Job Posting: 26/Aug/2021

Closure Date: 11/Sep/2021, 12:59:00 AM

Organizational Unit: REUTD

Job Type: Non-staff opportunities

Type of Requisition: PSA (Personal Services Agreement)

Primary Location: Home-Based

Duration: 40 working day

National Field Technical Specialist on Agricultural E-Commerce

• FAO is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality, background, and culture
• Qualified female applicants, qualified nationals of non-and under-represented member nations, and person with disabilities are encouraged to apply
• Everyone who works for FAO is required to adhere to the highest standards of integrity and professional conduct and to uphold our values. FAO has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and FAO, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination
• All selected candidates, therefore, will undergo rigorous reference and background checks
• All applications will be treated with the strictest confidentiality
• The incumbent may be re-assigned to different activities and/or duty stations depending on the evolving needs of the Organization

FAO Ukraine is a project management Office headed by the Regional Programme Leader (RPL) under the operational responsibility of the Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia. FAO Ukraine is contributing to the development of national policies, programmes and projects to achieve food security and to reduce hunger and malnutrition, to help develop the agricultural, fisheries and forestry sectors, and to use their environmental and natural resources in a sustainable manner.

Reporting Lines

Under the overall supervision of the FAO Regional Programme Leader for Europe and Central Asia and the Budget Holder, the direct supervision of the Head of Office/Programme Officer and the technical supervision of the Lead Technical Officer and in close coordination with the International Project Coordinator.

Technical Focus

the Field Technical Expert on Agricultural E-Commerce will support the justification; establishment and promotion of a scalable and sustainable e-commerce service platform for agri-food products from the prioritized value chains (fruits and vegetables, beef and dairy, grains and oilseeds) in Luhanks, Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia regions.

Tasks and responsibilities

Specifically, the Field Technical Specialist on Agricultural E-Commerce will carry out the following tasks:

Output 1: Rapid assessment of the current state of e-commerce for agriculture (Days 15)
Activities:
1.1    Conduct primary and secondary research to assess the current state of e-commerce targeting the agri-food sector, addressing, among others:
a.    environmental factors and their impact on the operations, scalability and sustainability of agricultural e-commerce services in Eastern Ukraine, e.g. regulatory environment; mobile internet penetration, digital payments, logistic networks, agricultural readiness, e-commerce familiarity; availability of local IT solutions providers etc.;
b.    Existing and prospective business models; and their pros and cons;
c.    the potential for its growth in Ukraine.
1.2    Develop rapid assessment capturing key findings of the research and providing recommendations on what strategy the project should pursue regarding supporting agricultural e-commerce and through what entry points.

Output 2: develop strategy and design a business model for recommended e-commerce platform (Days 13)
Activities:

2.1    Define a market segmentation strategy that analyzes and recommends the categories of producers and buyers to target and type of produce to sell;
2.2    Recommend the range of operational functions the e-commerce platform to undertake in its initial stage of development;
2.3    Analyze potential income streams and recommend a suitable revenue model;
2.4    Develop a scalable and sustainable business model for agricultural e-commerce service that reflects local market conditions;

Output 3: Develop an implementation roadmap, related action plan for the e-commerce platform (Days 5)
Activities:

3.1    Develop a roadmap for establishing and promoting an e-commerce service for agri-food products in project target regions;
3.2    Develop an action plan to achieve planned milestones in roadmap;
3.3    Prepare the draft ToRs for e-commerce platform developer;

Output 4: Training and awareness raising activities in support of the e-commerce platform (Days 5)
Activities:

4.1    Prepare and deliver workshops and other communication tools to introduce and promote the agricultural e-commerce services in project target regions;

Output 5: technical support and reporting (Days 2)
Activities:
5.1    Prepare monthly progress reports, including the work progress, problems and solutions for next month work plan;
5.2    Perform any other related duties as required.

CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING

Minimum Requirements

•    University degree in economics, agricultural economics, business administration and marketing, or any related field.
•    At least 5 years of experience in the field of private sector development (trade and/or e-commerce development will be an asset).
•    Working knowledge of English and/or Russian.
•    National of Ukraine or resident in the country with a regular work permit.

FAO Core Competencies

•    Results Focus
•    Teamwork
•    Communication
•    Building Effective Relationships
•    Knowledge Sharing and Continuous Improvement

Technical Focus

•    Strong knowledge of Ukraine’s socio-economic context and commodity trade.
•    Technical digital skills.
•    Excellent communication skills.

HOW TO APPLY
To apply, visit the recruitment website at  

https://jobs.fao.org/careersection/fao_external/jobdetail.ftl?job=2102139&tz=GMT%2B02%3A00&tzname=

and complete your online profile. Only applications received through the recruitment portal will be considered.