Job Description E-extension Expert
Primary Location
: Jordan
Organizational Setting
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is implementing the Project entitled “Building Resilience to Cope with Climate Change in Jordan through Improving Water Use Efficiency in the Agriculture Sector” (BRCCJ), The goal of the seven-year project is increased climate resilient sustainable development in the country. Towards this aim, the project combines infrastructure development and natural resources management with principles of local capital formation at the community level. The project will have three interrelated components, which will work synergistically to address key barriers and enhance the impact of project investments. The components are designed to deal with the lack of infrastructure, limited capacity of rural farming households and weak institutional capacity. They include (i) Component 1: Climate Resilient Water Systems; (ii) Component 2: Climate Change resilience for Enhanced Livelihoods and Food Security; and (iii) Component 3: Scaling-up climate adaptation. Coherently with identified lesson learned in Jordan as well as with the GCF Gender guidelines, the project builds on the idea of inclusion of women as change agents for climate adaptation.
The project will be executed jointly by FAO, UNDP, Ministry of Environment (MoE), Ministry of Agriculture (MoA) and Ministry of Water and Irrigation (MWI) indicating the strong collaborative and partnership approach which will be adopted during the implementation of the project. The project will capitalise on the strong experience and convening power that both FAO and UNDP have established in the country.
This assignment is under the Project’s Component Two and will involve tasks under Activity 2.1.2.1 - Developing climate smart IT solutions for smart devices”, the activity aims by 2029 to reach at least 30 percent of the country's agricultural households (30,000 HHs) through an electronic extension system or “Information and Communication Technology for Climate Adaptation (ICT4CA)”. These will be the direct beneficiaries of the project.
Through this activity, the project will provide a support to strengthen and consolidate the efforts of MOA (DG-Extension) in the dissemination of information on climate change adaptation and weather forecasts through the e-extension or ICT4CA model. MOA will broadcast gender-sensitive video and audio content including climate adaptation measures and meteorological information useful for farmers. The support will assist in the development and strengthening of climate smart IT solutions to enable MoA to better disseminate information important for climate change adaptation. The project will hire a technical expert who will review the IT systems which have been developed by the MoA and assess their suitability, upgrade them and build an interface that enables its use by multiple agencies.
Reporting Lines
Under the overall supervision of the CTA and the direct supervision of the Agronomist and Climate Change Adaptation Specialist, and close coordination with the Ministry of Agriculture extension staff, the E-extension expert will work to achieve the required tasks.
Technical Focus
• Agricultural, agriculture extension, environmental, watershed management, and water management. climate change adaptation in agriculture sector.
• E- extension and IT solutions in the agriculture sector.
Tasks and responsibilities
The incumbent will be mainly involved in implementing tasks under activity 2.1.2.1 as directed by the CTA. The position will be based in the Ministry of Environment of Jordan to support the project PMU. The assignment will involve the following tasks:
Undertake an assessment on ICT4CA systems and technical capacity of beneficiaries
• Undertake a desk review, key informant interviews (including field-level farmer interviews) and exploration and evaluation of the current, in-place and planned, future e-extension/ ICT4CA systems. The current situation of e-extension and digital knowledge transfer and receipt will be assessed and analysed to ensure that other investment, e.g., BRCCJ, builds on existing systems and strengthens the existing capacity within MoA as well as understanding well the needs of the end-user farmers.
• Assess the technical capacity (both ownership of needed tools and personal knowledge/ skills) of the beneficiaries of the future e-extension/ ICT4C4 system (the 30 000 smallholder farmers) to accept, understand and work with the proposed technology. Based on the result of this particular part of the study, the project will determine the need for capacity building and investment into the future users of the proposed system, and act on this need.
Develop the climate-smart IT solution for smart devices using the ICT4CA technology
• Support to the development/ upgrading (by a service provider) of an e-system application, including identification of the service provider identification, provision of technical oversight and validation of the e-system with key stakeholders.
Capacity building for the optimal usage of the developed knowledge transfer application using the ICT4CA technology, including the following trainings:
• Train government agencies on the developed e-system application usage
• Train government agencies on gender-sensitive communication and content creation
• Capacitate (technically and knowledge/ skills-wise) the future users of the knowledge transfer application on its use.
Report on progress on a quarterly basis and submit a final report by the end of this assignment:
• Provide substantive input – especially focused on the achievements up to date into the quarterly progress reports to the PMU team and CTA (4 reports).
CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING
Minimum Requirements • Advance degree related to IT, Agronomy, extension, climate change adaptation in agriculture.
• 5 years of experience with the e-extension related projects in the agricultural sector (at least 2 projects).
• Working knowledge (level C) in English and Arabic.
• National of Jordan or resident of the country with valid work permit.
FAO Core Competencies
• Results Focus
• Teamwork
• Communication
• Building Effective Relationships
• Knowledge Sharing and Continuous Improvement
Technical/Functional Skills
• Ability to work in close collaboration with a group of national and international experts, to meet strict deadlines and plan the work according to priorities.
• Demonstrated capacity to plan, organize, and execute effectively.
• Initiative, good analytical skills, mature judgment and ability to work under tight schedule while respecting deadlines achievement.
• Good understanding of Jordanian culture and context
FAO does not charge a fee at any stage of the recruitment process (application, interview meeting, processing). 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: 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 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
