Vacancy: Environment and Climate Change Manager GROW2 - Tamale, Ghana

Company Profile

Mennonite Economic Development Associates (MEDA) is a faith based International Development Organization based in Canada and operating since 1953. 

Job Description

• Job Status:  Full-time Contract


• Anticipated Start Date: July 2022


• Location: Wa, Ghana


• Environment and Climate Change Manager


• GROW2 - Ghana · Tamale, Ghana

Mennonite Economic Development Associates (MEDA) invites applications for an Environment and Climate Change Manager to join our dedicated and talented team in Ghana on our mission to create business solutions to poverty!

MEDA’s work is built on a foundation of Mennonite business roots and faith-based values, within the global context of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. We believe business solutions are effective interventions to address poverty. Through a market-systems approach and strategic partnerships, MEDA enables access to finance and provides business and technical expertise to build transformative agri-food market systems that create decent jobs, allowing traditionally excluded groups to become active participants in a sustainable economy. MEDA welcomes all who share our values and want to join us in our mission. To find out more about MEDA, please visit our website at www.meda.org. 

POSITION SUMMARY 

The Greater Rural for Opportunities for Women 2 (GROW2) project is a women-focused project driven by a strong market system approach that fully integrates Nutrition, Gender Equality, Human Rights, Environmental Sustainability, and Innovation in its implementation. The Project will increase the economic and social empowerment of women farmers, entrepreneurs, and agribusinesses in the Northern, Savannah, and Upper West Regions of Ghana through increased productivity, and an improved business environment. 

MEDA is seeking the services of an Environment and Climate Change (ECC) Manager who will lead the integration of environmental sustainability and climate action practices into all aspects of the GROW2 project. This integration will be critical to the project’s ability to facilitate sustained change. The successful candidate will be based in Wa, Ghana, and report directly to the Project Manager.  

Working closely with the ECC Technical Director, based in MEDA Headquarters, the ECC Manager will lead the project staff and implementing partners in integrating the Project’s environment and climate change strategy into project delivery, as well as ensuring outreach to Women Smallholder Farmers (WSHFs), entrepreneurs, and agribusinesses on environmental stewardship, and climate change adaptation and mitigation. The ECC Manager will design and deliver ECC pieces of training for the GROW2 staff and Key Facilitating Partners in addition to frequent direct interaction with MEDA GROW2 clients. 

The ECC Manager will work closely with the project’s managers and specialists to address ongoing constraints to environmental sustainability and Market System development, surveying and identifying stakeholders for adoption of best practices.  This position will involve frequent travel to project locations within the Northern, Savannah, and Upper West Regions of Ghana.

POSITION RESPONSIBILITIES

Key Accountabilities  

• Review and contribute to the mainstreaming of environmental and climate change issues, including safeguards, into the project’s activities.  


• Identify and engage Ghanaian organizations that focus on the environment including working relationship with EPA with respect to compliance with national requirements including permitting. 


• Support the integration of the project’s environmental strategy into the implementation of all field-level activities. This includes collaboration with other technical officers to design mitigating strategies around environmental concerns . 


• Monitor relevant environmental policies and laws in Ghana as they affect WSHFs, entrepreneurs, and agribusinesses in the groundnut, soybean, and vegetable value chains.  


• Contribute to assessing concept notes, grant awards, and MOU’s/contracts for Lead Firms, agribusinesses, entrepreneurs, and WSHFs to ensure that environmentally sustainable criteria are met.  


• Draft GROW2 reports’ sections on the environment and climate change activities, make inputs into marketing, and communications write up with special attention to deliverables, and give regular status updates, with plans for corrective actions as needed.  


• Seek support from HQ Environment and Climate Change Technical Director and local short-term experts to offer environment training to WSHFs, entrepreneurs, and agribusinesses.  


• Track the delivery of environmental activities as per the annual work plan and support the MIM Manager in measuring progress on environmental indicators. 


• Coordinate and implement capacity-building interventions on environmental sustainability and climate action among project staff, local implementing partners, and other project stakeholders, including identifying and selecting knowledgeable local experts to develop content and/or conduct training.   


• Establish and build relationships with environment focal points at each of MEDA’s project partners as relevant to ensure environmental integration and reporting at the partner level.   


• Identify and disseminate best practice examples of environmental sustainability mainstreaming amongst project staff, partners, and other stakeholders. 


• Develop or revise periodic work plans and reports for environmental sustainability in close collaboration and consultation with the HQ-based Environment and Climate Change Technical Director and project team.  


• Participate in MEDA’s Environment and Climate Change Community of Practice (CoP), sharing GROW2’s activities and learning from other MEDA projects and activities. 


• Any other duties and/or requirements as assigned 

Required Skills or Experience

• Education: Minimum of a Bachelor’s degree qualification (master's degree is a plus) in a discipline related to the environment, climate change, economics, development studies, and project management.  


• Experience: Minimum of 8 years progressively responsible experience in Environment and Climate Change. Experience within the international development and environmentally sustainable (or climate-smart) agriculture and agribusiness development sector is desirable. 

Additional Qualifications: 

• Appreciation and support of MEDA’s faith, vision, and values  


• Understanding and appreciation of business principles, international development, and MEDA’s approach to creating business solutions to poverty.   


• Updated knowledge of the critical environment and climate change issues.  


• Experience working directly with target clients (e.g., with businesses, SMEs and WSHFs) 


• Astute critical thinking and analytic skills 


• Conceptual, and strategic thinking.  


• Ability to travel and work in various rural conditions.  


• Demonstrated project evaluation and report writing expertise in preparing final reports for major donors.  


• Strong facilitation, interpersonal, motivational, and communication/writing skills 


• Problem-solving 


• Adaptability 


• Ability to work independently 


• Fluency in English a must.  


• Fluency in any local language within the Project’s operational zones is an added advantage.