Project Overview and Role: The African Forest Landscape Restoration Initiative (AFR)is a country-led effort to bring million hectares of land in Africa intorestoration by . It aims to accelerate restoration to enhance foodsecurity, increase climate change resilience and mitigation, and combat ruralpoverty. During Phase I (-), AFR mobilized widespreadpolitical leadership across 33 African countries, developed national plans andstrategies, and catalysed implementation across 5 million hectares. Phase II ofAFR (-), which launched at UN COP27 in November , aims to bringan additional 20 million hectares under restoration. Regeneration is leading theAFR markets readiness program to connect the communities and entrepreneurswho make up the local restoration economy, with private sector supply chainsand global markets. Initially the markets readiness program will focus on threeof the six target landscapes: Kenya's Great Rift Valley, the Rusizi Basin andthe Ghana Cocoa Belt. Primary Duties and Responsibilities: Position DescriptionThe Business Associate will beresponsible for managing Restoration Champions (RCs) located in in the KenyaRift Valley and in the Rusizi Basin for the Markets Readiness Technical Assistance (MRTA) programme. As many of theRCs in the Ruzizi Basin speak French, a fluent French speaker is required. Thiswill involve building a pipeline of RCs and identifying the TechnicalAssistance needs of each RC that will be part of MRTA. They will be responsiblefor managing the successful delivery of TA support that RCs will receive andmonitor their progress against projected impact indicators. The Associate willwork with the broader team in designing and implementing a strategy that willequip RCs reach their commercial scale up goals through the provision of TA andother financing needs. Scope of Work Pipeline Development1. Conductpipeline screening of potential partners /RCs that will enter the MRTA; 2. Conductrapid assessment to determine level of market readiness for each RC; 3. Developa market readiness pitch deck for each RC in the MRTA pipeline; 4. Supportpresentation of RCs to relevant approval committees towards entry into the MRTAPortfolio Management 1. Forselected RCs entering the MRTA pipeline, develop commercial scale-up plansoutlining expected results and required inputs withthe aim of facilitating access to market and successful offtake transactions 2. Organizeand lead kick-off meetings, introducing RCs to programme polices and projectmanagement policies, procedures, and practices 3. Leadand actively participate in team problem solving sessions and provide insightand trends 4. Workalongside the commercial partnerships team to support facilitation of off taker contracts with RCs 5. Activelyparticipate in relevant stakeholder meetings to build knowledge and engage withkey stakeholders in the region 6. Managethe relationship with stakeholders in the project through regular check-ins andcommunications 7. Deliver and implement targetedtechnical assistance to RCs, in one or more of these business skills: businessgrowth strategies, go-to-market strategies, business plan development, SMEfinance, SME accounting, sales and marketing, fundraising, etc.8. Communicate with French speaking RCs in French. Where necessary, translate documents from English to French and vice versa to better communicate with French speaking RCs 9. Serving as intermediary for MRTA interventions with French speaking RCs.Monitoring and Reporting1. Ensure timely reporting and monitoring to achieve expected outcomes and impacts 2. Ensure RCs under implementation achieve MRTA milestone targets as planned 3. Share lessons and impact stories around projects under implementation4. Conduct regular monitoring visits to RCs for successful implementation of activities5. Review technical reports and track milestones based on each RC's contractRequired Qualifications:1. Demonstrable experience in one of the following agricultural supply chains, including commodities such as coffee, cocoa, nuts, avocadoes, bamboo etc 2. Fluency in speaking, writing and reading French and English3. Understanding of finance/commercial sector with knowledge of designing financial models, business plans and investment pitch decks. 4. Entrepreneurial, self-starter who enjoys working in a fast-paced, results-driven business environment. 5. A strong understanding of, and passion for restoration and sustainable land use. 6. Experience working on complex programmes in developing countries with multiple stakeholders, components, and objectives. 7. Trackrecord of being part of a team that delivers results and contributes toeconomic, social and environmental outcomes Supervision & Location of work The Business Associate willreport to the Deputy Team Leader and will work closely with the landscape'steams. Primary work location will be Nairobi, Kenya with regular travel to thefield.Timeframe and Level Thisis a full-time role with a flexible start date. Contract will be on yearlybasis for the lifespan of the programme
