Technical Officer – Nutrition

OBJECTIVES OF THE PROGRAMME

The overall objective of the Nutrition and Food Safety (NUT) Programme is to provide leadership and actionto promote national adoption, adaptation, implementation and monitoring of global and regional standards towards universal access to safe, healthy and sustainable diets by people of all ages in the WHO African Region through effective nutrition actions and services. The Programme supports Member Statesto develop, implement and monitor integrated, evidence-based policies,strategies, guidelines, multi-sectoral action plans, and programmes to prevent disease and promote health and wellbeing through access to high-impact interventions throughout the individuals’ life course. These focus on the prevention of under nutrition, overweight/obesity, diet-related noncommunicable diseases and foodborne diseases. In collaboration with the AMR Unit, the NUT Programme conducts surveillance on antimicrobial resistance in foodborne bacteria by facilitating collaboration between the agriculture, animal health,human health and environment sectors to deal with food safety aspects ofantimicrobial resistance. It promotes preparedness for, and response to,foodborne and nutritional disease outbreaks/emergencies, including inhumanitarian settings. The Programme further assists in the generation and useof data for effective programme management and service delivery to address allforms of malnutrition; promotes effective monitoring, evaluation and implementation research for programme strengthening; and ensures the fostering of strategic partnerships and integration with other teams within the organization to enhance people-centred, service delivery and with global and regional partners to ensure harmonized support for nutrition and food safety to Member States. The goal is to enable countries in the WHO African Region to ensure evidence-based policies and strategies are in place through strengthened and resilient health systems to achieve universal access to high-quality, integrated,health services, increase the coverage and quality of effective interventions,and to create mechanisms to measure the impact of those strategies and interventions.

DESCRIPTION OF DUTIES

The incumbent will be expected to perform thefollowing duties: The incumbent will implement innovative waysof working to facilitate strong collaboration and linkages with programmes, clusters,and partners (WHO Collaborating Centers, research and teaching institutions,regional and sub regional economic entities, NGOs, etc.) to ensure that appropriate, efficient and timelysupport is provided to countries, even during emergencies. Provide technical expertise for strengthening national capacities to develop,implement and monitor evidence-based policies, strategies, action plans andprogrammes that increase population access to high-impact interventions in nutrition and food safety forthe promotion of health and wellbeing throughout the life course;Build effective partnerships (within and across designated countries) with other UNagencies, civil society organizations and research institutions to supportgovernments in developing and implementing integrated and multisectoral approaches to improve the safety of food and reduce all forms of malnutrition. Provide technical guidance for country adaptation and integration of essential nutrition actions into health service delivery packages for maternal, child, adolescent, adult, and elderly care in collaboration with other regional programmes that provide life course, disease-focused and health systems services; Participate in designing, testing and disseminating AFRO-wide approaches to the integration of evidence-based,context-relevant nutrition and food safety content in preservice trainingcurricula for physicians, nurses, midwives, dieticians, nutritionists, food scientists, and public health specialists; Support country capacity building forage-appropriate nutritional assessment and the prevention and management ofwasting, other forms of malnutrition and diet/nutrition-related diseases instable and humanitarian settings. Support countries to develop and implement food safety guidelines and tools to prevent, assess and manage foodborne risks; In the context of emergencies and outbreaks, provide nutrition and food safety content and support its integration and implementation within the humanitarian response, in collaboration with the EPR (health) cluster and the partner agencies working in food security, nutrition, food safety, water and sanitation, disease control, etc.; Identify, document and share experiences, best practices and impact case studies with countries, the Regional Office, otherMCATs, and partners;Support the development and strengthening ofstrategic partnerships in designated countries, including drafting interagency proposalsfor resource mobilization to support nutrition and food safety activities and contributing to joint support for programme implementation, monitoring and evaluation; Support the development of related work-plansand budgetary proposals, as required within the framework of WHO staff Rulesand Regulations; financial rules and AFRO accepted procedures and ensure theintegration of VfM assessment, analysis and reporting in all the activitiesimplemented; Perform other related responsibilities, asassigned, including replacing and backstopping for others as required.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

