Livestock Specialist

Program / Project Support  Rwanda   Kigali

Heifer International is an equal opportunity employer.  All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, status as a protected veteran, among other things, or status as a qualified individual with some form of disability.

FUNCTION

The Project Livestock Specialist for the Partnership for Resilient and Inclusive Small Livestock Markets (PRISM) Project will be responsible for the coordination of matters related to livestock development, animal wellbeing and extension service delivery. S/he will lead and coordinate the planning and implementation of activities aimed to enhance adoption of improved animal management, productivity practices and standards to ensure animal health, animal husbandry and product quality assurance are achieved.

S/he will provide technical guidance to field teams throughout the implementation, ensure good collaboration with communities and local authorities; make sure that District Coordinators and beneficiaries have knowledge and skills to humanely maximize animals’ productivity and reduce the cost of production to the lowest level possible while working in close collaboration and coordination with the Project Manager to ensure successful implementation of the project. S/he will also be responsible for consolidating field data and evidence to support any impact achieved.

PRISM is an ambitious five-year Signature project with the overall objective of reducing poverty by empowering poor rural men, women and youth to participate in the transformation of the Rwanda livestock sector and to enhance their resilience. The programmed development objective is to improve food and nutritional security and the incomes of poor rural households through the better performance of the value chains.

ESSENTIAL CHARACTER TRAITS: 

Drives results, accountability, manage complex environments, excellent and effective communication, resourcefulness, manage conflict, team player.

RESPONSIBILITIES & DELIVERABLES

A. Coordinate all livestock related activities of PRISM and provide technical leadership and guidance to the project team on livestock-related matters (30%)

• In collaboration with the Project Manager, lead and facilitate the planning, implementation and reporting on project activities for animal production and animal health in the project area;
• Coordinate the placement of small livestock in the target communities, Update databases of project beneficiaries in a well and neatly complete training attendance sheets.
• Prepare and submit relevant, measurable and time-bound project information to the project manager on a monthly, quarterly, semi-annually, and annually basis;
• Ensure quality animals are selected for placement throughout the project lifetime;
• Ensure timely delivery of livestock and other physical inputs throughout the project’s lifetime.
• Coordinate, supervise and report on the effectiveness and efficiency of field veterinary service delivery and disease control;
• Develop a monthly plan for all items needed for establishing and strengthening farmers Self Help Groups (SHGs);
• Review and approve annual, monthly quarterly, semester technical reports from the field technicians.

B. Support and provide oversight of the establishment of livestock producer hubs as well as veterinary and extension services delivery (20%)

• Support the recruitment process of Community Argo Vet Entrepreneurs (CAVEs), Mentoring Teams (MT) and Project Management Committees (PMCs).
• Coordinate supply of quality veterinary services, equipment, vaccines, medicines, through the hubs as appropriate
• Facilitate the engagement of the private sector in the provision of Veterinary and Extension Services.
• Develop plans for integration of technology in the delivery of extension services

C. Design and implement necessary capacity building for farmers & partners to ensure adoption of improved animal management and production practices and standards at project level (30%).

• Collaborate with a technical partner(s) both internally and externally to design training curriculum and develop training materials on animal health, husbandry, and animal-related issues.
• Participate in the development of technical training material and coaching program on animal production;
• Prepare and design training curriculum and develop training materials on animal health, husbandry and animal-related issues.
• Provide follow-up and backstopping to trained farmers, partners and Heifer staff Mobilize CAVEs and technical experts as appropriate for improving livestock management practices.
• Coaching, guiding and training of CAVEs, farmers and partners in animal management

D. Representation and stakeholder’s management (15%)

• Participate in planned project related meetings/events including the IFAD’s Implementation Support Missions as needed;
• Represent the organization in planned District Meetings including but not limited to the “Joint Action District Forum-JADF”;
• Ensure relationships with project partners at the district level are regularly nurtured and report any issue of interest for Heifer work to the manager as soon as it arises;
• Ensure cluster monthly work plans & reports are shared with the district Single Project Implementation Unit (SPIU) & Project Partner representative as needed;
• Participate in all regular and any relevant meetings/events that may come up.
• Ensure cluster work plans and reports are shared with the district (RGB online System) semi-annually

E. Any Other Assigned Function (5%)

• Perform any other duty as may be assigned by supervisor(s).

Minimum Requirements

1. A Bachelor’s Degree in Veterinary Science or equivalent plus five (5) years of relevant working experience is required. Other job-related education and/or experience may be substituted for all or part of these basic requirements.

Preferred Requirements

1. Master’s Degree in Veterinary Medicine with at least two (2) years of experience working with development programs in the small livestock value chains.
2. Fluent in Kinyarwanda and English (both written and spoken). Knowledge of French could be an added advantage.

Most Critical Proficiencies

1. Knowledge of and experience in working with livestock programs
2. Knowledge of and experience with or within community organizations
3. Fluent in national language/s and English, spoken as well as written
4. Good leadership qualities
5. Good communication skills
6. Have an interest in animals/agriculture/community development
7. Excellent organizational skills including strong attention to detail
8. Skills with Microsoft Office package, internet browser, and other appropriate technology.

Essential Job Functions and Physical Demands

1. Serving as the Lead technical staff for Project Livestock management activities
2. Mentoring Project staff and Community Agro-Vet Entrepreneurs in small livestock development with relevance to the Project scope
3. Coordinating Livestock management training activities and prepare success stories.
4. Working in close collaboration with the Project staff, CFs, relevant authorities and SHGs to ensure successful POGs (small livestock, construction materials, knowledge, etc.).
5. Providing technical assistance to the Project Manager in the planning and implementation of Project activities crucial to the success of the project.
6. Preparing and presenting program reports and presentations in a well-designed and attractive format with superior attention to detail.
7. Proven team leadership and supervisory skills with the ability to train and work cooperatively with a diverse staff.
8. Regularly conduct a stakeholder analysis to strengthen partnerships and leveraging of resources
9. Constant face-to-face, telephone and electronic communication with colleagues and the general public to scale up country program visibility and publicity.
10. May require constant sitting; working at a computer, focusing for extended periods of time and performing office work in the field and/or in remote conditions.
11. Ability to manage and execute multiple tasks with little supervision while meeting strict deadlines.
12. Ability to work with sensitive information and maintain confidentiality.
13. MS Office: Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Microsoft Project.