DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS

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).

WFP encourages female candidates and people with disabilities to apply.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE OF THE ASSIGNMENT:

About WFP:

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) 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 the most vulnerable, particularly women and children, can access the nutritious food they need.

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 is 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 Provincial Project Coordinator for Karnali Province who will support the NAFHA project execution at the provincial and local level in Karnali Province.

Job Purpose:

The Programme Policy Officer (GAFSP Provincial Project Coordinator) shall be responsible for coordinating the Vegetables in Hilly Area Project which is part of 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 CONDITION

Position Title: Programme Policy Officer (GAFSP Project Provincial Coordinator)-Karnali Province

Contract Type: Service Contract (SC)
Level: SC L8

Contract Duration: 12 months (Renewable)

Duty Station: Surkhet, Karnali Province

Date of Publication: 04.03.2026
Deadline of Application: 17.03.2026
WFP offers a competitive benefits package including salary plus CIGNA health insurance.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES/RESPONSIBILITIES:

The Programme Policy Officer (GAFSP Provincial Project Coordinator) will work under the functional supervision of Programme Policy Officer (GAFSP Project Coordinator) and administrative supervision of Head of WFP Western Nepal Region Field Office, with the overall guidance of Deputy Head of Programme/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:

1.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, National Climate Change Policy, National Nutrition Policy, and Strategy, etc) and wider UN strategic focus areas related to nutrition, agriculture, and livelihoods.
2.Support for the implementation, monitoring and reporting of the GAFSP-funded component of the NAFHA project at the provincial level.
3.Provide strategic support to the Project Implementation Unit (PIU) in the plan development and implementation of the GAFSP-funded component of NAFHA.
4.Support in training and workshops related to the project activities, including Training of Trainers/Facilitators (ToTs/ToFs) to Junior technicians/Junior technical assistants (JTs/JTAs) of the NAFHA project and resource farmers to facilitate FNS.
5.Facilitate and provide technical backstopping to JTs/JTAs in the formation FNS groups and the organization of FNS trainings including FNS follow-up and household nutrition-related activities in coordination with PIU and Local Governments.
6.Support to implement FNS, develop and deliver a package of practices including a diversity kit to enhance household availability and utilization of nutritious food.
7.Facilitate market linkage for smallholder farmers to localize the market leveraging the Home-Grown School Feeding (HGSF) approach at the province level in collaboration with the provincial and local level stakeholders.

8.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.
9.Support for nutrition integration across project interventions by identifying complementarities with the MSNP and other programmes.

10.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.
11.Support to draft best practices and lessons learned from the project for organizational sharing and learning.
12.Identify, assess, and mitigate potential project risks, taking proactive measures to mitigate them and minimize their impact on project delivery.
13.Support in establishing working relations with provincial stakeholders and other like-minded public and private sector organizations and provide technical assistance as required.
14.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.
15.Contribute to the NAFHA project related evaluation including GAFSP Project’s endline evaluation processes.
16.Provide technical backstopping, conduct monitoring, and ensure timely information collection and reporting of field activities conducted by project staff at the field level.
17.Contribute to the organization of and/or participate in meetings, conferences, workshops, consultations, and field visits as needed; contribute to building collaborations and partnerships.
18.Contribute to effective communication and coordination with field/district/central project teams and other stakeholders.
19.Perform other related duties as assigned by the supervisor and the Provincial Directorate of Agriculture Development as required in project-related tasks.

QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE REQUIRED:

Education: Advanced university (Master) 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.

Experience:
•At least one year of relevant professional experience after an advanced university (Master) degree is required. More years of experience in vegetable production, agriculture value chain, market linkage, marketing, climate change adaptation in agriculture and food systems, and relevant programme management/planning and implementation 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 agriculture, 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.

Languages: Excellent proficiency in both oral and written English and Nepali languages.

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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:  global.inclusion@wfp.org

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

• All applications must be submitted exclusively through our online recruiting system. We do not consider CVs or applications sent by email, LinkedIn, or any other channel.

• We strongly recommend that your Workday profile is accurate and complete, and that all sections are filled in, including your employment history, academic qualifications, language skills, and UN grade (if applicable). Once your profile is completed, please apply, and submit your application.

• If you experience technical issues while submitting your application, you may contact us at global.hrerecruitment@wfp.org. Please note that this email is only for technical issues with an application - unsolicited applications or documents sent to this inbox will not receive a reply.

• At the application stage, the only required documents are your CV and Cover Letter. Additional documents (passport, certificates, recommendation letters, etc.) may be requested later in the process.

• Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and invited to proceed to the next stage of the recruitment process.

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.