Value Chain Manager - GREEN Project

• Job Title: Value Chain Manager - GREEN Project (National Position)
• Location: Soroti, Uganda
• Reports to: Project Coordinator

Application Deadline: 30th September 2026

Direct Reports: NTFP Value Chain Consultants (technical oversight)

Program Background

The Green Resilient Enterprise for Empowered NTFP Development Project (GREEN Project) is a 28-month initiative implemented under the ReForEst Uganda Programme with funding from Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS) and the European Union. The project seeks to enhance livelihoods, jobs and ecological resilience through sustainable Non-Timber Forest Product (NTFP) enterprises while contributing to forest conservation, restoration and climate resilience across 16 districts in Eastern Uganda and Napak District in Karamoja. The project focuses on five priority NTFP value chains: bamboo, honey/apiculture, shea, cashew, and wild mango. Through a Green Entrepreneurship Platform (GEP), incubation services, acceleration support, cottage industry, access to finance and market linkages, the project will strengthen 140 enterprises, 50 producer groups and support 10,000 households along these NTFP value chains.

Job summary

The Value Chain Manager will provide technical leadership and quality assurance across the GREEN Project’s five priority Non-Timber Forest Product (NTFP) value chains: bamboo, honey/apiculture, shea, cashew and wild mango. Reporting to the Project Coordinator, the Value Chain Manager will oversee a pool of NTFP Value Chain consultants providing on-demand technical assistance to producer groups, entrepreneurs, enterprises, field-based partners, cottage-industry hosts and incubation/acceleration participants. The role will ensure that support is technically sound, market-led and commercially practical across production, sustainable harvesting, post-harvest handling, processing, product development, quality assurance, value addition, packaging, standards, marketing and market linkages, while strengthening the connection between enterprise growth, forest conservation, restoration and climate resilience.

To be successful in this role, you will need:

Essential

Bachelor's Degree in Agriculture, Agribusiness, Agricultural Economics, Food Science and Technology, Post-Harvest Technology, Agricultural Engineering, Forestry, Natural Resource Management, Value Chain Development or a related technical field with a Post Graduate Qualification.

Minimum of 5 years of progressively professional experience in agricultural, forestry, NTFP or market-led value-chain development in Uganda with at least 2 years of management experience and external engagement.

Direct technical experience in one or more of the GREEN Project priority value chains - bamboo, honey/apiculture, shea, cashew and wild mango - with strong working knowledge across several of the remaining value chains.

Strong knowledge of production, harvesting, aggregation, post-harvest handling, storage, processing, product development and value addition.

Deep understanding of commercial processing and value-addition systems, including selection and use of appropriate technologies and machinery, processing efficiency, product quality, food safety or product safety, packaging, by-product utilisation and operational sustainability.

Strong knowledge of market systems and value-chain development, including market analysis, buyer requirements, pricing and competitiveness, business-to-business linkages, market segmentation, product positioning and strategies for moving producers and enterprises into higher-value markets.

Experience managing or coordinating multidisciplinary technical experts or consultants, including development of scopes of work, assignment of technical assistance, quality assurance of deliverables and follow-up with clients or project participants.

Experience providing technical support to MSMEs, cooperatives, producer organisations and/or processors and translating technical diagnostics into practical enterprise improvement actions.

Experience with standards, quality assurance and certification processes relevant to agricultural or natural products; familiarity with UNBS and Ugandan regulatory and quality systems is strongly preferred.

Demonstrated ability to assess processing technologies and productive equipment, develop or review technical specifications, and support installation, commissioning, operator training, maintenance planning and safe use.

Strong understanding of sustainable natural-resource management, climate resilience, agroforestry and/or forest-compatible livelihoods, with the ability to balance commercial value-chain growth with sustainable harvesting and conservation objectives.

Excellent analytical, technical writing, facilitation, coaching, negotiation and stakeholder-engagement skills, with the ability to communicate effectively with producers, entrepreneurs, engineers, researchers, government officials, private-sector buyers and senior management.

Willingness to travel frequently across the 16 project districts, including field locations in Eastern Uganda and Napak.

The key responsibilities of the role will be:

Technical Leadership

Oversees the pool of NTFP Value Chain consultants and coordinates on-demand specialist support to NTFP actors across field-based activities, incubation, acceleration and cottage-industry interventions, ensuring clear scopes of work, high-quality deliverables and practical follow-through.

Provides technical guidance across the full value chain, including production and sustainable harvesting, aggregation, post-harvest handling, storage, processing, machinery and equipment, quality control, product development, value addition, packaging, certification, branding, marketing, buyer requirements and domestic, regional and export market linkages.

Manages the technical work plan for value-chain activities in close coordination with the Project Coordinator, ensuring timely sequencing of assessments, consultant inputs, field-based services, cottage-industry support, incubation and acceleration technical assistance, and market-linkage activities.

Develops and maintains a structured technical-assistance mechanism for receiving, prioritising and assigning requests to NTFP Value Chain consultants based on enterprise diagnostics, field partner needs, value-chain bottlenecks, seasonality and commercial opportunity.

Provides technical quality assurance for consultant terms of reference, methodologies, training materials, technical reports, specifications and recommendations, ensuring that advice is practical, context appropriate and consistent with proven Ugandan and international good practice.

Works closely with field-based partners to strengthen technical delivery to producer groups and enterprises, including improved production, harvesting, post-harvest management, aggregation, storage, processing and product quality, with specific attention to reducing losses and improving commercial performance.

Works with the Project Coordinator, Logistics and Procurement function and technical consultants to define appropriate specifications for cottage-industry machinery, processing lines, laboratory/testing equipment and other productive assets; supports technical evaluation, installation, commissioning, operator training and safe, sustainable use.

Ensures technical assistance strengthens compliance with applicable Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS) requirements, Uganda National Qualifications Framework (UNQF) competencies and other relevant food safety, quality, environmental, occupational health and market standards.

Ensures incubation and acceleration support incorporates the specialist technical inputs required by enterprises, including production efficiency, process improvement, product diversification, quality assurance, certification readiness, technology adoption and market requirements.

Supports the design and deli