Sustainable Commodity Value Chain Specialist

Mission and objectives

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is the lead agency on international development of the United Nations. UNDP works in 170 countries and territories to eradicate poverty and reduce inequality. We help countries to develop policies, leadership skills, partnering abilities, institutional capabilities, and to build resilience to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. Our work is concentrated in three focus areas; sustainable development, democratic governance and peace building, and climate and disaster resilience. UNDP’s mandate is to end poverty, build democratic governance, rule of law, and inclusive institutions. We advocate for change, and connect countries to knowledge, experience and resources to help people build a better life.

Context

UNDP Ghana is implementing a growing portfolio of programmes that promote sustainable agricultural commodity value chains, natural resource management, climate resilience, biodiversity conservation, and inclusive rural development. These efforts support Ghana's national priorities on sustainable land use, forest restoration, climate action, food systems transformation, and green economic growth. Current interventions focus on strategic commodities including cocoa, shea and soybean, while UNDP is actively exploring opportunities to expand its engagement in the cashew sector and other sustainable agricultural value chains. The assignment offers an opportunity to contribute to the design and implementation of innovative programmes that strengthen commodity value chains and offers opportunities to enhance livelihoods while addressing environmental challenges such as deforestation, land degradation, biodiversity loss and climate vulnerability. The position will play an important role in supporting ongoing initiatives and identifying new opportunities for investment, partnerships and programme development, particularly in relation to sustainable cashew value chain development. The Volunteer will be integrated within UNDP Ghana's Environment and Climate portfolio and will work closely with technical specialists, programme teams and national counterparts. The role will involve collaboration with a broad range of stakeholders, including the Forestry Commission, Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA), Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) and other key national stakeholders.

Task Description

Under the direct supervision of Team Lead of the Environment and Climate cluster the UN Volunteer will support the design, implementation, monitoring, partnership development and knowledge management of UNDP's sustainable commodity and natural resource management portfolio, with a particular focus on cocoa, shea, soybean and emerging opportunities in the cashew sector. In this regard the UN Volunteer Specialist will undertake the following tasks: 1. Support the Implementation of Sustainable Commodity Programmes • Provide technical and coordination support to ongoing projects related to cocoa, shea and soybean value chains • Support the implementation of activities related to climate-smart agriculture, agroforestry, forest landscape restoration, sustainable land management, community re-source management and resilient livelihoods • Contribute to efforts aimed at strengthening community governance systems for sustainable management of forests, woodlands and other natural resources • Assist in the preparation and monitoring of annual workplans, activity schedules and project delivery targets. • Conduct field visits to project sites to support implementation, monitoring and stake-holder engagement activities. 2. Support Development of a Sustainable Cashew Programme • Undertake analyses and mapping of the cashew value chain in Ghana, including pro-duction systems, market opportunities, environmental challenges, policy issues and investment gaps. • Identify opportunities for sustainable cashew production, processing, value addition and market development. • Support stakeholder consultations with government agencies, private sector actors, farmer organizations, development partners and financial institutions. • Contribute to the preparation of concept notes, project documents, partnership proposals and resource mobilization efforts for future cashew-related interventions. • Explore opportunities to integrate cashew development with agroforestry, landscape restoration, biodiversity conservation and climate resilience objectives. 3. Support Value Chain Development, Private Sector Engagement and Sustainable Finance • Liaise with the Innovative Finance and Inclusive Growth Cluster to identify and develop public-private partnerships and innovative financing pathways, undertake assessments of financing needs and investment opportunities, and promote sustainable pro-duction, market access and innovative financing mechanisms for sustainable commodity value chains. • Support in engaging private sector actors, producer organizations, aggregators, processors and commodity buyers to strengthen value chain development for relevant commodities prioritized by the Ghana country office. • Support activities aimed at enhancing economic opportunities for women, youth and producer groups across targeted value chains. 4. Monitoring, Reporting and Knowledge Management • Support the collection, compilation and analysis of project data, results and lessons learned across commodity related work. • Assist in preparing technical reports, donor reports, briefs, presentations and communication materials. • Develop case studies, success stories and knowledge products documenting good practices and innovations in sustainable commodity development and natural re-source management. • Support the organization of workshops, stakeholder dialogues, field missions and knowledge-sharing events.

Competencies and values

Accountability Adaptability and Flexibility Building Trust Commitment and Motivation Commitment to Continuous Learning Communication Ethics and Values Integrity Knowledge Sharing Planning and Organizing Professionalism Respect for Diversity Self-Management Technological Awareness Working in Teams

Living conditions and remarks

Ghana is widely regarded as one of the most peaceful and politically stable countries in West Africa and offers a welcoming environment for international personnel. The duty station for this assignment is expected to be Accra, the capital city, which serves as the country's administrative, commercial and diplomatic hub. Accra offers a wide range of housing options, reliable telecommunications services, good banking facilities, international schools, modern shopping centres, healthcare facilities, restaurants and recreational opportunities. English is the official language and is widely spoken throughout the country, making communication and integration relatively easy for international staff. Conditions of Service: The Conditions of Service, available here: https://explore.unv.org/cos, outline the policies and rules governing UN Volunteer assignments. Full information on entitlements at the duty station can be accessed here: https://app.unv.org/calculator.