National consultants for Digital Trade Capacity Building to promote food security and agriculture value chain in Malawi and Uganda at United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA): (Deadline 5 September 2024)

Result of Service

In close consultation with and under the guidance of the lead consultant of the project and the project manager of ECA, the national consultants will conduct a comprehensive and detailed assessment of the current status of digital traded access to food and agriculture value chains in the targeted countries and identify the gaps, needs, and opportunities for improving the performance and profitability of the use of digital technology on agricultural value chain and access to food. With the view to perform above duty, the national consultants will carry out the following tasks and activities: a. Inception report Assist with desktop research, interviews, and liaising with local officials and development partners and main actors of the digital agriculture value chain providing context and input for the study to determine the gaps in terms of access to improved intrants and production and the strengths and weaknesses of the different segments of the value chain and access to food. b. Two Policy briefs Within the methodology, assist in writing 2 policy briefs on: a. Integration of digital solutions in agricultural policies, strategies, production and trade of agricultural products. b. Digital marketing, branding, post-harvest handling, quality standards and digital commodity exchange platforms. c. Develop training materials on: o Using digital tools to improve agricultural production systems o Digital technologies for addressing food market information asymmetries, digital marketing, branding and quality standards d. Facilitate national workshops on: o Digital supply chain management for agriculture o Digital technologies for food market information and regional agricultural value chains e. Provide technical inputs for national field missions and workshops in target countries f. Progress reports o Annual progress report o Final report g. Collaborate with national stakeholders (both public and private) and relevant development partners Provide technical inputs for national field missions and workshops in target countries h. Assist in organizing an online validation workshop for the consultant to present proposals for review and feedback to national stakeholders and partners. i. Performs other support work as requested by the international consultant or project manager and assists with the presentation of the findings and recommendations to the Ministry.

Work Location

Home based with travel

Expected duration

6 months in 3 years

1. BACKGROUND AND JUSTIFICATION Agriculture in Africa is a significant economic activity, but food insecurity persists. In this regard, it is important to rethink how food is traded in Africa. The use of digital technology platforms in international and regional trade can help reduce food insecurity by connecting regions with limited agricultural potential or large populations facing climate changes, pandemic shocks, and security constraints to regions with surplus food production. The growing usage of cell phones, the internet and other digital innovations could help support food security and agricultural value chains in Africa by facilitating communication about food availability in surplus countries and shortages in others. This project aims to address the challenges of food insecurity, high food prices, and inefficient food distribution mechanisms in targeted countries (Malawi and Uganda) by leveraging digital technologies and the opportunities presented under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). It is expected that the project will address these challenges by raising awareness and building capacities on the use of new trade digital technologies. It will strengthen the capacities of selected countries and their stakeholders to use digital technologies to buy and sell food products and foster cross-border food value chains that will help ensure regional food security. The Project will support countries in the Least Developed Countries (LDCs), Landlocked Developed Countries (LLDCs), and Small Island Developing States (SIDS) categories based on requests for support received from Governments. The following countries are identified:  Eastern Africa: Uganda  Southern Africa: Malawi 2. OBJECTIVE AND SCOPE OF CONSULTANCY The Project aims to reduce food insecurity by connecting regions with limited agricultural potential or large populations facing climate changes, pandemic shocks, and security constraints to regions with surplus food production using digital technologies and opportunities presented under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). This intervention will strengthen the capacity of selected African countries to use these innovative technologies to address market exchange commodities, digital marketing, and information asymmetries in an agricultural food market. The national consultant will be responsible for following tasks: a. Assessment and Planning o Assist the regional consultant to conduce a detailed assessment of the status of digital traded, access to food and agriculture value chains in the targeted countries o Assist the regional consultant to develop a comprehensive implementation plan outlining the steps, resources and timeline required to achieve the project objectives b. Strengthen the capacity of member states to integrate and utilize digital solutions to access inputs for improving agriculture value chain. Assist the regional consultant to: o Produce policy briefs towards agriculture sector policy makers on integrating digital Solutions in Agricultural Policies and Strategies to strengthen the agriculture value chain and access to food. o Develop and implement training materials and workshops to strengthen the technical capacities of stakeholders in targeted countries to use digital technologies to improve production systems, agricultural value chain and access to food. o Conduct regional/national workshop session on the best practices in digital supply chain management, tailored to the needs of the agriculture sector and access to food in targeted countries. o Mount field mission to provide advisory services to Government officers and Private Sectors on increasing the use of digital technologies to improve agriculture productivity and access to food. c. Enhance capacity of Member States to effectively access regional and international food products markets through digital platforms Assist the regional consultant to: o Produce policy briefs towards agriculture sector policy makers on digital marketing and branding, post-harvest handling, quality standards, access to food and digital commodity exchange platforms. o Develop and implement training materials on the use of digital technologies tailored to addressing key agriculture market challenges like food market information asymmetries, digital marketing, digital branding, quality standards and high cost of doing business o Conduct regional workshop session on using digital technologies. The workshop should focus on experience sharing from different case studies and digital solutions examples. o Conduct national workshop session on using digital technologies to remedy food market information asymmetries to identify market and investment in regional agriculture value chains. d. Stakeholder Engagement Assist the regional consultant to: o Engage with key stakeholders, including government agencies, private sector entities, and international organizations, to ensure broad based support collaborations o Organize workshops, seminars, and meetings to disseminate projects finding and best practices

Advanced university degree (master’s degree or equivalent) in economics, agronomy, sustainable development studies, statistics or related area is required. A first level university degree in a combination of additional two years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the master’s degree Any relevant Professional certification in Digital Economy/Digital transformation/Digital Payment is desirable. 2. Any relevant Professional certification in Digital Economy/Digital transformation/Digital Payment Experience: 5 years’ experience in in Digital Economy, Digitization of Agricultural value chains, or related areas with proven track record of AgriTech Projects in developing countries, preferably in Africa or related area is required. Preference will be given to candidates who are based in the respective countries. Also, the national consultants should ideally: ─ Have some experience in conducting statistical analysis. ─ Be familiar with the agricultural value chain, food digital trade ─ Experience working with the national institutions. ─ Experience working under tight deadlines and delivering high-quality outputs. ─ Possess strong oral and written communication skills. ─ Ability to work independently, proactively and with little supervision.

Languages

Language: English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For this post, fluency in English is required (oral and written).

Additional Information

Not available.

No Fee

THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.