Summary
Date Posted: Thursday, 08 July 2021 , Base Salary: Not Disclosed

JOB DETAILS:
The Regional Centre for Mapping of Resources for Development (RCMRD) is an
Intergovernmental organization which provides services in surveying, mapping, remote sensing, GIS and ICT to its member States, partners and clients. It currently has 20 member States in the Eastern and Southern Africa Region.
Our Mission is to Strengthen Member States and our stakeholder’s capacity through Generation, Application and Dissemination of Geo-information and Allied Technologies for sustainable development.

RCMRD wishes to fill the following vacant position:
Crop Modeller (1)

The RCMRD is seeking an innovative, self-motivated, and results-oriented candidate for the position of Crop Modeler/Geo-Spatial Data Scientist to support the definition, development and scaling of Geospatial Crop Models supporting regional food balance sheets in the Eastern and Southern Africa. The holder of this position should conduct and contribute to a collaborative process aimed at improving the monitoring, forecasting, early warning and decision-making around estimation of yields, crop specific acreage, production data using geo-spatial analysis and big data approaches. The position will contribute to several crop modelling and development activities focused primarily on sub-Saharan Africa.

Specific duties
• Support the development, calibration and validation of crop specific Earth Observation driven production and forecasting models.
• Support the automation and/or semi-automation of processes to streamline data acquisition, modelling and data dissemination.
• Develop and implement innovative tools and methods for integration of data from multiple sources.
• Support the definition of minimum data requirements for the crop models.
• Develop training materials and modules on crop modelling and forecasting.
• Provide technical support and capacity building for national partners.
• Contribute to the development of analytical models for crop disease/pests early warning and forecasting.
• Database management and development of information products related to production data, early warning and forecasting.
• Provide support to the development of project documentation and reports as required.
• Co-produce peer-reviewed research articles.
• Other duties as assigned by the supervisor.

Required academic qualifications, skills and attitudes
• A PhD in geo-spatial science, data science or a quantitatively-oriented science.
• A minimum of Four (4) years verifiable experience in crop modelling and simulations in data limited environments.
• Experience in Big Data handling and coding for automation.
• Experience with modelling and forecasting yields, climatic and/or environmental systems.
• Experience using Earth Observation data for crop detection and estimation of crop specific acreage.
• Experience with spatial modelling, use of geospatial data, remote sensing and geographical information systems.
• Competency in programming e.g., R and/or Python.
• Strong understanding of database architecture, statistics, data visualization, etc.
• Expertise in working with large data sets and the ability to integrate and interpret multithematic data.
• The selected candidate must exhibit the following competencies: Proactive, Problem Solving, Decision-making, Achievement Orientation, Communication and Teamwork.

The position is for an initial fixed-term of two (2) years, after which further employment is subject to performance and the continued availability of funds. The expected renumeration package for this position shall be USD 2, 500 per month with other benefits such as Medical Insurance

Work Hours: 8

Experience in Months: 48

Level of Education: Postgraduate Degree

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Job application procedure
Candidates should address their applications to the Director General, RCMRD, and send them through the email: jobs@rcmrd.org , and ensure that the email subject is titled as, “Application for Crop Modeler Position at RCMRD”.

Applications must include an application letter highlighting the applicant’s suitability for this position, a detailed and recent CV, as well as provision of verifiable information (published papers, reports, proficiencies in certain models, past engagements in a related environment), on expertise in crop modelling. Incomplete applications will not be taken into consideration. Please note that only short-listed candidates will be contacted.
RCMRD is an equal opportunity employer. Applications from suitably qualified female candidates and persons with disabilities are particularly encouraged.

Application Deadline 16th July, 2021
Please note that the Centre DOES NOT charge any fees during the recruitment process.

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