State Coordinator

The International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) is a not-for-profit institution that generates agricultural innovations to meet Africa’s most pressing challenges of hunger, malnutrition, poverty, and natural resource degradation. Working with various partners across sub-Saharan Africa, we improve livelihoods, enhance food and nutrition security, increase employment, and preserve natural resource integrity. IITA is a member of CGIAR, a global agriculture research partnership for a food secure future.
We are  recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: State Coordinator

Job ID: IITA/P&C/NRS2026-038
Location: Abakiliki, Ebonyi
Job Type: Contract
Duration: 2-years renewable contract
Duities

• Lead day-to-day implementation of I-Youth 2.0 activities within Ebonyi in line with approved workplans, budgets, and timelines.
• Supervise and manage the state project team, including technical officers and field/mobilization staff, ensuring performance and quality delivery.
• Coordinate state-level training, enterprise development, and incubation activities for youth agripreneurs in the state’s priority value chains, including recruitment, selection, and progress tracking of participants.
• Oversee the operations of the state-based Agribusiness Park or incubation hub, where applicable.
• Build and maintain relationships with State government ministries and agencies, traditional and community institutions, private sector actors, and financial institutions.
• Ensure accurate collection and reporting of monitoring and evaluation data and maintain the state-level network of I-Youth trained agripreneurs and alumni.
• Manage the state budget and procurement, ensuring compliance with IITA policies and donor financial requirements.
• Prepare timely state-level narrative and financial reports for submission to the Country Coordinator.
• Ensure compliance with safeguarding, ethics, and other IITA policies at the State level, escalating risks and implementation challenges to the Country Coordinator.
• Represent the project at relevant meetings, events, and stakeholder engagements within the specific States of employment.
• Perform any other duties assigned by the Supervisor.
  Requirements
• Master’s Degree in Agriculture, Agribusiness, Agricultural Economics, Business Administration,
• Development Studies, Economics, Social Sciences, or a related discipline, with a minimum of five (5) years of relevant experience in programme or project implementation, including at least two (2) years in a supervisory or team-leadership role.
  Competencies:
  The ideal candidate must have:
• Experience in youth employment, enterprise development, agribusiness, workforce development, or agricultural extension, ideally within one or more of the state’s priority value chains.
• Experience managing project budgets, work plans, and donor-funded activities.
• Demonstrated experience engaging state government institutions, community structures, and private sector partners.
• Familiarity with the socio-economic and agricultural context of the states is a strong advantage.
• Strong program coordination and team leadership skills.
• Good understanding of youth employment, entrepreneurship, and agribusiness development.
• Sound financial and operational management skills.
• Strong stakeholder engagement and community mobilization skills.
• Good analytical, planning, and reporting abilities.
• High level of integrity, professionalism, and accountability.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office applications.
• Ability to communicate in the predominant local language of the assigned state.
  Benefits
• We offer highly competitive salary with equally attractive benefits and excellent working conditions in a pleasant campus environment.
  Application Closing Date
  1st September, 2026.
  How to Apply
  Interested and qualified candidates should:
  Click here to apply online