Education

Essential: Postgraduate degree in Clinical or Public Nutrition and related fields, or in Food Science and Technology.
Desirable: University degree in Medicine, Public Health or Food and Nutrition

Experience

Essential: A minimum of seven years’ experience managing the development and implementationof national programmes in nutrition or food safety, including nutritionmonitoring and surveillance, especially in the African Region; Track record of delivering nutrition actions in routine health care services or in foodbornedisease surveillance and screening.
Desirable: Work experiences that are diverse, incorporating private sector, NGOs, other UN, or governmental Health related agencies will bean advantage.

Skills

Expert knowledge and ability to provide trainingin the management of malnutrition with medical complications;Proven experience in nutrition in emergencies;Capacity to translate scientific evidence for clinical and public health application;Proven experience in multisectoral action.Proven ability to innovate and to motivate, guide and foster nationalcapacity building and partnership

WHO Competencies

Teamwork
Respecting and promoting individual and cultural differences
Communication
Moving forward in a changing environment
Driving the Organization’s Position in Health Leadership
Creating an empowering and motivating environment

Use of Language Skills

Essential: Expert knowledge of English. Expert knowledge of French. Expert knowledge of Portuguese.
Desirable: Intermediate knowledge of UN Languages.
The above language requirements are interchangeable.

REMUNERATION

WHO salaries for staff in the Professional category are calculated in US dollars. The remuneration for the above position comprises an annual base salary starting at USD 77,326 (subject to mandatory deductions for pension contributions and health insurance, as applicable), a variable post adjustment, which reflects the cost of living in a particular duty station, and currently amounts to USD 2855 per month for the duty station indicated above. Other benefits include 30 days of annual leave, allowances for dependent family members, home leave, and an education grant for dependent children.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

• This vacancy notice may be used to fill other similar positions at the same grade level

• Only candidates under serious consideration will be contacted.

• A written test and/or an asynchronous video assessment may be used as a form of screening.

• In the event that your candidature is retained for an interview, you will be required to provide, in advance, a scanned copy of the degree(s)/diploma(s)/certificate(s) required for this position. WHO 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 through the link: http://www.whed.net/. Some professional certificates may not appear in the WHED and will require individual review.

• According to article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity. Due regard will be paid to the importance of recruiting the staff on as wide a geographical basis as possible.

• Any appointment/extension of appointment is subject to WHO Staff Regulations, Staff Rules and Manual.

• Staff members in other duty stations are encouraged to apply.

• The WHO is committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. The WHO recruits and employs staff regardless of disability status, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, language, race, marital status, religious, cultural, ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds, or any other personal characteristics.

• The WHO is committed to achieving gender parity and geographical diversity in its staff. Women, persons with disabilities, and nationals of unrepresented and underrepresented Member States (https://www.who.int/careers/diversity-equity-and-inclusion) are strongly encouraged to apply.

• Persons with disabilities can request reasonable accommodations to enable participation in the recruitment process. Requests for reasonable accommodation should be sent through an email to reasonableaccommodation@who.int

• An impeccable record for integrity and professional ethical standards is essential. WHO prides itself on a workforce that adheres to the highest ethical and professional standards and that is committed to put the WHO Values Charter into practice.

• WHO has zero tolerance towards sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA), sexual harassment and other types of abusive conduct (i.e., discrimination, abuse of authority and harassment). All members of the WHO workforce have a role to play in promoting a safe and respectful workplace and should report to WHO any actual or suspected cases of SEA, sexual harassment and other types of abusive conduct. To ensure that individuals with a substantiated history of SEA, sexual harassment or other types of abusive conduct are not hired by the Organization, WHO will conduct a background verification of final candidates.

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• WHO also offers wide range of benefits to staff, including parental leave and attractive flexible work arrangements to help promote a healthy work-life balance and to allow all staff members to express and develop their talents fully.

• The statutory retirement age for staff appointments is 65 years. For external applicants, only those who are expected to complete the term of appointment will normally be considered.

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