Job Description
Akwaaba! (Welcome!) Volunteers in Ghana will serve in a stable democracy with a rich history, hospitable and diverse cultures. Ghana recognizes over 70 languages and tribes throughout the sixteen regions, all of whom co-exist harmoniously. Welcoming visitors is a point of cultural identity and the ultimate expression of Ghanaian culture. Acknowledging the presence of another human being by greeting them honors their existence. In the local communities, visitors will be welcomed into families and quickly be made to feel at home. Ghana is Peace Corps’ oldest post, hosting Volunteers since the Agency’s first cohort in 1961.
The Agriculture project has 3 objectives:
(1) Increasing smallholder farmers’ capacity to improve the diversity, productivity and/or sustainability of their agricultural production.
(2) Increasing smallholder farmers’ capacity to generate agriculture-related income, and
(3) Increasing the capacity of women of reproductive age (WRA) and/or key household decision makers to increase the dietary diversity of households.
Volunteers collaborate with community leaders to identify community needs and implement appropriate interventions. Volunteers are a catalyst for a wide range of activities, which may include:
• Increase food security by working with small holder farmers to improve crop production, storage of harvested products, and add value to agricultural products.
• Co-train farmers on ways to increase small scale animal husbandry.
• Work with partners and women of reproductive age to improve household nutrition.
• Co-train farmers on record keeping and village savings and loans associations (VSLAs).
Volunteers take time to develop relationships and build trust, which is of great importance to the development work in any community.
Cutting across the three objective areas, Agricultural Volunteers will incorporate engagement of women and youth in all aspects of their project’s implementation. Volunteers and their local counterparts will involve women and youth in programs emphasizing literacy, numeracy, agriculture, nutrition, business knowledge, and skills development.
Peace Corps/Ghana promotes girls’ education and empowerment. You will receive training on challenges in Ghana and you will have the opportunity to implement activities that are contextually appropriate . During your service, you will look for ways to work with community members to promote girls’ sense of agency.
Volunteers are trained and equipped with the skills necessary to carry out these activities over the course of their service. As part of your work, you will also report on these efforts and their impact.
Required Skills
Qualified candidates will have an expressed interest in working in agriculture and one or more of the following criteria:
• Bachelor of Arts/Bachelor of Science degree in any field
OR
• 5 years' professional work experience
Desired Skills
Competitive candidates will have at least one or more of the following relevant qualifications:
• Familiarity with agriculture and farm work focusing on vegetable gardening, animal husbandry and/or integrated agriculture systems
• Experience talking to groups of people about agricultural practices and technologies
• Experience mobilizing people for group meetings
• Experience delivering training on agricultural topics
• Experience with small scale field experiments
• Knowledge of basic field crop, tree crop or vegetable production practices and technologies
• Experience in project planning is an added advantage
Living Conditions
Volunteers are placed in rural communities and expected to live in the same socio-economic conditions as the people with whom they serve. Peace Corps/Ghana requires the community to contribute housing that meets the minimum standard of at least one room with a porch/sitting area. Housing is to be ventilated with a roof, a solid floor and walls, access to year-round water supply (via boreholes and wells) and doors with locks and windows. Some Volunteers will have private latrines and bathing facilities (often a bucket bath). Others will share latrines and bathing facilities with not more than 6 people in the household. Volunteers will be issued a cook stove to be used in a designated cooking area and all housing will maintain high standards of household safety. Peace Corps and Host communities will ensure that you have a safe cooking environment and equipment.
That said, Volunteers’ sites vary widely due to several factors including geography, and this extends to amenities available at each site (electricity, water), distances to travel, proximity of other Volunteers and general remoteness of sites. Some Volunteers will live in self-contained concrete houses while others will have one or two rooms inside a family compound or nurse’s quarters. Flexibility and a positive attitude will help greatly in adapting to your new living situation.
Pre-Service Training (PST) PST is an 11-week training that is intended to ensure that Volunteers are equipped with the knowledge, skills, and attitudes needed for a successful service. PST in Ghana will be community-based. Volunteers will receive training in their technical area, language, personal health and safety and security as well as a practicum. Volunteers will be evaluated on their competencies in each of these areas. Outside of formal training there will be opportunities for Volunteers to interact and/or live with community members, to provide an immersive approach to understanding Ghanaian culture.
