Nutrition Specialist

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• FAO is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality, background and culture.
• Qualified female applicants, qualified nationals of non-and under-represented Members and person with disabilities are encouraged to apply;
• Everyone who works for FAO is required to adhere to the highest standards of integrity and professional conduct, and to uphold FAO’s values
• FAO, as a Specialized Agency of the United Nations, has a zero-tolerance policy for conduct that is incompatible with its status, objectives and mandate, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination
• All selected candidates will undergo rigorous reference and background checks
• All applications will be treated with the strictest confidentiality

Organizational Setting

The main aim of the FAO country offices, which are headed by an FAO Representative, 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.

The FAO Representation in South Sudan is organized around three main units: Programme, Operations and Administration. The current portfolio of projects in South Sudan includes activities related to agriculture, livestock, fisheries and natural resource management, and is implemented with humanitarian, transitional and development Funding. The incumbent will contribute to the nutrition-sensitive programming work that includes aligning with country priorities identified under the Country Programming Framework (CPF), and FAO’s work in protecting, promoting, and improving sustainable food systems for healthy diets and improved nutrition, focusing on the distinctive relationship between agriculture and nutrition.

The Nutrition Specialist will support in the development of technical guidance materials on FAO’s nutrition-sensitive agriculture and food systems policies and programmes and support the mainstreaming and integration of nutrition in country programmes and projects.:

Reporting Lines

The Consultant/PSA subscriber will work under the general guidance of the FAOR and direct supervision of the Technical Advisor.

Technical Focus

The Nutrition Specialist will provide technical leadership to FAO South Sudan’s work on nutrition-sensitive agriculture and food production, nutrition capacity building, value chain development, consumption of healthy diets, and diet diversification through agriculture, among others.

Tasks and responsibilities

• Support FAO South Sudan’s nutrition-sensitive programming work that includes aligning with country priorities identified under the Country Programming Framework (CPF), and FAO’s work in protecting, promoting, and improving sustainable food systems for healthy diets and improved nutrition, focusing on the distinctive relationship between agriculture and nutrition.
• Support in the development of technical guidance material on FAO’s nutrition-sensitive agriculture and food systems policies and programmes and support the mainstreaming and integration of nutrition in country programmes and projects.
• Prepare and develop training materials on nutrition-sensitive agriculture which are adapted from existing FAO training materials and tailored to the South Sudan context.
• Support the training and capacity building of FAO South Sudan’s staff, partners, and government counterparts on nutrition-sensitive food production through agriculture, programming, and food systems transformation.
• In coordination with the Procurement Unit, support in the technical evaluation of proposals and offers submitted by service providers/bidders in response to Request for Proposals/Invitation for Bid that have nutrition components.
• Provide nutrition-related inputs during the preparation of Letters of Agreements (LOAs) and all related documents between FAO and the selected implementing partners for nutrition-sensitive activities.
• Contribute to the development of FAO South Sudan’s nutrition-sensitive projects and activities, plans, and processes, ensuring that they are aligned with FAO’s global, regional, and country-level nutrition policies.
• Lead the design and implementation of high-quality assessments including nutrition related KAP surveys in coordination with FAO South Sudan’s M&E unit and other relevant Government and Non-Governmental stakeholders.
• Promote Social Behavior Change Communication (SBCC) in FAO South Sudan’s interventions and collaborate with the relevant units to ensure effective advocacy, design, and delivery of FAO’s nutrition-sensitive programs that include supporting projects to set up, train and support producer groups/cooperatives and other associations or enterprise groups along the key nutrition-sensitive value chains.
• Working with the M&E Unit, support the monitoring and evaluation of nutrition interventions in nutrition-sensitive programs and participate in field visits to identify potential risks to effective and timely project delivery.
• Lead the documentation of good nutrition-sensitive practices across different projects and integrate these in future project proposals.
• Participate in the nutrition cluster meetings, preventive nutrition working groups and other relevant nutrition-related meetings and workshops within and outside South Sudan.
• Perform other duties as may be assigned by the Supervisor.

CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING

Minimum Requirements

• Advanced university degree in nutrition, nutrition policy, public health, dietetics, food science, food technology, food engineering or other relevant fields.
• At least 7 years working experience, working on nutrition sensitive agricultural programmes and supporting the nutrition sector in complex emergency contexts such as South Sudan.
• Working knowledge of English (level C) and limited knowledge (level B) of a second FAO language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Spanish, Russian). For PSA, working knowledge of English is required.

FAO Core Competencies

• Results Focus
• Teamwork
• Communication
• Building Effective Relationships
• Knowledge Sharing and Continuous Improvement

Technical/Functional Skills

• Extensive experience in project management and capacity development in nutrition, particularly for the agriculture, livestock, and fisheries sectors.
• Good interpersonal skills with experience in networking and building partnerships at all levels (Government, UN, NGOs, and local community-based organizations).
• Proficiency in standard computer software (MS Office) as well as software such as SPSS, R, ENA etc.
• Excellent oral, written, interpersonal, and communication skills

Please note that all candidates should adhere to FAO Values of Commitment to FAO, Respect for All and Integrity and Transparency

HOW TO APPLY

• 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
• 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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