TERMS OF REFERENCE AND SCOPE OF SERVICES
Position Code: | IC.37 COMP 5 |
Position Title: | Project Officer for PIU Liquiça |
Reporting to: | Project Manager and Director of Agriculture Municipality |
Position Start: | October 2024 |
Position End: | June 2025 |
Duration and Performance Assessment: |
9 months from the contract signing. |
1. Background
The Sustainable Agriculture Productivity Improvement Project (SAPIP) is designed with an objective to increase the productivity and marketed production of smallholder agriculture in selected geographical locations in Timor-Leste. The Project will directly assist at least 16,500 households reaching approximately 85,000 direct beneficiaries. The Project will also indirectly benefit a larger number of households, by supporting watershed and community-level agricultural development planning that will benefit all households in a watershed (not only those receiving training or small-scale investments). Spillover effects are expected as the adoption of new agricultural practices and technologies by the direct beneficiaries begins to show results. Furthermore, by strengthening MALFF’s planning, programming, monitoring and evaluation functions, the Project may act as a catalyst for a more effective and responsive agriculture sector for the whole of Timor-Leste.
The Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Forestry (MALFF) has established a unit for managing the SAPIP project. The Project Management Unit (PMU) is responsible to ensure effective SAPIP implementation both at National and Municipality level. Project Implementation Units (PIUs) will also be created by MALFF under the PMU, with tasks to manage and coordinate the implementation of SAPIP in four selected watersheds: Raumoco, Loes, Belulik and Tono.
The four selected watersheds include seven municipalities: Lautem (Raumoco watershed), Liquiça, Bobonaro and Ermera (Loes watershed), Ainaro and Covalima (Belulik watershed), and Oecusse (Tono watershed). PIUs will be established in Lautem, Liquica, Bobonaro, Ermera, Ainaro and Oecusse municipalities.
2. Project description
The Project components will focus on watershed and agriculture development planning, support for smallholder farmers for improved productivity, reduced post-harvest losses and increased marketing of goods, and institutional strengthening of MALFF after a recent reorganization and in anticipation of the planned decentralization of Government services.
Component 1: Integrated watershed agriculture development planning
The objective of this component is to improve agriculture development planning within targeted watersheds. Watershed Management Councils (WSMCs) will be formed, and Watershed Agriculture Development Plans (WADPs) will be prepared to guide planning at the watershed level. Detailed Sustainable Community Agriculture Development Plans (SCADPs) will guide investments at the community level.
Component 2: Smallholder organization, advisory support and training
Activities under the Component 2 will facilitate the formation of farmer groups where needed, building on cohesion developed during the SCADP preparation process, and strengthen existing groups formed for other purposes by NGOs and other relevant programs. These farmer groups will be supported by complementary investments in sustainable and nutrition sensitive agricultural production and environmental protection (see Component 3) to implement SCADPs.
Component 3: Sustainable watershed management and support to farmer groups
The objective of this component is to support the implementation of SCADPs through the provision of targeted on-farm investments. These investments will include equipment and technologies promoting reduction of post-harvest losses, increasing value addition, addressing soil erosion and promoting climate resilience. Eligible investments will be defined in the Project Implementation Manual (PIM).
Component 4: Strengthening MALFF’s Services, Planning, Programming, Coordination and Monitoring and Evaluation Functions
This component will support MALFF to strengthen institutional capacity following recent organizational changes. The support will focus on: (i) improved corporate services (including extension); (ii) planning; (iii) more efficient budget programming to increase sectoral investment returns and achieve corporate objectives; (iv) better coordination with development partner activities, and improved alignment of these activities with MALFF’s annual action plan; and (v) improved monitoring, evaluation and reporting. Component 4 will include support for the Timor-Leste Agriculture Advisory Council (TLAAC) and the Timor-Leste Agriculture Research and Development Institute (TLARDI), which are included in National Strategic Development Plan.
Component 5: Project management and monitoring. The Government is in the process of creating an umbrella unit within MAF to manage and coordinate the implementation of all development partner-financed projects and programs in the agricultural sector. The Secretary General will be tasked for coordinating the said umbrella unit which will be named Development Partners Management Unit (DPSMU). Whereas for managing every project, MALFF will establish a Project Management Unit (PMU) which will be coordinated by a Project Manager. In the case of SAPIP, given the size and geographic scope, the project will be coordinated and managed by a separate PMU, but will also report to the DPSMU.
Component 6: Contingency for Disaster Risk Response:
Carrying out a program of activities designed to provide rapid response to disaster, emergency or catastrophic events, as needed. This component will be used in the event that an emergency response is required.
3. SAPIP PMU and PIU roles and implementation arrangements
At the national level, the SAPIP PMU will be responsible for: (i) annual planning and budgeting in compliance with Government requirements; (ii) coordination across Components and other projects/programs to drive complementarity; (iii) support for field-level technical and natural resource planning staff; (iv) support for a governance framework to manage the disbursement of grants to farmer groups; (v) communications, and knowledge management and dissemination; (vi) maintenance of a mapping and planning database in ALGIS to record WADPs and SCADPs; (vii) a special focus on gender and vulnerable group inclusiveness in Project-supported activities; and (viii) monitoring of and reporting on the SAPIP results framework. The project will develop and apply accountability mechanisms through citizen engagement, monitoring and grievance redress throughout the implementation of the project.
