Agricultural Production & Trade Specialist job at GOAL

Program Background

The Agrifood System Transformation for Youth Employment (ASTYE) Uganda program

ASTYE is a 5-year transformative initiative designed to enable dignified and fulfilling work opportunities primarily for financially disadvantaged young women, refugees, and vulnerable groups by addressing structural barriers in Uganda's Agrifood system. Aligned with Uganda’s Vision 2040, the National Development Plan and Government of Uganda Agriculture Value Chain Development Strategy, the program will contribute to national efforts toward poverty alleviation, economic growth, as well food and nutrition security. Additionally, ASTYE is part of the Mastercard Foundation’s Young Africa Works strategy in Uganda, which aims to empower 4.3 million young Ugandans, particularly young women, by addressing structural barriers to employment and providing them with the skills and resources to succeed.

Specifically, GOAL will implement component one to reach 500,000 financially disadvantaged young people, with 400,000 transiting into work and 320,000 securing dignified and fulfilling work. As the program is young women-centric, 80% of the total outreach target will be young women within Uganda's agrifood ecosystem. Furthermore, 3% of the total youth in work target will be refugees, and another 3% will be people with disabilities.

Job summary

The Agricultural Production and Trade Specialist will lead the design, coordination, and implementation of inclusive, climate-smart agricultural production, aggregation, and market linkage interventions for financially disadvantaged young women, refugees, and vulnerable groups under the ASTYE Program. The role focuses on improving productivity, quality, market access, and income generation across priority agrifood value chains.

To be successful in this role, you will need:

Essential

• Post Graduate Diploma in Agriculture & Rural innovations, Agri-business, Agricultural Extension & Rural Innovation.
• At least 5 years’ experience in Agricultural production, value chain development, or market systems development.
• Strong experience working with youth, women, refugees, and vulnerable groups.
• Demonstrated experience in collective marketing, farmer aggregation and private sector engagement.

Desirable

• Knowledge of CSA, GAP, post-harvest handling, and quality standards.
• Strong facilitation, coordination, and reporting skills.
• Ability to work extensively in rural field settings.

The key responsibilities of the role will be:

Youth Engagement in Agricultural Production

• Support facilitation of access to land for young women through block farming, tripartite land use arrangements, and partnerships with landowners, institutions, parents, and cultural leaders.
• Participate in dialogue meetings at district and community levels to agree on land access and land use arrangements.
• Promote sustainable land management practices including soil and water conservation, agroforestry, integrated pest management (IPM), and climate-smart agriculture (CSA).
• Coordinate training of young women groups on Good Agronomic Practices (GAP), CSA technologies, and sustainable production systems.
• Establish and support on-farm demonstration plots to drive adoption of improved practices.

Strengthening Farmer Groups and Collective Action

• Support profiling, formation, and strengthening of young women farmer groups and secondary-level associations.
• Support group-based bulk input procurement, collective marketing, and demand aggregation models.

Improving Access to Quality Inputs and Extension Services

• Support partnerships with private sector input suppliers to co-design inclusive last-mile input delivery models.
• Coordinate training on safe agrochemical use, handling, and storage for young women, agents, and PSA staff.
• Support certification and strengthening of village-based input agents and extension agents.
• Work with public and private actors to scale advisory and extension services, including nutrition-sensitive agriculture.

Post-Harvest Handling, Value Addition and Quality Assurance

• Facilitate access to post-harvest handling (PHH) technologies, on-farm storage solutions, and best practices.
• Coordinate trainings on drying, storage, handling, processing, and value addition.
• Support establishment of aggregation points, quality testing, grading, and standardization systems.
• Support compliance with quality standards, traceability, and record-keeping requirements across value chains.

Market Access, Trade and Agribusiness Development

• Support development of local market agents (VBAs) and strengthen linkages with off-takers, processors, and traders.
• Facilitate collective marketing, contract farming arrangements, warehouse receipt systems, and commodity exchange linkages.
• Support partnerships with agro-processors to increase off-take from young women producers.
• Support women groups and cooperatives to develop packaging, branding, and simple marketing strategies.

