Senior Programme Officer

KEY DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:
Organizational Strengthening
• Initiate and maintain relationships with local communities, public and government institutions, educational institutions among other stakeholders
• Understand producer needs and concerns, advocate on relevant policies to enhance FTA’s work with the local opinion leaders and decision makers.
• Ensure awareness of the local trends, perceptions and players in the local community.
• Advise on how to manage risk and optimize on the opportunities
• Influence localized policies and perceptions in favour of FTA though the support of the Programme Manager.
• Support the identification of opportunities for programmes and projects development
• Support and provide advice to producer groups to enable access to trade and marketing opportunities
• Represent FTA in country and field events
• Support the needs and situational assessment of producer organizations and propose recommendations to best support Small Producer Organizations
• Support in provision of technical assistance to members in the development of business strategic plans, marketing plans related to business development and growth requirements
• Provide thematic training on issues such as; Gender, workers’ rights, premium management, Governance, Good Agronomic Practices etc.
Pre- and post-certification
• Act as a key point of contact for member and producer organization queries, ensuring that, issues are dealt with promptly and efficiently.
• Conduct Fairtrade Standards workshop for small producer organisations (cooperatives)
• Provide pre and post certification support to SPOs as required
• Provide one-on-one coaching to cooperatives and provide the necessary support related to certification
• Conduct needs assessment of SPOs
• Participate in Fairtrade Africa’s meetings and Regional events.
• Provide support to cooperatives to prepare towards audit through trainings on the Fairtrade standards.
• Support producer organizations in the implementation of corrective measures and follow up on performance issues.

Membership Support
• Implement FTA membership strategy and ensure follow up on membership issues with regional office
• Support to mobilize membership fees and encourage producers to participate in Regional and Continental events such congresses, convention etc.
• Submit necessary reports on country activities as per required timelines
• Support and or, participate in Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) activities
• Advise on member’s perceptions and attitudes towards FTA and the NFOs and other stakeholders operating within the region
• Support in the implementation of specific projects with SPOs beyond the WACP funded either by NFOs, Commercial partners or Donors when required
• Support in fundraising activities for the POs in Sierra Leone
• Support in producer level data collection to inform decision making
• Support Cooperatives to manage their data on Deforestation for analysis and support on producer onboarding on other digital monitoring platforms developed by Fairtrade.
Project Management
• Support the implementation of projects to assist producer organisations
• Monitor operational activities and effectiveness of results and milestones
• Compile monthly updates and quarterly reports using FTA and project templates
• Support and participate in Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) activities
• Support the development of project proposals

Qualifications
• Bachelor’s Degree in Economics, Agriculture or related field
Experience and Knowledge
• A minimum of 3 years’ experience in agricultural development
• Experience in supporting ethical and sustainable supply chains
• Knowledge of agricultural development and sustainable business practices
• Knowledge and understanding of Fairtrade standards
• Thematic knowledge and expertise in FTA’s priority areas

• Strong technical expertise on deforestation monitoring systems and GIS would be a great advantage
• Good IT skills and understanding of data protection issues in Cote d’Ivoire would be a added advantage.
• Good understanding of European Union Deforestation Regulation
Skills
• Good command of spoken and written English.
• Excellent interpersonal skills with ability to interact with individuals across multi-functional disciplines
• Conflict resolution skills
• Good organizational skills
• Good training and facilitation skills
• Team player
• well organized and ability to handle multiple tasks