Zambia Agriculture Research Associate at One Acre Fund

Founded in 2006, One Acre Fund supplies smallholder farmers with the agricultural services they need to make their farms more productive. We provide quality farm supplies on credit, delivered within walking distance of farmers’ homes, and agricultural trainings to improve harvests. We measure our success by our ability to make farmers more prosperous: On average, farmers harvest 50 percent more food after working with One Acre Fund.

We are growing quickly. We serve more than 800,000 farm families in Eastern and Southern Africa, with more than 7,500 full-time staff, and we aim to serve 1 million farm families by 2020.

Job Description

The Agricultural Research Associate will focus on agriculture research from Desk Research to participatory farmer field trials. You will lead the process of trial identification, trial design, execution, analysis and interpretation of results, and recommendations for core program change and improvement.

The Innovations Team is the driving force behind improving One Acre Fund’s programs, products, and services to farmers. The position will be based in Kabwe, Central Province Zambia. The Agricultural Research Associate will be on the Zambia Innovations Team, managed by the Innovations Lead.

Responsibilities

• Desk research: Conduct research and collaborate with other agriculture institutions in Zambia and elsewhere to inform Agricultural strategy. You will develop surveys, focus groups, semi-structured interview protocols and other farmer engagement strategies, and analyse data to discover and evaluate new trial ideas for improving impact along our 3 major impact categories: Farmer profit, Healthy soil, and Healthy families. Some current areas of focus are:
• Reduce the cost of growing maize for One Acre Fund Zambia farmers
• Move forward with trials and scale up of reduction of weeds pressure
• Develop a strategy to build soil fertility and structure for One Acre Fund Zambia farmers
• Best practices for designing crop storage trials
• Lead farmers’ preference tests for maize and other crops
• Design and support implementation of Research station trials
• Play a role in trial identification and design for all research station trials.
• Create impact models for each product or idea to be tested throughout trials
• Create crop management protocols and calendars for trials
• Support the research station team in managing trials and solving problems
• Design and support execution of participatory farmer field trials
• Prioritize trials, particularly through use of desk research and research station trials results
• Create planting protocols and calendars for trials
• Support the Impact field team in managing trials and solving problems
• Data audit and analysis
• Analysis and reporting
• Follow completion of trials, the Agriculture Research Manager will:
• Manage statistical analyses and interpret results
• Draft trial reports and make recommendations for next steps e.g. repeat trial, add treatments, scaling-up.

CAREER GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT
We have a culture of constant learning and we invest in developing our people. You’ll have weekly check-ins with your manager, access to mentorship and training programs, and regular feedback on your performance. We hold career reviews every six months, and set aside time to discuss your aspirations and career goals. You’ll shape a growing organization and build a rewarding long-term career.

Qualifications

We are looking for someone with 2 or more years of experience and a passion for and knowledge of agricultural sciences and development. Candidates who fit the following criteria are encouraged to apply:

• Experience with agricultural research and application of findings, especially in smallholder tropical agriculture.
• Experience with trial management (research station and / or participatory farmer field trials)
• A formal educational background in the agricultural sciences or soil science. A Master is required.
• Relevant work experiences, which may include a demanding professional work experience, successful entrepreneurial experience, leading a conference, starting a business, etc.
• Project management skills, communication, and leadership experience.
• Data management and analysis skills. Experience with Excel (can perform complex functions) required; experience with R or Stata preferred.
• A willingness to commit to living in East Africa for at least two years.
• You have at least one year demonstrated experience working in the developing world, although this is not a strict requirement.
• Language: English required.

Preferred Start Date

As soon as possible.

Compensation

Commensurate with experience.

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