Kyrgyzstan: International Market Development Specialist, Kyrgyzstan

Overview

Since 1963 and in 147 countries, ACDI/VOCA has empowered people in developing and transitional nations to succeed in the global economy. Based in Washington, D.C., ACDI/VOCA is a nonprofit international development organization that designs and delivers technical and management solutions in agriculture, economic growth, and resilience to promote economic prosperity and social inclusion.

International Market Development Specialist, Kyrgyzstan

ACDI/VOCA is seeking an International Market Development Specialist for the Agro Horizon Project, funded by USAID. The Agro Horizon Project promotes economic growth by increasing employment in the agricultural sector, especially for women and youth, while improving the availability of nutritious foods and increasing the market share of the targeted crops in both domestic and foreign markets. To sustainably reduce poverty and promote agricultural economic growth, Agro Horizon will:

1. Increase productivity of agricultural producers and link them to markets
2. Increase productivity and markets for agribusinesses
3. Improve enabling environment for agriculture sector growth
4. Improve the nutritional status of women and children in the zone of influence

The International Market Development Specialist will be responsible for: identifying market opportunities in domestic and export markets, facilitating sales and exports of agribusiness products domestically and internationally, identifying products, product lines, and buyers in Central Asian, Middle Eastern, and South Eastern markets, creating and maintaining relationships with buyers and agribusinesses, maintaining lists of local suppliers, defining specifications and certifications demanded by local and export buyers, and designing and presenting a management training program to address gaps in current knowledge base. The Emergency Response Manager will provide managerial oversight of activities conducted by ACDI/VOCA staff and partner organizations. The assignment is based in Bishkek, with travel to the Osh, Jalal-Abad, and Batken oblasts of Kyrgyzstan. The assignment length is March – June 2019, with a Level of Effort of 65 business days.

Responsibilities

• Identify buyers interested and capable of procuring products that are already produced or can be produced by the Project’s partners and determine requirements on volumes, prices, specifications, delivery terms etc.
• Identify agribusinesses, interested and capable of delivering on signed contracts and meeting market opportunities for selling fresh or processed agricultural products
• Follow up on agreements and facilitate delivery on previous contracts recorded and unfulfilled. Provide recommendations to ensure sustainable delivery of contracts
• Identify constraints in marketing (including for import substitution and competition) and exporting and recommend activities to address these constraints and build capacity of partners on marketing and sales
• Conduct exit presentation on the results of the assignment for senior Agro Horizon staff;
• Submit a final written report on outputs and recommendation with clear guidelines for implementation

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree or equivalent in business administration or marketing;
• Minimum 5 years of successful experience in marketing and sales of locally-made food products; or B2B match-making in the Middle East and Central Asian countries;
• Good knowledge of local, regional and global markets for fresh and processes food products; familiarity with quality and food safety requirements;
• Strong communication, negotiation and leadership skills;
• Experience in development of supply contracts, memorandums and technical specifications, and other documentation for exporting and sales is preferred;
• Fluent in English, knowledge of Russian and Kyrgyz is an advantage;
• Experience of collaboration with international donor organizations; previous work and collaboration with USAID is a plus.

Please apply by sending an email with your CV to: JoinKyrgyzstan@joinav.org. No phone calls please. Only those candidates considered for an interview will be contacted. ACDI/VOCA is an equal opportunity employer. Women, minorities and people from diverse groups are encouraged to apply.