Upland Rice Breeder
The Africa Rice Center (AfricaRice, ex-WARDA) is seeking for a highly qualified Upland Rice Breeder to be based at the joint AfricaRice / IRRI regional station for East and Southern Africa in Dar-Es-Salaam, Tanzania.
About AfricaRice
The Africa Rice Center (AfricaRice) is an association of 24 African member states and one of the 15 international Centers supported by the Consortium of International Agricultural Research Centers (CGIAR). The Center’s mission is to contribute to poverty alleviation and food security in Africa, through research, development and partnership activities aimed at increasing the productivity and profitability of the rice sector in ways that ensure the sustainability of the farming environment. AfricaRice is temporarily headquartered in Cotonou, Benin.
Responsibilities
The upland rice breeder will report to the Program Leader Genetic Diversity and Improvement (Program 1). The upland rice breeder will contribute to research under Themes 1 and 2 of the Global Rice Science Partnership (GRiSP) of the Consortium of CGIAR Centers. She/he will be part of a multi-disciplinary research team working to sustain and improve the productivity of rice-based systems in rainfed ecologies of Africa consistent with AfricaRice’s mission and mandate. She/he will develop new upland rice varieties which have high adaptability to the upland ecology in ESA to be recommended to AfricaRice member countries and other countries in the ESA region.
More specifically tasks will include:
o Set breeding targets for upland rice, by analyzing demands by farmers and rice consumers and the magnitude of constraints in the upland ecology
o Prepare a reliable screening protocol for each target trait, in close collaboration with plant pathologists and plant physiologists
o Develop breeding lines with target traits in collaboration with plant pathologists and molecular biologists and use marker assisted selection as appropriate
o Nominate at least 10 thoroughly characterized lines per year for key target traits for inclusion in regional trials of the Africa Rice Breeding Task Force
o Supply NARS with a diversity of promising germplasm at an early stage for use in NARS’ breeding programs
o Build capacity within national programs and universities in rice breeding, supervise MSc and PhD students
o Strengthen partnerships with NARES, NGOs and other grassroots’ partners for rapid dissemination of new varieties
o Liaise with other breeders active within the Global Rice Science Partnership in Africa and more specifically with AfricaRice’s upland breeder for the West and Central Africa region based in Nigeria
o Develop annual work plans and budgets in consultation with the Program Leader, project coordinators and team members
o Contribute to the Center’s resource mobilization efforts
o Publish research results in peer reviewed journals and other relevant outlets
o Undertake any other activities related to rice breeding activities as deemed necessary by the program leader.
Qualification
The selected candidate should have
o A PhD in plant breeding or related field
o More than five years work experience in rice breeding, preferably in Africa
o strong statistics skills
o Excellent communication skills in English language with a working knowledge in French language.
o An excellent publication record
o A proven ability to work efficiently as a member of a multi-disciplinary team
Terms and Conditions
o This is an Internationally Recruited position.
o AfricaRice provides attractive international salary and benefits package and a collegial and gender-sensitive working environment.
o The appointment is for two years with possibility for renewal
Application procedure:
Candidates should send an application (including date of availability and a statement of any special qualifications for the position). The application should include a cover letter together with a detailed CV with the following information: Name, surname, gender, date of birth, family status, nationality, higher diploma obtained, number of years of professional experience for the position, good knowledge or not of the Institution working languages (French/English) with the names and addresses (including telephone / fax / email) of three referees to:
Human Resources Department, AfricaRice
01 BP 2031 Cotonou, Benin
F: + (229) 21 35 05 56; T: (229) 21 35 01 88
Email: africarice-hr@cgiar.org
Please quote the reference of the announcement as the subject of your application.
Applications will be considered up to June 20, 2011 or until the position is filled.
AfricaRice believes that staff diversity promotes excellence in its operations, and encourages applications from women and developing country professionals.
AfricaRice thanks all applicants but only the short listed candidates will be contacted.
To learn more about AfricaRice, please visit our website at www.AfricaRice.org .
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