Background:
Mercy Corps is a leading global organization powered by the belief that a better world is possible. In disaster, in hardship, in more than 40 countries around the world, we partner to put bold solutions into action — helping people triumph over adversity and build stronger communities from within.
Mercy Corps is working with partners in the Alliance of Bioversity International and International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) on the Clim-ARM project. It is funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) and implemented with local partners in Rwanda and Ethiopia. The project aims to draw on the best expertise in agricultural risk management and climate risk and forecast assessment to develop investment blueprints for integrated weather and climate services (WCS) necessary for high-impact investments in agricultural risk management. Clim-ARM builds on previous analyses and methods developed by the Alliance, aiming to evolve towards more granular and investment-oriented analytics with the use of the Alliance’s various agromet forecast analyses and country-level agricultural sector risk assessment.
The problems inherent to climate change, extreme weather events, and resulting commodity and food price volatility disproportionately affect the agricultural production, food security, and rural livelihoods of the rural poor, particularly small-scale producers in Sub-Saharan Africa. Clim-ARM’s proposed solution is to identify and roadmap evidence-based methods and best practices to develop investment blueprints for tailored ARM practices (informed by climate analytics) and services necessary for improved WCS. The primary outcome of the project is to develop “a set of improved agricultural risk management (ARM) tools integrating weather and climate services, replicable analytics, best practices, and investment blueprints for climate-smart ARM are identified, informing and shaping the ARM policies, programs and investments of the Governments of Ethiopia and Rwanda (and the private sector where possible) designed to improve the ability of poor small-scale producers (SSPs) to manage agricultural risk.”
Purpose / Project Description:
As a part of Mercy Corp’s commitment to bring climate-smart solutions to Africa’s smallholder farmers at scale through digital channels, Mercy Corps AgriFin will collaborate with the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT to identify robust and evidence-based analytical methods and pathways that draw on the best expertise in agricultural risk management, weather, climate risk, and forecast assessment to develop investment blueprints for integrated weather and climate services necessary for high impact investments in agricultural risk management.
AgriFin will support the implementation of Clim-ARM as a subcontractor to the countries of focus: Rwanda, a new country for AgriFin; and Ethiopia, where AgriFin has yet to initiate work.
In support of this program, AgriFin will support the Alliance in the following roles:
1: Rigorous climate and agricultural risk assessments conducted in specific geographies:
- Provide input and feedback on methodology for the four phases of the analysis.
- Contribute to the risk assessment drawing on a holistic approach.
- Identify and engage with key stakeholders including financial actors, market actors, and private sector partners.
- Convene relevant stakeholders.
- Support the development of working group charter for stakeholder groups.
2: A detailed inventorying of existing ARM tools, services, and practices used in-country
- Contribute to assessment and inventory of all available WCS and the entire range of ARM tools assessing capacity to manage risk
- Support factsheet preparation and private sector involvement.
3: Synthesizing analytics and evidence from IO1 and IO2
- Contribute to reviewing and screening the list to arrive at a shortlist of prioritized ARM/WCS interventions
4: ARM actor access to fully designed, road-mapped investment blueprints and technical capacity for weather and climate services
- Co-develop the investment roadmaps, investment blueprints, and alternative investment pathways.
- Prepare a series of technical/policy briefs on the investment roadmap targeting different audiences.
Consultant Objectives:
The consultant will be required to work on the Clim-ARM project in Rwanda by supporting the Alliance team and Mercy Corps to ensure successful implementation of the required activities/ responsibilities of Mercy Corps and the Alliance. The consultant will be the face of Mercy Corps for the Clim-ARM project in Rwanda and will manage partners and stakeholders.
In addition, the consultant will support the AgriFin technical team in project evaluations, learnings, and any other tasks assigned and agreed upon by the supervisors
Consultant Activities:
The Consultant, as part of this engagement, will conduct the following activities for Rwanda:
- Map and convene private sector actors to participate in climate and agricultural risk assessment
- Conduct inventory of ARM tools, services, and practices
- Map agri-finance ecosystem and financing gaps for private sector scaling of ARM solutions
- Create a priority list of ARM solutions based on impact and financial viability and market analyses for priority ARM solutions
- Co-develop the investment roadmaps, investment blueprints, and alternative investment pathways
- Prepare project progress reports and status updates
- Perform tasks based on project plans, those agreed with AgriFin management, and those assigned by program management
- Work with the Clim-ARM team and the AgriFin team to identify additional support areas
- Support the Sprout platform and identify additional AgriFin opportunities and partnerships
- Other tasks, as agreed with the Task Manager
Consultant Deliverables: The consultant will:
- Provide monthly reports updating the project status, potential risks and any other updates from partnership implementation in the month.
