Home Vacancies, July 2025 Agricultural Engineer (Retainer)

Agricultural Engineer (Retainer)

Duty station: Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Contract type: Local ICA Specialist

Closing Date: 06-Nov-2024

 

Job Description

 Background Information – Job-specific

UNOPS ETMCO is recruiting for this position: Agricultural Engineer- Retainer based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

 
Qualified women and candidates from groups which are underrepresented in the UNOPS workforce are encouraged to apply.  

This is a local position, and is hence open to Ethiopian nationals only.

UNOPS  strategy for Ethiopia Multi Country Office is aimed at providing support to the Government and people of Ethiopia, Sudan and Djibouti through the delivery of projects and services in line with the governments’ own priorities and under the UN Delivery as One initiative. The UNOPS Ethiopia Multi Country Office (ETMCO) has been established as an organizational mechanism to deliver a range of projects for which UNOPS has been appointed as the implementation agency. At present, UNOPS ETMCO  is implementing and negotiating a number of projects in a range of sectors including infrastructure development, Procurement Support to Government Ministries and other UN agencies and HR support to UN agencies. The functional objective of UNOPS ETMCO is to deliver projects in an efficient and effective manner, to achieve the development outcomes sought by the Government of Ethiopia and the donor community, where capacity building is always considered and encouraged.

The United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture and Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research (EIAR) in Ethiopia  is implementing projects in the Procurement and Delivery of Agricultural machinery and related accessories and services that require technical expertise in agricultural engineering. An Agricultural Engineer is needed on a retainer basis for the design & development of specification and taking part on the bid evaluation as a technical expertise. Furthermore, the engineer will inspect the final delivery of the equipment delivered as part of various projects  before handing it over to the partner/ministry.


 Functional Responsibilities


Under the overall supervision of the Procurement Specialist, the Agricultural Engineer will be responsible for the following substantive tasks. The tasks would involve the following but not limited to:

  • Develop technical specifications, support the preparation and issuance of various EOIs, RFPs and RFQs and formulate minimum quality standards compliant with national and international requirements and best practices and with UNOPS quality assurance policy.
  • Provide necessary technical support for various bid evaluations as Technical Expert to the bid evaluation team, to ensure technical compliance with UNOPS/Ministry of Agriculture and Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research (EIAR) needs and cost effective purchase of goods and services
  • Assist in developing standard operating procedures to ensure best practices for procurement of agricultural machineries and related inputs;
  • Assist in the coordination of timely readiness of goods for the pickup and pre-delivery inspection (If required) with the supplier to initiate the timely delivery as per the delivery schedule mentioned in the contract;
  • Provide, and oversee, inspection activity for the procured machineries and related accessories.
  • Prepare and conduct training for the client personne when required

Technical tasks:

  • Review specifications for the procurement of Agricultural Machinery and related accessories and services.
  • Assist in preparation of cost estimate and conduct market research
  • Review health and safety requirements of the Products to be procured.
  • Provide support during the tender processing time, including clarification responses to bidders’ queries
  • Take part in the technical evaluation of the tender as technical expertise
  • Conduct inspection of the products (as and when required)  before handing over to the partner in line with the contract agreement made with the supplier
  • Ensure that all the products  meet the agreed quality standards as per the specification and requirement of the tender.
  • Provide technical direction and support to end users on how to use and operate the products received including training (if needed)
 

Education/Experience/Language requirements



Education:
  • Bachelor Degree in Agricultural Science, Mechanical Engineering, Agriculture, or  related fields is required.
  • A Professional Diploma in relevant discipline with relevant combination of academic credentials and/or industry certifications and qualifying experience of 4 years may be accepted in lieu of the university education.

Experience:
  • At least  two (2)  years of relevant working experience in agriculture development environment is required.
  • A minimum of one  (1) year experience developing technical specifications for agricultural machineries is required.
  • Experience in providing technical assistance to institutions in the area of agricultural mechanization is highly desirable.
  • Experience working with and training end users in machinery operation for agricultural productivity or a related field is an advantage.
  • Field experience is an asset.
Language:
  • Fluency in spoken, reading and written English is required.
  • Knowledge of another UN Official Language is an asset.

 

SEE ADDITIONAL DETAILS AND APPLY HERE>>>

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