Post-Doctoral Scientist Job Vacancy in Nairobi Kenya (USD 35,000)

Vacancy Number: PD/PGI/IBLI/06/11

Department: Poverty, Gender and Impact team

Location: Nairobi, Kenya

Duration: two years with the possibility of renewal

Base salary from USD 35,000 plus attractive international staff benefits package

The International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) works at the crossroads of livestock and poverty, bringing high-quality livestock science, communications and capacity building to bear on poverty reduction and sustainable development.

ILRI is one of 15 centres supported by the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR). ILRI has campuses in Kenya (headquarters) and Ethiopia, with other offices located in other regions of Africa (Mali, Mozambique, Nigeria) as well as in South Asia (India, Sri Lanka), Southeast Asia (Laos, Thailand, Vietnam) and East Asia (China).

The position: ILRI seeks to recruit a Postdoctoral scientist within its Poverty, Gender and Impact team. This position would be part of the team developing, piloting, assessing the impact of, and scaling-up index-based livestock insurance (IBLI) products.

A comprehensive pilot has already been commercially launched in Marsabit District of Northern Kenya and research into its implementation in Southern Ethiopia has already begun (see,www.ilri.org/ibli).

Interest from donors, development partners, and government requires scaling up of the Marsabit pilot into other arid districts of Northern Kenya.

With this position we seek someone to help spearhead the design and evaluation of IBLI products for the scaling up effort in Kenya. IBLI is currently modelled by fitting a statistical relationship between remotely-sensed NDVI (Naturalized Difference Vegetation Index) and area-average livestock mortality data.

As this relationship changes across space, different statistical relationships need to be modelled and different products designed and priced. The successful candidate will develop improved modelling techniques to expand contract precision and coverage. Ideally, the candidate will also contribute to evaluation of IBLI product impacts on household and individual behaviour and well-being.

Responsibilities
  • Design IBLI contracts for select arid districts of Northern Kenya: model the product and price risk across a range of possible contract options;
  • Develop modeling techniques/methods that allow for greater spatial coverage and improved precision of IBLI product with the use of a minimal set of data;
  • Lead the design of a data collection instrument for data relevant to the development of IBLI contracts and help field these efforts;
  • Help design and operationalize impact evaluation of IBLI products;
  • Liaise with local insurance companies and international reinsurance companies;
  • Contribute to the development of an industry-wide capacity in the design and comprehension of IBLI products;
Requirements:
  • A PhD in Agricultural Economics, Development Economics, Financial Economics, Operations Research, Statistics, Computational Finance or any related field;
  • Have a demonstrated understanding of risk analysis, risk pricing and design;
  • A record of publications that demonstrates strong analytical, empirical and writing skills and shows promise and high capacity;
  • Ability to work in multi-disciplinary and multi-cultural teamsand a strong and effective communicator;
  • Knowledge and experience of handling large GIS and remote sensing data.
Post location: The position is based at ILRI’s Headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya.

Terms of appointment:

This is an Internationally Recruited Staff (IRS) position with initial appointment of two years with the possibility of renewal for one year, contingent upon individual performance and the availability of funding. ILRI offers a competitive international remuneration package – Medical insurance – Life insurance – and allowances for: – Housing – baggage – and children’s education.

Applications: 

Applicants should send a cover letter explaining their interest in the position, what they can bring to the job and indicating earliest availability, curriculum vitae and the names and addresses (including telephone and email) of three referees who are knowledgeable about the candidate’s professional qualifications and work experience to email: recruit-ilri-Ken@cgiar.org by 22 July 2011.

The position title and reference number POST DOCTORAL SCIENTIST: PD/PGI/IBLI/06/11 should be clearly marked on the subject line of the email applications.

Due to the high volume of applications that we receive, we regret but only online applications will be considered and only short listed candidates will be contacted.

To find more about ILRI, visit our Website at www.ilri.org

ILRI is an equal opportunities employer.

Qualified candidates from African countries, particularly women, are encouraged to apply.


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