Field Officers (20 Positions) at Janta Kenya

Purpose of the role

Our client is looking for Field Officers who will build the capacity of Small Holder farmers in group formation and management, good agronomy practices for farming macadamia nuts, integrated pest & diseases management, soil management, harvesting, post-harvest handling, crop diversification and environmental mitigation & monitoring plan, among other critical areas of training.

Responsibilities:

• Building the Capacity of 8500 Small Holder Farmers of which 35% will be female in the agronomy practices of nuts to ensure maximization of yield and farmer income.
• Coordinate the mobilization and registration of smallholder farmers comprising in our current supply chain of the expected newly registered farmers.
• Implement the delivery of capacity building training and support to. The course will include: Group organization, governance, banking, financial literacy, Pest and soil management, Harvesting, Post-harvest handling, Environmental mitigation & monitoring plan, Crop diversification techniques and best management practices.
• Deliver training curriculum based on identified needs including training manual, materials and handouts ensuring training quality and efficiency.
• Implementation of the training program and schedule in collaboration with the Agronomist, Farmer communities and other stakeholders.
• Administration of pre and post training questionnaires to all farmers.
• Ensure the comprehensive management of training data and records including the training list, certifications and attendance forms.
• Preparation and timely submission of monthly training reports and summaries in the prescribed formats.
• To support the elevation of nut productivity, increasing yields and farmer income from Kshs 156m (31m from women) to 225m (56m from women) in the first year, 232m (70m from women) in the second year and 291m (93m from women) in the third year.
• Support the management of an operational propagation unit for macadamia seedlings with capacity to propagate approximately 46,000 tree seedlings per year.
• Develop a seedlings distribution plan to the farmers and ensure its implementation.
• Recruitment and registration of new farmers from the relevant county.
• Support the farmer group formation and strengthening in order to enhance mass purchasing of sufficient quantities.
• Prepare monthly and quarterly reports on progress towards capacity building as required.
• Support the facilitation of farmer linkages with relevant service providers for NHIF, financial services, soils testing, cooperative formation, technology products, farm inputs, seedlings, among others.
• Update and maintain a database of service providers linked to farmers and the services they provide in the project.

Requirements:

• Diploma in Agriculture, Agronomy or related areas
• A bachelor’s degree in related areas would be an added advantage
• At least one year of experience in farmer mobilization, farmer training or working with plantation crops is required.
• Knowledge of group formation and management, good agronomy practices, integrated pest & diseases management, soil management, harvesting, post-harvest handling, crop diversification and environmental mitigation & monitoring is preferred.
• Knowledge of the opportunities and challenges by famers in rural communities in Kenya is preferred.
• Additional training in field training techniques is preferred.