Shock Responsive & Adaptive Social Protection (SRASP) Coordinator

Iraq is an upper-middle-income country whose economic situation is gradually improving following the defeat of the Islamic State of Iraq and Levant and the resumption of oil exports. Food insecurity has persisted, however, particularly among internally displaced persons, returnees and rural people in the south of the country. The challenges of rebuilding infrastructure, providing basic services, promoting social cohesion, demobilizing militias, creating jobs and progressing towards gender equality while maintaining security have impeded the country’s efforts to make progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals, including Goal 2 on zero hunger.
WFP’s country strategic plan for Iraq is informed by findings and recommendations derived from a zero hunger strategic review carried out in 2018 with the participation of core government partners and other stakeholders. It has the overall goal of supporting the Government in accelerating progress on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development while shifting WFP’s role from the direct implementation of activities to the enabling of national programmes.

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) is the largest humanitarian organisation globally, dedicated to saving lives in emergencies and supporting sustainable futures for people recovering from conflict, disasters, and the impacts of climate change. WFP assists vulnerable populations by providing essential food, skills development, and enhanced social protection, thus bolstering the Government of Iraq’s efforts to enhance food security and resilience. For further details, visit our webpages at wfp.org/countries/Iraq and ar.wfp.org/countries/Iraq.
BACKGROUND:
Social protection is an increasingly popular strategy for governments to reduce extreme poverty, hunger and inequality. As a global leader in fighting hunger and malnutrition worldwide, often in very difficult contexts, the World Food Programme (WFP) is increasingly called upon by governments to support national social protection systems. In 2019, WFP partnered with governments in 75 countries to support their national social protection systems, making support to social protection an integral part of WFP’s activities in most of the countries where it operates.
As the COVID-19 pandemic puts at risk not only the lives and livelihoods of many people across the globe, it also threatens to undermine decades of progress towards the SDGs. In response to the socio-economic impacts of COVID-19, many governments are currently adapting and/or putting in place new social protection schemes.
Through its triple role as a technical advisor, service provider and complementary actor, WFP is supporting these efforts, as it works with governments to extend the coverage, comprehensiveness, adequacy and quality of national social protection systems, with the aim to ensure that all people have access, throughout their lives, to strong national social protection systems that safeguard and foster their ability to meet their food security, nutrition and associated essential needs, and to reduce and address the risks and shocks they face.
The Iraq Country Office is at the forefront of transforming social protection delivery through cash-based transfers (CBTs) and retail integration. In partnership with the Government of Iraq, WFP is strengthening national systems for social protection and disaster risk management to promote resilience, food security, and inclusive development.
Committed to extensive reforms, the governments of federal and the Kurdistan region of Iraq (KRI) continue to
enhance this system’s capabilities. In partnership with the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), under the European Union-supported UN Joint Programme “Leveraging Effective Response and Accelerating Reform for Social Protection in Iraq,” WFP is delivering technical and operational support to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of Iraq’s social protection mechanisms
In addition, the governments of Federal Iraq and the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) are increasingly relying on CBTs to support non-poor but highly vulnerable individuals through the Persons with Disabilities (PwD) Programme. This initiative provides cash-based social assistance to individuals with disabilities and their caregivers, currently reaching around 420,000 beneficiaries nationwide—including 77,000 in the KRI. However, over 1 million people in the KRI remain on a waiting list, highlighting the urgent need for expanded coverage.

The incumbent will be responsible for carrying out the following tasks and responsibilities:
Government Coordination & Task Force Leadership
• Serve as the main liaison with social protection, disaster risk management, and early warning/forecasting counterparts (MoLSA, SPA, Ministry of Interior, Civil Defense, MOST, National Operations Centre in OPM, IMOS,and others).
• Establish and coordinate the SRASP Task Force, ensuring regular engagement of all relevant ministries and agencies.
• Support the government in developing a legal framework to formalize SRASP as a national mechanism.
• Contribute to the design of financial channel structures that enable rapid and accountable SRASP interventions during shocks.
Capacity Building & Operational Architecture
• Develop and implement a technical roadmap / workplan with identified technical areas to be improved for SP-DRM-SRASP.
• Assess operational structures and develop joint protocols for SRASP intervention, test them at national and governorate level and regularly update them.
• Lead the development of a training and learning agenda, including capacity assessments, workshops, and simulation exercises to strengthen government engagement and technical skills.
Unified Registry, Targeting & Delivery Mechanisms (in coordination with Outcome 4 CO team)
• Support integration of SRASP into the Unified Registry, ensuring interoperability between social assistance and DRM systems. This includes the support of the following in coordination with other WFP areas:
• Strengthen targeting methodologies to prioritize vulnerable households during shocks.
• Improve registration processes to ensure timely and accurate inclusion of beneficiaries.
• Enhance delivery mechanisms (cash, food, or hybrid) to maximize efficiency, accountability, and responsiveness.
• Promote the use of digital solutions for targeting, registration, and delivery within SRASP operations.
Nutrition-Sensitive Shock Response (in coordination with the Nut and School Meals team)
• Ensure a nutrition sensitive lens is embedded in all SRASP operational architecture through the design of a government plan with line ministries to make SRASP nutrition sensitive.
Disaster Risk Financing (DRF) & Anticipatory Action (AA) (in coordination with EPR, Livelihood and Resilience team)
• Coordinate with WFP Programme Units (EPR and Livelihoods & Resilience) and government counterparts to develop and maintain a DRF and AA roadmap for SRASP, ensure SRASP is embedded into WFP’s internal emergency preparedness planning (EPRP, CONOPS, staff readiness), and align national SRASP efforts with ongoing DRF-AA initiatives.