Programme Policy Officer (Risk Financing and Insurance Expert)

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 diversity and gender balance

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE OF THE ASSIGNMENT:

Climate change multiplies existing threats to food security, hunger and malnutrition. It will make natural disasters more frequent and intense, land and water scarce and difficult to access and increases in agricultural productivity even harder to achieve. It will disproportionally impact the most vulnerable people, the majority of whom live in fragile areas prone to climate hazards, ultimately putting hundreds of millions of people at risk. It is estimated that by 2050, the risk of hunger could increase by 20 percent, and child malnutrition is anticipated to be 20 percent higher than it would have been without a climate change scenario.

WFP approaches the challenge of climate change from the point of view of its impact on hunger and under nutrition. WFP’s work on climate change and climate risk management focuses on enhancing the resilience of food insecure communities and countries, helping them adapt to more frequent and intense climatic events. About 40 percent of WFP’s operations already include activities to reduce disaster risk, build resilience and help people adapt to the effects resulting from climate change. WFP is developing and testing innovative tools and approaches to help Governments and communities to manage disaster risks in a more effective manner. WFP is further developing, refining and testing these tools by incorporating approaches such as the African Risk Capacity (ARC) sovereign drought insurance to accelerate the coverage of climate risk insurance to millions of Africans, while building the capacity of national governments to respond to large-scale climate shocks.

Climate and Disaster Risk Reduction Programme (PRO-C) is a unit in WFP HQ (located under WFP’s Programme – Humanitarian and Development Division) that provides guidance and support to a range of activities from household-level micro insurance programmes to carrying out climate analyses to better understand the impact of climate risks on food security and nutrition, helping governments implement adaptation projects on the ground, as well as developing innovative climate risk management tools – programmatic and financing mechanisms.

The Consultant will be responsible for engaging in technical aspects in several countries on index customization, seasonal monitoring, index performance assessment and advice on risk transfer parameters. In addition, the consultant could also contribute to microinsurance activities.

ACCOUNTABILITIES/RESPONSIBILITIES:

1. Provide support to Country Office (CO) ARC Replica focal points and the Government-led technical working groups (TWG) on improving the accuracy and approprietness of climate hazard models (could include travel to COs), including inputs on the rainfall model, the WRSI (or similar), and the vulnerability module. Advise on additional studies/research that could be carried out to further improve models and support countries to carry this out (ie. drafting TORs, interviewing consultants, reviewing drafts, etc.)

2. Advise COs and TWGs about the benefits and limitations of the insurance products on offer (primarily looking at the impact of different risk transfer parameters) to inform their decision of what product to purchase.

3. Lead the coordination and development of country specific technical briefing notes outlining the parameters of the model underpinning the insurance policy, explaining the benefits and limitations of the products that were offered and providing a recommendation on whether WFP should purchase the product ultimately selected by the Government.

4. Support the development of technical workplans for COs and TWGs to drive improvements in the climate hazard models through a practical and country-led approach to support country-ownership over the process.

5. Provide training to new ARC Replica or macro insurance focal points in COs on the technical elements of risk financing and insurance.

6. Provide training to TWG members, if requested, on the technical elements of risk financing and insurance.

7. Provide technical advice on the design of a Southern Africa risk layer to complement insurance policies purchased in that region

8. Lead the process of streamlining seasonal monitoring approaches across Africa

9. Review the parameters of insurance products being offered to WFP or its government partners by CCRIF, PCRIC or SEADRIF as necessary and provide recommendations on their quality and appropriateness.

10. On microinsurance, participate or lead the inception assessment in 1 country under the GCF / IFAD project in the Sahel.

11. Support on Operational Plan and/or Final Implementation Plan design as needed.

DELIVERABLES AT THE END OF THE CONTRACT:

1. Improved climate hazard models in ARC Replica countries

2. Technical briefing note prepared for each country's model and insurance policy submited to the Senior Insurance Advisor 2 weeks before policy purchase

3. Risk layering approach developed for Southern Africa (by 31 Janurary 2023)

4. Inception Assessment in 1 country completed under the GCF/IFAD Sahel project

QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE REQUIRED:

Deadline for applications: 05.01.2023

Ref. VA No.: 178763

Terms and Conditions

WFP offers a competitive compensation package which will be determined by the contract type and selected candidate’s qualifications and experience.

Please visit the following websites for detailed information on working with WFP.

http://www.wfp.org Click on: “Our work” and “Countries” to learn more about WFP’s operations.

Qualified female applicants and qualified applicants from developing countries are especially encouraged to apply. WFP has zero tolerance for discrimination and does not discriminate on the basis of HIV/AIDS status.

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.

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