Terms of Reference for Sugarcane Coordinator

Transcription

1 Terms of Reference for Sugarcane Coordinator A. Introduction Nepal is one of the countries in the world which received PPCR (The Pilot Program for Climate Resilience) funds from the Climate Investment Funds. The Government of Nepal, together with ADB, IFC, and the World Bank prepared and presented a Country Plan (commonly referred as SPCR) to the PPCR Sub-Committee, which was approved in June Following the approval of Nepal s SPCR, IFC s PPCR Program was also approved by the Sub-Committee donors in October In Nepal, the agricultural sector employs over two-thirds of the labour force and contributes to roughly one-third of the Gross Domestic Product. Agricultural productivity in Nepal is already challenged by limited access to quality inputs, high dependence on rain, poor farming practices, very limited access to finance, significant male outmigration and poor forward linkages; consequently, these factors contribute to serious food security risks. Climate Change is expected to affect agricultural productivity in Nepal through (i) rising temperatures, (ii) climate variability and related changes in the timing, intensity, and volume of rainfall, and (iii) increase in pests and diseases. IFC commissioned a diagnostic study of the agribusiness sector, and based on various critical factors such as vulnerability to climate change, contribution to food security, importance to economy, farmer involvement, growth potential, level of commercialization, level of interest among private sector actors to undertake support services and ease of partnership with producers shortlisted three crops - rice, maize and sugarcane - for strategic intervention under the PPCR project. The increase in temperature and changes in rainfall are expected to have the following impacts on production of the target crops: Decrease in productivity: rising annual temperatures affect crop growth cycles and reduce crop yield and productivity. Increase water requirements: the increase evapotranspiration due to higher temperatures will lead to a higher demand for water. Decrease in soil fertility: Increase temperatures may reduce soil organic carbon and soil micronutrients, and enhance decomposition by activating the microbial population in the soil. Increase in pests: outbreaks of diseases, pests and weeds may cause major problems in crop and livestock sectors. B. Brief project description The PPCR project would cover a total of 15,000 farmers and 3 Lead Firms engaged in the rice, maize and sugarcane crop sectors and will be implemented over a four year time horizon. The project implementation is expected to commence by September 2013.

2 Lead Firms: IFC has shortlisted three promising private sector companies in the Terai region as Lead firms, who in close collaboration with IFC and the implementing agency contracted by IFC is expected to implement the farmer level activities in their respective catchment areas. These firms have direct business relationships with agrovets/dealers in the region. This closely twined coordination arrangement between IFC, the lead firms, the input supplier base of the lead firms, knowledge partners among government departments/international agencies and project implementation agency will be leveraged to transfer and disseminate technical skills and services to strengthen farmer s resilience to climate change. Farmers: The project aims to train 15,000 (50% women) rice, maize and sugarcane farmers in the Terai region (5000 farmers per crop) over a period of 4 years, in all aspects of climate adaptive agriculture practices through 15 local extensionists to be embedded within the Lead Firms. These extensionists will be trained as Master trainers in climate change adaptive agricultural practices and they in turn will train the farmers, initially under direct supervision and in close coordination with the respective subject matter specialists. The lead firms will arrange the farmer training sessions. C. Market Failure Of the 16 countries listed as being at "extreme" risk from climate change over the next 30 years, Nepal is the 4th most at risk. In order to become climate-resilient and reduce the climate change impacts on production, Nepal's farmers and agribusiness companies need to identify approaches for adapting to climate change impacts. This needs to include access to inputs, to water, to training on good agricultural practices, to weather information and market information, and to finance. However, currently farmers in Nepal lack the ability and flexibility to respond to changes in climate and companies are unaware of the models to support them. Key barriers to farmer resilience include: 1) Low levels of awareness and adoption of climate-resilient seed varieties. Institutional mechanisms to update and inform farmers about releases of new seed varieties are weak (except for maize) or non-existent, resulting in low adoption of even the few varieties currently available. Better access to quality seed could increase yield and thereby contributing to food security while also reducing crop losses from climate change. 2) Lack of timely, reliable, and affordable access to water resources, and poor water management practices. Farms in the Terai (plains) region are mostly rainfed, and depend on erratic rains. Farmers require irrigation in the dry season (November- June), but only 5-10% irrigate, using ground and surface water conveyed largely through diesel pumps. The availability and cost of diesel fuel limits groundwater use to only medium and large farmers, and even these farmers under-irrigate because of costs. It is estimated that climate change will exacerbate these issues, with more infrequent but more intense rains. 3) Inadequate input availability and knowledge of agriculture practices, especially related to climate change. Government-provided extensionists have a limited role in the agriculture sector, and while some large agriprocessors provide extension services, they are inadequately trained and very few in number. This is reflected in low average yield of rice, maize and sugarcane which in Nepal are 2.7 MT/ha,

