Technical Officer Job in Kenya

Job Advertisement: Technical Officer

We are an agribusiness company involved in the processing of avocado oil and export of fresh avocados from contracted farmers.

We are looking for qualified and competent individuals for the above position. The ideal candidates should meet the following specifications.

Qualification Requirements

1. Degree or Diploma in Agriculture or related discipline with a bias to fruit and vegetable production.

2. Two years’ experience in the production of horticultural crops in a smallholder scheme or exporter out grower scheme.

3. Good knowledge of the key or potential avocado production areas of Kenya.

4. A good understanding of the labour regulations in Kenya.

5. At least one day practical inspection course setting out basic principles of inspection.

6. At least two witness inspections accompanying an auditor, could be Global Gap, or Organic, Fair Trade or others.

7. Food safety and good agriculture practice (GAP) training.

i. Training in HACCP principles.
ii. Food hygiene training.
iii. Plant protection, fertilizer use and integrated pest management training.

8. Excellent Kiswahili and English reading, writing and speaking skills.

9. Proficient in computer application packages including MS- Word and Excel.

10. Technical report writing skills.

11. Training as a trainer of trainers (TOT).

12. Knowledge in business management skills such as budgeting, expenditure accounting and resource allocation.

13. Charismatic with good marketing and convincing skills.

14. Ability to train, mentor and motivate the Farmer Liaison Team.

15. Ability to work independently and within a team under minimal supervision.

16. Ability to contribute to the planning of the company’s future relationships with farmer suppliers and future strategic development of the company.

17. Valid motorcycle riding licence and a valid motor vehicle driving licence.

Key Tasks

A1: Technical and farmer relation activities

1. Mentoring, motivating and training of farmers liaison officers.

2. Support farmers liaison officers recruit and train harvesting supervisors and pickers.

3. Continuous verification of Farmers Liaison officer’s completed tasks (Farm verifications at least once every two months).

4. Support Farmers Liaison team with farmers group trainings.

5. Ensure and maintain good relations between farmers, the farmers liaison officers and the company.

6. Support the Farmers Liaison officers in training the farmers on good agricultural practices including fertilizer use and management, crop protection, Integrated pest management and integrated crop management.

7. Support Farmer Liaison on the operation of our Internal Management System.

8. Prepare and submit all records and documents as required by the Internal Management System in a timely manner.

9. Act as the Company’s Representative with other external Stakeholders in the areas of operations e.g. the HCD Staff, the County Agriculture Officers, the KEPHIS Staff.

10. Providing intelligence information to the Company on Competitor activities.

11. Take Charge of the Company assets and equipment in their control.

12. Regularly advise the management on ways of enhancing farmers relationship, increasing efficiency, optimizing production and profit.

13. Any Other duties as assigned by the management from time to time.

A2: Farm inspection and certification duties

1. Inspection of farms and our facilities to verify compliance against statutory and voluntary standards and produce timely and accurate reports.

2. Following up on closure of non-compliances identified during the internal inspections.

3. Address areas for improvements noted during the internal inspections or during on farm verification.

4. Coordination of external certification audits in the zones.

5. Implement Corrective Action requests from the Certification bodies.

A3: Data collection duties

1. Verification of collected data in their areas of operation.

2. Informing the company of activities of competitors and other activities that may affect the company’s operations, including county government activities.

3. Provide the data team with weekly reports on technical assistance and verification activities as outlined in the Internal Management System.

Suitably qualified individuals should submit their application which should include: –

i. A cover letter demonstrating the candidate’s competency and ability to undertake the tasks, expected salary per month and if immediately available for assignment.

ii. A detailed CV indicating experience in similar or related position/ positions.

iii. Scanned copies of relevant certificate and testimonials.

Application to be sent to hrkenya@olivado.com before 30th December 2020.

Only candidates applying as per above procedure and who meets the indicated specifications will be contacted.