Regional Training Assistant, Dambulla, Sri Lanka

Position Description

Regional Training Assistant - Dambulla

Location Sri Lanka

Department Programs

Employment Type Host Country National

REGIONAL TRAINING ASSISTANT - DAMBULLA

Title: Regional Training Assistant

Program: Market Oriented Dairy (MOD)

Location: Dambulla - Eastern Region

Start Date: On/around November 1, 2022

Expected Duration: 1 Year, renewable on an annual basis

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BACKGROUND AND JUSTIFICATION:

IESC is a leading U.S. nonprofit organization that fosters private sector development in the economically developing world. Since 1964, we have delivered lasting solutions that have resulted in more than 1.5 million jobs in 137 countries. We partner with businesses, cooperatives, entrepreneurs, jobseekers, and governments to sustainably build capacity, create jobs, and grow enterprises, sharing proven skills and experience that improve the lives of individuals, families, and communities around the world. Our major funders today are the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), among others.

The seven-year, Market-Oriented Dairy (MOD) Project funded by U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food for Progress program supports farmers and enterprises to meet the increased demand for dairy and aims to catalyze sustainable growth in Sri Lanka's dairy sector. The project will increase productivity and expand the trade of milk and milk products in Sri Lanka. In partnership with the private and public sector, the project will increase milk production of participating farmers and farms to 102,429 metric tons by 2024. The project will also ensure 80 percent of beneficiary farmers are earning a price premium due to milk quality.

OBJECTIVE:

The Regional Training Assistant (RTA) will be responsible for assisting the Training Specialist (TS) in following-up on all training activities implemented within the region.

APPROACH:

MOD has three field-based offices to coordinate and follow-up on regional activities. The office located in Dambulla, where this Regional Training Assistant will be based, covers Matale, Polonnaruwa, Ampara, Monaragala and part of Trincomalee. The RTA will be based in the regional office, spend most of their time working remotely but will report and coordinate with the head office in Colombo as needed for weekly team meetings, trainings, or administrative matters.

The RTA will be remotely located and thus work from home with daily travel to the field to coordinate MOD training programs, especially training programs designed for the Department of Animal Production and Health (DAPH), and visit DAPH provincial offices as needed. The RTA will be expected to travel by personal vehicle or motorcycle in the region they are located in. The RTA will work across all six MOD project activities and will assist in monitoring and evaluation work on an as needed basis.

TASKS:

The RTA will carry out the following tasks in order to meet the above objectives:

• Assist the Training Specialist in implementing MOD/DAPH training related activities in the respective regions;
• Conduct MOD trainings on best practices in dairy management, business basics, and others as needed;
• Coordinate field-based trainings with DAPH and project partners as needed;
• Assist in collecting training attendance sheets with all the relevant information;
• Assist in collection of training data and report on progress against targets;
• Assist in pre-training need assessments and post-training follow-up activities as needed;
• Share regional training plans and progress reports on a monthly basis;
• Assist short-term consultants/volunteers to conduct assessments and provide technical assistance;
• Assist in monitoring and evaluation activities as needed;
• Provide input to bi-weekly, semi-annual and other project reports; and
• Carry out any other relevant work as assigned by the Project Director or Deputy Project Director

REPORTING RELATIONSHIP:

The RTA will report directly to the Training Specialist. He/she will also work with the Regional Project Coordinators and Activity Directors to facilitate the smooth implementation of the project in the regions.

ADMINISTRATION AND LOGISTICS:

The RTA will be assigned to the regional office but may have to work independently in a different district as per the requirements of the MOD Project. He/she will be transferable to another location to meet the needs of the project. He/she will be required to travel in the assigned districts and province for extensive field work.

The RTA will use his/her own mode of transport when working in the assigned region and use project vehicles or project provided transportation when travelling outside of the assigned region. When using their personal vehicle, MOD will reimburse running costs per kilometer.

The RTA must seek prior approval for weekly travel from their immediate supervisor and travel reports must be submitted in a timely manner. The MOD Project will provide lodging, meals and incidental expenses when traveling outside of the province on pre-approved project related work following MOD's and the US government's travel policies.

QUALIFICATIONS:

• The RTA must have a degree or a diploma in agriculture/animal science with over two years of relevant field training experience.
• Ability to train farmer groups and other extension staff, previous experience in farmer trainings and extension in the dairy sector is preferred.
• Must have worked in agriculture/dairy value chain.
• Experience working in US Government funded initiatives will be an added advantage.
• He/she must have excellent interpersonal, communication, and writing skills in English and fluency in Sinhala or Tamil.
• Must have a riding or driving license.
• Computer literacy and proficiency in the use of Microsoft Suite of products such as Office, Excel, Power Point and Outlook is essential.

This position is intended for a Sri Lankan national. CVs should be submitted in English.

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