THE ROLE:
The purpose of this consultancy is to support CABI in its role as project lead and to ensure the successful establishment of the project: value chain development for potato and processing in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI). The consultant will support CABI to liaise effectively with partners and provide backstopping and tailored capacity building to ensure successful project implementation and monitoring. The consultant will also support CABI in exploring alignment with other initiatives in the region and potential new project opportunities in Iraq and the wider region.
Deliverables
• Build and maintain a professional relationship with project partners and potential partners relating to the project.
• Support CABI in its role as project coordinator, ensuring professional and timely interaction between CABI and partners by receiving, translating and composing communications.
• Support CABI in providing advice to partners on integration of gender and youth into the project activities.
• Support CABI in backstopping partners in the design and implementation of monitoring and evaluation surveys according to an agreed plan
• Where required:
• Support CABI and partners to initiate an effective project monitoring and evaluation system to gather, store and analyse project data. This will include identifying any capacity gaps and, with guidance from CABI, providing tailored capacity building to address gaps
• Support CABI in backstopping partners in relation to project financial
management, including identifying capacity gaps and providing tailored capacity building to address gaps
• Support CABI in backstopping partners to deliver high quality project reports and work with partners to gather information to enable CABI to deliver project
reports in a timely manner
• Facilitate partner meetings and workshops
• Deliver weekly project situation updates
• Report covering potential alignment with other projects and potential new opportunities for CABI in the region.
Education & Experience
• A first degree and/or Masters in a development, social or science related discipline.
• At least five years’ post-qualification experience
• Project management including financial management, budget planning, agreements and reporting
• Managing or providing significant support to a project that involved working with government agencies,
private sector and/or agricultural extension staff
• Experience in working with the international development cooperation community in KRI
Knowledge & Skills
• Fluency in Kurdish and English, with excellent written and oral communication skills in both languages.
Fluency in Arabic desirable.
• Understanding of systems of government services as well as agricultural and social policies of KRI
• Ability to work across multicultural, international and multidisciplinary teams of private and public sectors.
as well as knowledge institutions.
Personal Characteristics
• Highly motivated, organized and adaptable, with strong inter-personal and communication skills
• Capable of working with a wide range of project stakeholders from senior government officials to farmers
in a professional, diplomatic and sensitive manner
• Capable of working independently as well as part of a team
• Able to work under pressure, which may include frequent local travel and occasional out-of-hours working,
to deliver high quality products to tight deadlines
• Strong networking skills
• Flexible and willing to travel within KRI and abroad in case required