Programme Policy Officer (Climate Change Adaptation & Anticipatory Action), NOA, Manila

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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.

We encourage 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 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 is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce. WFP has zero tolerance for sexual exploitation and abuse, any kind of harassment, including sexual harassment, abuse of authority, or discrimination. All selected candidates will undergo rigorous reference and background checks.

JOB DETAILS

This position is open to Filipino nationals only

BACKGROUND

WFP is the world’s largest humanitarian organization, saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to build a pathway to peace, stability and prosperity for people recovering from conflict, disasters and the impact of climate change. In the Philippines, one of WFP’s key Strategic Outcomes within its Country Strategic Plan (CSP) 2018-2023 focuses on building the resilience of vulnerable communities and national and local institutions to climate-related and other shocks through capacity strengthening activities in the areas of disaster risk management and climate change adaptation.

Towards this objective, one of WFP’s climate risk management programmes in the country focuses on the development of national Anticipatory Action (AA) capacities and systems. As the climate-related risks on food security, nutrition and livelihoods are rising, so too is our ability to forecast them. However, despite gains in early warnings, acting early enough to anticipate impacts of climate hazards remains a significant challenge. In response, organizations such as WFP have begun to test AA mechanisms that use climate forecasts and other related information to trigger humanitarian assistance before a shock occurs. By enabling the implementation of pre-determined contingency plans ahead of extreme weather events, AA aims to mitigate the impact of disasters on the food security and nutrition of the most vulnerable populations.

The WFP Philippines Country Office (PHCO) has been one of the implementing partners under the 2021/22 CERF AA pilot project for typhoons, now extended until 2024. In 2022, WFP expanded its geographical coverage beyond the Bicol region to also include the provinces of Southern Leyte and Surigao Del Norte, taking advantage of its operational presence and groundwork there under the Typhoon Odette emergency response operations. Accordingly, 45,000 vulnerable households from 33 municipalities are now validated and pre-registered in WFP’s beneficiary database in order to be ready to receive cash-based transfers under a potential trigger activation. While there was no trigger activation in 2022, WFP conducted 2 Joint Simulation Exercises which generated valuable lessons learned for improving WFP’s Anticipatory Action SOP. In 2023, building on the lessons learned and recommendations from the 2022 simulation exercises and the CERF After Action Review workshop, WFP is focusing on improving its plan of operations, strengthening joint implementation and coordination with the partner LGUs through co-developed SOPs, and generating robust evidence and knowledge material on AA.

In addition, WFP is currently an implementing partner for the 2022-2026 “Multi-Hazard Impact-Based Forecasting and Early Warning System (MH-IBF-EWS) for the Philippines” project which is supported by the Green Climate Fund (GCF) and led by the Department of Science and Technology – Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (DOST-PAGASA). The 2022-2027 MH-IBF-EWS Project aims to increase the resilience and enhance the livelihoods of the most vulnerable people in four local government units (LGUs): (1) Tuguegarao City, Cagayan; (2) Legazpi City, Albay; (3) Palo, Leyte; and (4) New Bataan, Davao de Oro. It will address the need for a more proactive and inclusive climate risk management in the Philippines that is anchored on a people-centered MH-IBF-EWS for severe wind, flood, landslide, and storm surge. In doing so, the project will lead to a paradigm shift in the forecasting and early warning systems (EWS) used from one that is traditionally hazard-based to a system that is impact-based. Furthermore, the project aims to enable timely and actionable warning information for end-users, especially at-risk communities, to reduce their exposure to climate risks and to better manage impacts brought about by climate shocks and climate change.

The GCF project is co-implemented together with the Landbank of the Philippines, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources – Mine and Geo-sciences Bureau (DENR-MGB), the Office of Civil Defense (OCD), the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) and the four (4) target Local Government Units. Under this project, WFP is leading the implementation of activities focused on improving national and local capacities in implementing MH-IBF-EWS and forecast-based anticipatory actions. As part of the project’s 2023 activities, WFP is conducting a baseline study on the vulnerability and resilience capacities of households in the four project sites. From 2024 and onwards, WFP will be leading the development of AA Protocols at the 4 project sites, supporting the partner LGUs to integrate the AA Protocols in their contingency plans and also working with national government partners to institutionalize the AA approach at the national level.

