Senior Programme Officer – Production Specialist

Norwegian Church Aid works with people and organizations around the world in their struggle to eradicate poverty and injustice. We provide emergency assistance in disasters and work for long-term development in local communities. To address the root causes of poverty, we advocate for just decisions by public authorities, businesses, and religious leaders. Norwegian Church Aid (NCA) is an International Non-Governmental Organization working in over 30 countries around the world. It is a member of the worldwide ACT-Alliance, comprised of 140 churches and church-related organizations cooperating on humanitarian assistance, advocacy, and development.

Norwegian Church Aid has been working in Malawi since 2002 and our strategic priorities include Gender Based Violence, Economic Development and Food Security, Climate and Environmental Stewardship, Fighting Inequality and humanitarian response. Please visit our website: https://www.nca.no/?source=malawi24.com/vacancies. In 2021 NCA merged with DanChurchAid to form the Malawi Joint Country Program (JCP). The JCP was created to enhance synergy and create positive sustainable development in the lives of the poor and marginalised people in the target communities of Malawi, and to reduce costs and increase efficiency and effectiveness.

Program Description
Tisangalale ndi Chuma (Transforming Last-mile Farmers in Agriculture for Economic Growth) is a 20-month commercialization programme operating in three districts (Kasungu, Mchinji, and Mzimba), focusing on three priority value chains (soybean, groundnut, and bean), and will work with 125 Farmer Organizations. Supported Farmer Organizations will be strengthened to operate as aggregation and supply businesses, linking approximately 21,000 farmers to structured markets through formal buyer arrangements. With funding from the Royal Norwegian Embassy, Tisangalale will be implemented by Norwegian Church Aid and DanChurchAid (NCA–DCA) in partnership with Trustee for Agricultural Promotion Programme (TAPP), Find Your Feet (FYF), and Total LandCare (TLC), with each partner accountable for delivering district-level commercial outcomes, including aggregation volumes, contracts, and farmer income growth. The consortium will work closely with private sector buyers and national platforms to ensure integration into existing structured markets rather than parallel systems.

Position: Senior Programme Officer – Production Specialist
Location: Lilongwe, Malawi
Reports to: Program Coordinator – Tisangalale ndi Chuma

The Role
The Senior Programme Officer (Production Specialist) will work closely with the Consortium in providing technical leadership on agricultural production, climate-smart agriculture, quality assurance, mechanization, post-harvest management, and farmer organization commercialization. The position will ensure that participating Farmer Organizations (FOs) produce sufficient volumes and quality of soybean, groundnut, and bean commodities required by structured markets and commercial buyers. He/She will work closely with the Malawi Agriculture Cluster Initiative to link the last-mile farmers to available markets.

Tasks and Responsibilities
– Work closely with Implementing Partners in implementation of all production-related activities under the Tisangalale project.
– Facilitate adoption of Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA) technologies and Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs).
– Promote access to quality seed, fertilizers, inoculants, mechanization, irrigation technologies, and other productivity-enhancing inputs.
– Coordinate trainings on soybean, groundnut, and bean production, agronomy, and quality management.
– Strengthen post-harvest handling, storage, grading, sorting, and quality assurance systems.
– Lead interventions on aflatoxin management, moisture control, traceability, and commodity quality compliance.
– Work closely with Government Extension Services, MACI, AGCOM, NASFAM, and private sector actors to strengthen value chains.
– Provide technical oversight of production-related digital extension initiatives.
– Contribute to project work planning, budgeting, reporting, and performance monitoring.
– Document lessons learned, success stories, innovations, and best practices.
– Ensure integration of gender, youth inclusion, safeguarding, environmental sustainability, and disability inclusion in all activities.

Qualifications
– Bachelor’s Degree in Agriculture, Agribusiness, Agricultural Economics, Crop Science, Agricultural Extension, Rural Development, or related field.
– Master’s Degree in Agribusiness, Project Management, Rural Development, or related discipline will be an added advantage.

Knowledge and Experience
– Minimum 5 years’ experience implementing agricultural development projects.
– Demonstrated experience in farmer organization strengthening and agricultural commercialization.
– Strong understanding of Climate-Smart Agriculture, value chain development, and Market Systems Development approaches.
– Experience working with government agricultural structures, NGOs, and private sector actors.
– Experience in project planning, budgeting, monitoring, and reporting.
– Working experience in Malawi’s agricultural sector is essential.

Essential Skills
– Strong technical expertise in crop production and agricultural commercialization.
– Excellent facilitation and adult learning skills.
– Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
– Ability to work effectively with farmer organizations and private sector actors.
– Strong report writing and documentation skills.
– Excellent stakeholder engagement and partnership-building skills.
– Competence in Microsoft Office applications and digital data collection platforms.
– Ability to work independently with minimal supervision.
– Good organizational and time-management skills.
– Willingness to travel extensively within project districts.

Language Skills
– Excellent English communication skills (oral and written).

Interpersonal Skills and Cultural Awareness
– Ability to work in a multicultural, inclusive, and equitable environment.

How to Apply
Applications including CV, a statement of why you are suitable for the job, and names and contact details of two traceable references should be sent to:

The Country Director
Norwegian Church Aid
P.O. Box 30793
Lilongwe 3
Email: [email protected]

Applications should be submitted by 12 noon on Friday, 13th November 2026. Only short-listed candidates will be contacted.

NCA is an equal opportunity employer; therefore all men, women, and those with disability are encouraged to apply.