Catholic Relief Services Technical Advisor Jobs in Kenya

Catholic Relief Services Technical Advisor Jobs in Kenya

Job Title: Technical Advisor III – Value Chains, Market systems and Private Sector Engagement

Department: Program Impact & Quality Assurance

Band: Grade 11

Reports To: Senior Technical Advisor for Agricultural Livelihoods and Markets

Country: Nairobi, Kenya

About CRS:

Catholic Relief Services carries out the commitment of the Bishops of the United States to assist the poor and vulnerable overseas. Our Catholic identity is at the heart of our mission and operations. We welcome as a part of our staff and as partners people of all faiths and secular traditions who share our values and our commitment to serving those in need.

Job Summary:

As technical advisor for value chains, market systems and PSE you will provide leadership in improving b usiness activities and support in upgrading strategies and interventions.

You will work with county programs to identify, incubate, and accelerate business opportunities for value chain actors and in particular underserved SMEs with appropriate technical assistance and where appropriate linking to capital investment, while also generating a positive impact on livelihoods, rural employment, and land restoration in East Africa.

Your leadership, management and technical knowledge will ensure the delivery of high-quality design for programming, support value chain upgrading strategies, and identify opportunities for investing in candidate SMEs, to drive forward EARO’s overall food systems strengthening.

General Roles and Responsibilities:

Contribute to the design, advocate for, and ensure implementation of agency-wide strategies, standards, tools, and best practices in value chains, market systems and PSE that effectively engage partners, donors, and governments. Ensure a cross-sectoral approach that integrates gender, protection mainstreaming, and disaster risk reduction.

Provide technical solutions for regional and CP teams for strategic planning and how to best apply and adapt program design and implementation standards, best practices, partnership principles, tools, and business-related performance monitoring in value chains, market systems and PSE.

Growth: Contribute to HQ, regional, and country program staff efforts to pre-position CRS for strategic growth opportunities in value chains, market systems and PSE. Provide technical guidance in proposal development and project design with a focus on complex projects to ensure innovative programming solutions and technical excellence. Support CPs to appropriately staff project teams.

Capacity strengthening: Oversee and lead the delivery of capacity strengthening initiatives to enable staff and partners to identify new business opportunities and foster more effective business relationships for value chain actors.

Develop learning and training strategies and agendas/curriculums; organizing and/or facilitating trainings, workshops, and conferences; and mentoring and coaching staff in innovative CRS approaches and tools. Provide mentoring and coaching to other TAs, as well as CP and regional staff.

Knowledge Management: Oversee and lead innovation in agency knowledge management and learning agendas in value chains, market systems and PSE, through helping implement conditions for collective learning

Specific roles

Support EARO’s development and contributions to an

integral CRS approach to food systems and market systems development, enterprise development/private sector engagement, and financial service provision (MF, SME finance, digital finance).

Support the development of market-based approaches and specifically strengthen private sector engagement activities within the growing resilience and food and market systems project portfolio for target countries in EARO.

Assess the investment landscape within target value chains, for EARO activities and provide technical assistance to CP teams to foster value chain upgrading and both engage and leverage private sector innovation, management, and investment within activities.

Lead ongoing improvements to EARO’s private sector engagement.

In coordination with the Isidro team, work with CPs to identify opportunities for linkages with impact investment funds based in East Africa to support scaling of agricultural enterprises.

Explore options for Isidro expansion into EARO, aligned with existing and future agricultural value chain programming.

In partnership with CRS’s Isidro team, coordinate with country programs and partners to identify promising SME clients who are a good fit for the fund.

Support value chain mapping, and follow up with enterprise screening, capacity assessments, in collaboration with financial institutions and service providers, as required.

At the field level, act as a point of contact for value chains, markets, and coordination between EARO country programs and the HQ team on market systems development, enterprise development, and the provision of innovative financial services.

Required Languages:

Professional Fluency in written and spoken English.

Availability to travel regularly within EARO.

Basic Qualifications

7 years’ experience leading market-based agro-enterprise initiatives in resource-challenged contexts.

Master’s degree in Agriculture Economics, Business Administration.

History of contributing significantly to successful fundraising efforts (business development), capturing funding from public and/or private donors.

Experience monitoring and evaluating initiatives, and then analyzing and presenting the data/evidence/information in a convincing fashion to achieve clear advocacy outcomes.

Demonstrable experience representing an organization at the highest levels in meetings with donors, government, international NGOs, local partners, ecclesial and civil society.

Experience managing and/or preparing budgets and basic understanding of finance.

Preferred Qualifications

Significant experience working with farmer organizations, rural enterprises, and leading value chain work in diverse agroecological contexts.

Ten years of work experience in development, including technical advisory roles, project and budget management, proven track record in grants management and the facilitation of multi-stakeholder processes.


How to Apply

For more information and job application details, see; Catholic Relief Services Value Chains, Market Systems Jobs in Kenya

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