Capacity Building and Dissemination Specialist – Soil Values

About IFDC

IFDC is a public international organization active in 27 countries in Africa, Asia, and America. IFDC uniquely approaches the global issues of food security and poverty by bridging the gap between research and impact, combining science-based innovations, holistic market systems development, an enabling policy environment, and strategic partnerships to assist farmers and countries to identify and scale sustainable agricultural solutions, including improved nutrient use efficiency. These approaches are needed to boost soil health and crop productivity while reducing the environmental impact of fertilizer use. IFDC translates research into action by using locally driven, environmentally sound, and impact-oriented solutions. With our partners, we seek to close the yield gap, eradicate global hunger, safeguard the soil on which our lives depend, and generate economic resilience for farming households and the countries in which they live.

Position summary

The Capacity Building and Dissemination Specialist will be the driving force behind strengthening the capabilities of our to ensure the widespread adoption of proven soil fertility and Integrated Soil Fertility Management (ISFM) technologies. He will be responsible for developing and executing strategies to strengthen the capabilities of local implementing partners and drive the widespread adoption of proven Integrated Soil Fertility Management (ISFM) technologies. This involves conducting training needs assessments, designing and overseeing cascade training programs, and creating effective dissemination channels to ensure that innovative practices reach and are adopted by small-scale food producers, market actors, and policymakers across the Sahel, thereby directly contributing to the program's core goals of enhancing soil health, agricultural productivity, and farmer resilience.

Responsibilities

Specific task

• Develop, implement, and regularly update the program's comprehensive Capacity Building Strategy and Dissemination Strategy for technologies and approaches;
• Conduct iterative capacity needs assessments for different Soil Values stakeholders and link this to tailored approaches per type of stakeholder;
• Strengthen the capacity of partners in participatory co-design methods and Inclusive Landscape Management approach;
• Design and oversee the delivery of tailored training programs, including cascade training models, and learning sites within selected watersheds, for partners on ISFM technologies, such as: Production and use of organic amendments, Soil and water conservation techniques and Use of improved seeds and agroforestry;
• Facilitate the large-scale dissemination of proven technologies and practices from the program's inventory of innovations to farmers and value chain actors through facilitate workshops, field days, and learning events to promote the adoption of ISFM practices;
• Lead the use of context-specific, user-friendly dissemination materials and digital support tools (manuals, fact sheets, audio-visual tools) for identified innovations;
• Collaborate with knowledge partners (e.g. WUR, ISRIC, IWMI, ICRAF, IITA) to integrate the latest research and best practices into program activities;
• Include youth training on decision support tools to support youth business led development on DST for soil fertility management;
• Ensure all strategies are aligned with the program's objectives of social inclusiveness, gender equality (GESI), and resilience to climate change;
• Establish and manage a Community of Practice for partners to share lessons learned, challenges, and successes;
• Document and share success stories, case studies, and best practices for internal learning and external communication.

Requirements

• Master's degree in agriculture, Agronomy, Rural Development, Extension Services, Natural Resource Management, or a related field;
• A minimum of 7 years of professional experience in capacity building, agricultural extension, technology dissemination, or rural development, preferably in Sub-Saharan Africa (experience in the Sahel is a strong advantage);
• Proven experience in developing and implementing capacity-building strategies and training programs for diverse audiences;
• Strong understanding of Integrated Soil Fertility Management (ISFM), climate-smart agriculture, and agroecology;
• Excellent facilitation, communication, and presentation skills in French and English (proficiency in both is highly desirable);
• Experience working with a diverse range of stakeholders, including national governments, NGOs, research institutions, and farmer organizations.

Reporting and Work Relationships

The Capacity Building and Dissemination Specialistis supervised by the Deputy Program Director- Technical and benefits from the coaching of the Program Director and the other Deputy program Directors. The Specialist works in close collaboration with the bundling lead, Country Coordinators and Soil Values colleagues from other consortium members and Knowledge partners.

Location

This is a national recruitment with a duty station at the IFDC office based in one of the Soil Values focus countries (Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger or Nigeria).

Benefits

IFDC's benefits include annual and sick leave, health and group life insurance coverage, a 13th-month salary, social security and pension contribution in compliance with local laws and end-of-contract benefits.

Salary Clause

The salary grade for this position is BG 9.

The determination of new employee salaries takes into account various factors. These include the salary range linked to the assigned job grade, the candidate's qualifications in relation to the job's responsibilities and prerequisites, internal fairness, the competitive state of the job market, as well as potential organizational and budgetary considerations.

Diversity Clause

IFDC is committed to fostering a culture of diversity, equity, and inclusion. We believe in the value of bringing together people with a broad range of backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives. All employment decisions at IFDC are made on the basis of ability, performance, and organizational need, in alignment with our values of fairness, respect, and opportunity for all.

About Program/Project

Soil Values (SV) is a 10-year program funded by the Netherlands Directorate-General for International Cooperation (DGIS). The goal of the project is to address soil fertility constraints and achieve sustainable management of soil fertility in a way that contributes to ecologically sustainable improvements in food productivity and to increase resilience of small-scale food producers in the Sahel.

A consortium consisting of the International Fertilizer Development Center (IFDC), the Netherlands Development Organization (SNV), and Wageningen University (WUR) has secured funding from DGIS for the Soil Values program expected to be implemented from 2024 to 2033 in Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, and Northern Nigeria. This consortium is complemented by five knowledge partners – AGRA, World Agroforestry (ICRAF), International Institute for Tropical Agriculture (IITA), ISRIC – World Soil Information, and International Water Management Institute (IWMI), all of which are recognized leaders in their respective fields.