The Federal Government of Nigeria has obtained a credit from the International Development Association (IDA) to help finance the Transforming Irrigation Management in Nigeria (TRIMING) Project, and plans to commit half of the proceeds towards the engagement of a consultant — an individual — to serve as General Manager.

Job Title: General Manager (GM)

Reference No: FMWR / TRIMING / 2020 / INDV / CS / 02

Locations: Kano / Jigawa / Zamfara / Sokoto

Name of Project: Transforming Irrigation Management in Nigeria

Project ID No: P123112

Project Background

  • TRIMING is seeking to recruit an individual professional expert (consultant) in the field named above, with experience in financing operations relating to the running of Farmers Management and Service Centres at the project sites of Kano River Irrigation Scheme (KRIS) Kadawa in Kano State; Hadejia Valley Irrigation Scheme (HVIS), Auyo in Jigawa State; Bakalori Irrigation Scheme (BIS), Talata Mafara in Zamfara State and Middle Rima Valley Irrigation Scheme (MRVIS), Goronyo in Sokoto State.
  • Operating as a team, the individual specialists will work under the supervision of the FMC Board of Trustees (BoTs) at their respective sites and will chiefly assist the TRIMING Project Management Unit (PMU) in the management of the Farmers Management and Service Delivery Centres at each project site.
  • The four Farmers Management and Service Delivery Centres (FMCs) were registered as companies limited by shares under Nigeria’s Companies and Allied Matters Act of 1990 (CAMA).

Purpose of the Assignment and Its Duration

  • The FMCs are intended to resolve the difficulties small-scale farmers encounter across the four irrigation schemes — BIS, HVIS, KRIS and MRVIS. The constraints identified include, but are not confined to, access to quality inputs, mechanisation services, advisory services and credit.
  • The FMCs are further envisaged as catalysts capable of strengthening the managerial capacities of smallholder farmer cooperatives and apex cooperatives, which hold the bulk of the shares in the FMCs.
  • Their goal is to convert irrigation agriculture into a commercially viable investment, leading to higher productivity, fewer post-harvest losses, better commodity quality and a marketing system that is more efficient and predictable.
  • The FMCs are also expected to widen farmers’ access to financial services.
  • Engagement of the individual specialists will run for an initial period of two (2) years, with the possibility of annual renewal for the duration of the project, subject to work requirements and satisfactory performance.

What the FMCs Will Do

Working in liaison with the National Project Coordinator (NPC), the FMCs for this project will be responsible principally for the following, among other tasks:

  • Developing warehouses (and pack houses for tomato) to attract large off-takers and to permit cleaning, grading, insurance, farmers’ access to credit facilities through the warehouse receipt system, long-term storage and improved quality of onward supply. Warehousing is also expected to help buffer prices for paddy farmers.
  • Facilitating the supply of inputs and supporting and developing agro-dealers.
  • Facilitating mechanisation services.
  • Facilitating finance for the scheme value chains.
  • Market facilitation to support the establishment of long-term offtake contracts and to contribute to building more competitive, inclusive and resilient market systems.
  • Providing technical and advisory services — extension services, business development, accounting and bookkeeping — to cooperatives and others.

Duties of the General Manager

  • The General Manager reports to the FMC Board of Trustees and works under its supervision.
  • The holder will collaborate closely with the leadership of farmer cooperatives to promote the FMC’s activities and to secure buy-in from cooperative members.
  • The General Manager will take the lead in planning production activities for the target value chains, so that inputs and mechanisation services are available in sufficient quantities to meet production targets.
  • The postholder will drive the development of a more efficient marketing system for the target value chains by identifying potential off-takers or aggregators, building alliances with them, and strengthening the capacity of farmers through their cooperatives to engage in joint marketing via the FMC’s services.
  • Planning and coordination of production, value preservation and marketing of scheme commodities will also fall to the General Manager.
  • The General Manager is additionally expected to ensure close monitoring of scheme operations so that the FMC maintains sound financial and management practices.

Areas of accountability would include, but not be limited to, the following. To deliver the vision of a modern and commercially viable FMC, the General Manager will provide:

Related Stories

  • Leadership: implementing the shareholders’ strategy for a commercially viable and profitable FMC.
  • Budget and resource management: managing the funds for FMC operations and administration.
  • Sustainability and business planning: leading work with value chain specialists to develop sustainable and appropriate business models for each promoted value chain.
  • Relationship management: promoting the FMC among relevant stakeholders in the area.
  • Monitoring and reporting: supervising agricultural production on the scheme and providing technical advice on its management to ensure the FMC and cooperatives meet set production targets.

Qualifications

  • A Master’s degree in a related discipline, plus five to seven years’ experience with a large agribusiness firm, preferably one trading in commodities.
  • Must be able to use basic packages and spreadsheets to generate presentations and reports, and to work confidently online to send email and source information.

Essential Experience and Skills:

  • Experience of growing start-ups and/or of leading large organisations, working to international standards
  • Exposure to agricultural initiatives that use modern agricultural technologies
  • Experience of organisation development and/or institution-building activities
  • Experience of training and capacity-building activities at grassroots level
  • Sound entrepreneurial expertise and business know-how
  • Experience in managing out-grower schemes
  • Experience in managing successful agribusiness start-ups will be an added advantage
  • Knowledge and understanding of agribusiness in Nigeria
  • Excellent representational and negotiation skills
  • Fluency in spoken and written English is required. Fluency in Hausa is an added advantage

Consultant EOI / Shortlisting Criteria

  • Interested individual consultants must submit their Curriculum Vitae (CV) with all the required documents attached, such as copies of engagement letters, along with other supporting information demonstrating that the CV shows the necessary qualifications and related experience to carry out the services.

The shortlisting criteria are:

  • Evidence of the consultant’s general qualifications (education, training and work experience)
  • Adequacy for the assignment: evidence of basic expertise in the areas of experience listed above
  • Evidence of particular expertise in a specific area of experience — general management, workshop/equipment management and administration/finance, or comparable fields — as it relates to the area of expertise
  • Proven experience of project management, administration and financing, particularly in Nigeria’s private sector

Proposed Remuneration

Negotiable.

Application Closing Date

2.00pm (Nigeria local time) on 7th August, 2020.

How to Apply

Interested and qualified candidates should submit an expression of interest by email or in hard copy (with all relevant documents also submitted) to the address below, depending on the location of the assignment:

ATTN: National Project Coordinator,
Transforming Irrigation Management in Nigeria Project,
Federal Ministry of Water Resources,
Plot 1402, Abba Kyari Street, Off Adesoji Aderemi Street,
Apo – Abuja, Nigeria.

Tel: +2348038391469, +2348052048706.

Important Information / Notice

  • Consultants’ attention is drawn to paragraph 1.9 of the World Bank’s Guidelines: Selection and employment of Consultants (under IBRD loans and IDA Credit and Grants) by World Bank borrowers, January 2011 edition as revised in July 2014 (Consultants Guidelines), which sets out the World Bank Policy on Conflict of Interest.
  • Interested consultants may obtain further information from the address given above during office hours between 08:00 and 17:00 (local time, Monday to Friday), and/or send an email to the National Project Coordinator at [email protected]
  • The detailed Terms of Reference (ToR) for the position can be found on the following website: www.triming.org
  • Each successful candidate must make arrangements for his or her personal security while discharging official responsibilities.