Consultant for FMM Project Sustainable productivity growth in agriculture

Organizational Setting

The Strategic Programme 2 (SP2) coordinates the implementation of the FAO’s Strategic Objective 2 “Make crops, livestock, forestry, aquaculture and fisheries more productive and sustainable”. SP2 is responsible for the FMM Project “Sustainable productivity growth in agriculture”.

The objective of the project is to provide evidence-based guidance and tools to promote a transition to more productive and sustainable agriculture at national and local level, in alignment with the SDGs. The project will enhance insights on trends and drivers of sustainability transitions in agriculture at global and country levels. It will develop a framework to undertake local level assessment of the impact of specific systems on productivity and different sustainability dimensions. This will allow the selection of suitable farm level interventions that consider synergies and trade-offs and respond to local and policy priorities. The SDGs and in particular SDG indicator 2.4.1. (proportion of agricultural area under productive and sustainable agriculture) will serve as the key anchor for analysis. In order to allow the application and rapid upscaling of the use of this framework, the project will further integrate key FAO data sources and models in a way to enhance their accessibility for national and local assessment and procedures, including through mobile applications. The project will draw upon and align the expertise, methods and tools in FAO, with different technical units leading deliverables in their area of expertise, and work in close consultation and collaboration with relevant partners at international and national levels.

Reporting Lines

The Consultant reports to the Strategic Programme 2 Leader and is directly supervised by the SP2 lead technical officer managing the FMM project, in in close collaboration and coordination with relevant FAO HQ and regional Technical Teams.

Technical Focus

The Project Consultant will be responsible for delivering specific activities of the FMM Project “Sustainable productivity growth in agriculture” and supporting SP2 and the leading technical divisions in the coordinating work areas with involved FAO teams and external partners. In particular the consultant will work on assessing and reviewing the current sustainability of systems, compile evidence on which policy and enabling interventions achieve sustainable transitions and contribute to the development of methods and tools and support national and local stakeholders in decisions making and monitoring.

Tasks and responsibilities

The incumbent will be responsible for the following activities\:

• Lead a review of lessons learned about factors that aid or hinder transitions to sustainable agricultural production systems based upon FAO’s project portfolio and insights from partner agencies.
• Lead the development of guidance materials for countries based upon these insights, to assist them in fostering transitions towards productive and sustainable agriculture.
• Coordinate the identification of usable data and information sources relevant for national and local decision-making.
• Support lead units in coordinating technical discussions across units and with partners, for example on the identification of key indicators to assess sustainability.
• Support FAO and external teams in converting identified indicators into effective and user-friendly tools for national and local stakeholders.
• Assist in selection of implementing partners among Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), universities, research institutes and develop partnership agreements for implementation of specific activities, where applicable.
• Support the organization and the delivery of the project inception workshop and other project related multi-stakeholder workshops.
• Support the coordination of project activities in two selected countries, in close coordination and support of the FAO country offices.
• Coordinate awareness raising activities, communications and the development of materials needed in print, electronic or other forms.
• Assist in the preparation of work plans and progress reports for PSR and donor sessions.
• Undertake any other duties and activities as required for the successful implementation of the project.

CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING\:

Minimum Requirements

• Advanced University degree (for COF.REG)/ University Degree (for PSA) in agricultural or environmental sciences, natural sciences, economics, management or related field
• A minimum of five years’ experience working with sustainable development in the agriculture sectors, in particular on issues related to sustainability assessments, tools and policies to promote transitions towards sustainable agriculture. In particular candidates will be assessed on knowledge and experience in using indicators for sustainability assessments and their use in decisions making and monitoring.
• Working knowledge of English and limited knowledge of one other FAO official language (French, Spanish, Arabic, Chinese, Russian).

FAO Core Competencies

• Results Focus
• Teamwork
• Communication
• Building Effective Relationships
• Knowledge Sharing and Continuous Improvement

Selection Criteria

• Extent of knowledge and relevance of experience in the field of the understanding of the economic, social and environmental components of sustainability in crops, livestock, forestry, aquaculture and fisheries sectors, including natural resource management and their practical application in a development context;
• Extent and relevance of experience in the field of development and use of tools and methodologies to assess sustainability, including assessment indicators, as well the use of GIS and data platforms;
• Extent and relevance of experience in the field of working with small holders and rural communities as well as the practicalities of these stakeholders using decisions making methods and tools;
• Demonstrated team building and networking skills with the ability to create dialogue and collaboration between diverse stakeholder groups;
• Understanding of SDG targets and indicators;
• Understanding of FAO policies and programmes.