The World Vegetable Center (WorldVeg) is an international non-profit research and development center committed to alleviating poverty and malnutrition in developing countries through the increased production and consumption of nutritious and health-promoting vegetables. Founded in 1971 with headquarters in Taiwan, the Center’s global network today covers East and Southeast Asia, sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, and Central and West Asia and North Africa. For more information, please visit our website: www.avrdc.org.
Worldveg is seeking a Production and Postharvest Specialist for the USAID funded project “Deploying Improved Vegetable Technologies to Overcome Malnutrition and Poverty” in Mali. The project aims to contribute to reduced malnutrition, especially of women and children in Mali through diet diversification, by promoting the production and consumption of vegetables as affordable sources of essential vitamins and micronutrients. This will be achieved through the accelerated deployment and use of market-attractive and diet-enhancing improved vegetable technologies. The project will improve vegetable varieties and seed supply systems, enhance crop management practices and develop postharvest handling and processing options across the Sikasso, Mopti and Timbuktu regions of Mali
The position will report to the Project Manager – USAID Mali Horticulture Scaling Project and will be based in Bamako, Mali.
The Job - Key responsibilities:
- Lead implementation of the vegetable production and postharvest components of the project (develop work plans, design appropriate technical approaches, monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of interventions and approaches, technical reporting, etc.) and conduct research on issues related to vegetable production, postharvest practices and nutrition-sensitive agriculture.
- Provide recommendations on improving production and postharvest project activities; develop approaches aiming to improve the impact of agriculture activities on nutrition and health of target communities; provide project partners and project-assisted vegetable production farmers/groups with direct technical assistance.
- Identify needs for short-term technical assistance to supplement existing technical capacity in crop production, particularly with respect to providing advice, analyses and training related to the introduction of new production techniques/equipment in target zones.
- Coordinate with other technical specialists on cross cutting issues, including gender, capacity building and environmental compliance; contribute to Center's knowledge sharing and capacity strengthening activities, particularly in the West and Central Africa region.
- Contribute to development of project proposals on vegetable production and postharvest as well as multidisciplinary projects and generate ideas for new projects with potential for donor funding.
- Publish research results in peer-reviewed journals, bulletins, fact sheets and other media.
- Build capacity of researchers, farmers and extension agents to promote good agricultural practices and handling technologies, through training.
For more information, please see the vacancy announcement here.
