Zambia Ag Partnership and Development Lead

About One Acre Fund

Founded in 2006, One Acre Fund equips 5.5 million smallholder farmers to make their farms more productive. Across nine countries that together are home to two-thirds of Africa's farmers, we provide high-quality farm supplies, tree seedlings, accessible credit, modern agronomic training, and a wide range of other agricultural services. On average, this model enables any farmer to increase their income and assets on supported land by more than 35 percent, while permanently improving their resilience. This is all made possible by our team of 9,000+ full-time staff, drawn from diverse backgrounds and professions.

To learn more, please see our Why Work Here blog post.

About the Role

One Acre Fund Zambia is entering a significant growth phase expanding our farmer base to over 50,000 by 2030, scaling our agroforestry program to 30 million trees, and implementing a 5-year Green Climate Fund grant in partnership with the Ministry of Finance and National Planning. You will serve as a senior agricultural expert and partnership lead, working with leadership on program strategy, strategic partnerships, and market development. You will report to the Country Director and work closely with our global sourcing and government relations teams.

Responsibilities

Strategic Growth partnerships

• Identify and develop new partnership opportunities aligned with OAF Zambia's integrated farm system model to grow the customer base
• Manage partnership agreements, relations, and reporting, ensuring mutual benefit.
• Build and maintain relationships with local grant providers and internal business development teams

Agricultural strategy

• Serve as one of the program's key agricultural experts, advising on crop diversification and product strategy, market dynamics, and regulatory shifts in Zambia's agricultural landscape
• Conduct market scoping for higher-value crops, particularly horticulture and tree crops, assessing commercial viability for smallholder integration.

Input sourcing

• Work with OAF's global sourcing team to ensure competitive seed and fertiliser procurement as the credit portfolio scales
• Build supplier relationships and identify hedging or forward-purchasing opportunities to de-risk supply
• Support the tree seed supply chain development, working closely with aggregators and the government

Government relations

• Manage government tender relationships and any relevant government supply programs
• Represent OAF on industry bodies, associations, and related forums

Career Growth and Development

We have a strong culture of constant learning, and we invest in developing our people. You’ll have weekly check-ins with your manager, access to mentorship and training programs, and regular feedback on your performance. We hold career reviews every six months, and set aside time to discuss your aspirations and career goals. You’ll have the opportunity to shape a growing organization and build a rewarding long-term career.

Qualifications

Across all roles, these are the general qualifications we look for. For this role specifically, you will have:

• 8+ years of experience in Zambia's agriculture sector—seed, commodity, agri-input, or related fields
• A track record in any of the following: sales, key accounts, business development, grant management, or off-take brokerage
• Farmer-facing background; demonstrated credibility in the field
• Strong partnership-building experience across either the private sector, NGOs, or development partners
• Experience managing or influencing cross-functional teams and working across organizational boundaries
• Comfortable operating with ambiguity in a high-paced environment

Preferred:

• Existing relationships with government counterparts in agriculture, finance, or seed regulatory bodies
• Membership or board participation in Zambian agricultural industry associations

Preferred Start Date

As soon as possible

Job Location

Kabwe, Zambia

Benefits

Health insurance, housing, and comprehensive benefits

Eligibility

One Acre Fund can support a work permit for this role. However, nationals of (or those with an extensive professional background and work history in) our countries of operation are preferred.

Application Deadline

31 July 2026. Please note that we hire on a rolling basis which means that applications are reviewed and processed on a continuous basis until a hire is made.

One Acre Fund never asks candidates to pay any money or pay for tests at any stage of the interview process. Official One Acre Fund emails will always arrive from an @oneacrefund.org address. Please report any suspicious communication here (globalhotline@oneacrefund.org), but do not send applications or application materials to this email address.

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion (DEI), and anti-racism are deeply connected to our organization’s mission and purpose. One Acre Fund aspires to build a culture where all staff feel consistently valued, represented, and connected – so that our team can thrive as professionals, and achieve exceptional impact for the farmers we serve.

We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, marital status, disability, gender, gender identity or expression. We are proud to be an equal opportunity workplace.