The SAPIP PMU will include seconded staff from relevant MALFF directorates such as National Directorate for Policy and Planning; Research, Statistics, Geographical and Information System; National Directorate for Forestry and Watershed Management; National Directorate for Livestock; National Directorate for Agriculture and Horticulture, National Directorate of Irrigation and water Utilization Management and others. These MALFFs staff will be supported by a team of technical specialists with skills in: (i) project planning, coordination and management; (ii) institutional reform and capacity building; and (iii) monitoring and evaluation, and impact assessment.
At the municipal level, the SAPIP PIUs will be responsible for implementing the project activities at field level, in close coordination with the PMU. PIUs established in Lautem, Liquica, Bobonaro, Ermera, Ainaro and Oecusse municipalities. Each PIU will be headed by the existing Municipality Agriculture Director, who will be supported by a SAPIP Project Officer.
4.Task and responsibilities
4.1 Overarching Responsibilities
The Project Officer is responsible for supporting MALFF to implement SAPIP at the field level and meet the project objectives in each targeted municipality. This will include:
- Under Component 1, supporting the PMU to facilitate the function of WSMC, streamline the WADPs and SCADPs into Municipality Investment Plan, promoting the WADPS and SCADP to the donors, and ensure its implementation as reflected in the farmer group activities
- Under Component 2, working with the PMU to ensure the farmer groups remain functioned and trained.
- Under Component 3, working with the PMU to ensure that farmer groups are undertaking activities that are in alignment with the WADPs and SCADPs; and
- Coordinate with PMU to facilitate the marked access to famer group activity production.
- Under Component 4, providing appropriate information to the PMU for monitoring purposes in relation to the above areas.
4.2. Specific Objectives
- Ensure that the approved work plan is executed.
- Assure that the implementation of SAPIP activities of all project components is in line with the PIM and Small Grants Manual.
- Ensure that the design of the activities is in compliance with the SAPIP Environmental and Social Management Framework (ESMF) and in line with World Bank safeguard policies.
- Provide advice on the technical and professional aspects of the SAPIP project.
- Assists the Municipal Agriculture Director to identify innovative ideas / concepts that can improve SAPIP implementation, and transmit them within the team, to stakeholders and the target groups.
- Integrates results experiences and lessons learnt into team efforts and transfer them to stakeholders and the target groups.
- Assists with conceptualizing and conducting, as part of a team, workshops, seminars and other events at the Municipality level.
- Identifies bottlenecks in project implementation after considering monitoring data, and other information and recommends options for resolving these.
- Carries out other tasks as assigned by the Project Manager or Municipal Agriculture Director.
4.3 Coordination
- Act as primary liaison point between the target Sucos in each municipality, the Municipal Agriculture Director, and the project team.
- Participate in regular field visits in accordance with the project needs.
- Coordinate closely with the SAPIP PMU to ensure effective implementation.
- Share lessons learned and recommendations with Project Officers in other PIUs to improve implementation across the project.
- Maintain a good flow of information between the PIU and PMU.
5. Language
- The working languages of the assignment will be Tetum and English. The Project Officer will assist the PIU to prepare project documents related to her/his task and responsibilities in English and Tetum.
6. Expertise and Experience Required
The Project Officer will be expected to have the following qualifications and experience:
- Bachelor Degree in Agriculture/forestry/natural resource management, and/or areas related to Agriculture and community development;
- At least 3 years of experience with project management in an agricultural or natural resource management context- previous experience with donor-funded projects will be highly desirable
- Managerial skills, particularly in project management; working with teams of professionals; and liaising with government and non-government organizations - this requires good facilitation and communication skills
- Good understanding of Timor-Leste government policies and procedures of flexibility and preparedness to understand the local situation, and a demonstrated ability to establish strong working relationships with project counterparts and municipal and national level;
- Good computer literacy including with Microsoft Word, Excel and Power Point.
- Good writing skills and the ability to prepare clear, concise reports
- Fluency in Tetum and a good level of English are mandatory.
7. Location and duration
The Project Officer will be based in Liquica and is expected to travel regularly to project sites. The Project Officer covering Liquiça will be based in Liquiça. This position is expected to commence in about October 2024. The assignment will be for 8 (Eight) Months with a probation period of three months. The extension of contract will be depending upon satisfactory performance and project needs.
8. Reporting and outputs
The Project Officer will report directly to Project Manager and the Municipal Agriculture Director and will agree on an individual work plan at the commencement of the assignment. He/she will support the Municipal Agriculture Director in ensuring the timely submission of project reports and documentation as outlined in the Project Implementation Manual, including with respect to monitoring and evaluation, fiduciary matters, annual workplans and budgets, etc.
An important part of this role will be assisting the Municipal Agriculture Director in tracking the implementation of the Annual Work Plan and Budget, and therefore the Project Officer will also support the PMU in the preparation of the six- monthly reports to be submitted to the SAPIP Project Steering Committee (PSC).
The Project Officer will be required to submit the following outputs:
- A short inception report to describe activities one week after start-up,
- Monthly report,
- Regular updates whenever requested by the PMU.
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 - Ministerío Agricultura Pecuaria Pesca no Floresta (MAPPF)){kind=link}
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