Program and Partnerships Manager, Drylands Innovations at International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI)

Job description

The International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) seeks to recruit a Program and Partnerships Manager, Drylands Innovations to co-lead an actionable research for development agenda by sustaining interaction between the scientific contributions of a team of Drylands Innovation researchers with the constituents needed to co-design, assess, and implement the innovations to achieve broad- scale sustainable impacts. The position will lead the establishment of enabling partnerships and environments to offer an appropriate pathway to scale for promising interventions. The winning candidate will build on the team efforts to support the sustainable scaling of their maturing index-based livestock insurance program and develop and manage the relationships and resources required to support the growing agenda around digital information systems for dryland development and other related technologies.

Responsibilities

• Lead partnership identification, relationship management and strategy engagement processes related to the Dryland Innovation agenda, with an emphasis on bridging the research program with the imperative to deliver, assess, and scale innovations, as well as contribute to related policy and process design.
• Conceptualize and design strategies and processes for sustainable scaling of the both proven and nascent interventions and technologies developed/supported by the researchers. Co-lead the execution of the strategies with the researchers.
• Represent the Drylands Innovation agenda in related internal, external and international fora, communicating research findings at the policy and practice level and gathering inputs, insights and resources to feedback into the research agenda.
• Lead the development of a terms of reference for establishing a national agricultural insurance taskforce in Ethiopia and help launch the process. Once established, coordinate stakeholder contributions, support resource mobilisation, led awareness creation and related influencing and brokering functions aligned to the taskforce’s objectives.
• Lead and contribute to resource mobilization efforts in support of the team’s agenda.
• Provide strategic and intellectual support for the design and implementation of effective capacity building and awareness creation initiatives as required to support the agenda. Lead communications campaigns for the agenda.
• Collaborate on research publications that articulate how the agenda is enabling innovation in the drylands and achieving impact through taking these innovations to scale.
• Contribute to project management and reporting requirements in-line with ILRI and donor policies and procedures, while ensuring timeliness, quality and responsiveness to development partners.
• Support and contribute to developing MEL frameworks for the range of projects under the team’s agenda along with developing related instruments for operationalizing them.

Requirements

• Masters with 10 plus years of related progressive experience/ or Ph.D. with 5 years of experience. Disciplinary focus in agricultural development, agribusiness, development economics, rural development or related field.
• Ability to manage complex programs
• Partner development, engagement and management
• Policy brokering/influencing
• High-level writing and communication skills
• Demonstration of relevant contacts, networks
• Experience with developing and managing innovative scientific and development projects.
• Understanding of dryland systems, livestock economy, and digital 4 development initiatives

Post location: The position will be based in Nairobi, Kenya.

Position level: The position level is 5A.

Duration: 3 years with the possibility of renewal, contingent upon individual performance and continued funding.

Benefits: ILRI offers a competitive salary and benefits package which includes 15% Pension, Medical insurance, Life insurance and allowances for: Education, Housing, Relocation, Home leave, Annual holiday entitlement of 30 days + public holidays.