Location: Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Department: CapDev
Deadline: 31 July2023
Job Description
The International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) seeks to recruit four (4) research fellows to work on improving forages grasses in Africa with the application of genomic tools. The fellowships will be hosted by the Feeds and Forage Development (FFD) program at ILRI.
ILRI is a One CGIAR research centre and is the only centre dedicated entirely to animal agriculture research for the developing world. ILRI is co-hosted by Kenya and Ethiopia and has regional or country offices in 14 other locations in Africa, South and South-East Asia. Drawn from some 40 nationalities, ILRI has a work force of about 630 staff globally and operates on an annual budget of about US$100M. The institute works through extensive partnership arrangements with research and development institutions in both the developed and developing parts of the world.
ILRI’s mission is to improve food and nutritional security and to reduce poverty in developing countries through research for efficient, safe, and sustainable use of livestock — ensuring better lives through livestock. The institute’s research for development agenda covers a range of areas from laboratory-based biosciences to field-based research. Topics include animal productivity (health, genetics, and feeds), food safety and zoonoses, livestock and the environment and policies, institutions and livelihoods. Co-hosted by Kenya and Ethiopia, it has regional or country offices and projects in East, South and Southeast Asia as well as Central, East, Southern and West Africa. For further details: www.ilri.org
The FFD research program aims to provide options to: increase the quantity and quality of feed resources to improve livestock productivity in order to meet the growing demand for animal-source food; enhance profitability by reducing feed costs; increase income, employment and livelihoods from feed/fodder value chains and reduce labour/drudgery (especially for women); and reduce the environmental impact of feed. https://www.ilri.org/research/programs/feed-and-forage-development .
About the position
A central element of ILRI’s forage crop research is to develop a public resource of genomic tools to support the application of next generation genomics-based selection and breeding strategies. The development and application of these tools, supporting innovative breeding strategies, will also help facilitate the systematic utilization of genetic diversity. In these forages, most traits of interest are polygenic (i.e., governed by a few to several genes) and the application of a traditional marker assisted selection (MAS) approach is impractical. To overcome this issue, the recent method of genomic selection (GS) has been developed that can facilitate selection by means of net genetic merit of an individual obtained using markers distributed across the genome. The major advantages of GS are that it enables a drastic reduction in the duration of the breeding cycle compared to conventional breeding, and minimizes the costs associated with extensive phenotyping, thereby accelerating genetic gains. These roles aim to train an appropriate GS model on a subset of Urochloa and Megathyrsus collections using a catalogue of sequence variation, accounting for GxE effects. The genomic tools developed in this project will accelerate selection and variety development, for yield and quality traits, normally under the control of complex genetic systems, and ensure efficient utilization of genetic resources. The roles will leverage a collaboration between ILRI, the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT and National partners which has all the potential to advance breeding techniques for forages in general, and that in turn holds the promise to improve the livelihoods of people living in marginal areas characterized by reduced or irregular rainfall that can no longer support standard forage crop production due to the impacts of climate change.
The research fellows’ projects are funded by the forage component of the Crops to End Hunger (CtEH) initiative. The fellows will be working on project activities leveraging the genetic resources held in the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) forage genebanks and related breeding program, involving both laboratory and field trial work (application of molecular techniques, agronomic evaluation and feed quality analysis etc.). Furthermore, the fellows will be working on ILRI’s high performance computer (HPC), summarizing genotyping, phenotypic and environmental datasets. The fellows will gain valuable knowledge and skills in conventional plant breeding approaches, advanced molecular techniques, and bioinformatics applications, in line with societal needs and the OneCGIAR effort to train future plant breeders.
Responsibilities of the fellows:
- Undertake literature review.
- Support the design and execution of field trials at ILRI and partner’s field sites.
- Carry out sample collection, DNA extraction and preparation for submission to genotyping service.
- Curate and summarise whole genome datasets using the ILRI HPC.
- Apply statistical tools for genomic evaluation and prediction and undertaking genome-wide selections.
- Prepare and make seminar presentations.
- Report writing.
Minimum requirements:
The ideal candidates should:
- Hold MSc Degree in either Plant Science, Biological Sciences, or a related field (less than 10 years after MSc). PhD applicants are only accepted if their graduation date is less than 5 years old. The duration after graduation does not include maternity/paternity leave periods.
- Demonstrate affiliation with an affiliated institute (academia or national partners etc). A support letter from the affiliated institute will be required (the letter should highlight that the fellow will be released from his/her normal duties during the period of the fellowship).
- Demonstrate experience working in molecular genetics, quantitative genetics, or bioinformatics.
- Have experience with Linux, python and R statistical software is an advantage.
- Show proven experience in genomic data analysis.
- Prove good working knowledge of MS Office packages.
- Possess experience in contributing to writing reports and journal publications.
- Demonstrate ability to work independently, multi-task and meet tight deadlines.
- Have proficiency with written and spoken English (IELTS/TOEFL certificates are an advantage).
Location: ILRI, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Duration: 18 months.
Terms of appointment and stipend: ILRI will offer a competitive stipend to cover living expenses in the project location, medical insurance cover, and meet research expenses.
How to apply:
All applications MUST include the following (applications without the below documents will not be considered):
- a cover letter expressing their interest in the fellowship position and what they can bring to the fellowship.
- CV including names and addresses (including telephone and email) of three referees who are knowledgeable about the candidate’s professional qualifications and work experience.
- academic qualification certificates/transcripts.
Applications will be sent to the Manager Capacity Development by clicking on the tab “APPLY NOW” on or before 31 July 2023. The position title and reference number REF: RF/ILRI -FFD/02/2023 should be clearly marked on the subject line of the cover letter.
We thank all applicants for their interest in working for ILRI. Due to the volume of applications, only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.
ILRI does not charge a fee at any stage of the recruitment process (application, interview meeting, processing or training). ILRI also does not concern itself with information on applicants’ bank accounts.
To find out more about ILRI visit our websites at http://www.ilri.org