FAO Representative in Syria

Organizational Setting

The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger.

FAO’s goal is to achieve food security for all and make sure that people have regular access to enough high-quality food to lead active, healthy lives. With 195 Members – 194 countries and the European Union, FAO works in over 130 countries worldwide.

The main aim of the FAO Country Offices, which are headed by FAO Representatives (FAORs), is to assist governments to develop policies, programmes and projects to achieve food security and to reduce hunger and malnutrition, to help develop the agricultural, fisheries and forestry sectors, and to use their environmental and natural resources in a sustainable manner.

Specific activities of the Country Offices include:

• Implementing FAO’s field projects and participating in the development of the Field Programme by identifying and formulating new projects and liaising with local donor representations.
• Helping governments to prevent and assess the damage of disasters and assisting them in reconstruction and rehabilitation of the agricultural sector.
• Carrying out public awareness activities and support some important FAO campaigns such as TeleFood and the World Food Day.
• Providing assistance to technical and investment missions from FAO headquarters and from Regional or Subregional Offices to the country.
• Serving as a channel for FAO’s services to governments and other partners (donors, NGOs, CSOs, research institutions, etc.).
• Keeping FAO informed of major social and economic developments in the country and monitoring the situation of the agriculture sector in the country.
• Acting as FAO Representative to host governments and all partners involved in FAO activities.

The position is located in Damascus, Syria.

Reporting Lines

The FAO Representative (FAOR) manages and is accountable for the FAO country programme, office, resources and staff. He/she reports to and works under the overall guidance and supervision of the Assistant Director-General/Regional Representative (ADG/RR) and, where applicable, under the technical supervision of the Subregional Coordinator. The FAOR works closely with the Regional Leadership Team and is supported by the Regional/Subregional Office and headquarters’ technical, administrative and operational staff, as appropriate.

The FAOR also reports periodically to the Resident Coordinator (RC) on his/her respective contributions to the United Nations Country Team (UNCT) work towards the implementation of the United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF), and is an active and accountable member of the UNCT as defined in the approved ‘Management and Accountability Framework’ that operationalizes the RC/UNCT relationships, in accordance with the General Assembly resolution 72/279 and is also an active member of the Humanitarian Country Team, where relevant.

Technical Focus

The FAOR leads FAO’s response to national priorities and sustainable development challenges to advance the 2030 Agenda as well as to advocate for action aimed at accelerating the realization of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), as established in FAO’s Country Programming Framework (CPF) and in line with the FAO Strategic Framework, with particular focus on the Programmatic Priorities Areas (PPAs). The FAOR is entrusted in addition with leading FAO’s contributions to the United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Frameworks (UNSDCFs).

Key Results

The FAOR successfully leads and manages the FAO Country Office and effectively represents FAO in his/her country(ies) of accreditation, developing, maintaining and enhancing collaboration with the host government and other key stakeholders on development and humanitarian issues.

Key Functions

Represent and advocate the work of the Organization:

• represent FAO towards national authorities, partners and stakeholders;
• advocate FAO’s policy positions in the relevant national fora, represent FAO in the national media, and implement a proactive communications strategy to raise FAO awareness with the general public;
• support UN joint communication efforts and speak with ‘one voice’ in delivering the 2030 Agenda;
• facilitate timely access by national stakeholders to FAO’s knowledge resources and global public goods;
• provide leadership on food security and agriculture policy as well as operational matters within the Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator System;
• lead the overall emergency response preparedness, coordination, and response at the country level, in cooperation with government, UN Country Team/Humanitarian Country Team and Cluster/sector activities and related resource mobilization efforts.

Develop and operationalize the CPF derived from UNSDCF:

• support the country’s efforts towards the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), in line with FAO’s mandate and Strategic Framework;
• lead, in line with national priorities and in consultation with national stakeholders and partners, the timely development of the CPF, and the Country Work Plan (CWP) in accordance with, and as derived from, the UNSDCF process and related FAO programmes, projects and/or other activities (such as normative and policy functions);
• lead the analysis of the country situation, providing, when necessary, updates and alerts on key events and trends, including for the UN Common Country Analysis (CCA);
• lead FAO’s contribution to the UN common planning and programming frameworks, i.e. CCAs, UNSDCFs (former UNDAFs), Consolidated Appeals Processes (CAPs), Humanitarian Action Plans, Flash Appeals, Joint Programmes, etc.;
• advise and collaborate with internal partners to raise awareness of country priorities and needs, and support their inclusion in corporate and regional policies;
• lead the dialogue and liaise with national government authorities on issues of FAO’s mandate.

