Icipe Senior Research Assistant

icipe is an intergovernmental organisation funded by government aid agencies, UN organisations and private foundations to carry out research and training in environmentally sound and sustainable management of arthropods for improving health and agricultural productivity in the tropics.

icipe has approximately 300 staff to support its research and capacity building programmes, located at various sites in Kenya, Ethiopia and Sudan.

The International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (icipe) seeks to recruit an experienced Senior Research Assistant as soon as possible to work as an assistant to the Trial Coordinator of the project: Long-term farming system comparisons in the tropics.

The project is run by a team of scientists, technicians and students of the Plant Health Division, icipe, and partner institutions: the Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL) the Tropical Soil Biology and Fertility Institute (TSBF); the National Horticultural Research Centre of the Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI); the School of Environmental and Human Sciences of Kenyatta University (KU);the Kenya Organic Agricultural Network (KOAN) and the Kenyan Institute of Organic Farming (KIOF).

The objective of this long-term trial is to compare the performance of organic and conventional farming practices in terms of agronomic parameters, soil fertility, pest and disease dynamics, biodiversity and socio-economic parameters.

Requirements

• M.Sc. degree or its equivalent in the field of agricultural or environmental sciences
• Minimum of 5 years experience in agricultural research, including field experiments, data analysis and publication, preferably in the field of soil science
• Minimum of one publications as a first author in a refereed journal
• Training and working experience in organic agriculture, including composting and preparation of bio-pesticides would be desirable
• Willing to travel (by public transport) between the trial sites in Chuka (Meru) and Thika (Central Kenya), Kangari, and the icipe Duduville Campus, Kasarani, Nairobi
• Possession of a valid Driving license

Responsibilities

The successful candidate will assist the Electrician in carrying out various functions including the following:

• Support the coordination of the two long-term farming systems comparison experiments located at Chuka (Meru) and Thika (Central Kenya), i.e.
• Manage the trials; provision of required trial inputs (e.g. biomass for compost and mulching, farmyard manure, compost, bio-pesticides, vegetable nursery);
• developing and applying sampling procedures; data collection and compilation;
• Supervise technicians and students;
• Write trial reports, including preliminary analysis of data
• Report to and coordinate with the project partners
• Support the participatory research activities in Kangari
• Other tasks as assigned by the project partners or the Project Implementer

A competitive remuneration package will be offered to the right candidate.

This position is open to Kenya nationals only.

Applications will be accepted up to 29 April 2011.

Only applications of shortlisted candidates will be acknowledged.

Please send your application, together with an indication of your availability, a detailed curriculum vitae, university certificates and grades (BSc and MSc), salary details, and names/addresses of three referees (including telephone, e-mail and fax numbers) to:

hr@icipe.org

or:

The Human Resources Department
icipe - African Insect Science for Food and Health
P.O. Box 30772-00100
Nairobi
Kenya

icipe is an Equal Opportunity Employer