Technical Assistant to support the design of National Forest Inventory (NFI) at Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)

About The Job

• This position is located in the national forest monitoring (NFM) team, who is providing support to Ghana’s Forestry Commission on REDD+ through the UN-REDD programme. 

Reporting Lines:

• The incumbent will be under the direct supervision of the FAO Rep in Ghana, and the direct technical guidance of the forest inventory specialists of FAO, HQ.

Technical Focus:

• The incumbent will assist to design a national forest inventory, which serves the purpose (among other) to provide updated emission factors (EFs) for REDD+ reporting. Ghana’s current EFs are based on a 2012 Forest Inventory. 
• This inventory had the objective of estimating carbon stocks in different ecological zones of the country and was centered around capacity development but not necessarily targeting balanced country representation; the area of influence of the 2012 Forest Inventory had a regional scope, since it was carried out mainly in the south-western part of the country. 
• The 2012 forest inventory data was also used to fit a LiDar-based carbon model. 
• Though the inventory data does meet the minimum requirements for TREES participation, this is an important area for future improvement. Areas for improvement are increasing the plot size, a nationally representative distribution and a more accurate land-use classification.

Tasks and Responsibilities:

• The Technical Assistant will contribute to the design preparation phase of the Ghana National Forest Inventory, serving as a liaison between FAO technical staff, the Forestry Commission and any other relevant national actors, such as the Forest Research Institute of Ghana.
• He\she will support the preparation of a new design for the National Forest Inventory. This product will be generated through various activities, but in particular through the collection and compilation of information that can help to design the National Forest Inventory of Ghana. Specific tasks to be carried out include the following:
• Support the technical and logistical organization of 2 workshops to establish a list of indicators and key questions to be evaluated in the National Forest Inventory.
• Support the data collect from previous forest inventories realized in the country, permanent plots, etc., this activity include reports, electronic files, databases, etc.
• Provide technical support to collect information about costs in the NFI (administrative and field work activities).
• Support the preparation of the NFI design document and its validation and approval.
• Support the preparation of the field manual to collect data according with the new design.
• Explore the possibility of collecting relevant information for estimating an emission factor for degradation with the NFI.
• Accompany and support technically the validation of the new field data collection methodology.
• Support the technical and logistical organization a workshop to present the process and results of the design of the NFI.
• Perform other related duties, as required.

Candidates Will Be Assesed Against The Following:
Minimum Requirements:

• University degree in Forestry or related field 
• 5 years of relevant experience in the forest sector (government or private) 
• Working knowledge of English
• National of Ghana or a legal resident in the country with a valid work permit

FAO Core Competencies:

• Results Focus
• Teamwork
• Communication
• Building Effective Relationships
• Knowledge Sharing and Continuous Improvement

Technical/Functional Skills:

• Due to the technical complexity and innovation of the forest inventories design, the position requires extensive technical skills related to forest inventories 
• Extent and relevance of experience in management of statistical databases. 
• Extent and relevance of experience in management of computer programs such as Excel, Word, Power Point and statistical software.
• Familiarity with the forest sector in the country
• The candidate must demonstrate high communication skills, both verbal and written, negotiation, leadership, vision, strategy, coordination and teamwork.