- Support the Rwanda Clim-ARM team based on the agreed scope of work and engage with the identified stakeholders and partners
- Support on the Sprout platform and identification of new AgriFin opportunities and partnerships, and other requests provided by the task manager
- Provide back to office reports on key meetings and events: short reports on key meetings, events, and new partnership opportunities
Timeframe / Schedule:
The consultant will be expected to work for a period of 30 billable days over the project period and deliver the deliverables below:
Status report 1: 30 September 2022
- Inventory of private sector stakeholders in Rwanda providing ARM tools, service and products.
- Status report will provide update on the overall project status, progress against deliverables, potential risks and any other updates from partnership implementation in the month.
Status report 2: 30 October 2022
- List of private sector participants who attended workshops and the key insights from private sector interviews conducted during the month.
- Report will provide update on the overall project status, as well as potential risks and any other updates from partnership implementation in the month
Status report 3: 15 December 2022
- Insights provided on investment roadmaps, investment blueprints, and alternative investment pathways for Clim-ARM.
- Status report updating on the project status, progress against deliverables, potential risks and any other updates from partnership implementation in the month
Status report 4: 30 November 2023
- List of any private sector participants who attended workshops and the key insights from private sector interviews conducted during the month.
- Status report updating on the project status, progress against deliverables, potential risks and any other updates from partnership implementation in the month
Status report 5: 30 January 2023
- Insights provided on investment roadmaps, investment blueprints, and alternative investment pathways for Clim-ARM.
- Status report updating on the project status, progress against deliverables, potential risks and any other updates from partnership implementation in the month
Status report 6: 20 February 2023
- Final status report updating on the project status, progress against deliverables, potential risks and any other updates from partnership implementation in the month
The Consultant will report to: Mercy Corps AgriFin’s DCSA Manager with oversight from Mercy Corps AgriFin’s Program Director.
The Consultant will work closely with: Mercy Corps AgriFin’s Technical Team, The Alliance team and wider Clim-ARM implementation team.
Required Experience & Skills:
- A bachelor’s degree in, Environmental Economics, Environment and Climate, or related field, Master’s degree is preferred.
- At least 5-10 years of experience in the field of Environment and climate, Agriculture in a non-governmental organization or a reputable international or national organization preferred.
- Understanding of and work experience in Rwanda’s agricultural systems and climate-smart agriculture, with a broad perspective on agricultural value chains and knowledge on how public, private and informal actors operate within the system
- Excellent Computer, verbal and written communication skills, including report development, writing and editing.
- Excellent inter-personal skills.
- Highly proactive and self-disciplined.
- Experience and ability to work in a multicultural, multinational team.
- Experience with monitoring and evaluation of projects.
- Demonstrated analytical and problem-solving skills.
- Demonstrated experience in project management skills.
- Demonstrated attention to detail, ability to follow procedures, meet deadlines and work independently and cooperatively with team members.
Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Achieving our mission begins with how we build our team and work together. Through our commitment to enriching our organization with people of different origins, beliefs, backgrounds, and ways of thinking, we are better able to leverage the collective power of our teams and solve the world’s most complex challenges. We strive for a culture of trust and respect, where everyone contributes their perspectives and authentic selves, reaches their potential as individuals and teams, and collaborates to do the best work of their lives.
We recognize that diversity and inclusion is a journey, and we are committed to learning, listening and evolving to become more diverse, equitable and inclusive than we are today.
Equal Employment Opportunity We are committed to providing an environment of respect and psychological safety where equal employment opportunities are available to all. We do not engage in or tolerate discrimination on the basis of race, color, gender identity, gender expression, religion, age, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin, disability (including HIV/AIDS status), marital status, military veteran status or any other protected group in the locations where we work.
Safeguarding & Ethics Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our stakeholders and to international standards guiding international relief and development work, while actively engaging communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects. Team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner and respect local laws, customs and MC’s policies, procedures, and values at all times and in all in-country venues.
More Information
- Job City Rwanda
