International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) seeks to recruit a Senior Resource Mobilization Specialist on behalf of International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) in its Director General’s Office (DGO). This is a one-year, renewable appointment based in Nairobi, Kenya. The ideal candidate will be innovative, self motivated and goal-oriented, with experience creating and executing fundraising strategies and developing successful proposals to secure restricted and unrestricted funding from foundations and government and multilateral agencies. The incumbent will be responsible for supporting senior staff and research leads with strategic resource mobilization, proposal development, and coordination efforts across the institute.

ILRI works to improve food and nutritional security and reduce poverty in developing countries through research for efficient, safe and sustainable use of livestock. It is the only one of 15 CGIAR Research Centres dedicated entirely to animal agriculture research for the developing world. Co-hosted by Kenya and Ethiopia, it has regional or country offices and projects in East, South and Southeast Asia as well as Central, East, Southern and West Africa. www.ilri.org

IFPRI provides research-based policy solutions to sustainably reduce poverty and end hunger and malnutrition in developing countries. Established in 1975, IFPRI currently has more than 600 employees working in over 50 countries. It is a research center of CGIAR, a worldwide partnership engaged in agricultural research for development. www.ifpri.org

Responsibilities

Fundraising:

• Assist in advising staff on the development and implementation of fundraising strategies
• Perform competitive intelligence gathering through research and analytics to identify new donors and funding prospects, including private industry, foundations, high-net worth individuals, multilateral agencies, and government
• Advise staff on strategies for approaching donor prospects and draft outreach & communication materials
• Manage cultivation and stewardship for select foundations and individual donors

Proposal Development & Coordination:

• Proactively liaise with research units and corporate services to facilitate proposal development efforts, streamline the process, strengthen the output, and track progress and staff input throughout the proposal process
• Work closely with and support research units from project concept to full proposal development, incorporating input from multi-disciplinary staff
• Provide high quality review for key proposals to ensure output complies with proposal requirements, and facilitate professional service support (grant writer, editor, etc.), in collaboration with research units and finance
• Continually assess and propose improvements for practices/procedures/systems involving IFPRI’s proposal pipeline and funder/funding intelligence

Other duties may include:

• Assist with event coordination as needed.

Requirements

• Master’s degree in agricultural development, international development practice, project management, agricultural economics or relevant field
• Ten years of relevant professional experience with at least 5 years of management experience.
• Experience in a business development team supporting international development clients.
• Experience developing and/or implementing fundraising strategies for nonprofit organizations, including prospect research; outreach to funding sources; and donor cultivation and stewardship
• Experience developing successful proposals/grants targeting various funding sources (government, private industry, foundation and individuals), preferably in agriculture, nutrition and/or relevant fields
• Highly effective and versatile communication skills—both written and oral. Ability to effectively synthesize scientific/programmatic content for multiple audiences
• High level of professionalism, including the ability to diplomatically coordinate individuals with various disciplines to accomplish common objections
• Self-motivated, with proven ability to work independently and multi-task in accomplishing key goals and completing projects
• Strong analytical skills
• Comfortable in a global team, including working well with team members and collaborators located in multiple time zones and countries
• Willingness and ability to travel as needed
• International experience, especially in Africa, Asia and Latin America
• Working knowledge of Microsoft Office and donor databases
• Background, or interest in, international development

Post location: The position will be based in Nairobi, Kenya

Terms of Appointment

The position is on a 1-fixed term contract.

Job Level

This position is at job level HG 18 and it is only open to Kenyan nationals. ILRI offers a competitive salary and benefits package which includes; pension, medical, education and other insurances.

How to apply: Applicants should send a cover letter and CV explaining their interest in the position, what they can bring to the job and the names and addresses (including telephone and email) of three referees who are knowledgeable about the candidate’s professional qualifications and work experience to the Head of People and Culture by clicking on the “Apply Now” tab above before 3 April 2025. The position title and reference number REF: R0/IFPRI/2024 should be clearly marked on the subject line of the cover letter.

We thank all applicants for their interest in working for ILRI. Due to the volume of applications, only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

ILRI does not charge a fee at any stage of the recruitment process (application, interview meeting, processing or training). ILRI also does not concern itself with information on applicants’ bank accounts.

To find out more about ILRI visit our websites at http://www.ilri.org

ILRI is an equal opportunity employer.

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