The ultimate outcome of this 6-year project is to enhance food security and resilience for poor male and female smallholder farmers (35% male/65% female) and their households in the three northern regions.  This ultimate outcome is to be achieved through increased, diversified and more equitable agricultural production; and increased, diversified and more equitable incomes and assets.  The project is in the second year of implementation.

ACDEP, a local NGO, is currently recruiting for the position of Aquaculture Officer for a project in northern Ghana.  The incumbent will be responsible for both Upper East and Upper West Regions, operating from the regional office in Bolgatanga.

Project Overview:
The ultimate outcome of this 6-year project is to enhance food security and resilience for poor male and female smallholder farmers (35% male/65% female) and their households in the three northern regions.  This ultimate outcome is to be achieved through increased, diversified and more equitable agricultural production; and increased, diversified and more equitable incomes and assets.

Position Summary:

The Aquaculture Officer is directly answerable to the Regional Coordinators. He/she is responsible for implementing the Aquaculture strategy and related activities within the project and to provide timely and relevant information and support to project beneficiaries. This includes working in close collaboration with the project’s Aquaculture Specialist based in the project’s Tamale office, as well as the project’s other crop officers, livestock officers, marketing and income generating activities officers and gender officer based at the regional offices.

Essential duties and responsibilities include:

Scope of work/Job description:

•   Under the guidance of the project’s Aquaculture Specialist (based in Tamale), assess the sustainability and marketability of aquaculture production in the targeted areas and advise project beneficiaries on suitable fish species to be produced;
•   Working closely with the Marketing/IGA Officer, as needed, assess and identify capacities and respective needs of male and female project beneficiaries on various aspects of Aquaculture production, post-harvest management techniques, and marketing, and deliver/coordinate appropriate training;
•   Distribute aquaculture production-related inputs to project beneficiaries and maintain accurate records of same;
•   Establish and maintain a good rapport with project beneficiaries, as well as local government officials, community elders; and other stake holders.
•   Identify aquaculture-related training needs and or requirements of beneficiaries
•   Supervise training and other beneficiary capacity development interventions going on
•   Supervise all consultants engaged to carry out various aquaculture-related interventions at project sites.
•   Keep the Regional Coordinator and Aquaculture Specialist informed of good practices observed in the field, as well as any challenges that the project beneficiaries are encountering;
•   Support the environmental assessment and permitting of aquaculture activities (e.g. water quality sampling, stock assessments, WRC permitting, EPA EIAs, etc.) under the guidance of the RESULT Environment/CCA Specialist
•   Provide input into the development of annual work plans and budgets, including annual milestones;
•   Prepare regular progress reports that will be incorporated into reports to the donor;
•   Ensure efficient use of project resources;
•   Under the leadership of the organization’s Documentation and Publication Unit, document information on Aquaculture interventions by the project, results and lessons learned.

Qualification Required & Experience

•   Bsc degree in Fisheries and Aquaculture or Agriculture or related field.
•   Minimum of 2 years work experience (over and above national service) in Aquaculture production.
•   Experience in building capacity of farmers in aquaculture production, in both formal and informal settings.
•   Experience in quantitative and qualitative data collection and analysis is considered an asset.
•   Environmental knowledge/work experience is considered an asset.
•   Experience in post-harvest management techniques is considered an asset.
•   Knowledge in cage fish farming is an asset.
•   A skill in Swimming is an asset.

Requisite Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

•   Strong facilitation and interpersonal skills with colleagues and farmers.
•   Demonstrated capacity to work in teams with colleagues.
•   Basic level of gender awareness and commitment to effective integration of gender equality in project implementation.
•   Ability to speak at least one language commonly spoken in the two regions of posting. Oral and written communication skills in English an asset.
•   Willingness to spend 75% of time doing field work in the region of posting
•   Ability to ride a motorbike.

Location: Bolgatanga

How To Apply For The Job

Interested candidates should please forward their application and CV to:

Admin. /Human Resource Manager
P.O. Box 1411
Tamale

Or to:

jobsapplications@yahoo.com

Closing Date: 15 November, 2015

•   Please indicate the position you are applying for on the subject line of your mail
•   Only shortlisted applicants will be contacted.
•   Qualified females are strongly encouraged to apply