Cooperatives Assistant

IMPORTANT NOTICE: Please note that Closure Date and Time displayed above are based on date and time settings of your personal device

FAO seeks gender, geographical and linguistic diversity in its staff and international consultants in order to best serve FAO Members in all regions.

• 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 Members 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 FAO’s values
• FAO, as a Specialized Agency of the United Nations, has a zero-tolerance policy for conduct that is incompatible with its status, objectives and mandate, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination　　
• All selected candidates will undergo rigorous reference and background checks
• All applications will be treated with the strictest confidentiality
• FAO staff are subject to the authority of the Director-General, who may assign them to any of the activities or offices of the Organization.

Organizational Setting

The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted key challenges in the delivery of agriculture development services. Digital technologies playing an increasingly important role in reshaping the agri-food sector and addressing the skills and coverage limitations. Utilization of digital tools such as a Co-operative Officer Training Platform and its applications will enhance the capacity of the Department of Cooperatives in delivering the services required by the co-operative stakeholders.
Following on the digitization strategy and initiative of the Ministry of Agriculture Food Security and Enterprise, this program seeks to address the technological needs as well as digital literacy and baseline knowledge of core co-operative movement foundations amongst technical officers. The Department of Co-operatives intends to optimise its capacity development program for the continuous professional development of its personnel to effectively serve its stakeholders. In an effort to keep the pace of the digitalisation process that is currently being promoted by the e government initiative the FAO intends to contract a consultant to design a comprehensive, self-paced, digitizable Co-operatives Trainers curriculum.

The FAO will support the development of a Co-operative officer Training Curriculum and contnt to further strengthen the technical capacity of Co-operative Officers to develop and implement sustainable and climate smart co-operative ventures. Specifically, the FAO intends to ensure that the training curriculum is aligned with the Department of Co-operative law, the department’s strategy and action plan and is taken through a consultative process with key stakeholders leading to its finalisation and operationalisation. In this regard, the FAO is seeking to engage the services of a cooperative consultant with extensive experience in technical capacity building to support the review, facilitate consultations with stakeholders, and finalize a curriculum and contents of a cooperative officer training program.

Reporting Lines

The Cooperative Assistant will report directly to the National Program Coordinator, with general oversight from the FAO Country Representative for Jamaica, The Bahamas and Belize.

The Cooperative Assistant will also work closely with other members of the Project Management team and FAO personnel to support the proper implementation of the project activities.

Technical Focus

The Cooperative Assistant with the support of the Department of Co-operatives will develop a digitizable Cooperative Officer training program including a curriculum and its relevant content aligned with the local cooperative laws and global best practices. The Cooperative Assistant technical support is intended to provide a clear and coherent framework to support a digital capacity building program to transform and strengthen the services provided by the Department of Co-operatives. The deliverables are expected to be effective, user centric, interactive, simplified and rational and based on local law and global standards.

Tasks and responsibilities

The Cooperative Assistant will carry out the following tasks:
• Develop and submit Inception Report which includes the expert’s understanding of the terms of reference, proposed methodology for development of the training program and the timeline for finalizing required outputs.
• Compile relevant information and data to enable the creation of the Digitizable Cooperative Officers training program.
• Compile and validate a Cooperative Officer training curriculum and training of trainer’s plan.
• Compile and develop a Cooperative Officer Training program content inclusive of training modules, lesson plans and activities ensuring that the content meets international cooperative training standards and best practices, is in line with local context and Belize regulations, is ideal for digitization and that the activities are compatible with gamified learning.
• Develop a compatible evaluation mechanism to be included in the gamified training plan.
• Collaborate with the digitization consultant to review, update, and upload the training materials on to the digital platform.

CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING

Minimum Requirements

• University degree in Cooperative Enterprise Development, Cooperative governance, Social Business Management or relevant thematic
• 5 years of relevant experience in the development and implementation of capacity building for cooperative officers.
• Working knowledge of English.
• National of Belize or resident in the country with a valid work permit.

FAO Core Competencies

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

Technical/Functional Skills

• Work experience in more than one location or area of work
• Extent and relevance of experience in curriculum development
• Extent and relevance of experience in training of trainer programs
• Familiarity with Belizean Cooperative law

Selection Criteria

• Certification in Cooperative Governance, enterprise or social business management
• Extent of experience in curriculum development
• Extent of knowledge and experience in training of trainer programs associated with the Cooperative Sector
• Experience in facilitating multi-stakeholder consultations with various target audiences.
• Knowledge of Belizean Cooperative law

Please note that all candidates should adhere to FAO Values of Commitment to FAO, Respect for All and Integrity and Transparency.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

• FAO does not charge a fee at any stage of the recruitment process (application, interview meeting, processing).
• Incomplete applications will not be considered. If you need help or have queries, please contact: [email protected]
• Applications received after the closing date will not be accepted.
• Only language proficiency certificates from UN accredited external providers and/or FAO language official examinations (LPE, ILE, LRT) will be accepted as proof of the level of knowledge of languages indicated in the online applications.
• For other issues, visit the FAO employment website: http://www.fao.org/employment/home/en/
• Appointment will be subject to certification that the candidate is medically fit for appointment, accreditation, any residency or visa requirements, and security clearances.

HOW TO APPLY

• To apply, visit the recruitment website at Jobs at FAO and complete your online profile. We strongly recommend that your profile is accurate, complete and includes your employment records, academic qualifications, and language skills
• Candidates are requested to attach a letter of motivation to the online profile
• Once your profile is completed, please apply, and submit your application
• Candidates may be requested to provide performance assessments and authorization to conduct verification checks of past and present work, character, education, military and police records to ascertain any and all information which may be pertinent to the employment qualifications
• Incomplete applications will not be considered
• Personal information provided on your application may be shared within FAO and with other companies acting on FAO’s behalf to provide employment support services such as pre-screening of applications, assessment tests, background checks and other related services. You will be asked to provide your consent before submitting your application. You may withdraw consent at any time, by withdrawing your application, in such case FAO will no longer be able to consider your application
• Only applications received through the FAO recruitment portal will be considered
• Your application will be screened based on the information provided in your online profile
• We encourage applicants to submit the application well before the deadline date.

If you need help or have queries, please create a one-time registration with FAO’s client support team for further assistance: https://fao.service-now.com/csp

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