Build partnerships and mobilize resources:

• support the operationalization of the CPF and the UNSDCF;
• support the establishment of effective partnerships and collaborations with governments, donors, civil societies, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), the UN, and other international organizations;
• lead country-level mobilization of extrabudgetary resources, making maximum use of the expertise available in the Decentralized Offices;
• support the Resident/Humanitarian Coordinator in strategically positioning the UN in the country and in joint UN resource mobilization efforts.

Programme implementation and monitoring:

• ensure that programmes are managed and monitored effectively and in compliance with corporate policies as well as procedures;
• mobilize technical backstopping to FAO projects, in line with corporate norms, standards and procedures;
• provide (when requested), technical support services in FAO’s areas of competence in the country(ies) of assignment, as well as other countries of the subregion;
• operate as budget holder for national projects entrusted to him/her;
• oversee the effective implementation of FAO programmes and projects, lead periodic reviews, monitor the CPF and FAO components in the UN Sustainable Cooperation Frameworks and Joint Programmes, and ensure timely reporting, including to the Resident/Humanitarian Coordinator as well as the UN Country Team on jointly agreed results;
• report results as per corporate reporting requirements in a timely manner;
• address issues in real-time to minimize reputational and financial risks for FAO.

Effectively manage the office, personnel and financial resources:

• lead and manage the Country Office and ensure effective as well as efficient use of human and financial resources, in line with corporate policies and administrative procedures, ensuring that internal control mechanisms are in place and enforced;
• manage all matters related to the security and safety of FAO personnel and their eligible dependents whilst ensuring full adherence to the UN Security Policy, rules and regulations as well as to security-related instructions issued by FAO;
• improve the observance of legal, statutory or regulatory obligations; FAO’s ethical standards and its internal Human Resources rules and policies, including the application of FAO zero tolerance policies on prevention of sexual abuse and harassment, and gender parity. Promote and nurture staff development in addition to welfare;
• identify and implement effective and efficient controls that better respond to operational risks faced in achieving FAO’s objectives, including preparation and implementation of Anti-Fraud Control plans;
• maintain and improve the reliability, appropriateness and timeliness of financial and non-financial information;
• reduce losses and waste of assets as well as resources, whether through misdirected effort, avoidable errors, mismanagement, abuse or fraud;
• ensure that a gender focal point is designated as required by the FAO Gender Equality Policy;
• sustain and increase the confidence among Members and other stakeholders in the reliability, resilience and efficiency of FAO’s management systems.

CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING

Minimum Requirements

• Advanced university degree in an area related to the activities of the Organization, e.g. Agriculture, Forestry, Fishery or Rural development, etc.
• Ten (10) years of relevant experience in planning, formulation, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of field programmes.
• Working knowledge (proficient – level C) of English and limited knowledge (intermediate – level B) of another FAO official language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish).

Technical/functional Skills

• Work experience in more than one location or area of work, particularly in field positions is essential, in both programmatic areas and fostering government relationships.
• Extent and relevance of experience in developing and managing country field programmes from design to delivery (programme/project identification, formulation, analysis, planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation).
• Extent and relevance of experience in the coordination and/or management of technical cooperation projects and programmes, including emergency, recovery and rehabilitation related programmes.
• Demonstrated experience in resource mobilization.
• Extent and relevance of experience in negotiating and cooperating with national governments, intergovernmental organizations and other institutions as well as in designing collaborative networks and joint programmes.
• Limited knowledge (intermediate – level B) of Arabic.

• To apply, visit the recruitment website at Jobs at FAO and complete your online profile. We strongly recommend that your profile is accurate, complete and includes your employment records, academic qualifications, and language skills
• Candidates are requested to attach a letter of motivation to the online profile
• Once your profile is completed, please apply, and submit your application
• Please note that FAO only considers higher educational qualifications obtained from an institution accredited/recognized in the World Higher Education Database (WHED), a list updated by the International Association of Universities (IAU) / United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The list can be accessed at http://www.whed.net/
• Candidates may be requested to provide performance assessments and authorization to conduct verification checks of past and present work, character, education, military and police records to ascertain any and all information which may be pertinent to the employment qualifications
• Incomplete applications will not be considered
• Personal information provided on your application may be shared within FAO and with other companies acting on FAO’s behalf to provide employment support services such as pre-screening of applications, assessment tests, background checks and other related services. You will be asked to provide your consent before submitting your application. You may withdraw consent at any time, by withdrawing your application, in such case FAO will no longer be able to consider your application
• Only applications received through the FAO recruitment portal will be considered
• Your application will be screened based on the information provided in your online profile
• We encourage applicants to submit the application well before the deadline date.

If you need help or have queries, please create a one-time registration with FAO’s client support team for further assistance: https://fao.service-now.com/csp

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