Extension worker

About Ministry of Agriculture Irrigation and livestock (MAIL)

The Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock is a key ministry of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan that aims to develop the agriculture, irrigation and livestock of the rural and urban communities. The Ministry is expected to lay the foundations for a long-term strengthening of local agriculture, to promote governance, to rebuild social capital and leadership within villages and neighborhoods, and to provide assistance for rehabilitation and development to communities.

The Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan is launching the Emergency Agriculture & Food Supply Project (EATS) in response to the COVID-19 crisis. The Project objective is to support critical food supply chains and create short-term economic opportunities. The Project includes three components: (A) Productive agricultural water systems; (B) Critical food supply chain management; and (C) Project management. The Project will be implemented by the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock (MAIL) and financed by grants from the International Development Association (World Bank) and the Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund (ARTF).

The Project design is based on the experience and knowledge acquired from several on-going or recently closed projects, including: On-Farm Water Management Project (OFWMP), National Horticulture and Livestock Project (NHLP), Afghanistan Agricultural Improvement Project (AAIP), all three projects implemented by MAIL and Irrigation Rehabilitation and Development Project (IRDP) implemented by MEW. The Project will use a community driven development approach through the Community Development Councils (CDC) building on the experience of the Citizens Charter Afghanistan Project implemented by MRRD, among others.

A Project Management Unit (PMU) staffed with National Technical Assistance (NTA) is financed by the Project to support the national, provincial and district offices of MAIL for its implementation. The PMU is led by a Project Director based in Kabul.

Job Summary

Extension worker will operate under component A, and B Component A supports increased production capacity in irrigated and rain-fed areas that are primarily engaged in grain production. It comprises two Subcomponents: (i) rehabilitation and improvement of irrigation schemes to improve irrigated agriculture productivity; and (ii) watershed management and rain fed agriculture support for dryland farming through the development of productive assets and use of climate smart practices. 

Component B: This component will support and strengthen critical commercial food supply chains for food crops with a strong—but not exclusive—focus on wheat.

Under the direct supervision of the Regional Agronomist and overall supervision of Regional Manager and Extension specialist in core team. His/her performance will be evaluated by Regional manager with close coordination of Extension specialist in core team.

Duties & Responsibilities

·      Work with the communities and project team to identify key farming issues to be used in the project planning process to ensure a bottom-up delivery system.

·      Participate in the selection process of the project sites both for watersheds and irrigation schemes with regional team;

·      Work closely with the regional teams to facilitate dissemination of demand driven improved technologies promoted under the project to the men and women farmers.

·      Work with social mobilizers to in the selection process for Farmers field schools, Kitchen garden and orchards within the province

·      Conduct field surveys and collect data required for orchard establishment, Farmers field school and Kitchen gardening (KG).

·      Prepare weekly and monthly plan and activity reports of the sites.

·      With close coordination of Regional Agronomist and Horticulture officer extension worker will regularly visits the field and meet the sub project beneficiaries specially of FFS, KG, and orchards establishment to make a plan for field activities.

·      The extension worker will help the project staff in improved seed distribution under the B component. 

·      Work together with the social mobilizer and take part in community mobilization/meetings, identifying farmers, forming groups, and later on even support establishment of FFS.

·      Support farmer groups through field visits and training using the (FFS) Farmer Field School principle.

To perform other duties as assigned by the RM

Job Requirements

·      The candidate must have Bachelor Degree in Agriculture Science, with at least 3 years of verifiable experience preferably with donor funded programs in the field of extension agronomy, or any other crop production disciplines

·      Demonstrated skills in retrieving, gathering and obtaining information from various sources;

·      Sound organizational skills and ability to prioritize and deliver assignments in a timely manner often under severe time pressures;

·      Excellent report writing, communication, facilitation and interpersonal skills

Proficient in local (Pashto & Dari) languages and good

English language skills.

Submission Guideline

Interested Afghans with the required qualifications and experience should submit their applications electronically through Email address

While submitting your applications please mention the Title of the position (Extension worker) + Province name plus Vacancy Number in the subject of the e-mail; please do NOT submit any other supporting documentation or educational certificates with your application. Only short-listed candidates will be contacted for written test or interview

Note: please do not forget to mention the province name in subject line of your email.

Functional Area

Agriculture

Countries

Submission Email

hrcontracts.hrd@mail.gov.af

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