Field Officer - Tea

Job Description

Title: Field Officer - Tea

Company Name: Solidaridad Network Asia

Vacancy: --

Age: Na

Job Location: Panchagarh, Thakurgaon

Salary: --

Experience:

• 1 to 2 years
• The applicants should have experience in the following business area(s): NGO, Development Agency

• Bachelor of Social Science (BSS)
• Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Agriculture
• Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Botany
• Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Forestry

• Bachelor's and/or diploma degree in Social Science/Agriculture/Botany/Forestry or related field from a recognized University;

• 1 to 2 years
• The applicants should have experience in the following business area(s): NGO, Development Agency

• Candidates having working experience in the Tea sector for at least one/ two years; will be given preference.

• Experience & basic knowledge about Tea factory.

• Good understanding on the dynamics of Tea/Mustard production, procurement and processing;

• Sufficient knowledge on geographic and topographic context of the northern region, especially on the Tea farmers and workers;

• Expertise on relationship development, coordination and liaison;

• Experience in engaging private sectors, government and NGO stakeholders in one forum to establish sustainability agenda;

• Ability to conduct commodity-based field insight report, i.e. data collection, analysis and reporting.

Person Specifications & Attributes:

• Minimum computer skills (MS office suite, internet);

• A highly cooperative team player and ability to coordinate and manage multiple tasks is desirable;

• Fosters an inclusive workplace where diversity and individual differences are valued and leveraged to achieve the vision and mission of the organization;

• Strong ability to communicate and function effectively in local/international/multicultural environment;

• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills.

Introduction:

• Solidaridad is a global network organization working on developing sustainable, resource-efficient and inclusive supply chains across 51 countries. Through its 7 Regional Excellence Centers, the organization is facilitating the development of socially responsible, ecologically sound, and profitable supply chains. Solidaridad started operating in Bangladesh in 2012 to develop scalable and economically sustainable solutions in the agricultural and industrial landscape in close collaboration with government agencies, businesses, and communities. Concerning agriculture, the focus lies on developing climate-resilient agricultural production systems and food supply systems towards improving the availability of nutritious and healthy food for the local and urban consumers. In the industrial landscape, our work focuses on business growth, fair value distribution, income and employment creation, and promotion of decent work environment. Solidaridad’s landscape based agricultural interventions is promoting ecosystem-based regenerative agricultural practices that essentially supports interceding adverse impacts on climate change while enhancing sustainable agricultural productivity.

• To improve productivity and influence the sustainability of the smallholder tea production, Solidaridad has initiated the ‘Transforming Smallholders Tea Value Chain in Bangladesh for Sustainable Trade and Investment’ project to support the smallholder tea farmers in the northern part of Bangladesh to enhance their income from tea farming and become more resilient. The project will work with smallholder farmers, smallholder tea cooperatives, workers, and bought leaf factories to strengthen their capacities to scale in production and the sustainability of smallholder tea. In collaboration with relevant stakeholders, Solidaridad will facilitate the establishment of a national task force to develop a strategy and national plan of action for smallholders’ tea in Bangladesh.

Overall Job Description:

• The position ‘Field Officer-Tea’ will be responsible for developing smallholder cooperatives, identifying the collaborative partnerships with public and private sectors and implementing the project activities in the northern part of Bangladesh (Panchagarh and Thakurgaon districts of Rangpur Division). Under the scope of the project, Field Officer-Tea will be responsible for cooperative development, implementing the project activities, involved in the preparation of activity planning, initiating local-level partnerships, providing field insights, and supporting management to design the interventions to develop a sustainable smallholder tea supply chain.

• The Field Officer-Tea will work with the farmers, Cooperative members, Bangladesh Tea Board, Bought Leaf Factory, business associations, Small Tea Garden Owners Association (STGOA), Traders etc. and implement the SNA activities in the programme area.

• The Field Officer – Tea will report to the Programme Manager – Tea & Associate Crops and will be based in Panchagarh/Thakurgaon district, with frequent field visits to the project implementation areas as required by project and organizational needs.

Duties and Accountabilities:

• Organize farmers groups, clusters, cooperatives and maintain relations with the tea farmers

• Conduct and facilitate technical sessions and coordinate training for the smallholder tea growers;

• Sound knowledge of the tea cultivation processes and technical know-how of the tea growing;

• Work with programme stakeholders and partners for implementing the activities;

• Identify underlying challenges and opportunities, including knowledge and technology gaps, resource optimization, etc. in the local supply chain and ecosystem;

• Develop relationships with public authorities, private companies, Small Tea Growers Associations, Bought Leaf Factories and related agencies, etc.

• Provide technical insights for reformulating project strategy that matches the stakeholders’ interests;

• Plan and implement project interventions and report accordingly;

• Organize local-level workshops and coordination meetings to enhance the capacities of relevant stakeholders;

• Collaborate with the M&E team to carry out, document, and disseminate learning related to the tea supply chain;

• Perform any other tasks assigned by management according to organizational needs.

Employment Type: Project-based fixed-term.

• Salary & Other Benefits: Solidaridad offers an attractive compensation and benefits package in line with Solidaridad Asia’s pay scales and Service Rules. The benefits package includes a provident fund, one festival bonus, gratuities, and medical insurance as per the organizational policy.