Organizational Setting
The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) through the Land and Water Division (NSL) will implement one initiative aiming at advancing agriculture by embracing the Vision for Adapted Crops and Soils (VACS) framework that will contribute for enhancing crop yields, improving food security through sustainable, climate-resilient management practices, and revitalizing traditional food crops for their resilience and nutritional benefits.
The expected will contribute to establish and make operational a national soil information system, make data accessible to evaluate soil suitability for different crops, create an integrated soil-crop management platform and create a micro-scale advisory interface that will be avaible for decision making and strengthening the extension advisory services to farmers.
Reporting Lines
The National Soil Information and Data Specialist will work under the overall supervision of the FAO Country Representative, and the guidance of the Assistant FAOR - Programmes, in coordination with the project LTO and project Lead Technical Unit (NSL). The incumbent will work under the direct supervision of the AFAOR-P, the National Project Coordinator and the SoilFER Overall Project Manager at FAO-HQ Mozambique.
Technical Focus
Digital soil maps, advanced geospatial tools and software, such as R, QGIS, Google Earth Engine.
The National Soil Information and Data Specialist will support the development of spatiotemporal national soil information, including high-resolution nutrient and nutrient budget maps, using advanced geospatial tools and software, on the Soil mapping for resilient agrifood systems in Central America and sub-Saharan Africa (SoilFER) project in Mozambique. Furthermore, the incumbent will be responsible for supporting the development of digital soil maps, based on soil survey data, and integrating soil data into decision support tools and applications for farmers and local institutions.
Tasks and responsibilities
The incumbent will undertake the following tasks:
โข ย ย Supervise data collection, systematization and harmonization of soil maps and legacy data (in coordination with existing institutions and initiatives in Mozambique).
โข ย ย Support the design and supervision of soil surveys and sampling at the national level, using advanced soil survey techniques and methodologies, to generate high-quality soil data and associated metadata, through rigorous quality control and quality assurance measures and in collaboration with the soil laboratory experts
โข ย ย Supporting the development of digital soil maps, based on soil survey data, and integrating soil data into decision support tools and applications for farmers and local institutionsย
โข ย ย Support the design and supervision of a soil monitoring system, including the selection of monitoring sites, to be implemented through the establishment of a national soil spectral library and estimation serviceย
โข ย ย Support capacity development in digital soil mapping and modeling
โข ย ย Facilitate the organization of workshops on soil data with stakeholders and partners
โข ย ย Liaise with the project team to ensure timely delivery of survey outputs, including data, maps, scripts, reports and training sessions
โข ย ย Perform any other duties as assigned in the Representation.
CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING
Minimum Requirements ย ย
โข ย ย University Degree in Agricultural/Soil Science, Geographical Information Systems, Computer Science, or any related field.
โข ย ย ย At least 3 years of experience in digital mapping and analysis.
โข ย ย Working knowledge of English
โข ย ย National of Mozambiqueย
FAO Core Competencies
โข ย ย Results Focus
โข ย ย Teamwork
โข ย ย Communication
โข ย ย Building Effective Relationships
โข ย ย Knowledge Sharing and Continuous Improvement
Selection Criteria
โข ย ย Working knowledge of the official language of the country (if considered necessary)
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
FAO does not charge a fee at any stage of the recruitment process (application, interview meeting, processing) Applications received after the closing date will not be accepted Please note that FAO only considers higher educational qualifications obtained from an institution accredited/recognized in the World Higher Education Database (WHED), a list updated by the International Association of Universities (IAU) / United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The list can be accessed at http://www.whed.net/ย ย For additional employment opportunities visit the FAO employment website: http://www.fao.org/employment/home/en/ย ย Appointment will be subject to certification that the candidate is medically fit for appointment, accreditation, any residency or visa requirements, and security clearances.ย