Regional Inclusive Agrifood Systems Advisor – We Can Work 22 views0 applications

Responsible To: Head of Programs
Employer: Light for the World Kenya
Reports to: Head of Disability Inclusion Advisory Unit
Mode of Employment: Full time, 40 hours per week
Duty Station: Nairobi, Kenya

Organization Overview:
Light for the World is a global development organisation. We empower people with disabilities and enable eye health services in low-income countries. Over the last three decades we improved health systems, enabled education for all, and amplified the voices of people with disabilities. We focus on the poorest and hardest to reach because that’s where we will have the biggest impact.
Our programmes include:

• Eye Health – preventing blindness and promoting eye health for all.
• Inclusive Education – ensuring children with disabilities receive quality, inclusive education.
• Inclusive Economic Empowerment – ensuring that barriers are removed for men and women with disabilities to access decent work

Program Overview – We Can Work:
In line with its economic empowerment strategy, Light for the World in partnership with the Mastercard Foundation is implementing an 8 year project dubbed We Can Work, a regional signature disability program that uses a system and mindset change approach to impact the lives of at least 1,000,000 young women and men with disabilities and enables them to access dignified and fulfilling work. The program works with umbrella Organizations of Persons with Disabilities and Entrepreneurship Hubs in Uganda, Kenya, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Senegal, Ghana and Nigeria.
With our partners, we effect change at the level of individuals (including households and communities), organizations and institutions. Young persons with disabilities act as change agents and provide disability inclusion advisory services and confidently advocate for disability-inclusive policies and practices among key system actors.
Throughout the eight-year partnership intervention, the key ingredients of our work with young women and men with disabilities in the lead are:

• engaging caregivers and communities through positive and empowering messaging around disability and inclusion;
• driving co-creation processes to inform inclusive economic development;
• developing agency of young women and men with disabilities through the We Can Work Academy; and amplifying voices of young persons with disabilities.

In the We Can Work Programme, agrifood systems are integrated across three pillars to ensure that youth with disabilities can meaningfully participate and thrive in this critical sector:

1. Pillar One – Rural Academy: Through the Rural Academy, we target youth with high support needs to establish access self of waged employment in the agrifood value chains. Youth are supported with tailored training, mentoring, and resources and linked to business development support or job opportunities.
2. Pillar Two – Partnerships: We support Young Africa Works (YAW) agrifood partners in developing and implementing Disability Inclusion Action Plans (DIAPs). Lessons and best practices from the Rural Academy are integrated into our technical support package to enhance disability inclusion in agrifood systems across value chains. This ensures that partner programs are accessible for and inclusive of youth with disabilities.
3. Pillar Three – Advocacy and Systemic Change: Youth advocates work to drive mindset and systemic change across all sectors, including the agrifood sector, promoting policies and practices that enable youth with disabilities to participate fully. These advocates amplify the voices of young persons with disabilities and create enabling environments for inclusive agrifood systems.

Role Profile:
The Regional Inclusive Agrifood Systems Advisor, based in the Kenya Country Office, and reporting directly to the Head – Disability Inclusion Advisory Unit, will provide technical guidance across multiple countries in the region of operation, to operationalize agrifood-focused interventions across the We Can Work program with a focus on disability inclusion in agrifood programming under the Young Africa Works Strategy.
The Advisor will work closely with country-level Agrifood Disability Inclusion Advisors (DIAs), Disability Inclusion Facilitators (DIFs), youth advocates, and Expert Inclusive Agricultural Systems to provide hands-on technical support, mentoring, and coaching to partners. The Advisor will contribute to knowledge sharing, capacity building, and ensure consistency and quality of disability inclusion interventions in agrifood systems across the region.

Key Responsibilities:
Networking & Partnerships
• Represent Light for the World and We Can Work in national and regional agrifood networks.
• Initiate and strengthen relationships with Young Africa Works (YAW) agrifood partners, other consortium partners, government actors, and Organizations for Persons with Disabilities (OPDs).
• Support youth advocates in fostering partnerships to drive disability-inclusive agrifood policies and practices.
• Engage private sector agrifood actors to promote inclusive business practices and opportunities for youth with disabilities.
• Facilitate multi-stakeholder consultations and co-creation processes for disability-inclusive agrifood solutions.
Advising, Training & Capacity Building
• Provide hands-on technical support, coaching, and mentoring to Disability Inclusion Advisors (DIAs), Disability Inclusion Facilitators (DIFs), and YAW partner organizations on disability-inclusive agrifood systems.
• Support the development and implementation of agrifood Disability Inclusion Action Plans (DIAPs) for country and multi country agrifood programs, ensuring alignment with program objectives and best practices.
• Contribute to learning sessions, workshops, Communities of Practice (CoPs), and working groups focused on agrifood systems and disability inclusion.
• Strategize with DIAs and DIFs to tailor interventions to organizational and contextual needs.

Facilitator Pool Management
• Support recruitment, training, and mentoring DIFs in agrifood systems.
• Ensure high-quality and consistent implementation of advisor and facilitator-led activities through monitoring, learning, and refresher trainings.

Training Material & Tool Development
• Contribute to co-creation processes for developing training manuals, tools, and learning content for agrifood-focused disability inclusion.
• Identify gaps and propose additional resources or tools to enhance learning, uptake, and impact.
Knowledge, Monitoring & Information Management
• Support the collection, documentation, and dissemination of insights, lessons learned, case studies, and success stories from agrifood inclusion initiatives.
• Promote knowledge sharing across countries to strengthen regional impact, technical coherence, and adoption of best practices.
• Support the collection and analysis of program data to inform decision-making and continuous improvement of interventions.
Regional Coordination & Alignment
• Facilitate alignment of agrifood disability inclusion approaches across countries to ensure consistency and adoption of lessons learned.
• Support regional planning, reporting, and coordination with country teams and the Expert Inclusive Agricultural Systems.

Qualifications & Skills:
a) University degree or higher in development studies, agriculture, agronomy, agribusiness, program management, or a related field.
b) Minimum 5 years’ experience in NGOs, OPDs, or development programs, preferably in agrifood systems.
c) Experience with adult learning/participatory training methodologies.
d) Practical understanding of barriers faced by persons with disabilities in accessing opportunities in agricultural value chains and solutions to overcome them.
e) Proven experience as a trainer, facilitator, or mentor in capacity-building workshops.
f) Excellent interpersonal, networking, and communication skills.
g) Commitment to local capacity building and engaging stakeholders in project design and implementation.
h) Knowledge or experience in livelihoods, agrifood systems, and disability inclusion is highly desirable.
i) Experience working across Francophone and Anglophone countries or multi-country programs.
j) Experience in monitoring, evaluation, and learning (MEL) and documentation of lessons learned.
k) Experience supporting advocacy initiatives or influencing policy and systemic change.
l) Proficiency in digital tools for remote training, knowledge sharing, and collaboration.
m) Self-motivated, proactive, and able to work independently and in a team.
n) Ability to deliver high-quality outputs within deadlines.
o) Proficiency in written and verbal communication in English is a requirement, and additional knowledge of French is desirable