National Project Manager - Value Chain Development and Private Sector Partnerships (Open to internal and external applicants)

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Background

UNDP has been working in India since 1951 in almost all areas of human development. Together with the Government of India and development partners, UNDP works towards eradicating poverty, reducing inequalities, strengthening local governance, enhancing community resilience, protecting the environment, supporting policy initiatives and institutional reforms, and accelerating sustainable development for all.

With projects and programmes in every state and union territory in India, UNDP works with national and subnational government, and diverse development actors to deliver people-centric results, particularly for the most vulnerable and marginalized communities. As the integrator for collective action on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) within the UN system, we are committed to supporting the Government of India’s national development vision and priorities and accelerating the achievement of the SDGs for the people and the planet.
UNDP India’s new Country Programme (2023-2027) builds on our prior work and aims to provide an integrated approach to development solutions in three strategic portfolios:

•    Strong, accountable and evidence-led institutions for accelerated achievement of the SDGs.
•    Enhanced economic opportunities and social protection to reduce inequality, with a focus on the marginalized.
•    Climate-smart solutions, sustainable ecosystems and resilient development for reduced vulnerability.
South-South cooperation, gender equality and social inclusion are promoted across the pillars. The programme is supported by a framework of renewed partnerships and blended finance solutions, strategic innovation and accelerator labs, and data and digital architecture.

UNDP’s Country Programme Document (2023-2027) intended outcome 2 states that “By 2027, people will benefit from and contribute to sustainable and inclusive growth through higher productivity, competitiveness and diversification in economic activities that create decent work, livelihoods, and income particularly for youth and women”. The Sustainable and Inclusive Growth portfolio is aligned to outcome 2 of the UNDP country plan. The focus of the portfolio is enhanced economic opportunities and social protection to reduce inequality, with a focus on the marginalized communities across the country.

Under the portfolio, there are several projects being implemented Across different thematic areas such as Skills, Jobs and Sustainable Livelihoods, Women Entrepreneurship and Youth Innovation, Accessible and Inclusive Social and Risks protection Mechanism, Care Economy with focus on:
•    Socio-economic empowerment and resilience building of marginalized and vulnerable populations through bridging the information gap, building managerial, financial, and digital capacities and improving access to opportunities.
•    Support unlocking the full impact of public supports schemes– Agri Insurance & Credit, Social protection, Forest Rights and Entitlements, Skill India, NULM with improved Institutional Capacity, Service Delivery and Enhanced Coverage
•    Confront the significant barriers and stigma faced by women and girls, enhance agency and promote inclusive workplace.
•    Promote responsible business behaviour as well as greater industry participation specifically SMEs in the skilling ecosystem.

Over the past decade, UNDP India’s value-chain programming has prioritized women’s agency alongside income generation, recognizing that increased commercialization can alter intra-household and enterprise-level control over assets and decision-making. Accordingly, interventions have sought to address not only market access and productivity, but also women’s roles, voice, and bargaining power across the value chain, with particular attention to ownership, leadership, and decision-making at household, collective, and enterprise levels. Programmes such as DISHA built gender-transformative roles like Women Sourcing Managers (WSMs) and Women Business Managers (WBMs) that place rural women at the heart of procurement, quality, pricing, logistics and enterprise management across FPOs and producer groups.

Building on its past work, UNDP is implementing a new project i.e. “Market Led Inclusive Value Chain Development” to significantly strengthen women's economic empowerment, improving outcomes such as incomes, asset ownership, productivity, and savings. Overall goal of the planned project is “resilient, equitable and inclusive value chain, which ensures sustainable livelihood and increased income for rural households, particularly women SHG/ collective members”. The approach is to facilitate integration of gender-responsive strategies throughout all stages of the value chain, not just isolated initiatives.
The project is anchored with the National Rural Livelihoods Mission (NRLM) under the Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD), with a Technical Support Unit (TSU) being established within MoRD to support strategic coordination, technical assistance, and implementation oversight. NRLM has already laid strong foundations by linking primary producers to markets and building producer organisations at scale. Building on these models, UNDP, in partnership with relevant stakeholders, will work across select value chains and states to further enhance women’s agency – particularly in post-harvest operations, processing, branding, and market engagement.

In this context, UNDP proposes to recruit a National Project Manager - Value Chain Development and Private Sector Partnerships for the Market-Led Inclusive Value Chain Development Programme. The National Project Manager - Value Chain Development and Private Sector Partnerships will provide strategic, technical, and operational leadership for the programme, bringing demonstrated experience in leading large-scale livelihoods and value-chain initiatives, market-led and private-sector engagement, and institutional strengthening. The role will support multi-stakeholder coordination, programme design and delivery, convergence with government schemes, and the effective operationalization of gender-inclusive and climate-resilient value-chain interventions across multiple states.

The National Project Manager - Value Chain Development and Private Sector Partnerships will provide overall strategic, technical, and operational leadership to the technical support unit established to support the Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD) and National Rural Livelihoods Mission (NRLM) in implementing a large-scale, multi-state value chains development programme.
The scope of work includes:
1.    Leading the design, coordination, and delivery of all TSU-supported programme outputs across selected agricultural value chains and project states, ensuring alignment with programme objectives, timelines, and results frameworks.
2.    Providing high-level technical and strategic advisory support to MoRD, NRLM, and State Rural Livelihoods Missions (SRLMs) on gender-transformative value chain development, private sector engagement, climate resilience, and market-led livelihoods.
3.    Overseeing integration of women SHGs, producer collectives, and women-led FPOs into inclusive, climate-resilient, and commercially viable value chains.
4.    Ensuring effective convergence with relevant national missions, state schemes, financial institutions, and private sector partners to unlock scale, financing, and sustainability.
5.    Providing leadership and quality assurance across innovation challenges, capacity building initiatives, DRE technology adoption, and evidence-based learning systems.
6.    Representing the programme at national and state levels, strengthening partnerships with government, private sector, development partners, and civil society.

