Nutrition Officer, Consultant II – Hargeisa
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WFP celebrates and embraces diversity. It is committed to the principle of equal employment opportunity for all its employees and encourages qualified candidates to apply irrespective of race, colour, national origin, ethnic or social background, genetic information, gender, gender identity and/or expression, sexual orientation, religion or belief, HIV status or disability.
POSTING DATES
Posting Date: 12th July 2023 Closing Date: 27th July 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.
BACKGROUND OF THE ASSIGNMENT
The World Food Programme (WFP) is the world’s largest humanitarian agency, fighting hunger worldwide. WFP Hargeisa’s Area Office provides food assistance to about 750,000 vulnerable populations in Somaliland, on a monthly basis through various interventions that include emergency Relief, Nutrition, Home-grown School Meals Programme, Safety Net, Climate-Smart Food Systems and Livelihoods.
The Somaliland state has suffered four consecutive failed rainy seasons and is currently experiencing its worst drought in four decades, a climate shock exacerbated by periodic conflict in some regions. The nutrition situation continues to worsen with women and children bearing the brunt.
JOB PURPOSE
WFP is currently supporting the implementation of life-saving nutrition activities aimed at the treatment and prevention of malnutrition in children under five years (CU5), pregnant and lactating women (PLW), mainly through targeted supplementary feeding programme (TSFP) that integrates elements of Social and Behaviour Change Communication (SBCC) around maternal, infant, and young child nutrition (MIYCN). The programme is implemented in partnership with the Somaliland Ministry of Health Development (MoHD) and both National and International Non-Governmental Organisations (I/NGOs).
The role of the Nutrition Officer is instrumental in providing technical support to the implementation of the nutrition activities in Somaliland, engaging and building partnerships with WFP partners and stakeholders, and directly supervising the nutrition team, mentoring and building their capacity. The incumbent will contribute to policy development to improve programme quality, efficiency, and effectiveness to meet nutritional food assistance needs in Somaliland.
Under the direct supervision of the Head of Programme at the Area Office, and the technical guidance of the Head of Nutrition Technical Unit at the Country Office, the Nutrition Officer will mainly focus on coordination of the nutrition response and capacity strengthening of line Ministry, WFP’s area office and cooperating partners’ staff.
WHAT WILL YOU DO? (not all-inclusive)
- Provide technical advice to the Area Office’s nutrition team on programme and policy issues including assessment and analysis, activities, and transfer modalities for nutrition-specific and nutrition-sensitive programming in line with WFP standards and processes.
- In coordination with the Nutrition Technical Unit, provide support in programme design and implementation of nutrition-specific and nutrition-sensitive interventions as well as resource mobilization efforts.
- Provide technical support and carry out regular field visits to the project sites as appropriate and assist in improving implementation of nutrition programme activities, policy engagement and prepare reports outlining findings, recommendations, and improvement action plans.
- Provide support to operational partnerships, including inter-agency collaboration, to ensure a strong multi-sectoral response to nutrition in both emergency and non-emergency settings.
- Support timely reporting and learning, contributing to a knowledge base that informs the decision-making of WFP and other stakeholders.
- Work closely with cooperating partners to improve coverage of implementation and quality of nutrition programme including identifying gaps and strengthening their capacity. Support the monitoring and evaluation of WFP nutrition activities, provide technical analysis and interpretation by working closely with the Ministry of Health Development, Country Office, Nutrition and PMLE team.
- Represent WFP at national, regional, and international meetings to contribute to technical discussions, exchange experiences, advocate for nutrition interventions and identify areas of potential collaboration that include participation in the cluster and associated thematic working groups.
- Lead the development and implementation of a roadmap for institutional capacity strengthening of the Somaliland Ministry of Health Development (MoHD) to transition to direct government implementation of nutrition service delivery.
- Contribute to emergency preparedness actions, providing recommendations on contingency planning, risk analysis and early warning related to nutrition risks.
- Any other duties as required.
DO YOU MEET THE MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS?
Education:
Bachelor’s degree in Nutrition Science, Public Health, or a related field. A Master’s degree will be an added advantage.
Experience:
- Minimum of six (6) years of professional work experience in nutrition, with 4 years of experience working in international humanitarian contexts.
- Must have operational experience supporting or managing nutrition emergency responses in different contexts, including familiarity with integrated management of acute malnutrition /community-based management of acute malnutrition, simplified approaches, and prevention programming.
- Field experience with the United Nations or non-governmental organizations (NGOs) is highly desirable.
- Demonstrated ability to strategically engage with government and partners, to develop and implement multi-sectoral programmes.
- Experience in transitioning targeted supplementary feeding programme implementation to the government will be an added advantage.
Language:
- International Professional: Fluency (level C) in English language.
KNOWLEDGE & SKILLS
- Knowledge of global nutrition and global humanitarian architecture including the cluster approach and related roles and responsibilities for the nutrition sector.
- Conceptual and operational knowledge of nutrition in emergencies.
- Thorough understanding of WFP’s mandate and roles.
- Strong assessment and analytical skills.
- Experience in capacity building related to nutrition.
- Excellent interpersonal skills and demonstrated ability to work effectively in multicultural settings and teams.
- Ability to perform duties under pressure with a minimum level of supervision and to cope with a highly demanding living/working environment.
- Excellent written and oral communication skills.
DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS
Closing Date: 27th July 2023
TERMS AND CONDITIONS
Contract Duration: 11 months (initial)
This position is open to international candidates only. Female candidates are encouraged to apply.
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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
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.