Documentation, Strategy Development, and Knowledge Management

• Lead documentation of program activities, lessons learned, case studies, and success stories across value chains.
• Develop and regularly update the sector implementation strategy in alignment with the ASTYE program objectives and district priorities.
• Support evidence-based planning through data analysis, learning reviews, and stakeholder feedback.
• Ensure proper record-keeping, reporting, and sharing knowledge with internal teams and external stakeholders.

Supervision, Coordination, Monitoring, and Reporting

• Provide technical guidance and supervision to Program Officers to ensure quality and timely implementation of agricultural production and trade interventions.
• Develop clear work plans and performance targets for supervised staff and conduct regular review meetings.
• Work closely with PSA partners, district local governments, and private sector actors.
• Conduct regular field monitoring visits to ensure quality implementation.
• Contribute to activity planning, reporting, documentation of lessons learned, and success stories.

• Support facilitation of access to land for young women through block farming, tripartite land use arrangements, and partnerships with landowners, institutions, parents, and cultural leaders.
• Participate in dialogue meetings at district and community levels to agree on land access and land use arrangements.
• Promote sustainable land management practices including soil and water conservation, agroforestry, integrated pest management (IPM), and climate-smart agriculture (CSA).
• Coordinate training of young women groups on Good Agronomic Practices (GAP), CSA technologies, and sustainable production systems.
• Establish and support on-farm demonstration plots to drive adoption of improved practices.
• Support profiling, formation, and strengthening of young women farmer groups and secondary-level associations.
• Support group-based bulk input procurement, collective marketing, and demand aggregation models.
• Support partnerships with private sector input suppliers to co-design inclusive last-mile input delivery models.
• Coordinate training on safe agrochemical use, handling, and storage for young women, agents, and PSA staff.
• Support certification and strengthening of village-based input agents and extension agents.
• Work with public and private actors to scale advisory and extension services, including nutrition-sensitive agriculture.
• Facilitate access to post-harvest handling (PHH) technologies, on-farm storage solutions, and best practices.
• Coordinate trainings on drying, storage, handling, processing, and value addition.
• Support establishment of aggregation points, quality testing, grading, and standardization systems.
• Support compliance with quality standards, traceability, and record-keeping requirements across value chains.
• Support development of local market agents (VBAs) and strengthen linkages with off-takers, processors, and traders.
• Facilitate collective marketing, contract farming arrangements, warehouse receipt systems, and commodity exchange linkages.
• Support partnerships with agro-processors to increase off-take from young women producers.
• Support women groups and cooperatives to develop packaging, branding, and simple marketing strategies.
• Lead documentation of program activities, lessons learned, case studies, and success stories across value chains.
• Develop and regularly update the sector implementation strategy in alignment with the ASTYE program objectives and district priorities.
• Support evidence-based planning through data analysis, learning reviews, and stakeholder feedback.
• Ensure proper record-keeping, reporting, and sharing knowledge with internal teams and external stakeholders.
• Provide technical guidance and supervision to Program Officers to ensure quality and timely implementation of agricultural production and trade interventions.
• Develop clear work plans and performance targets for supervised staff and conduct regular review meetings.
• Work closely with PSA partners, district local governments, and private sector actors.
• Conduct regular field monitoring visits to ensure quality implementation.
• Contribute to activity planning, reporting, documentation of lessons learned, and success stories.

• Strong facilitation skills
• Strong coordination skills
• Strong reporting skills
• Knowledge of CSA
• Knowledge of GAP
• Knowledge of post-harvest handling
• Knowledge of quality standards

• Post Graduate Diploma in Agriculture & Rural innovations, Agri-business, Agricultural Extension & Rural Innovation.
• At least 5 years’ experience in Agricultural production, value chain development, or market systems development.
• Strong experience working with youth, women, refugees, and vulnerable groups.
• Demonstrated experience in collective marketing, farmer aggregation and private sector engagement.
• Ability to work extensively in rural field settings.