IFAD - Country Director (Lima) by Oxford HR

Country Director, LAC Division August 2021

IFAD - Country Director, LAC Division

Contents About IFAD

The Role

Job Summary

Key results expected / Major functional activities

Impact of Key results / Key performance indicators

Representation / Work Relationships

Competencies

Qualifications and Experience

How to Apply

About Oxford HR

IFAD - Country Director, LAC Division

About IFAD The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD is an international financial institution and a specialised agency of the United Nations that works to address poverty and hunger in rural areas of developing countries. IFAD’s mission is to transform rural economies and food systems by making them more inclusive, productive, resilient and sustainable. The institution invests in the millions of people who are most at risk of being left behind: poor, small-scale food producers, women, young people and other vulnerable groups living in rural areas. IFAD is the only specialized global development organisation exclusively focused on and dedicated to transforming agriculture, rural economies and food systems. The organisation targets its support to reach the last mile and remotest areas, to help millions of rural people to:

• Increase their productivity and access markets • Create and access jobs and rural economic growth • Increase their incomes, move out of poverty and improve their food and nutrition security • Build their resilience in the face of a changing climate and manage the natural resource base sustainably • Improve their coping mechanisms in fragile and conflict environments • Strengthen their voice, capacities and organizations IFAD catalyses public and private investments, helps strengthen policies and promotes innovation, in order to achieve sustainable benefits for the poor at scale and support all countries to achieve lasting, systemic change. IFAD works with governments, the private sector, civil society and other development partners and use a range of instruments, tools and knowledge to respond to the challenges facing countries with the most critical needs.

IFAD - Country Director, LAC Division

The Role

Position: Location: Duration:

Lima, Peru

Level:

Country Director, LAC Division

2 years

Job Summary The Country Director is accountable for IFAD core values of integrity, transparency, and equity in the management of assigned portfolio. The Country Director ‘s accountabilities/key results also include advocacy for and enhancement of national government programmes that improve the access of poor rural people to natural resources; agricultural technologies; financial services; markets; employment opportunities and enterprise development.

The Country Director additionally promotes capacity building of key government counterparts and the rural poor in terms of the skills required for their participation in national and local policy and programming processes. The key results expected comprise five broad thematic areas: • Country Strategy Management • Country Programme Management • IFAD Institutional Leadership and Partnership Development • Contribution to Policy Leadership • Office Management

IFAD - Country Director, LAC Division

Key results expected / Major functional activities Country Strategy Management The Country Director leads strategic positioning and country strategy development. S/he is accountable for leading and managing the development and implementation of medium to longer-term strategies (COSOP) for IFAD’s collaboration with governments and other national stakeholders for agricultural development and rural poverty reduction following the principle of ownership, alignment and harmonization. This entails analysis of the dynamics of agricultural development and rural poverty reduction; development of relevant country-specific strategies; and the definition of IFAD’s value added in this context.

Country Programme Management The Country Director manages IFAD programme and related IFAD-funded projects within the portfolio assigned by the Division Director. S/he leads the design and supervision of the projects as well as loan and grant negotiations, all in accordance with IFAD’s applicable policies. The Country Director is accountable for analysing relevant information, assisting in the periodic monitoring, evaluation of results achieved, reporting on, and dissemination of findings. S/ He contributes effectively to the IFAD

organizational change agenda, with reference to issues related to IFAD’s direct supervision and implementation support modalities.

Institutional Representation and Partnership Management The Country Director ensures IFAD presence at country-level. S/he contributes to catalyse effective partnerships with a broad range of stakeholders in agricultural development and rural poverty reduction, including government and nongovernmental institutions, bilateral and multilateral financing institutions, civil society organizations, research centers and the private sector. Additionally, S/ he enhances IFAD’s relationship and collaboration with in-country partners focusing on synergies and coordinated strategies with multilateral/bilateral donors and civil-society organizations involved in agricultural development and rural poverty reduction. S/he represents IFAD on the UN Country Team, acting as the primary point of contact to transmit IFAD’s decisions, provides support in the coordination of operational activities for development, and contributes to all international and national meetings / thematic groups meetings.

IFAD - Country Director, LAC Division

Key results expected / Major functional activities Contribution to Policy Leadership The Country Director contributes to corporate level strategy on core IFAD policy positions within the assigned portfolio, led by Division Directors. S/ he maintains and promotes constructive dialogue on the development of pro-poor agricultural development and rural poverty reduction policies and in enabling the rural poor to advocate for institutional transformation. S/he regularly participates in relevant policy meetings and events of interest to IFAD’s target groups and which involve the government, donors, and civil society, including NGOs, to render the policy dialogue agenda both credible and sustainable. S/he contributes to IFAD’s policy intelligence with regular updates and information exchange on relevant

policy discussions and ensure proper knowledge management in place. Policy dialogue focuses on seeking to link the realities on the ground and the voices of the poor with national policies and programmes.

Office Management The Country Director supports the Head of the relevant Sub-regional Hub/SSTC and Knowledge Centre in managing the utilization of the allocated resources. As such, s/he supports the management of human resources, contracting goods and services, and financial management. S/ he also supports budget preparation, management, and monitoring of expenditures.