Climate: The climate of Ghana is tropical, with two main seasons. Generally, the dry season is from November through April and the rainy season is May through August. It is hot and comparatively dry along the southeast coast, hot and humid in the southwest, and dry in the north.
Communication & Transportation: Communication systems have been steadily improving throughout Ghana, and cell phone reception is available at most sites. The level of reception, clarity and speed of internet (where available) varies greatly throughout the country.
Transportation: Volunteers live and serve in rural, underserved communities. Transportation to and from your permanent community is primarily via public vehicles, which, depending on the remoteness of the site, can have irregular schedules and may or may not be well maintained. Often, travel requires long hours on rough roads in buses and minivans. Volunteers generally walk or bike around their communities. Volunteers are not permitted to drive or ride motor bikes.
Dress: Ghanaians are very meticulous about their dress and personal hygiene in the workplace and cleanliness is a sign of respect. Volunteers are expected to dress and behave accordingly. Personal appearance is important to people in Ghana. During Pre-Service Training, appropriate dress is business casual. Following PST, you will need to dress appropriately for work situations in your community. Dressing appropriately will help you gain respect in your host community, facilitate integration, and increase your credibility and effectiveness. Volunteers with visible body piercings or tattoos may need strategies to conceal them. Having visible body piercings and tattoos may make it more difficult to integrate into your host community. Keep in mind that Peace Corps/Ghana staff will provide feedback regarding personal appearance to facilitate integration in training & during your service. Remaining flexible is key to Peace Corps service in any country.
Language Skills Additional Information
Ghana is a country with a plethora of local languages although English is considered one of the national languages. As such, Peace Corps Ghana will teach everyone a local language during PST. More than a third of Volunteers end up acquiring a second local language when living at their site. Acquiring a local language will endear the Volunteer to community members as well as other host country nationals. While English may be sufficient in professional settings, many community members may be more comfortable in their local language. Developing a deep understanding and proficiency in local language will make it easier for a volunteer to navigate and work in the local culture and community.
Couples Comments
Peace Corps Ghana welcomes couples serving in any combination programs. Your partner must apply and qualify for one of the following programs:
Junior High School Math/Science Teacher
Deaf Education Teacher
Sustainable Agriculture Agent
Community Health Extension Agent
Couples with one Community Health Extension Agent and one Sustainable Agriculture Agent will be able to reside in the same community during Pre-Service Training (PST), if desired. This arrangement would involve one individual “commuting” to their sector training facility – departing early and using public transportation to arrive on time. There will be a 2-week field-based training for each sector and during that time couples will reside separately.
When both partners are part of the same project (e.g., Sustainable Agriculture Agent with Sustainable Agriculture Agent), they will reside together in the same community during Pre-Service Training and no one will need to “commute” to a separate training location.
During service at your permanent site, couples living conditions are the same as other Volunteers’, but couples will share a house or living quarters.
Language Requirements Information
There are no pre-requisite language requirements for this position.
Environmental Adaptation and Resilience Activities (Public Information)
As an Agriculture Volunteer, you will be trained on best practices for smallholder agriculture to improve household food security and nutrition and adapt to a changing and uncertain environmental context. As the impacts of environmental degradation and unsustainable natural resource management practices become more evident, the social, economic, and environmental contexts that smallholder farmers operate within will continue to change. This will add to the challenges of smallholder farming, particularly for the most vulnerable and disadvantaged communities.
As an Agriculture Volunteer, you will be trained to support food security and livelihood improvement while increasing community resilience and adaptation to global change through your activities. These activities will:
•Promote the adoption of improved, appropriate, and adaptive agricultural practices and technologies that increase productivity, including practices that:
o improve soil health and promote circularity of on-farm organic waste
o reflect indigenous knowledge of nature-based solutions and
o preserve and enhance forests, biodiversity, and ecosystem services.
• Build and strengthen household resilience by integrating and diversifying existing and new agriculture-related income-generating opportunities
• Improve household nutrition, particularly that of the most vulnerable household members
