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USG Development Officer – Agriculture

Background
Planet Aid is a member of the International Federation of Organizations Humana People to People, a network of nationally-registered organizations in Africa, Asia and Latin America promoting community-based development in the areas of health, food-security/agriculture and education.

Responsibilities
Planet Aid seeks an entrepreneurial team-player with extensive experience in USG new-business development; partnership building and proposal development to build the organization’s USG portfolio in the areas of Agriculture and Food Security with a focus on Feed the Future and other important USG initiatives. She/he must be driven, highly organized, able to juggle multiple priorities at once and to manage proposal development processes from start to finish.

Approximately 50% time will be spent building relationships and negotiating with international partners, the US Agency for International Development (USAID), and the US Department of Agriculture (USDA). Approximately 50% time will be spent tracking new USG opportunities, and developing proposals.

The USG Business Development Officer for Agriculture will be part of an International Partnership Team and will report to the Director of International Partnerships and the organization’s President.

The USG Business Development Officer for Agriculture will track new USG opportunities and identify relevant RFA’s/RFP’s in the fields of agriculture and food security. She/he will pursue opportunities for cooperation either directly with USAID or with a number of strategic partners.

Throughout the proposal development process the USG Business Development Officer for Agriculture will cooperate closely with field and country teams to gather the needed information, CV's, indicators, etc. She/he will write and edit proposals, at times assisted by other grant writers. She/he will be responsible for delivering the final product to the relevant USG agency.

Qualifications and Experience Sought
• Knowledge of current USG trends and initiatives in international development funding for agriculture and food security including Feed-the-Future and other initiatives
• Technical competency in the fields of agriculture and/or food-security
• Familiarity with USG funding mechanisms
• Excellent relationship-building and negotiation skills
• Excellent writing skills and a systematic handling of the proposal process
• Minimum 7-years experience with USG proposal development or related international experience
• Deep experience with US development organizations
• Strong analytical skills
• Good organizational skills and a systematic approach to solving challenges
• Experience and understanding of other technical sectors such as Education and Health is a plus

Willingness to travel nationally and internationally


Full-time staff position

Salary: to be negotiated based on experience

Job location:
Approximately 50% of the time will be spent at Planet Aid’s Main Office in Elkridge, Columbia, MD
Approximately 50% of the time will be spent in Washington D.C. (Meetings with partners)


To Apply: Please submit your resume and a cover-letter to jteppih@planetaid.org by the 1st of March, 2011