VACANCY : Program Officer Fair Economic Development

Job Profile ICCO West Africa

Program Officer Fair Economic Development (February 2012)

Job title	Program Officer Fair Economic Development (PO FED)
Specification of the job	(Senior) Programme Officer for ICCO’s programs in the area of Fair and Sustainable Economic Development, including: o   Value Chain Development (VCD) o   Coordination of the Agrihub Network in Sikasso o   Links between VCD and Fair Climate Programs o   Coordination of the Connect for Change Programme (C4C)
Responsibility	Direct responsibility for Economic Development Programs and Local & International Market Development (supported by ICCO’s Netherlands based Central Office). General responsibility for effective, efficient (learning) relationships between ICCO and partners and program coalitions, including the (C4C) Alliance, in the region, as well as the relations with ICCO Central Office & back donors.
Position in the organization	The program officer reports to the Regional Manager, works in a multidisciplinary team and in close cooperation with the Finance Officer, the Business Economics Advisor, the Value Chain Advisor and program specialists of ICCO’s Head Office.
Overall job objective	o   Contribute to regional development processes by facilitating multi-actor, multi-level Fair Economic Development programs (Shea, Sesame, Rice, and Cereal Value Chains, and multi-actor development initiatives such as the Agrihub in the Sikasso Region) o   Support strategic relations and alliances within the framework of ICCO’s Strategic Plan (including access to finance with Oikocredit, Terrafina); o   Facilitate the elaboration and implementation of multi actor programs in the shea and sesame chain in Mali and Burkina Faso o   Assist partners in identifying capacity-building support, cooperation with new stakeholders and additional funding, when needed. The team of program officers covers all thematic area’s in terms of knowledge, actors and content.
Tasks	o   Identification and facilitation of programs and program coalitions by applying the 4 ICCO strategic roles: strategic financing, advocacy and lobby, capacity building and brokering/network building o   Assessment of program- and project proposals and business plans o   Preparation of financing decisions o   Control, evaluation and monitoring of ongoing contracts between ICCO and program coalitions & partners o   Contribute to learning, exchange and knowledge-sharing in West Africa with partners / partner coalitions and in the North with relevant ICCO-specialist and ICCO PO’s world wide, and with strategic or ICCO Alliance partners. o   Contribute to policy development with relevant ICCO- specialist(s) in ICCO’s Head Office and to the development of the regional annual plan o   Contribute to communication activities regarding activities and policies of ICCO and partners in North and South o   Contribute to applications for additional funding by other donors and investors o   Coordination with other relevant alliances in the region (ICCO is member of the ICCO-alliance, APRODEV, ACT, Oikocredit, WASH Alliance, Connect4Change Alliance, AgriProFocus Agrihub Mali)

Qualifications needed	o   FED-relevant educational background (masters Agro-Economy, Agronomy, etc) o   7-10 years FED-relevant working experience, preferably also in value chain development o   Good knowledge of the social, economic & political situation in the region o   Substantial international experience in a relevant field of work. o   Good knowledge of development issues, understanding change processes, multi stakeholder processes and North-South cooperation. o   Excellent language skills (verbal and in writing) in English and French. o   Knowledge of financial aspects related to funding of programs and basic knowledge / experience with financial aspects related to assessment of business plans o   Negotiation skills, o   Networking and facilitating skills o   Good writing and presentation skills
Competences needed	o   Able to explore, process and master large quantities and varieties of information o   Open: sharing experiences, initiating new contacts, views and opportunities, networker o   Multicultural sensitivity and skill (regional and north-south) o   Innovative in approaching development issues o   Result oriented; maximizing impact and efficiency o   Team worker o   Integrity: careful/ honest with people, money, information and knowledge o   Reliable: “does as (s)he says”
Terms of employment	The ICCO West Africa Regional Office employment conditions apply.
Contact	Mr Idrissa Ba idrissa.ba@icco.nl +223 7034 4962, PO FED Mr Piet van Ommeren piet.van.ommeren@fairandsustainable.nl + 223 7002 0876, Regional Manager
Submission	Before 1st of March 2012 to the regional manager by mail: esaie.dembele@icco.nl