Program Lead Food Security and Rural Well Being At Global Center on Adaptation

ABOUT GCA

The Global Center on Adaptation (GCA) is an international organization that works as a solutions broker to catalyze action and support for adaptation solutions, from the international to the local, in partnership with the public and private sector, to ensure we learn from each other and work together for a climate resilient future. Adapting to impacts of climate change provides a “win-win” for health, livelihoods, food security, water supply, human security and economic growth. The work of the GCA elevates the visibility and political importance of climate adaptation and facilitates solutions, such as smarter investments, new technologies and better planning to become more resilient to climate-related threats.

Africa is a priority region in GCA’s 2020-2025 Business Plan. The urgency of the compounded COVID-19 and climate crises is compelling a new and expanded effort to accelerate momentum on Africa’s adaptation efforts. The African Development Bank (AfDB) and the Global Center on Adaptation (GCA) are joining forces to use their complementary expertise, resources and networks to develop and implement a new bold Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program (AAAP) to galvanize climate resilient actions through a triple win approach to address COVID-19, climate change, and the economy.

The AAAP will contribute to closing Africa’s adaptation gap, support African countries to make a transformational shift in their development pathways by putting climate adaptation and resilience at the center of their critical growth-oriented and inclusive policies, programs, and institutions. It will scale up successful initiatives fundamental to African nations’ economic development, and prosperity for women and men. It will take promising ideas and early-state programs to a regional and continental scale by developing and scaling up science-based solutions. It aims to achieve a balanced regional coverage to promote socio-economic development and poverty reduction in African countries through prioritized regional and continental initiatives implemented over the short, medium, and long term, setting the first targets for 2025.

The success of the AAAP is based on the strong complementary roles of AfDB and GCA. AfDB’s leadership role in finance, policy, and as a broad development advisor to African Governments will be complemented by GCA with its dedicated focus on climate adaptation and resilience. GCA’s globally recognized leadership as an adaptation solutions incubator and broker, and as upstream trusted policy advisor will add several areas of expertise to the partnership. These areas would include the ability to develop practical applications of the latest climate science to adaptation action on the ground, foster innovative blended financial solutions; combine planning, engineering, technology, and biodiversity expertise for new approaches to adaptation; and build agile knowledge-sharing platforms to scale up proven resilience solutions across Africa, and adapt global solutions to the African context. GCA will drive innovation in existing adaptation pathways to accelerate momentum on adaptation progress on the ground. The joint advocacy platforms of AfDB and GCA will be essential for the mobilization of partners, resources, and youth entrepreneurs.

In their Nationally Determined Contributions, African countries identified key areas where investments in adaptation and resilience building could yield high dividends. These include agriculture and forestry, water resources, disaster risk reduction, biodiversity and ecosystems, and human settlement. Many African countries are in the process of preparing and finalizing their National Adaptation Plans. AAAP builds on the priority areas identified by the countries in their NDCs and NAPs and accelerates momentum through large scale proof of concept investments, innovations, and knowledge and technical assistance initiatives. The AAAP will support Africa’s future generations through youth and women-led SMEs in new adaptation and resilience markets and skills development, financing and enabling environment reforms to allow innovative SMEs and new markets in the resilience space to flourish.

AAAP will support the implementation of the vision of the Africa Adaptation Initiative and aim to achieve balanced regional coverage in its work through regional and continental programs and projects over the short, medium and long term up to 2025. AAAP will evolve over time as priorities and financial needs are further refined.

The AAAP constitutes GCA’s work program for Africa, refocusing the program areas of the 2020-2025 Business Plan into the following four bold and transformative ideas:

