Programme Assistant (Emergency Preparedness & Response), SC5

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WFP encourages female candidates and people with disabilities to apply.

WFP seeks candidates of the highest integrity and professionalism who share our humanitarian principles. Selection of staff is made on a competitive basis. We are committed to promoting diversity and the principle of equal employment opportunity for all our employees and encourages qualified candidates to apply irrespective of religion or belief, ethnic or social background, gender, gender identity and disability.

ABOUT WFP

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) is the world’s largest humanitarian organization, 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.

JOB RELATED KEY INFORMATION

Job Title: Programme Assistant (Emergency Preparedness & Response), SC5

Number of Openings/Positions: 4

Duty Station: Bokhtar / Khujand / Gharm / Khorog

Please be advised that there are four job openings for this role. One to be based in each WFP Field Office (Bokhtar, Khujand, Gharm, Khorog)

Grade: SC5

Type of Contract: Service Contract

Duration: 1 Year

Vacancy Number: 679374

Date of Publication: 24 March 2023

Deadline of Application: 7 April 2023

BACKGROUND

Despite positive economic growth and progress in poverty reduction, Tajikistan is still facing a challenging food security and nutrition situation. Recent economic challenges compounded by population growth have contributed to the reclassification of the country as low-income in 2018 while the COVID pandemic and the ongoing conflict in Ukraine has further increased household vulnerability. Malnutrition rates remain the highest in Central Asia, and the number of undernourished has remained stagnant. Tajikistan faces different environmental challenges, including environmental and soil degradation and poor natural resource management. Additionally, Tajikistan is extremely vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, which has further exacerbated food security and livelihoods of vulnerable communities. Given the above, the government has identified food security and access to quality nutrition as one of its development priorities.

WFP Tajikistan has commenced its Country Strategic Plan 2023 – 2026 in tandem with the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF) covering the same period. By means of the CSP, WFP is undertaking a strategic shift from direct implementation to enabling and strengthening capacities of national and subnational institutions to deliver on their food security and nutrition priorities. WFP activities support the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal 2 (Zero Hunger) and 17 (Partnerships for the Goals). The geographic scope of WFP Tajikistan operations encompasses the entirety of the country. In addition to the country office in Dushanbe, WFP has field offices located in Bokhtar, Gharm, Khorog, and Khujand to oversee operations in those specific regions.

WFP responds to government requests following small-scale natural disasters or other emergencies through both immediate lifesaving assistance and by supporting communities affected by shocks to build their resilience to future shocks. For example, natural disasters are recurrent in Tajikistan and their impact and frequency have increased as a result of climate change; communities must be able to adapt to the changing context. Activities will be implemented in partnership with the Committee on Emergency Situations and Civil Defence and other national and subnational authorities, UN agencies, international and local nongovernmental organizations and private sector entities. Preparedness measures include climate services and early warning in the event of crises caused by conflict, political instability, socioeconomic shocks, agricultural failures or natural disasters.

JOB PURPOSE

With simultaneous ongoing crises in the region and globally affecting Tajikistan, and to maintain WFP’s leading role in supporting the Government of Tajikistan in emergency response, the focus of this post will be the field implementation of emergency preparedness and response (EPR) activities, inclusive of resilience and livelihoods building activities designed for communities to build back better in response to shocks. While the portfolio will include other interventions, the priority focus will be on responses designed to mitigate socioeconomic effects of the global food crisis.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES (not all-inclusive)

The position will report directly to the head of field office but will also closely interact with the emergency preparedness and response team in the country office. The incumbent is expected to perform the following duties and responsibilities:

• Follow standard emergency preparedness practices to ensure WFP is able to quickly respond and deploy needed resources to affected areas at the onset of the crisis; • Perform standardised processes and activities within the emergency response, supporting alignment with wider programme policies and guidelines; this will include, but is not limited to, oversight of community-based targeting processes, spot-check of beneficiary selection, in-kind food distribution management, support to cash-based transfers implementation, etc.; • Provide project management and/or general office support following established targets and WFP’s policies and procedures; • Within the emergency response, compile data and support analysis and preparation of reports (e.g., food assistance needs, resource utilization, programme status, performance) in order to support operational decision-making; • Perform accurate, timely recording of data within the specific technical area of work (e.g., food security and vulnerability assessments) following corporate standards and guidelines; • Work and exchange information with internal counterparts to support effective collaboration, implementation and monitoring of ongoing project activities; • Support communication and activities, including the launch of new activities, with partners and government counterparts; • Function as a point of contact for resolution of general operational queries requesting assistance, as well as for outsourced monitoring activities where necessary; • Ensure all implementation reflects cross-cutting efforts and views, such as nutrition-sensitivity, gender and diversity inclusion, protection and accountability to ensure equal participation and consideration of women and men, boys and girls, and people living with specific needs and/or disabilities; • Any other business.

STANDARD MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

EXPERIENCE:

• Minimum 5 years of experience in programme, out of which at least one year in implementation of projects working in the private business sector, government agencies, UN, non-profit national or international organizations. A focus on community-based programmes will be an asset;

• Experience liaising with national counterparts such as local authorities, state agencies and ministries;

EDUCATION & SKILLS:

• Completion of secondary school education. A post-secondary certificate in the related functional area is desirable;

• Ability to work with minimum supervision, strong trouble-shooting and communication skills; • Ability to interpret and analyse a wide variety of programme issues and statistical information for further production of accurate and precise records; • Ability to work hard and effectively in emergency situations and under the pressure; strong organizational skills to keep and implement several tasks as per identified priorities; • Knowledge of food security programming and multistakeholder processes; • Experience with community-based participatory planning approaches. • Proven ability to develop and maintain effective relations with counterparts and staff within the office and external stakeholders, including nongovernmental partners, other UN agencies and/or private businesses; • Ability to plan and organize work, resourcefulness, initiative and problem-solving skills; • Proficiency in Windows MS Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Publisher, etc.); • Sound analytical skills and ability to reports; • Behavioural competencies such as action management, client orientation, cognitive capacity, innovation, partnering and teamwork.

LANGUAGE:

• Required fluency (level C) in oral and written English; • Required fluency (level C) in oral and written Tajik or Russian.

• Fluency in other local languages, as relevant to the field office, is an advantage.

TRAVEL:

• Will travel extensively and regularly throughout the region to remote and sometimes difficult to reach project locations with potentially minimal services; • Will travel at times to other areas of the country (such as Dushanbe) in the event of meetings or workshops.

APPLICATION PROCESS

WFP will not request payment at any stage of the recruitment process including at the offer stage. Any requests for payment should be refused and reported to local law enforcement authorities for appropriate action.

Request for Disability related Reasonable Accommodations:

It is important to WFP to create an accessible and inclusive workplace for everyone. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform essential job functions. If you require reasonable accommodation in completing this application, interviewing, completing any pre-employment testing, or otherwise participating in the selection and hiring process, please direct your request and inquiries to the Diversity and Inclusion team on: [email protected], cc’ing [email protected]. A member of the reasonable accommodation team will contact you to confidentially discuss your needs.

This email is only to be used for any disability related accessibility requirements, and not for sending the application itself. Due to volume of applications, any applications or CVs sent through this email address will not be considered as a formal application and will not receive a reply from WFP.

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WFP has a zero-tolerance approach to conduct such as fraud, sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to WFP’s standards of conduct and will therefore undergo rigorous background verification internally or through third parties. Selected candidates will also be required to provide additional information as part of the verification exercise. Misrepresentation of information provided during the recruitment process may lead to disqualification or termination of employment