Job Description

Position Description

EnCompass LLC is seeking a consultant to serve as a Youth and Agriculture Sector Expert for the five-year Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) Gender and Social Inclusion (GSI) Call Order in Lesotho. Under this project, the EnCompass team will support all GSI activities under MCC Lesotho’s Compact II Improving Capital Investment (ICI) Project including: Institutional Reforms (IR), Market-Driven Irrigated Horticulture Activity (MDIH), Business Environment and Technical Assistance Facility (BETA). The consultant will work closely with a team of staff and other consultants at EnCompass, MCC and local project staff in Lesotho.

Position Duties and Responsibilities

The consultant will review project documents and related reports - MDIH and BETA projects, conduct interviews, meet with people and institutions of interest to the project, make assessments and identify gaps in youth inclusion in the context of GSI integration objectives; and thereby provide written recommendations for ongoing development and implementation of youth inclusive approach. The expert will advise on youth engagement strategies for the proposed interventions to ensure youth are meaningfully included in targeted agricultural value chains. Under the assignment the expert will also identify off-farm opportunities to engage youth in agribusiness, access to finance, ICT, IT; and integration of youth protection strategies. Areas of focus include, but not limited to:

Essential functions:

• Assessing/researching and analyzing the objective reality of youth (male and female) in the project area and make appropriate recommendations for activity design. This includes their needs, interests, skills, and priorities; access to productive resources and services; engagement in employment and income generation activities; involvement in household and community leadership and decision making, among others
• Ensuring youth have voices in all aspects of the projects – requires visit and consultation with youth
• Meeting with government, non-government, and private partners of the projects to identify opportunities for youth engagement in the projects and in economic growth of the area, in general
• Identifying capacity building and training needs and opportunities to mobilize the potential of youth and engage them fully
• Identifying and recommending potential areas of youth engagement in the irrigation scheme
• Identifying small/medium business opportunities for youth across horticulture/agriculture value chain
• Assessing and recommending on access to loan/ and project finance (especially through BETA facility)

Position Requirements

Qualifications

Academic Qualifications

• A minimum of Master’s degree in social science, anthropology, sociology, demography, geography, development studies, or closely related discipline.

Experience and Skills

• At least fifteen (15) years of relevant experience in social, gender and poverty analysis pertaining to agriculture value chains and supporting youth programs in rural livelihoods programs in sub-Saharan Africa, with at least 5 of these years in sub-Saharan Africa
• Have knowledge of gender dynamics among younger generations
• Have solid working knowledge and experience related to youth engagement in agriculture and agribusiness sector
• Based in southern Africa and preferably Lesotho or South Africa
• Excellent communication (written and oral), reporting and presentation skills
• Experience with working with large international organization agencies/organizations and large projects, preferably with MCC or USAID
• Experience in horticulture value chain and cold chain development
• English language proficiency is required, including both strong oral and written English language skills

How to Apply

Please submit CV and cover letter, and complete the application

EnCompass LLC is a progressive Equal Opportunity Employer. We promote, celebrate, and support a diverse and inclusive organizational culture and workforce. We are committed to providing all of our employees with an environment free from discrimination and harassment, where all are treated with dignity and respect. We do not tolerate, and explicitly prohibit, discrimination or harassment of any kind, at any time, in all aspects of employment. This includes recruitment, hiring, promotions, disciplinary measures, terminations, compensation, benefits, social and recreational programs, and training. EnCompass also does not tolerate retaliation against individuals who report discrimination or harassment. Our continuing commitment to the principle of Equal Opportunity Employment for all means all employment decisions are based only on the job requirements, the candidate’s qualifications, and the needs of EnCompass as a business—not on race, color, ethnicity, national origin, religion, belief, sex (including pregnancy and related medical conditions), gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, age, disability status, veteran status, genetic information, HIV status, family/marital/parental status, or any other status protected by the laws and regulations in the jurisdictions where we work.

For US based positions: The employer will make reasonable accommodations in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.

The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by individuals assigned to this position. They are not intended to be an exhaustive list of all duties, responsibilities, and skills required of personnel so classified.

The incumbent must be able to work in a fast-paced environment with demonstrated ability to juggle and prioritize multiple, competing tasks and demands and to seek supervisory assistance as appropriate.

About Company

EnCompass LLC is a women-owned, consulting firm working in International Development, and offering innovative and customized solutions for leadership, capacity strengthening, technical assistance, and monitoring and evaluation. We have experience in more than 70 countries and a team of more than 200 staff and 1,200 experts around the globe. We partner with government and multilateral agencies, nonprofit organizations, and corporations around the world, offering thought leadership, rich diversity, and technical expertise in global health, inclusive development, education, human rights, and food security. Founded in 1999, EnCompass began as a virtual organization supporting clients and implementing work through a network of staff and expert consultants. Today, we have more than 110 full-time staff and a Global Consulting Network, our vetted database of specialists, through which we engage, on average, 200 consultants each year. In early 2017, EnCompass opened its first international office in Addis Ababa for Transform: a Primary Health Care project. In 2019, we set up our second in-country office in Lima, Peru. In 2020, we added our second in-country offices, in Kyiv, Ukraine, and in 2021 we added our third and fourth in-country offices, in Beirut, Lebanon, and in Amman, Jordan. We maintain a full-time staff presence in Benin, Ethiopia, Germany, Great Britain, Peru, and Uganda.

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