US - Monitoring & Evaluation Data Analysis Officer - Bamako, Mali

WFP seeks candidates of the highest integrity and professionalism who share our humanitarian principles.

Selection of staff is made on a competitive basis, and we are committed to promoting diversity and gender balance.

This post is a Junior Professional Officer (JPO) Programme sponsored by the Government of The United States of America for exclusively Nationals of United States eligible for the US JPO Programme.

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.

In Mali, humanitarian actors implement projects in a complex and challenging context marked by high vulnerability to food insecurity and malnutrition, as well as difficult humanitarian access due to increased insecurity in the northern and, more recently, central regions of Mali. The highly volatile insecurity in the northern and central regions of Mali where humanitarian needs are the most important prevents WFP as well as other UN agencies, government, and more and more international NGOs to access communities and vulnerable populations.

In this challenging context, WFP adapted its modus operandi and its information system to ensure its access in insecure areas to vulnerable communities. In particular, WFP developed a set of mechanisms and tools to improve its food security and nutrition information systems as well as monitoring system to be functional, flexible and reliable in conflict affected areas to improve its response.

Under the direct supervision of the M&E and VAM Officer, the JPO will have the following responsibilities:

• Contribute to the planning and implementation of monitoring and evaluation activities on effectiveness of all WFP interventions (e.g. beneficiary needs and status, food security status, programme modalities, implementation challenges, etc.).
• In close collaboration with VAM, contribute to the analysis of outcome data and recommend improvements to programme interventions and to enhance WFPs ability to demonstrate outcome focused results, mainstreaming gender and protection issues
• Support M&E team in close collaboration with programme units to pilot specific technical studies such as cost benefit studies
• Produce frequent monitoring and evaluation progress reports with status of results and implementation of improvements.
• Contribute to the data visualization of M&E and VAM data and results
• Liaise with programme, communication and donor relation teams to discuss way forward on knowledge management and communication
• Explore use of program data/analysis to illustrate WFP’s resilience, food security and nutrition outcomes and achievements at country level for use in communication materials and briefs, workshops.

• Contribute to food security and nutrition data collection and analyses with VAM team and the food security cluster at national and regional level (food security and nutrition briefings and newsletter, participation to the Cadre Harmonise, etc.) to better inform the identification, design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of food security and nutrition response; 
• Providing technical support and ensure capacity building of food security cluster partners (both at national and sub-national level) to improve quality and accountability of operations: support definition and harmonization of food security standards and tools (e.g. definition of food basket, minimum expenditure basket, targeting methods and criteria, food security indicators, M&E tools, etc.) and ensure mainstreaming of cross-cutting issues in food security interventions (protection, accountability to affected populations, gender, age, human rights, environment and sustainable development goals, etc.);
• Carry out analyses of available information to feed into knowledge and communication products, as required
• Participate in capacity building of institutions, food security cluster and WFP partners in appropriate monitoring and evaluation techniques and data visualization to increase awareness on the importance of monitoring and evaluation and encourage accountability for demonstrating results.
• Work in close collaboration with internal counterparts, external partners and the food security cluster to strengthen the quality and consistency of monitoring and evaluation activities in the field.
• Provide monitoring and evaluation findings and recommendations to support performance planning and risk analysis, emergency preparedness, security risk management and risk mitigation activities.
• Act in an assigned emergency response capacity as required to meet emergency food assistance needs.

• Advanced University Degree, or University degree with additional experience and training/courses in Food Security, Agriculture, Economics, Political Science, Humanitarian Affairs, Statistics, Data Science, Information Technology, Information Systems, Communications or other related field;
• Minimum two to three years post graduate working related experience
• Proficiency in both oral and written French; English is a must;
• Proficiency in Windows MS Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook);
• Experience in collecting and conducting quantitative and qualitative analyses, and reporting findings to various audiences;
• Ability to work with a diverse group of stakeholders, including state actors and local civil society, and develop consensus;
• Knowledge of and experience in using advanced Excel and data analysis and visualization software, including proficiency with databases;
• Ability to present information in understandable tables, charts and graphs.

To perform the wide range of tasks and excel in this position, the ideal candidate would also possess:

• Exposure to the international arena either by direct work for an international institution/organization; or, if working for a national entity, by way of interacting with international stakeholders;
• Experience in humanitarian response including in the food security and nutrition sectors and in an emergency context;
• Understanding of the international humanitarian response architecture, including coordination mechanisms, humanitarian reform and action, donors and funding mechanisms;
• Experience in food security and nutrition information systems and project implementation
• Understanding of M&E information systems, GIS/Cartographic outputs and ability to collect and organize data to support their production (potentially to be produced by others);
• Ability to work productively in a high-pressure environment and to maintain visibly high levels of morale in difficult circumstances;
• Behavioural competencies such as Action Management, Client Orientation, Cognitive Capacity, Innovation, Partnering and Teamwork;
• As WFP’s international professionals are required to serve in different locations around the world during the course of their career (including in hardship duty stations), willingness to be mobile would maximise opportunities for long-term retention into the Organization;

The JPO will be directly supervised by the M&E and VAM Officer, who will provide on-the-job coaching and mentoring. The Head of Programme will act as second-level supervisor.

The JPO will also receive on the job training in the Country Office and through field visits to WFP project sites and WFP sub-offices. Some areas may be out of bounds for non-essential staff. Any in-country duty travel may be restricted based on updated security assessment.

The direct supervisors will assist the JPO in identifying appropriate trainings in line with his/her career development goals, and the JPO may attend trainings in work-related fields depending on work commitments and availability.

At the end of the two-year assignment, the JPO should have obtained:

• Very good knowledge of humanitarian system architecture and mechanisms in a challenging relief and recovery setting.
• Very good knowledge of overall food security and nutrition sector strategic objectives, activities, core policies and standards, humanitarian principles and cross-cutting issues.
• Very good knowledge of M&E standards and procedures, food security, resilience and nutrition outcomes and knowledge management
• Good skills in bringing together various stakeholders with conflicting interests and agendas through reinforced mediation capabilities.
• Familiarity with the United Nations System and inter-agency processes, including the Cluster approach, as well as government stakeholders and the technical and financial partners in Mali.
• Good general understanding of WFP’s overall operations and activities in the region of assignment.

31 August, 2019

Female applicants and qualified applicants from developing countries are especially encouraged to apply

WFP has zero tolerance for discrimination and does not discriminate on the basis of HIV/AIDS status.

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.