Organizational Setting:

For more than four decades, FAO has been working with the Government of the Philippines, civil society, community-based organizations and the private sector to address challenges in the agriculture, fisheries and forestry sector. Joint efforts have included increasing sustainability in agricultural production, promoting value-adding practices, improving post-harvest management, enhancing productivity and increasing the resilience of agriculture-based livelihoods to natural disasters, climatic hazards and armed conflict.

Reporting Lines:

The Technical Assistant will be under the direct supervision of the Assistant FAO Representative (Programme), day to day guidance of the Normative Support Team Leader and the Lead Strategic Consultant and the technical supervision of the concerned Country Programming Framework Focal Point of the FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific (FAO-RAP).

Technical Focus:

The work of FAO in the Philippines is guided by its Country Programming Framework (CPF). This supports the government in addressing challenges in improving food and nutrition security, enhancing agricultural production and productivity, sustainable management of natural resources and improving agricultural adaptation from Climate Change and Disaster Risks.

The CPF is guided by the objectives and strategies for agriculture, fisheries, forestry, environment and natural resources sectors, as laid out in the Philippine Development Plan (PDP) 2017-2022. It is also aligned with the aligned with its global strategic objectives (SOs), United Nations – Philippine Partnership Framework for Sustainable Development (PFSD) 2019 – 2023.

The CPF is scheduled for mid-term updating in 2021. The updating is timely considering the recent developments, such as among others the COVID-19 impacts and the formulation of the UN Philippines Socioeconomic and Peace Building Framework (SEPF).

Tasks and responsibilities

The Technical Assistant will carry out the following tasks:

1. Provide support in the development of the updated CPF with a matrix/logical framework linking government and UN priorities, FAO priority areas and potential actions, based on the results of review and consultation meetings

Review and Assessment

2. Assist the Lead Consultant in the review and assessment of the status of implementation of the current Country Programming Framework (CPF) 2018-2024 and its progress related to the delivery of the outputs and achievement of the outcomes.

3. Provide support in the collection and review of the existing papers and other relevant information, including national development plans, various agricultural, forestry, fisheries, rural development, environment, peace process and emergency response policy and strategy documents, SDG reports and UN Socioeconomic and Peacebuilding Framework (SEPF) for COVID-19 Recovery in the Philippines 2020-2023, which is an update of the UN Partnership Framework for Sustainable Development (PFSD).

4. Provide support in the review the past and on-going government development programmes and technical assistance of FAO and other development partners, and identify their relevance and gaps to national priorities and UN frameworks, particularly agriculture and fisheries, environment and natural resources sectors, and also those related to the peace process and emergency response

5. Identify key government priorities as well as major opportunities and constraints to the achievement of national development plans;

Consultation

6. Support the Lead Consultant to brief FAO partners (government representatives, UN agencies and other development partners) on the CPF process, its expected results and its role within government policies/strategies

7. Assist in the conduct of consultations with government, civil society organizations, UN representatives and other development partners to identify specific gaps which FAO/UN could complement through the current efforts

8. Support the conduct of consultative meetings with the key stakeholders to review the draft CPF.

9. Perform any other duties related to the development of CPF as deemed necessary by the FAO Representative

   Minimum Requirements

• The candidate must have an Advanced University Degree in Agriculture Economics, Rural Development, Economics or related fields
• The candidate should have at least 5 years practical experience in strategic planning, programming, or results review/monitoring and evaluation related to Agriculture, Food Security and Nutrition, Natural Resources Management, Peace and Development
• A national of the Philippines or resident in the country with a regular work permit.

FAO Core Competencies

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

Technical/Functional Skills

• Good knowledge of the socio-economic and agricultural situation in the Philippines
• Language requirement: Excellent written and oral communication skills in English and Tagalog; and
• General knowledge and skills in the use of standard office software, such as MS Office (Word, Excel, Power Point).