World Vegetable Center (WorldVeg) isan international, nonprofit research and development institute with a unique mandate focused on vegetables. Established in 1971, its mission is to alleviate poverty and malnutrition by increasing the production and consumption of safe, nutritious vegetables in low and middle-income countries.

WorldVeg seeks to recruit a Research Field Assistant to provide general technical support to the vegetable breeding initiatives under various projects, including setting up laboratory, on-station, and on-farm trials, seed multiplication, and on-farm demonstration fields. The incumbent will be based in the Center’s regional office for Eastern and Southern Africa in Arusha, Tanzania.

Note: This is a Nationally Recruited Staff (NRS) position.

Required Qualifications and Competencies

• Technical and Behavioral
• Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Horticulture, Crop Science, or Agronomy from an accredited university.
• Having an MSc in Plant Breeding or Genetics is an added advantage.
• A minimum of three years of experience in vegetable breeding, horticulture, and agronomy research, within an international non-governmental organization (NGO), highly preferred.
• Excellent computer skills in MS-Office applications (Word, Excel, PowerPoint).
• Should be familiar with data analysis software such as R and GenStat.
• Excellent communication skills in spoken and written English and Kiswahili.
• Good interpersonal skills and ability to interact with partners and colleagues in a multi-cultural setting.

Key Responsibilities

• Design and implement field plans for nurseries, crossing blocks, and experiments/trials.
• Schedule and conduct seed preparation, sowing, transplanting, irrigation, weeding, emasculation and crossing, harvesting, and seed extraction.
• Ensure proper labeling of genetic materials (introductions, breeding lines, and varieties) and field plots.
• Design data sheets required for data collection using the Fieldbook App.
• Ensure that all field and laboratory data (especially yield, diseases, insect pest, and abiotic stress data) from breeding trials are collected in time and transferred to a computer/database for safe storage.
• Collect samples for genotyping or nutritional analyses.
• Compile, analyze, and summarize data for breeding decisions.
• Ensure available farm tools, field, and laboratory facilities and equipment related to breeding activities are in place and well maintained.
• Prepare monthly/weekly requirements of daily laborers based on activities planned for the period.
• Directly supervise daily laborers on duty in the field and laboratory.
• Assist in practical training courses organized by the vegetable improvement unit.
• Cooperate with other research assistants under the program and within the Regional Office on vegetable research and development activities.
• Accomplish any other duty requested by the supervisor, the Vegetable Breeder.
• Perform other tasks as may be assigned by the Country Program Manager as needed.

The candidate we hire will embody WorldVeg’s five core values:

• Dedication to Innovation and Knowledge Sharing Supports the conduct of world-class science, respects ethical standards, and is committed to transparently sharing results.
• Commitment to Impact Aspires to achieve positive, tangible, and lasting impact contributing to Sustainable Development Goals.
• Commitment to Partnerships Believes in the value of partnership to advance research for development.
• Respect for People Respects the diversity of gender, culture, ethnic origin, religion, age, beliefs, and views.
• Respect for the Environment Strives to minimize its environmental impact and to introduce greener technology and practices.