Research Assistant – Policy, Institutions and Markets

Research Assistant – Policy, Institutions and Markets
Agricultural value chain development – Needs and tools assessment

Background

The International Center for Tropical Agriculture (www.ciat.cgiar.org) works to reduce hunger and poverty, and improve human health in the tropics through research aimed at increasing the eco-efficiency of agriculture. CIAT is a member of the CGIAR Consortium (www.cgiar.org), a global research partnership working with many partners for a food secure future. CIAT has more than 20 years of experience in value chain research with participatory methods aimed at putting research to use, with learning alliances and innovation platforms, and linking farmers to markets through inclusive business models. The Linking Farmers to Markets Research Group mobilizes efforts to promote market-based solutions for the global poor living in the tropics. With over 3 billion of the world’s poorest directly involved in agriculture, we are addressing the gap between poor farmers and diverse markets. We work in concert with a range of partners on these topics with the goal of applying targeted research capacity to drive systemic change.

Inclusive value chain development (VCD) has emerged as a major area of rural development programming in recent years. There is general agreement that VCD has the potential to strengthen rural livelihoods by promoting deeper smallholder engagement with markets and encourage increased economic activity in rural areas. However, solid evidence regarding the outcomes and impacts of VCD remains limited. In some contexts, smallholders may experience these benefits, while in other contexts a combination of factors may limit their capacity to do so, suggesting the need for interventions focused on non-market elements of rural livelihoods. Researchers and consultants have published various guides to facilitate the design of VCD interventions; however, these guides are varied in their design, and taken together present gaps in coverage (e.g. topics related to gender, monitoring and evaluation and rural livelihoods) and practical advice on implementation options for dealing with variations in context.

Enhancing the impact of VCD requires to improve global understanding of what approaches, methods and tools are used, who uses them, how these different users adapt them in different contexts, and how VCD stakeholders can be supported to better achieve their goals. This is what CIAT, ICRAF and CIP are undertaking across 3 continents, assessing value chain development tools, to identify bottlenecks and needs of implementers for achieving impact at scale.

CIAT is in charge of implementing activities in Vietnam, and is currently seeking a research assistant.

Responsibilities

• Support data collection
  
  • Support and conduct key informant interviews with a wide range of actors such as NGO, private sector and government agencies representatives;
  • Assist the study coordinator in organizing meetings, and provide translation when needed;
  • Write minutes of the interviews and enter data in an Access database.

• Support data analysis, providing the study coordinator with two reports:
  
  • Literature review on value chain development in Vietnam;
  • Preliminary analysis of primary data collected from key informant interviews.

Requirements

• MSc degree in agriculture economics, development economics, and/or related fields (candidates with a BSc degree may be considered if having significant field-based experience). A keen interest in agricultural development and related socio-economic issues is needed;

• 5-10 years of working experience in agricultural development, including:
  
  • Value chain intervention
  • Project assessment and/or methodological design

• Outstanding verbal and written communication skills in English and Vietnamese, as well as effective communication and interpersonal skills; Strong analytical skills are also required;

• Ability to use Microsoft Access

• Available for starting in January 2016.

Terms of Employment

The ‘Research Assistant’ will report to the study coordinator in Vietnam and will be based at the CIAT Regional Office in Hanoi, Vietnam, with potential travels to project sites. This is a nationally recruited position, and applications from Vietnamese nationals will thus receive priority.

The contract will cover a period of three months (including a 2 weeks break during Tet period), potentially renewable depending on performance and funding.

CIAT is an equal opportunity employer and strives for staff diversity in gender.

Applications

To apply for this position, send us a cover letter with your qualifications and suitability, together with detailed curriculum vitae, including the names and addresses of three persons who are familiar with your professional qualifications and work experience. Direct your correspondence to Mr. Brice Even ([email protected]), indicating “Research Assistant – PIM’’ in your application letter and email message, no later than December 31, 2015. Please do not make phone calls.  Only short-listed candidates will be contacted.

Closing date for applications: December 31, 2015, or until a suitable candidate is identified.

Starting date: as soon as possible