National Programme Specialist (Multiple Positions)

Organizational Setting:

FAO Partnership and Liaison Office in Azerbaijan has a diverse portfolio of projects and activities to support the Government Counterparts in Azerbaijan in addressing challenges related to sustainable transformation of agri-food systems and management of natural resources. The programme specialist will be expected to support assigned projects and other related activities to contribute to the achievement of FAO’s programmatic goals in the country.

Reports to:

Mr Bariz Mehdiyev, Assistant to FAO Representative

Technical Focus

Under the overall supervision of the FAO Representative (FAOR) in Azerbaijan, programmatic and direct supervision of Assistant FAOR; operational overview of relevant Program/Operations Specialist and in close collaboration with the staff of the Office, technical experts and project personnel (national and international consultants) as well as through ensuring the coordination of project counterparts and service providers, the Programme Specialist will:

Tasks and responsibilities:

• Update and include all relevant details under the project workplans and coordinate relevant revisions with the Technical Officers, FEAZE Management and beneficiary counterparts;
• Ensure that the inputs for the project activities (personnel, technical support services, sub-contracts, training arrangements, equipment and supplies) are timely in place; provided either directly by the Organization or, when appropriate, through service providers;
• Closely follow-up and make sure that necessary procedural processes are completed for the provision of above-mentioned inputs, paying attention to any setback to quickly address and resolve the issues, while safeguarding FAO’s rules and regulations;
• Oversee all operational activities are carried out in line with the work plan and the project document; identify inconsistencies and delays and, when necessary, propose corrective measures to overcome operational constraints;
• Perform the overall operational monitoring; support the programmatic monitoring with an eye to identify bottlenecks and challenges as they develop and propose alternative measures to achieve intended results;
• Oversee and coordinate the finalization of necessary reporting requirements;
• Support any evaluation processes and the follow-up of addressing issues that are identified;
• Review and monitor project budget and prepare requests and revisions regarding the management of the budget as needed; maintain and alert about budget expenditures and resources; review project transaction listings with a view to identifying errors for action;
• Support the identification of best practices and lessons learnt, ensure their proper documentation and dissemination;
• Consider and make sure that the project PR strategy is effectively implemented and the project and its activities have the widest possible visibility both among the beneficiary/target communities, national counterparts and the public as well as on the international platforms
• Contribute to creating synergies and cross-benefits between different projects and programmes for maximum impact;
• Support further resource mobilization and project formulation efforts, if necessary or relevant;
• Perform any other duties deemed necessary for the realization of these tasks.

CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING

Minimum Requirements

• A university degree in relevant field, such as social sciences, public administration, agriculture, forestry, natural resources management, climate change, environmental management or any field that may be related to FAO’s work is required, an advanced degree will be considered an advantage;
• A minimum of 5 years of demonstrated experience relevant to project/programme management, experience in project/progamme development will be considered an advantage
• Excellent writing and communication skills in English and Azerbaijan.
• National of Azerbaijan or resident with a work permit

FAO Core Competencies

• Results Focus
• Teamwork
• Communication
• Building Effective Relationships
• Knowledge Sharing and Continuous Improvement

Technical/Functional skills

• Full computer literacy in effective use of internet sources and Microsoft Office programs i.e. MS-Word, MS-Excel and MS-Power Point. The candidate will be expected to work with online corporate information systems and resources;
• Ability to draft analytical reports and operational framework documents, including an understanding of Logical Framework approach and planning of inputs to obtain necessary outputs and results; financial literacy will also be considered as an advantage