Our client, Digital Green, is an international non-governmental organization that is creating a world where farmers use technology and data to build prosperous communities. For ten years, their core product has been video-based agricultural extension, putting the power of local knowledge in the hands of local farmers. In recent months, they have begun to invest in building the public infrastructure to support smallholder farmers globally. Today, their product work is focused on hyper-local content delivery and market connections, powered by a modular, customizable digital platform, empowering an ecosystem of frontline workers, cooperatives, and agricultural service providers.
Digital Green joins forces with governments, private agencies, CSOs, and, most importantly, rural communities themselves to co-create digital solutions that help smallholder farmers increase productivity and income. For more information, please visit Digital Green’s website: www.digitalgreen.org.
Digital Green is currently seeking to recruit an Agronomist. Although this role primarily involves desk work, it requires substantial field experience to excel. The Agronomist must possess the expertise and knowledge gained from field setups.
Overall Job Summary
The primary goal of this role is to develop comprehensive agricultural resources tailored to the priority Value Chains (VCs) within Kenya. This initiative is designed to include the creation of detailed crop calendars, in-depth crop profiles, strategic content sourcing, and the meticulous management of databases, among various other critical tasks. The purpose of assembling these resources is to bolster the development of FarmerChat, an advanced AI-driven bot engineered to provide precise advisory services to Extension Agents and Lead Farmers. By implementing this strategy, our objective is to significantly elevate agricultural productivity, ensure sustainability, and make a profound impact on the economic landscape.
Key Responsibilities
Crop Lifecycle Management and Profile Development:
- In-depth Research and Analysis: Conduct thorough research on the priority VCs, focusing on understanding their complete life cycles, from planting to harvest. This includes gathering data on each crop’s growth stages, key agricultural practices, and environmental requirements.
- Crop Calendar Creation: Compile the research findings into detailed crop calendars for each VC. These calendars should outline critical activities and practices at each stage of the crop’s lifecycle, including planting, growth monitoring, pest and disease management, harvesting, and post-harvest handling. The calendars must specify the timelines for each activity, tailored to the climatic and geographical conditions of the targeted counties.
- Crop Profile Sheets: Develop comprehensive crop profile sheets that encapsulate each VC’s essential characteristics. These profiles should cover the priority crops, their prevalence across regions, adaptability to local climates, economic significance, and sustainability considerations. The profiles will also categorize crops based on geography (County and Sub-county), agro-climatic zones, and soil types.
- Expert Consultation and Verification: Engage with local agricultural experts and agronomy specialists to validate the accuracy and applicability of the crop calendars and profiles. Make necessary adjustments based on expert feedback to ensure the resources are practical and reliable for the target audience.
- Resource Compilation: Organize the finalized crop calendars and profiles into an accessible format, such as Excel sheets and adding detailed notes and annotations to provide additional insights and guidelines wherever necessary.
Comprehensive Content Development, Analysis, and Translation for Agricultural Value Chains
- Systematic Content Gathering: Proactively collect existing content from the identified sources, emphasizing the quality and relevance to the agricultural VCs. Coordinate with product team members to organize this content effectively in Google Drive folders or similar platforms.
- Content Analysis and Gap Identification: Analyze the collected content to identify any gaps, redundancies, or misalignments with the project’s objectives. Prepare a comprehensive report detailing these findings and suggest strategies for addressing identified issues.
- Development of Top Topics and Content Sheets: Pinpoint critical topics that should be covered under advisory extensions for each VC, validated by agricultural experts. Create and regularly update content record templates to track the coverage of these topics across different content sources, highlighting any content gaps.
- Prompt Analysis and Golden Q&A Preparation: Evaluate the relevance and accuracy of prompt-response pairs, focusing on their applicability to the AI-driven advisory services. Develop a robust Q&A list for each VC, incorporating expert feedback to ensure the questions and answers are both practical and insightful for extension workers and lead farmers.
- Keywords and Taxonomy Development: Establish a comprehensive database of regional terminology, translating scientific terms into local languages while maintaining English as the base language. This will facilitate better understanding and communication among all stakeholders.
Qualifications and Experience
- A Bachelor’s degree in Agronomy, Crop Science, Soil Science, Agriculture, or a related field is typically required. Advanced degrees (Master’s) may be preferred for specialized roles.
- At least five years of practical experience in agronomy, farming, or agricultural research is highly valued.
- Proficiency in Google Suite and Microsoft Office.
- Strong analytical and organizational skills.
- Ability to work under pressure and meet deadlines.
- Strong communication and teamwork skills.
How to apply
Qualified candidates to apply via email jobs@careermanagementcentre.com clearly indicating the position they are applying for on the email subject as “Agronomist” by COB 15th March, 2024.
Due to the urgency, application will be reviewed on a rolling basis.
NB: Only short-listed candidates will be contacted.
Career Management Centre and our Client Digital Green are proud equal opportunity Employers and do not discriminate applicants on any basis