Rural Development and Agriculture Consultant

Client of United Nation careers

The consultant will provide technical oversight, monitoring, quality assurance and specialized engineering support to UN-Habitat and partners for the modernization of irrigation systems and the Rural Communities Field Schools (RCFS) in Qena, Assiut and Sohag. The consutlant will work closely with the contractors in Qena, Assiut and Sohag governrates.

The consultant will supervise, guide and technically verify that the practices promoted through RCFS are sound, efficient, and aligned with UN-Habitat project objectives.

RURAL COMMUNITY FIELD SCHOOLS (RCFS) TECHNICAL SUPPORT & MONITORING FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION

• Conduct a comprehensive technical review of the curricula developed by the service provider for the 166 Rural Community Field Schools (RCFS), ensuring that all modules on modern irrigation techniques, climate-smart agriculture, and sustainable farming practices are technically accurate, feasible for smallholder farmers, and aligned with UN-Habitat and FAO guidelines.
• Provide structured technical feedback for both the summer and winter season curricula, highlighting required improvements and validation notes.
• Provide expert technical recommendations for the Training of Facilitators (ToF), ensuring that the training content equips facilitators with the correct agronomic, irrigation, and climate-smart practices needed to deliver RCFS sessions effectively. This includes advising on the technical depth, sequence of topics, field demonstration requirements, and practical exercises.
• Coordinate closely with the service provider and local RCFS facilitators to maintain high technical quality in the delivery of the RCFS training programs across both agricultural seasons. This coordination role focuses on technical consistency and corrective guidance, without involvement in logistical implementation.
• Monitor and evaluate the performance and effectiveness of the RCFS by assessing farmer engagement, the accuracy of field demonstrations, the extent of knowledge transfer, and the real-world adoption of modern irrigation and agricultural practices. Conduct this assessment separately for the summer and winter cohorts, providing UN-Habitat with evidence-based observations on strengths, gaps, and technical risks.
• Prepare detailed technical assessments for inclusion in the project s implementation reports, documenting the quality of RCFS delivery, the technical relevance of the content, field-level observations, and practical recommendations for scaling or refining successful approaches in both seasons.
• Review and technically validate the contractor s comparative analysis between control and treatment farms, ensuring accuracy in the reported results for water savings, yield performance, and productivity indicators. Conduct an independent analysis of the data and provide a technical interpretation of the outcomes for each RCFS during the summer and winter seasons, identifying areas where results may require further verification or methodological adjustments.