Nutrition Assistant

Contract

This is a UNV International Youth contract. This kind of contract is known as International UN Volunteer. It is normally internationally recruited only. More about UNV International Youth contracts.

After six consecutive years of economic contraction, the humanitarian situation in Venezuela continues to intensify, with growing hyperinflation, increased political, social and institutional tensions, weakening public services and mixed migration flows. The COVID-19 pandemic has aggravated these challenges. Children are disproportionately affected by limited access to essential goods and services such as food, immunization, medicine, medical treatment, education, water and protection.

Since 2018, UNICEF is working to prevent further deterioration of the humanitarian situation in Venezuela and create the conditions needed for recovery. Building on lessons learned, UNICEF is implementing an integrated, multi-sectoral response and expanding its field presence to reach those most in need, including adolescent girls, children with disabilities, people in remote areas and indigenous and Afro-descendent communities. This includes providing life-saving interventions; strengthening monitoring systems; delivering incentives to retain skills; enhancing accountability to affected populations; mainstreaming gender-based violence and sexual exploitation and abuse interventions; and building local capacities in partnership with government authorities and others. UNICEF leads the nutrition, WASH and education clusters and the child protection area of responsibility and actively participate in the health cluster and gender-based violence area of responsibility.

Health system strengthening efforts focus on ensuring access to antenatal, delivery and postnatal services, essential newborn care, vaccination and medical treatment, including paediatric HIV treatment. UNICEF also works to enhance infection prevention and control and treatment for COVID-19, including oxygen therapy, and equip UNICEF staff, implementing partners and front-line workers with personal protective equipment.

Under the direct supervision of the Bolivar Chief of Field Office, in coordination with the Nutri-tion Officer in the Bolivar FO and with guidance from the Chief of Nutrition section at Caracas VCO level, the UN Volunteer will undertake the following tasks:

• Technical support the research and share information with partners and stakeholders in the process of implement the nutrition Strategy. • Assist in developing and maintaining close and effective working alliances with gov-ernment counterparts in the health sector and national stakeholders, through the active exchange of information and knowledge to design the nutrition strategy, and also sup-port the implementation of an ongoing capacity building strategy. • Support the office in strengthening the nutrition sector through training for health per-sonnel from the public network in the integrated management of acute malnutrition. • Assist the team in identifying, capturing, synthesizing lessons learned for knowledge development and capacity building of stakeholders. • Support to design and development of the strategy for health and nutrition behavior change promotion activities. • In collaboration with the Field Office Nutrition Officer, ensure timely emergency nutri-tion responses from UNICEF to the current emergency in the coverage states, if any, and at the same time consider supporting the Ministry of Health for the planning of the early recovery of malnourish children. • Support the office in the strengthening of the nutrition sector promoting spaces to dis-cuss issues related to nutrition, prepare proposal and mechanisms to improve sectoral articulation. • Support the design and formulation of proposals for financial support to the nutrition sector in the Scale-Up strategy of the VZCO Support to partners into the develop of work plans related to nutrition, including water, hygiene and sanitation. • Assist in the promotion of methodologies to scale actions based on community ap-proaches to improve nutritional conditions, particularly among the most vulnerable population (children un-der 5, pregnant and lactating women). • Support activities related to the sub-national nutrition cluster, consolidating alliances with other organizations that allow the expansion of the nutritional intervention pro-gram. • Support the monitoring and evaluation processes of the nutrition data collected.

Furthermore, UN Volunteers are required to: • Strengthen their knowledge and understanding of the concept of volunteerism by reading relevant UNV and external publications and take active part in UNV activities (for in-stance in events that mark International Volunteer Day); • Be acquainted with and build on traditional and/or local forms of volunteerism in the host country; • Reflect on the type and quality of voluntary action that they are undertaking, including participation in ongoing reflection activities; • Contribute articles/write-ups on field experiences and submit them for UNV publica-tions/websites, newsletters, press releases, etc.; • Assist with the UNV Buddy Programme for newly-arrived UN Volunteers; • Promote or advise local groups in the use of online volunteering or encourage relevant local individuals and organizations to use the UNV Online Volunteering service whenever technically possible.

Results/Expected Outputs • Strengthened the coordination and partnerships with national and international agencies working in the nutrition sector, both from the point of view of development, as well as in the preparation and response to possible emergencies; • Established mechanisms for dissemination and use of quality materials produced to sup-port the preparation to improve nutrition in the most vulnerable population. • Articulated with partners a C4D strategy for the change of behaviour in nutrition. • The development of capacity through coaching, mentoring and formal on-the-job training, when working with (including supervising) national staff or (non-) governmental counter-parts, including Implementing Partners (IPs); • Age, Gender and Diversity (AGD) perspective is systematically applied, integrated and documented in all activities throughout the assignment • A final statement of achievements towards volunteerism for peace and development dur-ing the assignment, such as reporting on the number of volunteers mobilized, activities participated in and capacities developed

☒ Adaptability and Flexibility ☒ Commitment and Motivation ☒ Commitment to Continuous Learning ☒ Communication ☒ Ethics and Values ☒ Integrity ☒ Knowledge Sharing ☒ Planning and Organizing ☒ Professionalism ☒ Respect for Diversity ☒ Self-Management ☒ Working in Teams

• A minimum of one year of professional experience in a developing country in one or more of the following areas is required: nutrition, public health, nutrition planning and management, or maternal, infant and child health/nutrition care. • Ability to coordinate group work with government institutions, international organiza-tions and NGOs. • Values and competencies: commitment, diversity and inclusion, integrity, communica-tion, working with people, drive for results, formulating strategies and concepts, analyz-ing, applying technical expertise, learning and researching, planning and organizing • Commitment, punctuality, and autonomy in the organization of the assigned work; • Excellent capacity for writing technical reports;

Ciudad Guayana is a port city on the Orinoco and Caroni rivers in Bolivar state with around 922,449 inhabitants. This city was once Venezuela’s industrial hub with broad ranks of facto-ries. As the economy has been declining, the modern city of steel and aluminium has been swallowed by its past, transformed into economy of gold mining that brings severe impacts on the wellbeing of the population, especially women, children and indigenous population.

The office covers the east of the country where the highest severity of multisectoral needs and/or the highest percentage of people in need in relation with the total population in the fol-lowing states: Bolivar, Delta Amacuro, Nueva Esparta, Anzoategui, Monagas and Sucre with high number of indigenous populations. Additionally, this area has the highest operational costs due to the economic impact of the Arc Mining Area. In addition, access to remote loca-tions, particularly in the Delta Amacuro and Bolivar, is limited due to the lack of fuel and transport.

Ciudad Guayana, located in Bolivar state, is the main coordination centre for the eastern CCT (Centro de Coordinación Territorial) where UNICEF, UNHCR, PAHO, OIM and UNFPA have established their field offices.

Additionally, logistical bulletin will be shared with the candidates.