JOB DESCRIPTION

DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS

15 October 2025-23:59-GMT+08:00 Philippine Standard Time (Manila)

WFP celebrates and embraces diversity. It is committed to the principle of equal employment opportunity for all its employees and encourages qualified candidates to apply irrespective of race, colour, national origin, ethnic or social background, genetic information, gender, gender identity and/or expression, sexual orientation, religion or belief, HIV status or disability.

ABOUT WFP

The World Food Programme is the world’s largest humanitarian organization saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to build a pathway to peace, stability and prosperity, for people recovering from conflict, disasters and the impact of climate change.

At WFP, people are at the heart of everything we do and the vision of the future WFP workforce is one of diverse, committed, skilled, and high performing teams, selected on merit, operating in a healthy and inclusive work environment, living WFP”s values (Integrity, Collaboration, Commitment, Humanity, and Inclusion) and working with partners to save and change the lives of those WFP serves.

To learn more about WFP, visit our website: https://www.wfp.org and follow us on social media to keep up with our latest news: YouTube, LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, TikTok.

WHY JOIN WFP?

• WFP is a 2020 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate.
• WFP offers a highly inclusive, diverse, and multicultural working environment.
• WFP invests in the personal & professional development of its employees through a range of training, accreditation, coaching, mentorship, and other programs as well as through internal mobility opportunities.
• A career path in WFP provides an exciting opportunity to work across the various country, regional and global offices around the world, and with passionate colleagues who work tirelessly to ensure that effective humanitarian assistance reaches millions of people across the globe.
• We offer an attractive compensation package (please refer to the Terms and Conditions section of this vacancy announcement).

In the Philippines, WFP’s efforts are guided by its work outlined in the Philippines Country Strategic Plan (CSP) 2024-2028. WFP focuses on strengthening government systems at the national, local government unit and Bangsamoro Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) levels to further build the resilience of vulnerable individuals and communities.

The CSP is aligned with national strategies and policies as well as the United Nations Sustainable Development Framework and is guided by three interrelated outcomes:

• By 2028, communities exposed to shocks and stressors in the Philippines are better able to meet food, nutrition and other essential needs with inclusive and equitable emergency preparedness and response capacity at the national and local levels.
• By 2028, communities vulnerable to food and nutrition insecurity in the Philippines are more resilient and can better manage risks affecting human capital gains and food systems, inclusively and equitably.
• The Government and partners in the Philippines access WFP services that augment their interventions, upon request.

These strategic objectives are framed within the context of the Philippines being on the verge of becoming and upper-middle income country, while at the same time being one of the world’s most disaster-prone countries. Disasters remain a leading cause of hunger, affecting all aspects of food security: economic and physical access to food, availability and stability of supplies, and nutrition.

While WFP Philippines maintains a strong capacity to respond directly when significant shocks occur, the overall emphasis of the Country Office lies on systems strengthening (disaster risk management, social protection and food systems) at national, LGU and BARMM levels. WFP utilizes its field operations expertise to support the Government in delivering on key food programmes linked to its mandate and the CSP, including supporting the conceptualization and roll out of national priority programmes such as Walang Gutom 2027 and LAWA (Local Adaptation to Water Access) at BINHI (Breaking Insufficiency through Nutritious Harvest for the Impoverished) and modelling globally proven programmes such as home-grown school feeding – linking local smallholder farmers production to the institutional demand of school meals programmes. WFP engages at the national level on policy dialogue, supporting legislative advances in areas such as school meals, anticipatory action and rice fortification.

JOB TITLE: Programme Associate (Social Behavioural Change)
TYPE OF CONTRACT: Service Contract (SC) 
JOB GRADE: SC-6
NO. OF POSITIONS: Two (2)
DUTY STATION (City, Country): Cotabato, Philippines
DURATION: 12 months

These positions are open to Filipino nationals only.

ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT:

Smallholder farmers and fisherfolk in BARMM have limited resources, information, and training to increase their yield and undertake value- adding activities necessary to improve their livelihoods. The economic insufficiencies deprive them of resources to spend on food security, nutrition, housing, education, healthcare, and other non-food essentials. Moreover, inadequate agricultural infrastructure, poor soil and water management practices and land tenurial issues impedes smallholders’ abilities to become self-reliant. Improved climate-smart agricultural practices and equitable inclusion of women and men smallholder farmers and fisherfolk into value chains is a crucial missing link to sustainably solve the prevalent poverty index and quell the low nutritional indicators that have affected the BARMM region for decades.

 

WFP works with the BARMM Government and other key partners to implement an integrated package of interventions to build the resilience and self-reliance of target populations. Specifically, WFP:

• Contributes to smallholders’ economic sustainability by promoting their inclusion in the value chain through creation of rural infrastructure by engaging vulnerable communities in the creation of farm-to-market roads; irrigation canals, reforestation, soil conservation and water harvesting structures, and development of post-harvest facilities.
• Supports the formation of farmer and fisher associations/cooperatives and their inclusion in value chains by strengthening access to markets such as the Home-Grown School Feeding (HGSF) Programme and other institutional markets.
• Provides provides safe, diverse and nutritious hot meals to primary-aged school children that are sourced locally from smallholder farmers.

 

A cross-cutting component of the programme is the empowerment of learners, teachers, parents, guardians, food producers and the wider community through Social and Behavioural Change (SBC) initiatives. These initiatives positively enable behavior change for enhanced knowledge, attitudes and practices in the realm of nutrition awareness, health and gender transformation. SBC is a set of context-specific approaches, activities, or tools to positively enable behavior change. Behavior is contextual; therefore, the interventions target interpersonal influences, organizational factors, community characteristics, as well as the policy environment, including local and national food and nutrition-related policies. SBC uses an integrated approach to enable systemic change.

 

JOB PURPOSE:

The Programme Associates (SBC) are responsible to support the enhanced uptake of livelihoods programmes linked to climate resilience and market access for smallholder farmers and enhance nutrition education and practices of school children. The roles sit within the Integrated Resilience (IR) team. These are full-time, in-person positions based in the Cotabato Field Office.

 

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

The Programme Associates (SBC) will be directly reporting to Programme Policy Officers responsible for School Meals and Value Chain portfolios. Their work will be carried out with overall guidance of the Head of Integrated Resilience and strategic leadership of the Head of Field Office.

 

They will provide both technical and administrative support in the implementation of activities under the Integrated Resilience portfolio.  The roles involve analysis, coordination, capacity strengthening, documentation, monitoring and operational support to ensure sound delivery of the IR portfolio. Specific duties include:

 

Analysis

• Assist in co-facilitating inclusive and gender-responsive community consultations and planning to empower target communities and partners in the identification of priorities, opportunities and solutions for existing challenges of food-insecure populations.

Coordination & Implementation

• Under guidance from the SBC lead, support the development and application of the SBC strategy in BARMM, ensuring alignment with the broader Integrated Resilience Implementation Plan, Market and Livelihoods Framework (MALF) and WFP’s Gender and Inclusion Policy.
• Provide technical support and assistance in the development and implementation of audience-tailored SBC initiatives to enhance the uptake of livelihood programmes linked to climate resilience and market access for smallholder farmers and promote healthy diets and nutrition education for school children.
• Build and cultivate strategic relationships at the community level, with government, and with other partners in ways that lead to increased impact and local ownership of SBC initiatives.
• Regularly liaise across functional units in the Cotabato Field Office and Country Office to support effective collaboration, implementation and monitoring of ongoing project activities.

Capacity Strengthening

• Co-develop and implement SBC strategies and training modules on topics such as food security, healthy diets, nutrition education, market access, climate resilience, cooperative development, gender transformation and other empowerment initiatives that are evidence-based and community-driven in collaboration with government partners and other stakeholders.
• Assist in the conduct of workshops, community seminars and other capacity building activities in collaboration with cooperating partners, stakeholders in the community and the BARMM Government.

