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, color, national origin, ethnic or social background, genetic information, gender, gender identity and/or expression, sexual orientation, religion or belief, HIV status, physical or mental disability.

 

 

Job Title: Programme Policy Officer

Type of Contract: International Consultant (CST)

Division: School-based Programmes

Duty Station (City, Country): New York, USA

Duration: 11 months

 

 

 

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE OF THE ASSIGNMENT:

 

In 2021, as the world grappled with school closures caused by the COVID 19 pandemic, governments called for the creation of a global coalition to restore access to school meals to children that were affected worldwide. Consecutively, the School Meals Coalition was launched as one of the main outcomes of the UN Food Systems Summit in September 2021. The Coalition’s main aim is to ensure that by 2030 all primary school children should receive a daily nutritious meal in school, and since its inception, more than 85 countries and 95 partners have joined to Coalition to achieve this ambitious goal.

In the past years there has been a sea change in the level of political will around school meals. Global investment in these programs has increased by USD 5 billion (from 43 billion in 2020, to 48 million in 2022), reaching 418 million children, compared to 388 million before the pandemic. Low-income countries specifically have increased their domestic funding by 15% in the last two years.

One key partner of the Coalition that is supporting this global movement is the Office of the Special Adviser on Africa (OSAA-OUSG). OSAA recognizes the importance of school meals for the African continent, particularly as a public service with a great potential to contribute to long-term peace and stability. The advertised position will work closely with OSAA and support the Under Secretary General in designing and managing its contribution to the School Meals Coalition.

The position will be located in WFP’s New York Office, whilst working closely with the OSAA-OUSG. The candidate will be responsible for the contribution to policy formulation and provision of technical advice related to school meals programmes and is expected to operate with considerable independence in their specialities. The incumbent will report to WFP, with a functional supervision from the Under-Secretary-General and Special Adviser on Africa.

 

ACCOUNTABITLITIES / RESPONSIBILITIES:

 

 

• Technical Advisor to the USG to advance efforts in the School Meals Coalition engagement, including developing a narrative and analytical product to bring forward advocacy and policy efforts, organizing a database that cross-references school-feeding programmes coverage at the continental, regional and national levels with education, health, gender, energy and ICT gaps, preparing dashboards and supporting the engagement with UN Country Teams and Resident Coordinators.
• Lead on the coordination of the School Meals Coalition policy development and engagement with Member States in New York.
• Implement and enhance OSAA’s advocacy School Meals Coalition work plan.
• Based on the USG’s role as Chair for the Sustainable Financing Initiative of the School Meals Coalition, lead on the implementation of the Sustainable Financing initiative work plan.
• Identify high-level meetings, events and initiatives and lead on the preparation of the USG interventions to such meetings aimed at promoting the school-feeding narrative and developing policy engagement proposals, including but not limited to the SDG Summit, the Summit for the Future, the Food Systems Stocktaking, the Financing for Development fora, etc
• Manage the advocacy and policy efforts linked to the “A pen for a gun” campaign, including the elaboration of advocacy and advisory documents, identification of partners of choice at the global, regional and national level and design of communication products, in coordination with OSAA’s Strategic Management Unit.

 

DELIVERABLES QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE REQUIRED:

 

 

• School Meals Coalition work plan implemented.
• Sustainable Financing Initiative work plan implemented.
• Dashboard and database cross-referencing school-feeding programmes with the identified development priorities delivered.
• Member States in New York and UN Country Teams mobilized in support of school-feeding interventions.
• SDG Summit, Summit for the Future and other high-level events policy proposals influenced to reflect school meals interventions.
• Increased engagement with Members states, UN entities and UN bodies in support of the “A pen for a gun” initiative.

 

 

 

QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE REQUIRED:

 

Education:

 

Advanced University degree in, Economics, Agro-economics, Data Analytics, 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:

 

• At least 7 years’ experience engaging in policy discussions and providing input into policy decisions, preferably at government level.
• Experience in data analysis, policy analysis and/or financial analysis.
• 5 or more years of professional experience relevant to programme

implementation, preferably in relation to VAM/Nutrition.

 

Knowledge and Skills:

 

• Advanced knowledge of political structures and developments in Africa
• Problem solving and decision-making skills;
• Aptitude for supervising, guiding and empowering staff;
• Ability to develop and maintain relationships with a variety of stakeholders, conveying an informed and professional demeanour toward internal and external partners and stakeholders;
• Ability to analyse quantitative and qualitative information to understand current and future complex needs and identify solutions;
• Learning agility, and appetite for exploring and experimenting with new ideas and approaches;
• Demonstrated ability to produce high-quality written outputs and ability to present in English.

 

 

Languages:

 

• Fluency (level C) in English language. Intermediate knowledge (level B) of a second official UN language: Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian, Spanish, and/or WFP’s working language, Portuguese.

 

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.

 

 

Deadline for applications: 29 September 2023

 

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.