop a methodological framework for coffee/cocoa stakeholders to assess climate change adaptation and mitigation potential of various production technologies.
Develop a dissemination toolbox to help inform and train public and private-sector partners and farmers on best-bet climate change adaptation/mitigation options.
Engage with coffee/cocoa certification bodies and policy makers to highlight gaps and opportunities for improved climate change adaptation and mitigation.
Write scientific publications in peer reviewed journals.

Educational Qualifications:

The candidate must have a PhD in Agronomy or related field and ten years experience with increasing levels of responsibility.

Core Competencies:

    Proven research expertise in smallholder coffee/cocoa cropping systems.
Knowledge of soil-plant relationships and crop physiology.
Demonstrated ability to write and publish scientific articles in ISI-Thomson indexed journals.
Demonstrated ability to supervise PhD students
Ability to work independently in a multidisciplinary and multi-cultural environment.
Management experience in multi-partner projects including CGIAR, advanced research institutes, NARS partners and private sector is considered a strong advantage.
Excellent spoken and written English – good knowledge of French is considered an advantage given the projects’ focus on cocoa production systems (and literature) in Francophone West Africa.
Working knowledge of Sub-Saharan Africa.
Willingness to travel within the project region in West and East Africa.

Duty station: IITA Uganda, Kampala.

General information: The appointment is for three years. IITA offers a competitive remuneration package paid in US dollars.

How to Apply:
Applications: Applications including cover letter, curriculum vitae, names and addresses of three referees should be addressed to the Human Resources Manager. Please complete our online application form using this link: http://www.iita.org/irs-online-application.

Closing Date: 31st May 2013