The primary purpose of the National Project Manager - Value Chain Development and Private Sector Partnerships is to ensure effective, coordinated, and high-quality implementation of the Market-led Value Chains Development Programme by providing strategic leadership, institutional support, and operational oversight to MoRD and NRLM/SRLMs.

The role is critical to achieving the programme goal of building resilient, equitable, and inclusive value chains that deliver sustainable livelihoods and increased incomes for rural households—particularly women SHG members—across multiple states and value chains.

The National Project Manager – Value Chain Development and Private Sector Partnership will work under the direct supervision of the Team Lead - SIG Unit, and in close coordination with the National Programme Manager – SIG Unit. S/He will ensure engagement of all direct stakeholders and delivery of project objectives, in coordination with MoRD and NRLM.

Reporting To: Team Lead – SIG Unit 
Reportees to this position :
•    Private Sector Partnerships Analyst (1), NPSA-9
•    Value Chain Officer (4), NPSA-9
•    Project Analyst – Livelihoods and Inclusive Value Chains (1), NPSA-8
•    Project Analyst – Capacity Development and Partnerships (1), NPSA-8
•    Project Associate (1), NPSA-6
•    Communications Analyst (1): NPSA-7 
 

Duties and Responsibilities

Programme Strategy, Oversight and Delivery
•    Provide overall leadership for programme planning, execution, and monitoring across all outcomes, outputs, and states.
•    Ensure timely and high-quality delivery of programme results, including value chain analyses, private sector partnerships, innovation challenges, capacity building, and DRE adoption.
•    Oversee preparation, implementation, and periodic revision of annual work plans, budgets, and implementation strategies.
•    Ensure alignment of programme implementation with approved Results Framework, gender targets, and impact indicators.
•    Lead adaptive programme management, using evidence and real-time learning to guide course correction.

Stakeholder Engagement and Private Sector Partnership Support
•    Lead engagement with private sector, including buyers, processors, agri-businesses, agri-tech firms, and financial actors, to enable market access, investment, technology adoption, and commercially sustainable engagement of women SHGs, FPOs, and producer collectives across priority value chains.
•    Serve as the principal interface between MoRD, NRLM, SRLMs, UNDP, private sector partners, financial institutions, and other ecosystem actors.
•    Facilitate coordination across central and state government departments, national missions, and implementing partners.
•    Strengthen collaboration with private sector actors including buyers, agri-businesses, retail chains, agri-tech firms, and impact investors.
•    Support development of institutional mechanisms for sustained engagement between women’s collectives and market actors.

Strategy Development and Policy Support
•    Lead the development and operationalization of gender-transformative value chain development frameworks, guidelines, and toolkits.
•    Support mainstreaming of gender and climate considerations within NRLM value chain strategies and implementation processes.
•    Provide technical inputs to policy dialogues, advisories, and strategy documents at national and state levels.
•    Ensure alignment with relevant national policies, including NRLM guidelines, agriculture and rural development policies, and climate action priorities.

Team Leadership and Capacity Development
•    Lead, supervise, and mentor TSU technical staff and consultants across thematic areas.
•    Ensure clear role definition, performance management, and professional development of TSU team members.
•    Foster a collaborative, results-oriented, and inclusive team culture.
•    Ensure effective coordination across technical domains including value chains, private sector engagement, MEL, and communications.

Representation, Donor Engagement and Networking
•    Represent the programme in national and international forums, conferences, and high-level meetings.
•    Support engagement with development partners, donors, and multilateral institutions.
•    Contribute to donor reporting, strategic briefings, and knowledge exchange initiatives.
•    Strengthen UNDP–MoRD positioning as a leader in gender-transformative and market-led livelihoods programming.

Contribution to Strategic Country-Level Processes
•    Contribute to UNDP and Government of India strategic processes related to inclusive growth, women’s economic empowerment, climate resilience, and rural transformation.
•    Support documentation of programme reports, best practices, scalable models, and policy-relevant lessons.
•    Provide strategic inputs to knowledge products, learning platforms, and future programme design.
The incumbent performs other duties within their functional profile as deemed necessary for the efficient functioning of the Office and the Organization.

Competencies

Core Competencies

People Management

UNDP People Management Competencies can be found in the dedicated site. [link removed]

Cross-Functional & Technical Competencies

Business Direction & Strategy

Business Development

Partnership management

Business Management

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

Experience:

Required skills

Desired skills

Required Languages:

Travel: To project states

Equal opportunity

As an equal opportunity employer, UNDP values diversity as an expression of the multiplicity of nations and cultures where we operate and, as such, we encourage qualified applicants from all backgrounds to apply for roles in the organization. Our employment decisions are based on merit and suitability for the role, without discrimination. 

UNDP is also committed to creating an inclusive workplace where all personnel are empowered to contribute to our mission, are valued, can thrive, and benefit from career opportunities that are open to all.

Sexual harassment, exploitation, and abuse of authority

UNDP does not tolerate harassment, sexual harassment, exploitation, discrimination and abuse of authority. All selected candidates, therefore, undergo relevant checks and are expected to adhere to the respective standards and principles. 

Right to select multiple candidates

UNDP reserves the right to select one or more candidates from this vacancy announcement.  We may also retain applications and consider candidates applying to this post for other similar positions with UNDP at the same grade level and with similar job description, experience and educational requirements.

Use of AI by candidates

Applicants are invited to read UNDP’s guidance for candidates on using AI responsibly in UNDP recruitment and selection [link removed]

Scam alert

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