Programme Policy Officer (GAFSP Project Provincial Coordinator), SC-8

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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

The job holder will report to a senior Programme Policy Officer but is expected to operate with a high degree of independence, to ensure that programme and policy objectives are achieved in full. The incumbent is also expected to be involved in a wide variety of programme and policy activities (such as nutrition integration, climate change adaptation, resilience, social protection, gender equality and women’s empowerment among others) and analytical work, some of which may be of a considerable complexity. 

Background:

The Government of Nepal received financial assistance from the Global Agriculture and Food Security Program (“GAFSP”), worth USD 12 million (USD 9 million investment grant and USD 3 million Technical Assistance grant) for implementing a project entitled “Vegetables in Hilly Areas Project (as part of the Nuts and Fruits in Hilly Areas (NAFHA) Project)” for 5 years.  Through consent from the Government ADB and WFP have been selected as Supervising Entities for the project.  As such, ADB manages the USD 9 million investment grant while WFP manages the Technical Assistance (TA) component of the project contributing to the Project’s Output 2: “production and productivity of project farmers increased”. This project is also part of WFP Nepal’s Country Strategic Plan (CSP), 2024-2028, Strategic Outcome 3: “Smallholder farmers and climate-vulnerable populations in Nepal benefit from climate-resilient and equitable food systems, sustainable livelihoods and climate-proof assets and services by 2028”. Apart from providing technical assistance in the effective delivery of activities of output 2, to be funded by ADB investment and GAFSP grant, the GAFSP’s technical assistance grant of USD 3 million will be used for activities that support smallholder farmers in the production of vegetables and nutritious crops. The project supports 10,000 HHs who have less than 0.2 Ha of land and lack financial resources for fruits and nuts orchard development and will be implemented in 100 Local Governments of 34 districts of five Provinces (Koshi, Bagmati, Gandaki, Karnali and Sudur-Paschim) along the mid-hill highway. The major activities include: a) establishing and operationalizing Farmers Nutrition Schools (FNS) (400 FNS covering 10,000 farmers) focusing on climate-smart, nutrition-sensitive, and good agricultural practices and technology for the production of vegetables and nutrient-dense local crops; b) supporting household availability and utilization of nutritious food (seeds, diversity kits, chicken), c) training and support for home garden fruit plantation and irrigation for nutrition promotion, d) facilitating market linkage for smallholder farmers to localized markets leveraging the home-grown school feeding approach in community schools and e) providing Technical Assistance (TA) – guidance, oversight and monitoring for management of grants to the farmers for farming/production of vegetables, and nutrient-dense local crops. As part of WFP’s TA provisions, WFP is looking to recruit a highly motivated, experienced programme policy officer to serve as Project Provincial Coordinator who will support the NAFHA project execution at the provincial level.

JOB PURPOSE

The Programme Policy Officer (GAFSP Project Provincial Coordinator) shall be responsible for coordinating the NAFHA project at the provincial level for proper project management, implementation coordination, monitoring and reporting, and coordinating/facilitating TA activities (FNS-related activities) within the province and providing technical backstopping to frontline technicians for FNS and household nutrition-related activities. S/he will ensure GAFSP activities and FNS at the province level are implemented effectively and efficiently contributing to climate-resilient horticulture farming and improving nutritious and diverse food production and consumption of smallholder farmers.

TERMS AND CONDITIONS

Position Title: Programme Policy Officer (GAFSP Project Provincial Coordinator)
Contract Type:  Service Contract (SC)
Level: SC-8 (Equivalent to NOA)
Position Number: Five (5) positions
Duty Station: Provincial Directorate of Agriculture Development (DoAD)/Project Implementation Unit based in 1) Koshi, 2) Bagmati, 3) Gandaki, 4) Karnali and 5) Sudur-Paschim Provinces
Contract Duration: 12 months (Renewable)
Vacancy Number: 832378
Date of Publication: 04.04.2024
Deadline of Application: 17.04.2024
WFP offers a competitive benefits package including salary plus a medical insurance (www.cignahealthbenefits.com)

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES/RESPONSIBILITIES (not all-inclusive)

The Programme Policy Officer (GAFSP Project Provincial Coordinator) will work under the direct supervision of Programme Policy Officer (GAFSP Project Coordinator) with the overall guidance of WFP Nepal CO, Deputy Head of Programme and Strategic Outcome Manager, Head of Programme and senior management of WFP and in close coordination with Director of the respective Provincial Directorate of Agriculture Development (DoAD)/Project Implementation Unit (PIU) of NAFHA, and technical experts based at Project Implementation Unit. The incumbent will be responsible for the following tasks:

