Programme Policy Officer (Social Behaviour Change), SC-8, Yerevan, Armenia
Career Opportunities: Programme Policy Officer, Social Behaviour Change | SC-8 | Yerevan, Armenia | One Year
🚩 Vacancy Announcement n°: 780587
📢 Job Title: Programme Policy Officer, Social Behaviour Change
📌Type of Contract: Service Contract
➡️ Unit / Division: Programme Unit / WFP Armenia
📍 Duty Station: Yerevan
➡️ Duration: 12 months (renewable)
⏰ Closing date: Monday, 1 May 2023.
ABOUT WFP
The United Nations World Food Programme is the world's largest 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.
To learn more about WFP, visit our website and follow us on social media to keep up with our latest news: LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter.
Why work with us?
The United Nations World Food Programme is the world's largest 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.
WFP Armenia embraces the ‘Changing Lives’ vision set in the 2030 Agenda for a world free from hunger in a context of equitable and environmentally responsible sustainable development. To achieve this, WFP cannot proceed with ‘business as usual’ and cannot fully achieve SDG 2 and a world with Zero Hunger, without supporting individuals, wider communities, and policy makers to make meaningful, long-term changes to their behaviour. However, the traditional approaches of informing, educating and encouraging are insufficient to achieve long-term behavioural changes. Thus, there needs to be a shift to a focus on supporting good nutrition by helping people make healthier choices and ensuring those healthy choices are valued and accessible. There is also a need to focus behaviour change efforts across the whole food value chain activities to create greater economies of scale and consistent production of nutritious foods and to ensure that effective transitions from social safety nets to employment and greater self-reliance.
WFP Armenia are looking for a new Programme Policy Officer in the Social Behaviour Change Unit.
The main objective of the assignment is to carry on the work of promoting and embedding social behaviour change into the planning and implementation of programme activities, as well as supporting and mentoring staff around SBC, promoting SBC within WFP Armenia and across partner organisations, and to collaborate with the government and other partners. The Unit should also support and promote the nutrition agenda, making sure it is considered within the programmes of all Units. This is an opportunity for an exciting and challenging Programme role in a multi-cultural, hardworking, fun and interdisciplinary team. In addition, we offer:
➡️ Meaningful and impactful careers:
Our day-to-day work makes a difference in the lives of the people we serve
➡️ Continuous learning and training:
We provide learning tools for our staff to continually develop their careers
➡️ Multicultural and stimulating work environment:
We encourage gender and cultural diversity to make our teams stronger
Join us to make a difference in Armenia, watch this video to know more about us!!
How can you make a difference?
In this position, you will have to:
1.Build capacity around SBC and BeSci across WFP Armenia Units and partners and create a positive attitude towards the use of SBC and BeSci
• Assess the opportunities for strengthening SBC and nutrition in all WFP Armenia’s programmatic portfolios, including the integration of SBC and nutrition sensitive components in other programme portfolios including identifying capacities and resources required to deliver.
• Contribute towards the development and execute a plan to engage key stakeholders, including frontline partners, research and expert advisors, and potential future funders, and strengthen collaboration with other UN agencies related to behaviour change.
• Forge partnerships with stakeholders that can be part of the SBC campaigns and interventions including private sector, such as the milk for school’s project.
• Support the development of funding bids and identify funding opportunities for social behaviour change activities.
• Support the establishment of public and private sector partnerships to support attaining behaviour change in all WFP’s programmatic pathways to achieve zero hunger.
• Develop an evidence base for integrating SBC into WFP programmes through leading on and supporting robust evaluation activities.
2. Integrate SBC and BeSci into existing WFP Armenia programme areas to enhance outcomes
• Build and manage a portfolio of SBC interventions as they progress through development, piloting, and evaluation stages, including managing the new SBC healthy snacks pilot throughout the project life cycle and working with the School Feeding Unit to support the development of a healthy snacking programme, including healthy tuck shops and self-funding breakfast clubs.
• Support the Food Value Chain Unit and other Units to ensure the principles and co-creation/co-design and co-production are embedded in all programme development.
• Support identification of barriers and opportunities for transitioning vulnerable populations out of state benefit systems to self-reliance/ self-employment opportunities as part of the Social Protection programme.
3.Design population health interventions to improve nutrition and livelihood outcomes
• Engage with the Armenian Ministry of Health to design national SBC programmes, helping them to understand how their existing budgets can be used more effectively.
• Deliver on the nutrition curriculum work, in line with Ministry of Education requirements, and working in close collaboration with the School Feeding Unit.
To join us in saving lives, changing lives, you will need to have…
Education: Advanced university degree in Behavioural Science, International Affairs, Economics, Nutrition/Health, Agriculture, Environmental Science, Social Sciences or other field relevant to international development assistance, or First University Degree with additional years of related work experience and/or trainings/courses.
Experience: A minimum of 2 years of experience in implementing SBC programmes, preferably in public health and nutrition. Project and programme management experience. Previous experience in developing context specific social and behaviour change strategies that include communications. Experience designing and conducting qualitative research and monitoring and evaluation for behaviour change projects. Experience conducting formative research using mixed methods, and behavioural science/ consumer insights research required Humanitarian programming experience considered an asset. Previous experience in building capacity and partnerships with government authorities is desired.
Knowledge & Skills: Advanced knowledge of behaviour change programming in public health, nutrition, and emergency humanitarian response. Strong programme/project management experience, with evidence of ability to plan, execute, and manage a wide variety of stakeholders. Experience managing diverse teams and facilitating multi-sectoral working groups.Demonstrated ability to work effectively in complex settings, particularly supporting governments. Excellent communication skills to engage with a variety of people and organisations.Evidence of successfully managing programme/project budgets, ensuring appropriate procurement processes, documents and systems are in place. Excellent organisational skills, attention to detail, and ability to execute a plan with minimal supervision.
Languages: Fluency (level C) in English and Armenian languages. Working knowledge (level B) of Russian language is desired.
Before you apply
WFP seeks candidates of the highest integrity and professionalism who share our humanitarian principles. Selection of staff is made on a competitive basis, and we are committed to promoting an inclusive work environment in which diversity is valued and where no form of discrimination is tolerated. We aim to achieve parity in our teams in Armenia. Qualified female applicants and individuals with disabilities are especially encouraged to apply. CV and cover letter must be submitted in the English language.
Applications must be submitted online through WFP e-Recruitment System.
Only short-listed candidates will be contacted.
The successful candidate will have to be vaccinated against the COVID-19 to be able to perform his/her duties. The UN strongly recommends UN personnel, and their dependents receive a COVID-19 vaccine that has been approved by WHO.
Note: the position is open to Armenian nationals and individuals eligible to live and work in Armenia.
All employment decisions are made on the basis of organizational needs, job requirements, merit, and individual qualifications. WFP is committed to providing an inclusive work environment free of sexual exploitation and abuse, all forms of discrimination, any kind of harassment, sexual harassment, and abuse of authority. Therefore, all selected candidates will undergo rigorous reference and background checks.
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.
