Job Details

Job Description

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.

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.

ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT

In July 2023, the World Food Programme (WFP) Zambia commenced a new five-year Country Strategic Plan (CSP), informed by and aligned with national and United Nations priorities and global commitments under the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It embraces the Government’s long-term Vision 2030; aligns with 16 key strategic areas of the 8th National Development Plan (NDP8); and contributes to the joint Zambia-United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF).

WFP Zambia’s integrated and pragmatic CSP shifts away from unsustainable localized and micro-level interventions, to embrace more effective advocacy and engagement with national policies, systems, and programmes to achieve national impact on SDG2. Given the Government’s commitment to budgetary support for nutrition, social protection, and agriculture, despite the constraints in the country’s fiscal position, WFP’s overarching strategy seeks to strengthen the government’s capacities to meet its national priorities through stronger systems, expertise, and resources for implementation. This means a decisive shift of WFP’s country positioning towards the provision of innovative, sustainable, upstream technical assistance to support nationally owned solutions.

Advancing the global WFP Strategic Plan (2022-2025), the CSP addresses both SDG2 and SDG17, and WFP’s Strategic Results 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5. WFP will implement seven activities to achieve five Strategic Outcomes (SO) under the CSP.  These SOs include: (SO1) responding to crises and shocks ensuring that crisis-affected people, including refugees, are able to meet their urgent food and nutrition needs; (SO2) addressing the root causes of malnutrition; (SO3) building the resilience, enabling environment and market access for smallholder farmers, especially women; (SO4) supporting government institutions to provide social protection systems (including home grown school meals) and disaster preparedness and response; and (SO5) improving access to supply chain services for humanitarian and development actors.

The Programme Policy Officer (Social Protection and Disaster Risk Management) will report to the Strategic Outcome Manager, under the overall guidance of the Deputy Country Director.

JOB PURPOSE

To provide support to policy and programme activities that effectively meet food assistance needs.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES (not all-inclusive)

1. Serve as the Activity Manager for Strategic Outcome 4 in the Country Office, supporting social protection and disaster risk management activities in the Country Strategic Plan.
2. Provide technical assistance to partner Government entities to strengthen national social protection and disaster risk management systems, working in collaboration with United Nations agencies, donors/development partners, non-governmental organizations, research institutions and other stakeholders.
3. Support capacity strengthening efforts with partner Government entities in line with WFP’s country capacity strengthening policy, guidelines, and tools, emphasizing capacity utilization and capacity maintenance.
4. Integrate gender, protection, accountability to affected populations, and other cross-cutting issues into WFP’s social protection and disaster risk management activities.
5. Serve as overall focal point for social protection and disaster risk management, including serving as the entry point for regional bureau and headquarters processes and documents.
6. Support the identification, development and management of potential & current partnerships and other collaborative efforts to enhance and complement WFP’s work.

OTHER SPECIFIC JOB REQUIREMENTS

1. Ensure internal coordination and communication with other programme units (SO1 crisis response, SO2 nutrition, and SO3 smallholder farmer support); Field Offices; and functional units (monitoring and evaluation, vulnerability analysis and mapping, information technology, supply chain, communications, and partnerships), highlighting the integrated, interlinked social protection and disaster risk management priorities.
2. Represent WFP at external events and meetings related to Strategic Outcome 4 with Government, United Nations, donor & development partners, non-governmental organizations, research institutions, and the private sector. Support advocacy on relevant policies, legislation, financing, and programmes related to Strategic Outcome 4.
3. Research and analyze policy and operational issues to support senior colleagues in the development of policies, programmes, and activities.
4. Research and analyze policy and operational issues to support senior colleagues in the development of policies, programmes, and activities.
5. Support the identification, development and management of potential & current partnerships and other collaborative efforts to enhance and complement WFP’s work.
6. Contribute to the preparation of accurate and timely reporting on activities that enable informed decision making and consistency of information presented to stakeholders.
7. Other tasks as required.

STANDARD MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

Education: Advanced University degree in 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: 6 years or more of relevant progressive responsible experience in a relevant area.

Language: Fluency in English language both written and spoken.

DESIRED EXPERIENCES FOR ENTRY INTO THE ROLE

• Has solid experience in supporting the government’s national social protection system, including, for example, social assistance programmes, such as school feeding programmes and social cash transfers.
• Has solid experience in supporting the government’s disaster risk management system, including, for example, contingency planning, early warning systems and advisories, anticipatory action, disaster risk financing, and vulnerability assessments.
• Has experience working with Government, United Nations and non-governmental organizations at the national and sub-national level.
• Has supported and provided input into policy discussions and advocacy efforts.
• Has excellent oral and written communication skills.

DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS

Applications must be submitted not later than 21st March 2024 23:59hrs Zambian time.

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Qualified Persons with Disabilities and Female candidates are especially encouraged to apply!

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.