Project manager - Agricultural Development Program

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Agricultural Development Program

Jezzine - Lebanon

Introduction

The European Institute for Cooperation and Development (IECD) is a French non‐governmental organization (NGO)

founded in 1988 and operating in the field of social and economic development in partnership with local institutions.

IECD’s main sectors of action are vocational training and professional integration, assistance to micro and small

enterprises and access to education for the most vulnerable. IECD has been operating In Lebanon since 1988 and

opened a regional office in Beirut in 2007.

The agricultural development program aims to create farming opportunities while adopting an agro‐ecology

approach and preserving the environment.

This five‐year project has two main components:

‐ Providing new farmers with installation assistance

‐ Supporting the transition toward agroecology practices

The main subsectors targeted are: market gardening, arboriculture, beekeeping, and aromatic plants and in a lesser

extent the processing related to these agricultural produce.

This new project will be implemented in the South area (Jezzine area in particular) and in the Aley caza (Rechmaya

and surroundings).

To implement the program activities, IECD is looking for a Project Manager

MISSION

Under the responsibility of the programs manager, the Project Manager will be responsible of:

1/ Manage the implementation of the project.

‐ Design and manage the action plan (launching and development phases)

‐ Manage the daily operations:

o Implement activities and set priorities

o Coordinate administrative and logistics tasks with the support of the procurement officer

(purchase, maintenance, etc.)

o Ensure availability of qualitative individual follow‐up to newly set farmers

o Support to brand development / origin labelling and set up of a control mechanism of the source

o Ensure that the organic standards are well respected from the production to the processing phase

‐ Design the contents of training sessions in market gardening and conduct the training sessions

‐ Coordinate the training contents design in the other subsectors.

‐ Ensure positive impact on the beneficiaries and a qualitative project

‐ Suggest improvements

2/ Manage the budget and funding

‐ Design and manage the yearly operational budgetEnsure the proper use of the funds, according to the

donor agencies and IECD procedures

‐ Prepare and share the budget updates (achieved and forecast) on a regular basis

‐ Participate in the preparation of financial audit with the financial team of the IECD delegation in Beirut

‐ Set a mechanism of disbursement with the partner and the benificiaries

3/ Manage the project team

‐ Recruit, coach, retain and motivate an agricultural technical assistant

‐ Identify and mobilize key national and international experts with the support of the program coordination

4/ Reporting, Monitoring & Evaluation

‐ Adapt the monitoring tools with the programmatic coordination

‐ Follow‐up the logical framework key indicators on a regular basis

‐ Prepare and share internal narrative reports on a monthly basis

‐ Prepare and upon validation share narrative and financial reports to donor agencies all along the project

duration

‐ Develop close relationships with donor agencies in the fields through field visits, regular meetings, visibility

events

‐ Support the preparation of fundraising applications

‐ Prepare internal and external evaluations

5/ Animate and Develop the Operational Partnerships and participate in the institutional representation.

‐ With the support of the country representative, the agricultural development coordinator, and the rural

development expert, animate and develop partnerships in parallel with the project implementation

‐ Represent IECD with the local stakeholders and public entities

‐ Identify and develop relationships with the other key actors in agriculture in Lebanon

‐ Share the key elements needed for the project internal and external communication, ensure its visibility

(newsletter, FB page, local media, events, etc.)

‐ Participate in the fundraising activities (preparation of proposals, organization of field visits)

‐ Identify opportunities to extend the agricultural development program in Lebanon

6/ Knowledge management.

‐ Develop and update technical monitoring tools (demo plots and at farms’ level) and analyze data.

‐ Develop contents of technical material in order to support the transition towards agroecology.

PROFILE

Education: University degree in agronomy.

Experience: Minimum 3 years of experience as project manager, 1‐to‐3‐year experience in working in agriculture.

Previous experience in market gardening, beekeeping and/or aromatic plant.

Field experience in farms is a plus.

Required skills and competencies: 

‐ Excellent interpersonal and facilitation skills

‐ Strong motivation to work on the field with various profiles of beneficiaries and partners

‐ Adaptability and excellent listening skills

‐ Ability to work as part of a team

‐ Show initiative and be able to work independently, strong autonomy

‐ Good organizational skills, ability to co‐develop and follow a detailed project plan to track progress

‐ Ability to identify project objectives and work towards them

‐ Ability to use appropriate verification techniques to manage changes in project scope, schedule,

procurement, and costs

‐ Native command of the Arabic language and high proficiency of English or French

‐ Good command of pack office

CONDITIONS

Under the supervision of: Programs manager

Location: Main site: Kfarhoune and secondary site: Rechmaya

Position dates: the soonest for a period of 12 months renewable

Contract: One year work contract

Package: to be determined upon experience