Consultant Programme Policy Officer (Head of Programme), Antananarivo, Madagascar, 6 months

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WFP celebrates and embraces diversity. It is committed to the principle of equal employment opportunity for all its employees and encourages qualified candidates to apply irrespective of race, colour, national origin, ethnic or social background, genetic information, gender, gender identity and/or expression, sexual orientation, religion or belief, HIV status or disability.

ABOUT WFP

The United Nations World Food Programme is the world's largest humanitarian agency fighting hunger worldwide. The mission of WFP is to help the world achieve Zero Hunger in our lifetimes. Every day, WFP works worldwide to ensure that no child goes to bed hungry and that the poorest and most vulnerable, particularly women and children, can access the nutritious food they need.

In emergencies, WFP gets food to where it is needed, saving the lives of victims of war, civil conflict, and natural disasters. After an emergency, WFP uses food to help communities rebuild their shattered lives. Present in nearly 80 countries, the organization has the global footprint, deep field presence and local knowledge and relationships necessary to provide access to nutritious food and contribute to the lasting solutions, especially in many of the world’s most remote and fragile areas. We manage an operating budget of approximately $5.9 billion each year, distributing 12.6 billion rations to those most in need. We reach an average of 80 million people with food assistance in around 80 countries each year. The World Food Programme office in Johannesburg is a Regional Office coordinating and supporting the delivery of humanitarian assistance to 11 Southern Africa countries including, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Namibia, Lesotho, Eswatini, Botswana, Malawi, Madagascar, Democratic Republic of Congo, Congo Brazzaville.

While WFP’s mandate clearly articulates both humanitarian and development responsibilities, the organization’s comparative advantage and long experience call for prioritization of emergency, lifesaving and development-enabling work that benefits the poorest and most marginalized people. The Sustainable Development Goals require moving beyond saving lives to changing lives, focusing first on the people in greatest need, not just in least-developed countries but universally throughout the world. WFP recognizes that it is impossible to achieve zero hunger without addressing the structural drivers of food insecurity and malnutrition, and that gender inequality is one of the most important causal problems. Moreover, WFP is cognizant that to enhance efficiency, impact and fairness, it must work to properly engender its entire programme portfolio.

For more on WFP and what we do, please go to http://www.wfp.org/videos/zero-hunger

ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT

Under the direct supervision of the Deputy Country Director, the Programme Policy Officer will be responsible for the overall programme leadership in the strategic shift towards capacity strengthening of the government, providing technical guidance, and programme team management for the effective implementation of the CSP priorities and strategies. A large focus of this role will also be on team management and provision of support to the Field Office for the implementation roll out of programme initiatives, expanding the country office programme portfolio.

JOB PURPOSE

To design and manage programmes that effectively meet food assistance needs, or contribute to policy formulation and/or provide technical advice or oversight on programme strategy and implementation

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES (not all-inclusive)

1. Provide overall strategic planning leadership and oversight in all aspects of programme management, planning, and implementation of the CSP programme activities including the shift from crisis response to early recovery and resilience building. 2. Provide guidance, leadership and motivation to Programme teams in country office and Field, and coordinate staff activities including work-planning, budget formulation, reviews and information management, as well as coaching to enable effective performance. 3. Provide leadership in mobilizing technical expertise on a wide range of programmes and policy issues including assessment, analysis, choice of objectives, activities, transfer modalities and appropriate food products. 4. Contribute to the design and resource mobilization efforts, including the development and drafting of project proposals and their budgets, donor updates in-country, and field visits. 5. Provide leadership to strengthen sound monitoring systems and coordinate data gathering, ensuring that rigorous quality standards are maintained. 6. Provide guidance for incorporating gender and protection perspectives in all areas of work, to ensure equal participation of women and men. 7. Contribute to Country Office Emergency Preparedness i.e. early warning, risk analysis, and contingency planning in order to respond to humanitarian crises and needs. 15. Perform any other related tasks as required.

STANDARD MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

Education:

• Advanced University degree in International Affairs, Economics, Nutrition/Health, Agriculture, Environmental Science, Social Sciences, Agronomy, Business Administration, or other field relevant to international development assistance, or First University Degree with additional years of related work experience and/or trainings/courses
• A combination of working experience in the UN, government NGOs and private sector is an added value.
• Strong knowledge and experience of country strategic planning processes.
• Knowledge and experience in inter-agency coordination in humanitarian settings.
• Experience in different programme approaches including managing emergency response operations using different transfer modalities

Experience:

Minimum 10 years or more of post graduate work experience in humanitarian assistance, programmes and policy engagement with external stakeholders in project development

Language:

Fluency (Level C) in both written and spoken French and English languages

FUNCTIONAL CAPABILITIES

C****apability Name Description of the behaviour expected for the proficiency level Programme Lifecycle & Food Assistance Displays ability to identify the main hunger problem at the national or subnational level to design and implement context-specific programmes that integrate complex analysis and the full range of food assistance tools. Transfer Modalities (Food, Cash, Voucher) Demonstrates the ability to design, implement, monitor and provide oversight over effective and efficient programmes deploying different transfer modalities. Broad Knowledge of Specialized areas (i.e. Nutrition, VAM, etc.) Demonstrates the ability to incorporate technical information into programme design and implementation and appropriately communicate it internally and externally. Emergency Programming Displays ability to translate understanding of programme principles in emergencies and protracted conflict situations into relevant, effective, and context specific approaches. Strategic Policy Engagement w/ Government Demonstrates the ability to engage key stakeholders (e.g., WFP units, external partners) in policy dialogue to strengthen national government food and nutrition security strategies and programmes.

OTHER SPECIFIC JOB REQUIREMENTS

• Proven communication skills and ability to communicate and adjust communication style to different audiences.
• Ability to plan and organize work programmes and work with minimum supervision.
• Demonstrated strategic thinking and problem-solving skills.
• Excellent interpersonal skills and ability to work effectively in a team under time pressure.

DESIRED EXPERIENCES FOR ENTRY INTO THE ROLE

• Has worked in a Country Office or equivalent level position within technical area. • Has managed discussions with experts in VAM/Nutritionists. • Has led a country / are office programme team or a substantial component of a complex programme. • Has gained direct experience of different programme approaches. • Has worked with government agencies and gained policy experience. • Has led team in strategic discussions. • Has worked in HQ or a Regional Bureau.

DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS

This vacancy announcement will expire on Friday, 25 March 2022 at 11:59pm, Madagscar time

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All employment decisions are made on the basis of organizational needs, job requirements, merit, and individual qualifications. WFP is committed to providing an inclusive work environment free of sexual exploitation and abuse, all forms of discrimination, any kind of harassment, sexual harassment, and abuse of authority. Therefore, all selected candidates will undergo rigorous reference and background checks.

No appointment under any kind of contract will be offered to members of the UN Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ), International Civil Service Commission (ICSC), FAO Finance Committee, WFP External Auditor, WFP Audit Committee, Joint Inspection Unit (JIU) and other similar bodies within the United Nations system with oversight responsibilities over WFP, both during their service and within three years of ceasing that service.