At the policy level, WFP is currently co-leading the Policy, Financing, and Institutionalization (PFI) Technical Sub-Group of the national AA Technical Working Group (AA TWG). In this role, WFP is working closely with the Office of Civil Defense (OCD), the Department of Budget and Management (DBM), and other TWG partners, providing technical support to the Government on the development of the required policies, implementing rules and regulations to enable the operationalization of AA at the national and sub-national levels. WFP is also providing DSWD with technical support on the operationalization of the Adaptive Shock Responsive Social Protection (ASRSP) Roadmap, including recommendations on how to flex and scale up social protection programmes in response to predicted/actual extreme weather events based on the AA systems and knowledge available.

Beyond AA, WFP is conducting critical research to provide government partners and other stakeholders a better understanding of the interconnectedness of climate change and its impact on food security, nutrition, and livelihoods in the Philippines. In 2023, WFP aims to expand the development of innovative research products focusing on climate change vulnerabilities, exposure, and impact on food security and nutrition, and roll-out activities (e.g. training modules) to strengthen the ownership and integration of the tool by government partners in national strategies and local planning processes.
Given the strategic priority of effectively managing climate-related risks to food security and nutrition in the Philippines, WFP is currently exploring opportunities to expand its portfolio of activities that support national and local capacities for disaster risk management as well as climate change adaptation, for example through the development of last-mile climate services solutions for the most vulnerable populations. WFP will also develop an internal Climate Risk Management Roadmap that will define its vision and key programmatic priorities and opportunities for 2023 as well as under the next Philippines Country Strategic Plan (2024-2028).
To further support the implementation and scale-up of its AA and climate risk management programmes, WFP is seeking to hire a Programme Policy Officer with proven experience in project management and specialized skills in Early Warning Systems, AA, and climate change adaptation.

ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT

The Programme Policy Officer (CCA/AA) will report directly to the Team Leader, Anticipatory Action and Climate Change Consultant, with overall guidance from the Head of Programme or the designate.

This position operates with a high degree of independence, and manages more junior staff to ensure that programme and policy objectives are achieved in full. The job holder is involved in a wide variety of programme and policy activities and analytical work, some of which may be of considerable complexity. At this level, the job holder is expected to contribute to performance improvement.

JOB PURPOSE

The Programme Policy Officer (CCA/AA) will lead the implementation of WFP Philippines Country Office's (PHCO) Green Climate Fund (CGF) project as well as support the implementation of other CCA/ AA related programmes, under the supervision and technical guidance of the Team Leader Anticipatory Action and Climate Change Consultant.

Furthermore, in close collaboration with other functional units within the PHCO, the Regional Bureau and the Headquarters, the Programme Policy Officer will provide technical support to the Philippine government on AA and climate risk management and support the development of PHCO’s Climate Change strategy. The Programme Policy Officer will also support the resource mobilization and provide technical inputs for the design, review and submission of project proposals for PHCO to access climate financing through bilateral/multilateral sources.

With the technical oversight from the Team Leader Anticipatory Action and Climate Change Consultant and overall guidance from the Head of Programme, the Programme Policy Officer (CCA/AA) is expected to also develop and strengthen his/her capacity and competencies to effectively transition into leading PHCO’s AA and CCA portfolio.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES (not all-inclusive)

Within the assigned unit and delegated authority, the Programme Policy Officer (CCA/AA) will be responsible for the following duties:

Project Management/Implementation:

• Lead the implementation of WFP’s activities under the 2022-2026 “Multi-Hazard Impact-Based Forecasting and Early Warning System (MH-IBF-EWS) for the Philippines” project funded by the Green Climate Fund (GCF), including project oversight, coordination with government and other partners, reporting and budget management.
• Support the field-level implementation of WFP’s activities under the 2021-2024 CERF AA project in coordination with UN and national stakeholders.
• If required, manage the CCA/AA activities’ budget, monitoring expenditures against outputs and ensuring proper financial management in accordance with donor requirements.