• Climate Smart Digital Technologies for Agriculture and Food Security: with a goal to scale up access to climate-smart digital technologies, and associated data-driven agricultural and financial services, for at least 30 million farmers in Africa. This program will be integrated with several initiatives to build a climate-smart agriculture and resilient food system in the region.
• African Infrastructure Resilience Accelerator: with a goal to scale up investment for climate resilient urban and rural infrastructure in key sectors such as water, transport, energy, and waste management to help the continent close the infrastructure gap and achieve sustainable development in the face of climate change. The program will ensure that climate risks and resilience are progressively integrated in all new infrastructure projects in Africa, and that 50% of infrastructure funding is specifically targeted to enhance the climate resilience of economies and communities, and climate-proof projects during the life of projects.
• Empowering Youth for Entrepreneurship and Job Creation in Climate Adaptation and Resilience: aims to promote innovation and inclusive growth for young people (aged 15-35) in climate resilient jobs; developing skills and knowledge on adaptation, building the entrepreneurial capacity of African youth; and facilitating access to funding and mentorship to youth-led and women-led businesses in the adaptation space.
• Innovative Financial Initiatives for Africa: which aims to make substantive headway towards closing the adaptation finance gap, enhancing access to existing finance and mobilizing new private sector investment by designing and demonstrating mechanisms that utilize public sector finance to leverage private investment. It is estimated that adaptation and resilience finance costs for the continent will be up to USD30 Bn per annum to 2030. The program goal is to increase financial flows for adaptation and resilience to the continent by more than USD 5 Bn between 2021 and 2025.

The program areas are closely interconnected. For example, the finance mobilization will support infrastructure investments, digital finance services to farmers, and youth enterprise support. The infrastructure program, through its water investments, will support climate adaptation for food security, and employment opportunities for youth. The food security program will drive the innovative energy of young entrepreneurs to change the landscape of food production through the digital climate advisory services.

The combined complementary strengths of AfDB – in finance, policy, and broad development mandate – and GCA – as global adaptation solutions incubator and broker, and trusted upstream policy advisor – will ensure effective design and implementation of these four program areas.

ABOUT THE ROLE

Overview

The GCA seeks an experienced, ambitious and dynamic individual to lead the work program, with a primary focus on the AAAP. S/he drives forward the Global Center on Adaptation’s role as a solutions broker in the field of adaptation action. S/he will play a key role in positioning the GCA as the foremost international organization specialising in climate change adaptation with a focus on Africa.

Responsibilities

The Program Lead will be responsible for:

• Taking a leadership role in positioning the GCA as a key solutions broker on climate change adaptation for achieving rural wellbeing and food security;
• Providing leadership for the GCA’s program on rural wellbeing and food security, including making strategic decisions related to GCA’s directions and leading the implementation of part of GCA’s business plan;
• Effective delivery of the AAAP Food Security pillar in close collaboration with AfDB
• Developing initiatives and projects to position the AAAP with key stakeholders in the food security community, including maintaining active relationships with key interlocutors within these stakeholders;
• Proactive assessment of and contribution to relevant national, regional and international events and associated opportunities for the GCA to realise its adaptation acceleration objectives, in relation to AAAP and emerging food security agenda;
• Monitoring, evaluating and reporting on projects and using this to continuously steer and improve the program;
• Performing budget management so that the program’s results are achieved within the planned and forecasted financial resources;
• Researching and preparing briefings related to identified key external opportunities and stakeholders relevant to the GCA’s execution of its business plan;
• Building and managing a strong and diverse team, able to achieve the planned results and to adapt to the high level of growth and dynamics of GCA.

Reporting

You will report to the Director of Programs and Regional Director for Africa.

REQUIREMENTS

MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS

Values

• Strategic vision
• Commitment to excellence
• Teamwork
• Unconventional thinker
• Goal oriented

Core Competencies

• Strong experience in climate change adaptation, in designing and implementing projects and good working knowledge of delivering climate advisory services
• At least 15 years of work experience related to rural development, agriculture and food security in low- and middle-income countries;
• Excellent interpersonal skills and experience of working in international, intercultural environments, preferably in Africa;
• Experience of successfully delivering complex multi-stakeholder projects to time and within budget;
• Experience in working with the private sector;
• Excellent leadership, presentation and communication skills;
• Excellent written and spoken English; proficiency in other languages is an asset.

EDUCATION

Minimum

Masters’ Degree, or preferably PhD in international development, agriculture or a related discipline

LANGUAGE

Required

ENGLISH Exceptional written and oral communication – C2

French will be an added advantage

TECHNICAL

Required

• MS Office

Preferred

• NA

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND BENEFITS

The GCA offers a dynamic, high profile and international working environment in a growing organization. You will have the opportunity to draw upon the substantial expertise available at the GCA and its partner organizations across the world and will be given an opportunity to support the shaping of international policies and global action on climate change, working at the highest governmental levels and collaborating with governments on all continents. The post will be located at the GCA’s Headquarters Office in Rotterdam, Netherlands (40 hours per week).