Reports to: LMAC Administrator

Background

Under the 11th European fund, the European Union and Government of Zimbabwe (GoZ) formed the Zimbabwe Agricultural growth program (ZAGP) which was granted 40 million Euros for the development of the Zimbabwe agricultural sector. Among the 6 projects is the Inclusive Poultry Value Chain Project (IPVC) which was awarded 6 million Euros towards improving the poultry value chain in Zimbabwe. The project is set to run for 3 years in 5 areas of Zimbabwe, Harare, Gweru, Bulawayo and Mutare.

The project comes in at a time where two-thirds of poultry production in Zimbabwe is from small to medium producers and they supply to independent butcheries, supermarkets in low-income markets and local communities, they have poor market linkages and insecure markets while incurring high transaction costs. Profits are low especially for small to medium producers (SMPs). The intervention seeks to promote an efficient poultry value chain that is inclusive and contributes to economic growth and green economy. The IPVC project will predominantly focus on broiler (meat), and layer (table eggs) production while also looking at other types of poultry with the primary beneficiaries of the project being established and emerging independent or contracted poultry producers. The project will organize poultry value chain actors for market and service linkages, SMPs will be organized to achieve economies of scale and to have bargaining power. SMPs will also be capacitated through technical extension and trainings and different solutions and models will be used to achieve this. There will also be integration of business systems and guiding principles into the poultry value chain these include natural resource management, quality management and decent rural employment. The project will address challenges identified by engaging private sector, public sector and SMPs who are the beneficiaries. The idea of an inclusive approach is to ensure relevance and continuation after the project ends.

The project is being led by COSPE supported by consortium partners who are Sustainable Agricultural Trust (SAT) who will be facilitating development and private sector engagement in Harare and Mutare while Welthungerhilfe will be implementing extension and development in Bulawayo, Gweru and Masvingo. The Livestock and Meat Advisory Council (LMAC) and Cultivating New Frontiers in Agriculture (CNFA) are also other supporting partners. Welthungerhilfe (WHH) will also provide Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) solutions and developing digital platforms to strengthen performance at every level.

The IPVC is in the process of setting up a Poultry Information Management System (PIMS). PIMS is a data repository designed to monitor and measure performance of the poultry value chain. The system will be housed and managed by the LMAC on behalf of the Zimbabwe Poultry Association (ZPA), which already collects data on major hatcheries, commercial egg producers and abattoirs.

PIMS will strengthen current ZPA poultry information through incorporation of key performance indicators on small to medium scale poultry production and marketing from the five regions that where IPVC is working. This data will be processed, analysed and converted into timely reports and value chain insights that will be used to inform industry strategy and policy advocacy. This system will help the project and the Zimbabwe Poultry Association (ZPA) to track in real time the performance of the poultry sector during the project life and after the project ends.

Purpose of the role

The purpose of the LMAC ICT4D ZPA Manager, a part-time position over 15 months, is to ensure sustainability as well as up-scaling of the ICT4D services that are currently being piloted under the IPVC project that include farmer and Poultry Business Association (PBA) apps and incorporation of SMP indicators into national ZPA database to generator inclusive poultry market intelligence and evidence-based policy advocacy products.

Key responsibilities

The ICT4D ZPA Manager under the LMAC will be responsible for: Coordinating the aggregation of data from the Poultry Management App. by officers assigned to the regional PBAs;

Coordinating quarterly surveys of SMP production and marketing by the regional PBAs;

Analysing quarterly surveys of SMP production and marketing to generate regional and national SMP subsector reports;

Coordinating ZPA industry returns and reports from breeders, hatcheries, large scale poultry producers and abattoirs;

Collating Poultry Management App. Generated data and regional PBA survey data into the central ZPA industry database;

Transformation of data collected into regular industry reports for distribution to all poultry value chain participants including public agencies;

and Coordinating the maintenance of the ZPA PIMS hardware and software.

Qualifications and skills

A first degree in Animal or Biological Science with strong quantitative data analysis. A Masters’ degree will be added advantage;

At least 3 years of successful work in national and supernational livestock database management in a developing country, preferably in Zimbabwe;

Ability to work effectively with a wide range of partners that include private sector actors, government, farmers’ unions/associations and research institutions;

Professional fluency in English in speaking, reading, and writing;

Excellent verbal presentation and writing skills;

and Experience with working within a livestock representative organisation is an added advantage.

To apply

This is a limited tender. Participation is upon invitation. The prospective candidate shall provide the following documents upon application: CV - Indicating her/his experience in livestock data analytics and it is also important for him/her to have familiarity with the Zimbabwean development context and experience in livestock information management systems; 1 page concept note explaining applicant’s understanding of the task. Emails to be sent to secretary@lit.co.zw