IFAD - Country Director, LAC Division

Impact of Key results / Key performance indicators The Country Director provides technical and managerial leadership to the substantive development and execution of the assigned country programme(s), including providing (i) managerial direction to programme analysts and officers (up to P-3 level), country

programme officers and assistants as well as administrative assistants; (ii) effective country present and representation with government counterparts and other programme collaborators; and (iii) ability to anticipate and manage potential risks to the success of programmes.

IFAD - Country Director, LAC Division

Representation / Work Relationships

Competencies

Communications - The Country Director serves as the IFAD spokesperson in the country concerned and, in carrying out this role and when required, draws on the advice and expertise of IFAD’s Communications Division (COM). The Country Director holds regular consultations with IFAD counterparts — line ministries and governmental bodies at all administrative levels, donors, civil society — to enhance the effectiveness and impact of IFAD operations. The Country Director also seeks to improve coordination among IFAD, the government and key development partners with a view primarily to ensuring synergy and a common approach to emerging agricultural development and rural poverty reduction strategies, policies and investment programmes. S/he serves as IFAD’s liaison with project authorities and helps in addressing administrative and programmerelated substantive issues, such as targeting and identifying needs for technical backstopping. The Country

Organizational

Technical/Functional

• Strategic thinking and organizational development: Strategic leadership (Level 1) • Demonstrating Leadership: Leads by example; initiates and supports change (Level 2) • Learning, sharing knowledge and innovating: Challenges, innovates and contributes to a learning culture (Level 2) • Focusing on clients: Contributes to a client-focused culture (Level 2) • Problem solving and decision making: Solves complex problems and makes decisions that have wider corporate impact (Level 2) • Managing time, resources and information: Coordinates wider use of time, information and/or resources (Level 2) • Team Work: Fosters a cohesive team environment (Level 2) • Communicating and negotiating: Acquires and uses a wide range of communication styles and skills (Level 2) • Building relationships and partnerships: Builds and maintains strategic partnerships internally and externally (Level 2) • Managing performance and developing staff: Manages staff and teams effectively (Level 1)

• Senior expert in programme development and management as well as specific expertise in rural project management and market development. • Extensive field experience related to agricultural and rural development. • Excellent knowledge of policy oriented, programme based pro-poor approaches and loan and grant preparation. • Capacity to communicate fluently with different counterparts (civil society, government authorities, local communities, project staff) to align parties and build networks. • Ability to represent IFAD as a trusted and reliable partner. • Communicates verbally and in writing clearly, succinctly and convincingly; listens and communicates effectively to engage others. • Demonstrated analytical skills in order to identify systemic issues and derive viable, sustainable solutions.

Director proactively works with project management to ensure compliance with IFAD policies and overall orientation towards the achievement of results and impact. As a senior expert on country programme formulation and delivery, the Country Director ‘s effectiveness as an advocate and trusted counterpart substantially affects IFAD’s image as a reliable and creative partner. Country Directors originate and manage new country-level projects or programmes in the assigned portfolio. Going beyond established procedures or models, their substantive contributions reflect new approaches that materially expand the range of services or programmes delivered at the country-level. Programme design and development activities reflect authoritative technical capacity in performing the Head of Country Programme role. Externally the impact on the overall IFAD programme is significant in projecting the organization’s role/capacity as a reliable partner with a qualitative edge at the national level.

IFAD - Country Director, LAC Division

Qualifications and Experience Education

Language requirements

Advanced university degree from an accredited institution in rural development, agriculture, economics, rural finance, development policy or other job related fields.

Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English and Spanish. Working knowledge of another official language (French and/or Portuguese) is desirable.

Experience Eight (8) years of progressively responsible international experience in international organizations, rural development/financial institutions or government services], preferably in area of implementation and supervision of rural development programmes of which at least two (2) years’ experience working in an international organization. Experience may include project design, development, implementation and evaluation.

IFAD - Country Director, LAC Division

How to Apply All correspondence, at this stage, should be via Oxford HR. To apply for this post, click on the “Apply” button on the job advert page, complete our online application form, and submit your CV and cover letter. Please provide a CV and cover letter in two different documents, which should be prepared before applying as they will be considered in the application process. The cover letter should be no more than two pages long and explain why you are interested in this post and how your skills and experience make you a good fit. The document should be saved in MS Word in the following format: Your First NameYour Last Name-Document Name-Date (mmyy) e.g., Pat-Jones-CV-072021-IFAD or Pat-Jones-CoverLetter-072021-IFAD.

Timeline Closing Date:

27th August 2021

Selection process All candidates will receive an update regarding their application after the closing date. We advise candidates to add the role email to their safe senders list and regularly check their spam folder.

Equality Statement Equality and diversity are at the core of IFAD values. Staff are expected to work collectively and individually to promote a constructive and sensitive approach to others from a variety of backgrounds, where the work of others is valued and respected.

Queries If you have any queries on any aspect of the appointment process, need additional information, or would like to have an informal discussion, please email at ifadcountry-director@oxfordhr.co.uk in the first instance.

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis.

IFAD - Country Director, LAC Division

About Oxford HR Oxford HR operates globally - mainly within the international development and charity sectors. We carry out retained executive search mandates at board and senior management levels. We also offer human resource and organisational development consultancy.

Oxford HR has many years of experience in search as well as an extensive network of international development, social sector, corporate, public sector, and academic contacts from across the world. We carry out comprehensive and often international searches designed to meet the specific needs of our client.

IFAD - Country Director, LAC Division

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