SNV Netherlands Development Organisation

SNV is a not-for-profit international development organisation that applies practical knowledge to make a lasting difference in the lives of people living in poverty. We use our extensive and long-term in-country presence to apply and adapt our top-notch expertise in agriculture, energy and WASH to local contexts. SNV has over 1250 staff in more than 25 countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America. We are proud to be a not-for-profit organisation that uses project financing to implement our mission. This requires us to work efficiently and to invest in operational excellence.

In its current Strategic Plan period (2019 – 2022), SNV will more explicitly aim for structural change and scale in its programmes, as well as bringing knowledge and initiatives from different programmes together at country level to contribute to systems’ change. We will continue to position ourselves as a learning organisation striving for excellence and invest in making knowledge flow to and from the frontline.

For more information on SNV, visit our website: www.snv.org

SNV seeks an experienced and knowledgeable technical advisor who will work in the 7million EUR Increasing Climate Resilience in Energy & Agriculture Systems and Entrepreneurship (INCREASE) project, supporting the implementation of the project’s renewable energy component.

The INCREASE project’s goal is to address the major challenge of climate change that farmers, agribusinesses, and SMEs are facing. To achieve this the project strengthens the adaptive capacity of agricultural and energy systems as well as the promotion of climate smart (CS) diversification practices and productive use of renewable energy. The project works with the larger agribusinesses in Cotton, Dairy and Horticulture and covers Eastern, Central, Copper belt, Lusaka and Southern provinces, initially targeting to reach 11,300 smallholder farmers in the 3 value chains. In addition, the project drives the uptake of bio digesters among smallholder farmers for biogas and bio slurry usage, in addition to other energy-focused interventions within the three value chains and the adoption of more and modern energy solutions for cooking, lighting and productive uses by 3,000 households. The project has started in January 2020 and will run till end 2022 (with a possible extension to 2023).

The Advisor Renewable Energy will work closely with the project team to deliver the technical design, implementation and monitoring of renewable energy-related interventions (mainly focused on bio digesters and solar-powered solutions for productive uses of energy). The Advisor works in line with SNV’s code of conduct and quality standards, in order to achieve high quality of the agreed results and deliverables of the project.

The Advisor will report to the Sector Lead Energy.

Duties and Responsibilities

The selected candidate will have following key responsibilities:

• Technical guidance and advice on bio digester promotion and roll-out via results-based financing mechanisms;
• Coordination of partner companies and training of masons on operations & maintenance of bio digesters;
• Capacity development of the broader renewable energy sector via industry associations by positioning bio digesters and solar-powered solutions for productive uses of energy;
• Quality assurance of bio digester installations through monitoring during and after construction; database management and planning and implementation of after-sales service visits together with field officers;
• Coordination of awareness raising campaigns for bio digesters via rural energy hubs;
• Design, procurement and installation of pilots for solar-powered productive uses of energy;
• Day to day support to the project team in implementing the bio digester component and monitoring of results (in collaboration with M&E team);
• Working closely with communications expert and Sector Lead on knowledge products development such as case studies, blogposts, evaluation and progress reports;
• Representation of SNV, networking and business development within the sector as required.

• Relevant advanced academic qualification in Energy (for Agriculture) or related field, postgraduate qualification (Masters degree) preferred;
• 5+ years of relevant and progressive experience in renewable energy service delivery;
• Proven technical expertise in the biodigester sector in East Africa;
• Prior work in the development sector through an NGO, development partner, social enterprise or public sector entity;
• Experience in capacity building in the renewable energy sector, incl. working with public and private sector stakeholders;
• Experience in a supervisory role, including quality assurance of installations, data collection and verification for M&E;
• Experience managing grant funding to private sector companies through results-based mechanisms is desired;
• Proficiency in both written and spoken English;
• Excellent organisational and communication skills;
• Willingness to travel to all project locations in the country to oversee and monitor installations;
• The successful candidate will be self-motivated with high levels of integrity and attention to quality project delivery.

Terms of Appointment:

This is a full-time position with the successful candidate contracted up until and including December 31, 2022 with the possibility to extend for another one year, contingent to performance and funding.

How to Apply:

Please apply by uploading your CV and motivation letter in English before January 23, 2022.

Only short-listed candidates will be contacted.

Working at SNV:

SNV offers a competitive salary and comprehensive benefits package. We offer a challenging work environment, opportunities to lead and innovate, and a commitment to growing your skills in a fulfilling and diverse working environment. Our staff benefit from, and contribute to, an internal global network of experts. For more information, please visit our website: www.snv.org

SNV is an equal opportunities employer and female candidates are encouraged to apply.