3 2.1 MT/ha and 39.5 MT/ha, while the Southeast Asia average is 3.8 MT/ha, 3.2 MT/ha and 64.9 MT/ha, respectively. Affordability, availability, and timely accessibility of chemical fertilizers and their balanced use are major barriers to crop productivity. Information and knowledge of composting, plant nutrition, and plant protection measures is also limited. Few, if any, government or private sector companies are aware of specific practices or efforts to support farmers adapt to climate change. 4) Absence of robust weather information delivery and early warning systems. In Nepal today, critical infrastructure and services that help anticipate and communicate early warning of severe weather events and better manage water resources are weak. The absence of robust weather information delivery systems affects the ability of farmers to cope with climate change-related weather variability. 5) Lack of access to finance. The availability of agricultural credit is low the preimplementation study revealed that only 20% of farm households surveyed receive loans from formal financial institutions (FIs). High transaction costs to reach farming households, and limited awareness among farmers about financial products, constrain the delivery of financial services to farmers. D. Scope of work Based in Eastern Sugar Mill in Sunsari, Nepal, the Technical Coordinator will work under the joint supervision of the PPCR Project Team Leader of IFC and the Technical Manager (Cane Development) of the client company and Regional Manager of PAC, Implementing Partner. The overall responsibilities will include but are not limited to the following tasks: The roles and responsibilities of the technical coordinator will be, but not limited to, the following: Take the lead on overall implementation of the training program to coordinate and implement sugarcane extension and support activities with Eastern Sugar Mill. Organize and lead training sessions and workshops Liaise with and coordinate inputs from domestic and international consultants/ experts as and when necessary and requested by Project Team Coordinate organisation of Training of Trainers (ToT) to extensionists To develop training calendar for 5000 sugarcane farmers in consultation with Eastern Sugar Mill. Supervise training to the farmers conducted by extensionists Identify lead farmers in close consultation with Eastern Sugar Mill for development of demo plots Assist National and International Sugarcane experts in developing demo plots at lead firm level and lead farmers level. Regularly monitor demo plots at lead firm level and lead farmer s level with support from extensionists and technical team of Eastern Sugar Mill. Organise exposure visit to lead farmers. Impart regular Trainings to Extensionists and Lead Farmers.

4 Develop a deep understanding of communities that the project is working in Build and maintain strong relationships with the extension teams and local partners with the aim to build local capacity. Assist local partners in linking with banks for finance in association with IFC and Client teams. Ensure project partners are reporting on a monthly basis accurate data (physical & financial) using the reporting format provided by IFC and against targets agreed with the client. Undertake regular project budget monitoring to ensure alignment with planned budget targets and flagging issues to Project Team on a regular basis Participate actively in joint reviews, working group committees and monitoring. Liaise with clients/partners and apprise Project Team on any issue that may arise from partnerships/collaboration. Execute other tasks as requested by the project management based on project demands. E. Specific Requirements M.Sc.(Ag) in any subject preferably Agronomy or Plant Breeding or Agric. Extension or Agric. Entomology with at least minimum of 3 years experience on Sugarcane development in the Sugar factory, having result oriented track record. Ability to think strategically and rapidly analyze and integrate diverse information from varied sources and take quick decisions; Should be able to communicate effectively and be fluent in oral and written English. Candidates that can speak local language will be given preference Ability to work independently to build and maintain effective relationship with colleagues and wide range of clients/external parties. Excellent command of Microsoft Excel, Word, PowerPoint and database management Willingness to be based in project site. Self-starter with a proven record in delivering results in rural areas. Strong project management and analytical background. F. Deliverables The Sugarcane Coordinator will deliver the following to PAC Training calendar for 5000 sugarcane farmers Identification of 20 lead farmers for demo plot Follow-up and monthly reporting of the project s on-ground activities and progress to the Project Coordinator Tracking of extensionists training plan and budget spent G. Supervision and Timing The Technical Coordinator will work under the joint supervision of the PPCR Project Team Leader of IFC and the Technical Manager (Cane Development) of the client

5 company and Regional Manager of PAC, Implementing Partner. The sugarcane coordinator will work closely with the national and international technical experts of the project team to ensure the efficient execution of the assignment. The consultancy assignment is for 2 years and renewed as needed. The assignment is expected to begin in December 2013.