PD Internship Programme 2021 – School Feeding

Programme Division, Bangkok, Thailand

The World Food Programme (WFP) is the leading humanitarian organization saving lives and changing lives, delivering food assistance in emergencies and working with communities to improve nutrition and build resilience. We are currently seeking motivated and qualified candidates to fill positions of the 2021 Policy and Programme Department (PD) Internship Programme.

The position will either be based in our School Feeding Unit of the Programme division, based in Bangkok, Thailand, or home-based, depending on the pandemic-caused restrictions. The internship will be for the period of 3-6 months from July 2021.

Brief description of School Feeding Unit, Regional Bureau Bangkok (RBB)

In January 2020 WFP launched the corporate School Feeding Strategy (2020-2030) with the primary objective to support governments’ transition to nationally-owned school feeding programmes and advocate for an increased investment in the health and nutrition of school children and adolescents. The school feeding unit in RBB is developing a regional implementation plan (RBIP) of the strategy, to operationalize the strategy at the regional level. At the same time WFP in Asia and the Pacific is looking at enhancing its regional and country level approach to design and use of evidence and sharing of knowledge. These processes are interconnected and will be feeding into each other.

General Information

• ****Title of Post:**** PD Internship
• ****Supervisor:**** Regional School Feeding Officer
• ****Unit:**** School Feeding
• Country: Thailand
• Duty Station: Regional Bureau Bangkok
• Duration of internship: 3-6 months (6 months being a preferred option)
• Expected Start Date: 01st of July 2021 (flexible)

Duties and responsibilities

Under the direct supervision of the Regional School Feeding Officer, the candidate will perform the following duties:

• Design 2-pagers for school feeding programmes in each of the 16 countries supported by RBB, providing an overview of programme elements for an external audience as well as linking to other products from the RBIP process
• Build upon the updated library of evidence available by June 2021 and related information products. For countries where evidence against the impact pathways, as outlined in the Theory of Change for school feeding, as well as information products already exist, revisit library and update with any recent evidence. For countries where these do not yet exist, document the evidence and summarize key evidence as well as gaps in 2-pagers to be provided to COs
• Collaborate with RBB Nutrition team on their ongoing project for consolidating the case studies and evidence on school nutrition (including the joint initiative with UNICEF)
• Based on the RBIP Theory of Change for School Feeding activities, summarize the evidence against the key impact pathways and results
• Summarize available evidence to outline contribution of school feeding activities in the region (by type of impact, by type of activity, by SDG, by focus area, etc.) to be used for strategic planning, advocacy and communication purposes
• Collaborate with RBB’s Monitoring unit to explore the ways to visualize the data from above products and contribute to the development of the information products
• Participate and contribute (from evidence perspective and conducted analysis) in the activities related to the design of the Regional School Feeding Implementation Plan; This will include but might not be limited to contributing to the design of the regional research agenda (based on 1 &2).
• Support the systematic way to store, categorize and share the different school feeding knowledge products, templates and guidelines for colleagues to have easy access to
• Perform any other task, as required

Qualifications and experience

• Currently enrolled with in a graduate programme in statistics, economics, public policy, public health or related field, and have attended classes in the past 12 months, or a recent graduate from a graduate programme (within six months prior to the application to the internship programme).
• Excellent command of English; Working knowledge of a second UN language would be an asset
• Proficiency in MS Office (Word, Excel, Power Point, Outlook)
• Excellent analytical and research skills
• Knowledge of data visualization tools is an advantage
• Experience in the subject matter, including conducting thematic analysis
• Experience analyzing large quantities of data/documents and translating it into palatable narrative

Required soft skills/WFP Competencies:

• Good facilitation skills and analytical, problem solving, communication, and interpersonal skills
• Ability to participate in open dialogue and value diverse opinions, regardless of background, culture, experience, or country assignment
• Willingness to explore and experiment with new ideas and approaches in own work
• Ability to work independently in a timely and organised manner
• Ability to work in a team and multi-task as needed
• Behavioural competencies such as Action Management, Client Orientation, Cognitive Capacity, Innovation, Partnering and Teamwork

Working Languages

Working knowledge of English (proficiency/level C) is required.

Supervision (Level/Methods of Supervision)

Under the direct supervision of the Regional School Feeding Officer the incumbent will be provided with close mentoring, guidance and technical supervision. Performance planning and reviews as well as learning and development discussions will be elemental part of the supervision. With the support of a comprehensive induction package and assignment of a buddy/mentor, the intern will rapidly become a productive member of the team.

Training components

Throughout their assignment WFP interns have access to an industry leading learning platform, WeLearn. Depending on opportunities and availability of funds, he/she may participate in WFP workshops or seminars, as appropriate.

Learning Elements

At the end of the assignment, the Intern should:

• Have built an understanding of how WFP operates
• Developed her/his analytical, critical and communication skills
• Strengthened the ability to design and draft information reports and tools, and to develop presentations based on evidence

Information on the Country of Assignment

• ****Living conditions in Bangkok, Thailand**** (Living conditions, security, health, etc)

Bangkok, the capital of Thailand, is one of the largest and most vibrant cities in Southeast Asia. A tourist destination famous for its tropical beaches, royal palaces, Buddhist temples and ancient ruins, the city also boasts some of the world’s best dining restaurants and gastronomic diversity.

With a wide range of options in housing, well established education systems, state-of-the-art medical facilities and user-friendly banking and telecommunications services, Bangkok has plenty to offer for anyone who wish to visit or stay. Depending on individual choice, the cost of living in Bangkok can differ tremendously for each person.

Locally produced goods are usually cheap while imported items incur a hefty tax. Public transport makes it easy to escape the hectic roads with a skytrain and underground network, along with canal boats and river ferries.

Recent years have witnessed several political crises, leading to mass protests and crackdowns. Despite this, Thailand is a very safe place to live, and crimes targeting foreigners are quite rare.

The tropical climate is hot and humid all year round particularly March-May. New year for the predominantly Buddhist nation falls in April, the hottest month, when the country celebrates Songkran.

VA Reference no: 141737

Closing Date: 2 May 2021

Please note that the deadline is at 11:59 pm Rome time (GMT + 1)

Terms and Conditions:

• Interns receive a monthly stipend from WFP up to the maximum amount of US$1000 per month depending on the duty station of assignment.
• WFP is not responsible for living expenses, arrangements for accommodation, necessary visas and related costs.
• WFP will reimburse travel ticket for candidates who are nationals of developing countries and are pursuing their studies in their home country.
• WFP will recognize candidates’ educational credentials from recognised institutions that have been certified by competent international or national authorities such as the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) or Ministries of Education.
• Candidates who bear any of the following relations to WFP staff members are not eligible to apply: sons, daughters, brothers or sisters.

Female applicants and qualified applicants from developing countries are especially encouraged to apply. WFP has zero tolerance for discrimination and does not discriminate on the basis of HIV/AIDS status.

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.

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