Volunteer - Fall Armyworm Integrated Pest Management, Kongo Central Province

Job Description

Project Description

The Feed the Future DRC Fall Armyworm Activity is helping improve the application of integrated pest management (IPM) and good agricultural practices (GAP) by smallholder maize farmers collaborating with public, private, and NGO channels and collaborators. Its main aim is to use selective IPM and GAP approaches to help limit the damage smallholder farmers from Fall Armyworm (FAW, Spodoptera Frugiperda). The project is organized into three activity Components:

1) Component 1: Validate safe and cost-effective integrated pest management (IPM) technologies suitable for smallholder maize producers;

2) Component 2: Facilitate system adoption of suitable technologies and approaches that will build the resilience of smallholder producers and the supporting market system; and

3) Component 3: Strengthen the enabling environment necessary to coordinate systemic approaches to FAW response.

The project works in 8 provinces, Haut Katanga, Kasai Oriental, Kongo Central, Kwilu, Lomami, Plateau des Bateke, South Kivu, and Tanganyika, and a total of 328 farmer field schools have been set up in these locations.

Assignment Scope

This assignment falls within project Component 2 - Facilitate System Adoption of Suitable Technologies. Venture37 seeks an experienced IPM professional with hands-on experience in using IPM to control insect pests. The sustainable solution that can help farmers reduce the Fall Armyworm (FAW) damage is the improved Integrated Pest management (IPM) practices. FAW IPM also includes good agricultural practices. At present, IPM is not extensively applied in the DRC. The selected volunteer will be working in the field, under the direct support of the M-FAW Agriculture and Education Specialist, but also in liaison with the COP.

The volunteer will be based in Mbanza Ngungu city in Kongo Central Province and later move to the project intervention areas. The volunteer will travel to the local Farmer Field Schools established by the project. Basic IPM training will be delivered to farmer groups at these venues, using practical examples in the maize fields. The volunteer will focus on providing direct technical assistance to community facilitators in specified areas in the 3 indicated provinces. The format will be direct interaction and demonstration sessions, question and answer, discussion and field-level problem solving and training with participating farmers.

The volunteer will train thirty five (35) community facilitators (males and females) at least 18 of them will be women.

A key reference for the approaches for FAW are contained in USAID’s Fall Armyworm in Africa: A Guide for Integrated Pest Management.

Training materials are available from the AgriTraining website under the Fall Armyworm Mitigation: Learning Modules for Trainers of Smallholder Farmers in Africa.

There is flexibility for the start date of this assignment. The expected length of time is 16 days, including travel to and from the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

While professional French is helpful, it is not required for this assignment as the project team is proficient in English. The project will provide translation services in French and appropriate local languages (Lingala, Kikongo) to assist the volunteer. The locally based M-FAW agent will accompany them and act as translators. If needed, the project will identify local translators who will provide with the volunteer translation and interpretation services.

Assignment Tasks

1. Prior to departure/Before leaving the home country:

• Attend a remote orientation with the project staff to become familiar with the project, the specific contect of the participating farmers, and the community context.

2. In-country activities/tasks:

• Conduct initial assessment with the target community facilitators for the assignment to understand their specific needs related to FAW GAP and IPM.

• Participate in farm visits to get a better sense of the operating environment of farmers.
• Conduct a training of Farmer Field School community facilitators, including maize smallholders, in GAP FAW IPM.
• Hold on-farm visit with community facilitators and maize smallholders, share skills and knowledgeson FAW early monitoring, identification, economic threshold and improved integrated pest management related to FAW.
• Visit farmer fields in the target communities to jointly observe maize crop progress, assess the presence of FAW or risk of FAW, and provide practical and actionnable advice to participating farmers.
• Make recommendations and provide advice directly to participating farmers on appropriate IPM approaches. Any recommendations that may involve pesticides should comply with the project pesticide Safe Use Action Plan (SUAP) and emphasize safe-use and proper precautions.

3. Post Assignment Activities:

• At the conclusion of the assignment, provide a brief written report on the technical assistance provided, number of participating farmers, summary of farmer concerns, and recommendations on 1) specific advice recommended for farmers and 2) approaches and techniques most effective to training and assisting farmers (format will be provided).
• Outreach: Upon return to their home country, the volunteer will be requested to communicate his or her Farmer-to-Farmer Program experience to the community. Such outreach activity can include talks at groups such as business, religious, women’s or educator’s groups and/or contacting the media.
  
  

4. Deliverables

The volunteer must submit a Final Report to the activity and Venture37 home office. That report will include the following sections:

A. A summary of tasks and observations from site visits and community facilitators and farmers trainings.

B. A list of 3-5 specific and actionable recommendations for the project, specially for Component 2 and farmer adoption of FAW GAP and IPM approaches, practices, and technologies. The recommendations are very important to the program as we use them to inform ongoing project activities supporting maize small-holder farmers. These recommendations will be reviewed during the debriefing session with country staff at the end of the assignment and the volunteer may make revisions to them in their final report.

C. A section listing the assignment objectives above and how they were met or why they were not met.

D. A short summary of the assignment with relevant photos that can be posted on the in project communications materials.

Volunteer Qualifications
The project is seeking volunteers with the following skills and qualifications:

• Degree in agriculture, entomology, crop protection (maize), biology or similar,
• Experience working in agricultural education, extension or sustainable agricultural development, crop pest management and GAP IPM field,
• Practical experience in the pest control in industry or on-farm, either in private sector or in an institution,
• Knowledge of maize production and IPM,
• Able to conduct field-work with small scale maize farmers in rural areas,
• Strong technical knowledge covering entomology, agronomy, and bio-control systems

About the Organization

Land O’Lakes Venture37 is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit helping communities around the world build economies by strengthening agriculture from farm-to-fork, helping businesses grow, and linking farmers to markets. Since our start in 1981, we have been leveraging nearly 100 years of expertise in crop inputs, agricultural insights, dairy and animal nutrition from our close affiliate, Land O’Lakes, Inc., a farmer-owned agribusiness committed to fulfilling its purpose of feeding human progress.

Our team is made up of nearly 350 employees who are committed to market-led approaches, and passionate about collaborating locally to create lasting inclusive economic growth. By unlocking the potential of agriculture for nearly 40 years, the lives of more than 3 million people have been transformed through nearly 300 programs in more than 80 countries.