Job Description

Partnerships and Markets Manager
Conservation International protects nature for the benefit of humanity. Through science, policy, fieldwork, and finance, we spotlight and secure the most important places in nature for the climate, biodiversity, and for people. With offices in 30 countries and projects in more than 100 countries, Conservation International partners with governments, companies, civil society, Indigenous peoples, and local communities to help people and nature thrive together.
Conservation South Africa (CSA), an affiliate of Conservation International (CI), is dedicated to promoting sustainable development by integrating the value of nature into decision-making processes. Through its initiatives, CSA enhances human well-being by protecting and restoring ecosystems that provide essential goods and services. The organization works to influence policy, develop conservation-friendly markets, engage the private sector, and support local communities in implementing economically viable, conservation-based growth models.
POSITION SUMMARY - This position is based in Springbok in the Northern Cape-South Africa
One of CSA's flagship initiatives, Herding for Health (H4H), a collaboration between CI and The Peace Parks Foundation, is a community-driven livestock management program designed to support rural communities living in and around protected areas. This model restores grasslands, savannas, and shrublands, conserves biodiversity, and strengthens livelihoods through herding, capacity building, and collective governance.
CSA actively partners with communal livestock farmers and local communities to combat the impacts of climate change using nature-based solutions. At the heart of this work is the H4H concept, which promotes responsible stewardship of biodiverse communal rangelands through Conservation Agreements, ensuring that local economies thrive while preserving natural ecosystems for future generations.
The Partnerships and Markets Manager plays a pivotal role in advancing collaborative conservation efforts with farmers, driving strategic partnerships, including private sector engagements for market access, and securing funding opportunities that support sustainable livestock management and ecological restoration in the Namaqualand region.
This position focuses on establishing and strengthening relationships with corporate partners, donors, government agencies, local cooperatives, agropastoralists, and value-chain stakeholders to scale up community-led conservation initiatives. The position will also advise on incentive-based market linkages based on conservation outcomes as part of conservation agreements with communities. By facilitating market access, promoting biodiversity-friendly enterprise development, and supporting ecological connectivity across protected landscapes, the manager ensures that conservation efforts align with sustainable rural development.
Additionally, the role will assess and develop conservation finance strategies that are linked to local governance frameworks, ensuring equitable benefit sharing, and integrate project activities with existing landscape restoration work, maximising impact and long-term sustainability. Through strategic engagement and market-driven solutions, the Partnerships and Markets Manager will contribute to the broader regional conservation strategy, fostering economic resilience, environmental stewardship, and sustainable livelihoods for local communities. The role reports to the Namaqualand Green Economic Development Director.
RESPONSIBILITIES
This role is central to scaling conservation impact, strengthening market-driven solutions, and ensuring that livestock-based agriculture contributes to biodiversity conservation while fostering economic resilience.
Strategic Partnerships & Stakeholder Engagement

• Build and maintain relationships with corporate partners, donors, government agencies, conservation organisations, and local cooperatives to foster collaboration and secure long-term support.
• Engage value-chain stakeholders and agropastoralists to strengthen market access and establish new opportunities for community involvement along the value chain while enhancing community-led conservation efforts.
• Represent the project in regional forums, policy discussions, and national steering committee meetings, advocating for sustainable livestock management and conservation-based economic models.

Market-Based Conservation & Enterprise Development

• Identify and implement market-oriented solutions that improve the livelihoods of communal livestock farmers while restoring ecological connectivity. Establish a mechanism to distinguish between a commercial enterprise and livelihood opportunities that enable an integrated systems for economic resilience within the landscape.
• Support value-chain development for sheep and goats and other livestock by-products, promoting biodiversity-friendly agricultural practices that align with long-term conservation goals.
• Facilitate enterprise development initiatives that integrate sustainable grazing practices with market accessibility, ensuring economic resilience for local communities.
• Where relevant, develop business plans for established community enterprises.

Fundraising & Resource Mobilization

• Identify funding opportunities and support the development of proposals to secure financial resources for conservation and livestock-based economic initiatives.
• Coordinate local inputs for grant reporting and compliance, ensuring alignment with donor requirements, including the mandate to invest at least 50% of funds in local institutions and communities.

Governance & Risk Management

• Ensure effective governance structures for cooperatives in the landscapes that can service relevant funding agreements, and enterprise development initiatives.
• Proactively identify risks related to financial sustainability, regulatory compliance, and stakeholder engagement, and implement strategies to mitigate them.

WORKING CONDITIONS

• This position requires extensive travel nationally and locally.
• This role will be a two-year fixed-term assignment, anticipated to begin in August 2025 till July 2027.

QUALIFICATIONS
Required

• A Bachelor's or similar degree in Environmental Science, Agricultural Economics, Business Administration, Conservation Finance, or a related field.
• 4 to 6 years of experience in partnership development, market-based conservation, or sustainable agriculture initiatives.
• Up to 2 years of supervisory experience.
• Proven experience working with communal livestock farmers, conservation organizations, and market-driven solutions for rural development.
• Familiarity with conservation finance models, policy frameworks, and donor-funded projects, particularly within South Africa

Skills:

• Strategic partnership-building skills, with the ability to engage and collaborate with corporate entities, donors, government agencies, and conservation NGOs.
• Strong fundraising and grant writing abilities, including proposal development and compliance with funding structures and donor requirements.
• Knowledge of market-oriented conservation approaches, including value-chain development for livestock, enterprise development, and biodiversity-friendly agricultural practices.
• Project management expertise, including budget planning, monitoring & evaluation, governance, and risk mitigation.
• Exceptional communication and negotiation skills, with the ability to represent the organization in policy discussions, forums, and multi-stakeholder engagements.
• Data-driven decision-making, with experience in using research, impact assessments, and financial modeling to guide market-based conservation strategies.

Abilities:

• Ability to design and implement conservation-based economic solutions that balance biodiversity conservation, rural development, and market growth.
• Capacity to manage multi-stakeholder collaborations, ensuring alignment with local communities, private sector engagement, and conservation policies.
• Ability to work independently and in teams, balancing strategic leadership with operational execution.
• Adaptability to work within complex landscapes, managing partnerships across protected areas, communal lands, and agricultural markets.
• Capacity to analyze and mitigate risks related to funding, governance, ecological sustainability, and market access.

Preferred

• Certification or formal training in market-based conservation strategies, impact investing, or conservation governance.
• Experience in rural economic development programs, particularly those linked to livestock farming, biodiversity conservation, and natural resource management.
• Knowledge of carbon markets, ecosystem services valuation, and biodiversity finance models for sustainable conservation funding.
• Familiarity with data-driven conservation monitoring, and market analytics for value-chain optimization.
• Fluency in local languages spoken in the Namaqualand region (Afrikaans and English) (preferred for effective stakeholder engagement).

To apply for this position please submit a resume and cover letter.
Application Deadline: July 16, 2025 (11:49 PM EST)
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