• Contribute to the implementation of WFP Nepal’s Country Strategy Plan (CSP), corporate policies and programmes aligned with national policies (such as the Agricultural Development Strategy, Climate Change Policy, National Nutrition Policy, and Strategy, etc) and wider UN strategic focus areas related to nutrition, agriculture, and livelihoods.
• Support for the implementation, monitoring and reporting of the GAFSP-funded component of the NAFHA project at the provincial level. 
• Provide strategic support to the Project Implementation Unit (PIU) in the plan development and implementation of the GAFSP-funded component of NAFHA.
• Support in training and workshops related to the project activities, including Training of Trainers/ facilitators (ToT/ToFs) to Junior Technician/Junior technical assistants (JT/JTA) of the NAFHA project and resource farmers to facilitate FNS. 
• Facilitate and provide technical backstopping to JT/JTA in the formation FNS group and, the organization of FNS training including FNS follow-up and household nutrition-related activities in coordination with PIU and Local Governments. 
• Support to implement FNS, develop and deliver a package of practices including a diversity kit to enhance household availability and utilization of nutritious food. 
• Facilitate market linkage for smallholder farmers to localize the market leveraging the Home-Grown School Feeding (HGSFP) approach at the province level in collaboration with the provincial and local level stakeholders.
• Provide nutrition sensitization sessions to school feeding stakeholders emphasizing the importance of adequate, diverse, locally available, and affordable safe food for children, parents, and communities.
• Support for nutrition integration across project interventions by identifying complementarities with the MSNP and other programmes.  
• Support to collect, validate, document, and share the GAFSP component-related project progress to WFP and ADB through the GAFSP Project Coordinator for biannual and annual reporting to the GAFSP.
   

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• Support to draft best practices and lessons learned from the project for organizational sharing and learning.
• Identify, assess, and mitigate potential project risks, taking proactive measures to mitigate them and minimize their impact on project delivery.
• Support in establishing working relations with provincial stakeholders and other like-minded public and private sector organizations and provide technical assistance as required. 
• Work as a main contact person between WFP and the Provincial Ministry of Agriculture for agriculture, food security and food system-related engagement and partnerships in addition to the GAFSP-supported project.
• Contribute to the NAFHA project baseline, mid-term and final evaluation including GAFSP Project’s endline evaluation processes.
• Provide technical backstopping, conduct monitoring, and ensure timely information collection and reporting of field activities conducted by project staff at the field level.
• Contribute to the organization of and/or participate in meetings, conferences, workshops, consultations, and field visits as needed; contribute to building collaborations and partnerships.
• Contribute to effective communication and coordination with field/district/central project teams and other stakeholders.
• Perform other related duties as assigned by the supervisor and the Provincial Directorate of Agriculture Development as required in project-related tasks. 
   

STANDARD MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

Education: Masters/Advanced university degree in agriculture, horticulture, agricultural economics, agribusiness, nutrition, or related fields or First University Degree with additional years of related work experience and /or training/courses.

Language: Excellent proficiency in both oral and written English and Nepali languages

DESIRED EXPERIENCES FOR ENTRY INTO THE ROLE

• At least one year of relevant post graduate professional experience (after an advanced university degree) in vegetable production, agriculture value chain, market linkage, marketing, climate change adaptation in agriculture and food systems, and relevant programme management/planning and implementation. More years of experience in the relevant field is desirable.     
• Has experience in liaising with government partners, has good negotiation skills and ability to communicate effectively, has observed or assisted with policy discussions. 
   

Desired Knowledge and Skills:

• Sound understanding of agriculture especially the vegetable sector, agribusiness, climate-smart village development, nutritious food system (home garden and small livestock), agriculture and nutrition policies, programmes, and approaches in Nepal, understanding of approaches of climate change adaptation will be an added advantage.
• Sound knowledge, skills and experience in business development/project/programme design, planning, implementation, and management.
• Ability to write clear and concise technical documents with short deadlines, with multi-tasking skills.
• Ability to perform well in cross-disciplinary teams.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills
• General knowledge of UN system policies, rules, regulations, and procedures in the area of work is an advantage.
• Must be familiar with MS Office.
• Nepali Typing skill is an asset.This section is optional to describe additional responsibilities & knowledge required for the specific job.

WFP LEADERSHIP FRAMEWORK: COMMON STANDARDS OF BEHAVIOURS

All WFP Employees are expected to demonstrate the competencies and standards of behaviour aligned with our core values defined in the WFP LEADERSHIP FRAMEWORK, namely:

• Leading by example with integrity
• Driving results and delivering on commitments
• Fostering inclusive and collaborative teamwork
• Applying strategic thinking
• Building and maintaining sustainable partnerships

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HOW TO APPLY 

To be considered, interested candidates are invited to apply via (https://www.wfp.org/careers/job-openings). Only short-listed candidates will be contacted. 

Note: Should there be preference of duty station, please clearly indicate in your applicaton.

Request for Disability related Reasonable Accommodations:  

It is important to WFP to create an accessible and inclusive workplace for everyone.  Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform essential job functions.  If you require reasonable accommodation in completing this application, interviewing, completing any pre-employment testing, or otherwise participating in the selection and hiring process, please direct your request and inquiries to [email protected]. A member of the HR team responsible for reasonable accommodation will contact you to confidentially discuss your needs.  

This email is only to be used for any disability related accessibility requirements and not for sending the application itself. Due to the volume of applications, any applications or CVs sent through this email address will not be considered a formal application and will not receive a reply from WFP. 

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

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