Monitoring and Knowledge Management 

• Contribute to accurate and timely reporting and documentation on programmes to enable informed decision making and consistency of information presented to stakeholders.
• Co-develop and utilize WFP corporate systems and reporting processes to track the effectiveness of SBC interventions and provide feedback to improve future efforts.
• Provide inputs and support to visibility material and social media content by assisting in collection of photo and narrative materials for achievements and success stories in coordination with the Communications unit.
• Perform other related responsibilities and tasks which may include workstreams in school feeding, social protection, anticipatory action, emergency response, gender and disability mainstreaming, and other key areas of work, as required and guided by management.

QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE DESIRED:

 

EDUCATION: 

• Required: Completion of secondary education.
• Preferred: A bachelor’s degree in Social or Behavioural Sciences, Development Studies, Public Health, Communications, or a closely related field.

EXPERIENCE: 

• At least six (6) years of relevant experience in a unit or department of a public or private sector responsible for project management, coordination, strategic planning, communications, and programme implementation.
• Demonstrated capacity to design, develop, and implement SBC activities, particularly community-based interventions that promote positive behaviour change.
• Demonstrated capacity in working with or supporting government agencies.
• Familiarity with national policies, strategies, or frameworks related to rural development, food systems, agriculture, value chains, climate change and other related fields.
• Experience supporting development or humanitarian projects, preferably in food security, nutrition, food systems, rural development, public health, or development communication.

 

KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS:

• Demonstrative sensitivity to local cultural knowledge, attitude, practices, and beliefs.
• Ability to work in a team and establish effective, empathic working relationships with people of different diverse backgrounds and identities.
• Proactive and keen willingness to learn and take on tasks.
• Experience with capacity strengthening, from development of training modules to facilitation of large group workshops, seminars, or trainings.
• Knowledge on formative research methods, including quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods.
• Strong analytical, communications, and writing skills.
• Ability to work within tight deadlines and manage multiple tasks simultaneously and independently.
• Proven ability to conceptualize, develop, plan, and manage project activities.
• Advanced computer skills with mastery of Windows and Microsoft Office.

 

LANGUAGE: Excellent knowledge of written and spoken English and Filipino; Knowledge on the local language in BARMM is desirable.

WFP LEADERSHIP FRAMEWORK

 

WFP Leadership Framework guides to the common standards of behavior that guide HOW we work together to accomplish our mission.

Click here to access WFP Leadership Framework

 

REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION

 

WFP is committed to supporting individuals with disabilities by providing reasonable accommodations throughout the recruitment process. If you require a reasonable accommodation, please contact:  [email protected]

NO FEE DISCLAIMER

 

The United Nations does not charge any application, processing, training, interviewing, testing or other fee in connection with the application or recruitment process. Should you receive a solicitation for the payment of a fee, please disregard it. Furthermore, please note that emblems, logos, names and addresses are easily copied and reproduced. Therefore, you are advised to apply particular care when submitting personal information on the web.

 

REMINDERS BEFORE YOU SUBMIT YOUR APPLICATION

• We strongly recommend that your profile is accurate, complete, and includes your employment records, academic qualifications, language skills and UN Grade (if applicable).
• Once your profile is completed, please apply, and submit your application.
• Please make sure you upload your professional CV in the English language
• Kindly note the only documents you will need to submit at this time are your CV and Cover Letter
• Additional documents such as passport, recommendation letters, academic certificates, etc. may potentially be requested at a future time
• Please contact us at [email protected] in case you face any challenges with submitting your application
• Only shortlisted candidates will be notified

All employment decisions are made on the basis of organizational needs, job requirements, merit, and individual qualifications. WFP is committed to providing an inclusive work environment free of sexual exploitation and abuse, all forms of discrimination, any kind of harassment, sexual harassment, and abuse of authority. Therefore, all selected candidates will undergo rigorous reference and background checks.

No appointment under any kind of contract will be offered to members of the UN Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ), International Civil Service Commission (ICSC), FAO Finance Committee, WFP External Auditor, WFP Audit Committee, Joint Inspection Unit (JIU) and other similar bodies within the United Nations system with oversight responsibilities over WFP, both during their service and within three years of ceasing that service.

Level of Education: Bachelor Degree

Work Hours: 8

Experience in Months: No requirements