Career Opportunities

Bid manager / Business Development Officer

About the position

The iCRA–MDF Alliance is looking for a ”Bid manager / Business Development Officer”. As a Bid Manager / Business Development Officer, you’ll be right at the heart of shaping new opportunities for the iCRA–MDF Alliance. You’ll help spot promising tenders and grants, turn good ideas into strong proposals, and coordinate the full bid process. Along the way, you’ll connect the dots between MDF’s wide experience in development advisory work and iCRA’s leadership in agri-food systems, helping turn our shared expertise into clear, compelling, and impactful proposals.

In this role, you can use your analytical eye and writing skills to develop high-quality bids and funding proposals, while working closely with partners and colleagues. This position fits you if you like managing processes, building relationships, and navigating both donor-funded tenders and grant opportunities, all with the shared goal of creating work that really makes a difference.

Success in this position translates into

• Increased number and success rate of bids and grants developed under the iCRA–MDF Alliance
• Strong pipeline of agri-food system–related opportunities across Africa and other regions
• Demonstrated financial growth and contribution to the overall revenue targets of the alliance
• Positive feedback from regional offices and partners on coordination and quality of support
• Strengthened institutional visibility of the iCRA–MDF Alliance within donor ecosystems

About the iCRA–MDF Alliance

MDF Training & Consultancy and iCRA Foundation have entered a strategic alliance positioning iCRA as the Agri-Food Systems Hub within the OneMDF Network. Together, MDF and iCRA bring over 80 years of combined expertise in training, consultancy, evaluation, agricultural education, and food systems transformation across Africa, Asia, Europe, and Latin America (Netherlands, Belgium, Myanmar, Indonesia, Bangladesh, DR Congo, Ghana, Benin, Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda and Vietnam).

This alliance enables us to design and deliver larger, multi-country programmes and expand our presence in agri-food systems, youth employment, climate-smart practices, and inclusive value chains. To support this ambition, we are recruiting a Bid Manager / Business Development Officer who will strengthen our joint acquisition capacity and help position the alliance for strategic growth.

Key responsibilities

Business development and tender coordination

• Lead or coordinate the preparation of EOIs, tenders, and grant proposals for bilateral, multilateral, and foundation clients (e.g. GIZ, EU, FCDO, IFAD, World Bank, AfDB, ADB, UN organisations, RVO, Enabel, and private foundations)
• Facilitate go/no-go decisions and guide teams through the full acquisition cycle, from opportunity identification to final submission
• Support the development of competitive technical and financial proposals, ensuring alignment with donor requirements and MDF–iCRA branding
• Manage proposal pipelines, deadlines, and submission trackers across offices, maintaining a shared CRM or dashboard for transparency and learning

Grant and fundraising support

• Identify and pursue grant funding opportunities for both MDF and iCRA’s agri-food systems and capacity-building initiatives
• Support concept development, logframe design, Theory of Change design, and donor correspondence related to grant proposals
• Build relationships with philanthropic and impact-oriented donors (e.g. Mastercard Foundation, AGRA, FAO, IFAD, FCDO) and manage communication throughout the proposal lifecycle

Partnership and network building

• Cultivate and maintain relationships with consortium partners, associate consultants, and client networks, particularly within the agriculture and food systems sectors
• Contribute to co-creation and partnership models that strengthen the joint positioning of iCRA and MDF in multi-country and multi-stakeholder programme
• Maintain an active database of partners and consultants, ensuring GDPR compliance and regular engagement.

Quality assurance and learning

• Review and edit all proposals for quality, coherence, and compliance
• Support standardisation of proposal templates, CVs, references, and past-performance documentation
• Contribute to MDF’s knowledge management efforts by capturing lessons learned, win/loss analyses, and donor intelligence
• Feed insights into strategic discussions with the acquisition unit to continuously improve acquisition systems and performance metrics

Required qualifications and experience

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in International Business, Agricultural Development, Development Studies, or related field
• Minimum 3–7 years of experience in business development, tendering, or grant acquisition for international cooperation organisations
• Proven experience of managing and writing winning bids in response to tenders for donor-funded international development programs, including any of the following: the UN organisations, GIZ, UK FCDO, AfDB, ADB, World Bank, EU, foundations, and other bilateral and multilateral donors
• Sound knowledge and experience of the requirements of major donors including key strategies, procurement processes, eligibility requirements and compliance management
• Experience of risk management procedures
• Experience with commercial aspects of bid management
• Excellent English and French writing and communication skills;
• Strong analytical, budgeting, and coordination skills with an ability to manage multiple deadlines
• Familiarity with agri-food systems, capacity development, and climate-smart agriculture is highly desirable
• Experience working with CRM or digital proposal systems (SharePoint, Monday, Airtable, Power BI) and procurement systems
• Empathetic, proactive, ability to deal with hard deadlines and able to work collaboratively in virtual, multicultural teams

What we offer

• An intercultural environment within the iCRA–MDF Alliance, working across Africa, Asia, and Europe
• Position with a high level of independence and the opportunity to make your mark and help shape this new growing global alliance
• Access to internal learning opportunities and career growth across the MDF–iCRA network
• Competitive remuneration based on MDF terms and conditions

Duty station

• The position can be based in any MDF office, with a preference for our office in Benin
• The role may involve occasional international travel for consortium meetings, partner coordination, or proposal development missions
• Remote collaboration across time zones is part of regular work within the iCRA -MDF Alliance

This is a full-time position offered on a one-year renewable contract, subject to performance and funding availability. The expected start date is [1 March 2026].

How to apply

Interested candidates are invited to send their CV and motivation letter (in English) to: bdu@mdf.nl (subject: Bid Manager – iCRA–MDF Alliance).

Deadline for applications: 10 January 2026

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. We will contact you within one week after the application deadline.

About MDF Training & Consultancy

MDF Training & Consultancy (MDF) is an international training and advisory organisation founded in 1984 in the Netherlands. With over 130 staff across nine offices in Africa, Asia, and Europe, MDF provides practical solutions in training, consultancy, evaluation, organisational development, and learning facilitation. Rooted in development cooperation, MDF strengthens people, organisations, and networks to achieve sustainable impact. Its clients include bilateral and multilateral agencies (GIZ, World Bank, EU, FCDO, IFAD), governments, foundations, and NGOs worldwide. MDF combines hands-on field experience with strategic advisory expertise to promote inclusive, effective, and resilient development practice.

About iCRA

iCRA is a Dutch non-profit foundation established in 1983 Based in Wageningen, iCRA empowers professionals and organisations in agriculture, food systems, and education to make agribusiness more inclusive and sustainable. Through its training, coaching, and institutional strengthening work, iCRA connects farmers, researchers, agripreneurs, and policymakers, fostering innovation and collaboration in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. iCRA has built a strong reputation in agri-education, capacity development, and value chain facilitation, working with development partners and educational institutions to strengthen local food systems.