Technical assistance:

• Under the GCF project: i) together with WFP’s Research, Assessment and Monitoring (RAM) team, co-lead the implementation of baseline study on the vulnerability and resilience capacities of households in the four project sites; ii) Conduct multi-stakeholder workshops and trainings to identify and validate AA triggers and actions specific to the target hazards and regions; iii) supporting the partner LGUs to develop AA Protocols and integrate them in their contingency plans; iv) work with government partners to integrate AA into existing DRM manuals and policies to institutionalize the AA approach at the national level; v) support evidence generation and knowledge management for scaling up the project.
• Support the technical capacity building of national and local government authorities to design and implement AA systems, ‘last mile’ climate services and other climate adaptation measures based on government needs and WFP’s geographic and programmatic priorities.
• Provide technical support to the Government to develop the required policies, implementing rules and regulations to enable the operationalization of AA at the national and sub- national levels.
• Building on the lessons learned and recommendations from the 2022 SIMEX exercises, support the review of WFP’s AA SOP for typhoons and ensure PHCO’s operational readiness for the CERF AA project.
• Support the Team Leader with the development of a Climate Risk Management roadmap that will define WFP’s vision and targets for the integration of climate change considerations into PHCO’s operations, especially with regards to the next iteration of the Philippines Country Strategic Plan (2024-2028).
• Support resource mobilization efforts for the development of AA and climate change activities through the design and submission of project proposals
• Support national and local government partners to integrate WFP’s Climate Change and Food Security Analysis (CCFSA) and other research products in their disaster risk management plans including training modules to strengthen understanding and ownership of the tools available.
• In collaboration with WFP’s RAM team, support the generation, documentation and dissemination of robust evidence as well as best practices and lessons learned from the implementation of WFP’s AA approach in the Philippines.
• In coordination with RAM team, support the development of innovative research products focusing on climate change vulnerabilities, exposure and impact on food security and nutrition in collaboration with academia, government and other partners.
• Strengthen partnerships, advocacy and coordination with partners (e.g. UN, IFRC, NGOs, Government, academia), and represent WFP in related national and regional platforms such as the national AA Technical Working group.
• Perform other related duties and responsibilities as required.

ESSENTIAL MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE

• Education: Advanced University degree (Master's or Doctorate) in development studies, Climate Sciences, Agriculture, Environmental Science, Social Sciences or other related field, or First University Degree with additional years of related work experience and/or trainings/ courses.
• Experience: At least 5 years of postgraduate, progressively responsible, job-related expertise in forecast-based financing/anticipatory action, early warning systems, climate adaptation and/or disaster risk management/financing, as well as experience managing programme/ project staff, establishing/managing partnerships and resource mobilization.
• Knowledge and Skills:
  • Experience in project design and management, including work experience on designing and implementing interventions at national and community levels focusing on AA/CCA/DRM, as well as on M&E and knowledge management, budget management and donor reporting.
  • Solid understanding of food security, risk and vulnerability assessments, early warning information, and ability to link those to programme design and contingency planning. Experience working with early warning and hydro-meteorological forecasts is an asset.
  • Experience leading a small to mid-size team to ensure the effective delivery of objectives.
  • Experience working with a wide variety of development actors including governments, international development organizations (including United Nations agencies), donors and other funding agencies, private sector entities, and/or civil society organizations including community groups and academia.
  • Experience in providing capacity strengthening to the government in terms of advocacy, policy engagement, and technical assistance.
  • Experience providing inputs for the development of country-level policies, strategies, and related discussions.
  • Excellent research, report writing, analytical and communication skills.
  • Ability to work independently in a timely and organized manner observing deadlines and achieving results.
  • Ability to work in a team and establish effective working relationships with persons of different national and cultural backgrounds and multi-task as needed.
  • Proficiency in Windows, MS Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook), and experience with GIS platforms is an asset.
• Language: Excellent spoken and written communication skills in English required.

WFP LEADERSHIP FRAMEWORK

All WFP Employees are expected to demonstrate the competencies and standards of behavior aligned with our core values and defined in the WFP LEADERSHIP FRAMEWORK, namely:

• Leading by example with integrity,
• Driving results and delivering on commitments,
• Fostering inclusive and collaborative teamwork,
• Applying strategic thinking,
• Building and maintaining sustainable partnerships.

REMUNERATION PACKAGE

WFP offers a competitive salary package including an approximate salary of PHP99,000 ++/ per month, pension benefits, and a comprehensive medical insurance which can be extended to eligible dependents.

HOW TO APPLY

To be considered, interested candidates are invited to apply via https://www.wfp.org/careers/job- openings. Only short-listed candidates will be contacted.

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 essential for 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 through [email protected].

A member of the reasonable accommodation team will contact you to confidentially discuss your needs.

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

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WFP 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

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