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Programme Associate, Fixed Term-GS6, Mangochi (1) - Re-advertised

Malawi

  • Organization: WFP - World Food Programme
  • Location: Malawi
  • Grade: Administrative support - GS-6, General Service - No need for Higher Education - Locally recruited position
  • Occupational Groups:
    • Administrative support
    • Project and Programme Management
  • Closing Date: Closed

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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.

Job Title: Programme Associate  - Re-advertisment 

No. Position/s: 1 (One)

VA No.: 140841

Contract Type:  Fixed Term                      Grade:  FT-G6

Date of Issue: 04 March 2021         Deadline: 18 March 2021

Functional Unit: Programme and Policy

Duty Stations:   Mangochi (1)

Position/s Duration: One year with a possibility of extension.

ABOUT WFP

The World Food Programme (WFP) is the leading humanitarian organization saving lives and changing lives, delivering food assistance in emergencies and working with communities to improve nutrition and build resilience. As the international community has committed to end hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition by 2030one in nine people worldwide still do not have enough to eat. Food and food-related assistance lie at the heart of the struggle to break the cycle of hunger and poverty. For its efforts to combat hunger, for its contribution to bettering conditions for peace in conflict-affected areas and for acting as a driving force in efforts to prevent the use of hunger as a weapon of war and conflict, WFP was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2020

Malawi is a small landlocked country in Southern Africa. With a population expanding rapidly at 3 percent per year and the majority of livelihoods dependent on agriculture, the population is highly vulnerable to the effects of climate-related disasters. Poverty is experienced by most rural families, with those headed by women suffering the most. Relying on small parcels of densely cultivated land for their livelihoods, rural Malawians are highly affected by climate change. Episodes of drought as well as severe flooding are increasing in frequency, intensity and unpredictability, giving the most vulnerable households inadequate time to recover.

Malawi’s challenges are also compounded by high rates of HIV infection (at 9.6 percent), low primary school completion rate (at 51 percent) and chronic under-nutrition (at 37 percent for children under 5). WFP continues to partner with the government, other UN agencies, NGOs, civil society and the private sector to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030, with a particular emphasis on reaching Zero Hunger (SDG 2), addressing structural drivers of hunger wherever possible.

ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT

This job is found in WFP Malawi Country office based in Mangochi.  Jobholders typically report to the Programme Officer at Blantyre Sub Office, or the designate.  

At this level, job holders are expected to demonstrate responsibility and initiative to respond independently to various queries with only general guidance. There is a requirement to use judgment in dealing with unforeseen operational problems on a daily basis. Job holders are expected to manage resources and coach and coordinate support staff.

JOB PURPOSE

To provide effective specialized support and technical analyses to policy and programme activities that effectively meet food assistance needs. 

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES (not all-inclusive)

Under the direct supervision of the Programme Officer at Blantyre Sub Office and with technical support from WFP M&E as well as Programme Unit Technical Support staff, the Senior Programme Associate will be responsible for the following duties:

Monitoring

  • Visiting a target of 20 field sites per month (2 per day) on Mondays through Thursdays each week for a total of 10 days per month.
  • Supervising the efficient distribution of cash/food items at the site and ensuring proper distribution of entitlements; verifying that appropriate entitlements are distributed, promptly responding to reports from various CFMs, and providing feedback to the Head of Section, Head of Programme for the Sub-Office, and others as required.
  • Ensuring that project implementation adheres to WFP’s gender, protection, accountability to affected population and women’s empowerment policies.
  • Coordinating and monitoring the implementation of all WFP Programmes – school meals, nutrition prevention, and resilience packet, within an integrated approach, – at the local level in close collaboration with WFP Field Monitoring Assistants (FMAs) or Joint Programme for Girls Education (JPGE) Coordinators (where applicable), WFP’s M&E Team, Government Actors, Communities, and Cooperating Partners.

  • This involves creating a monthly monitoring plan in collaboration with other field-based staff to ensure that WFP is meeting minimum monitoring requirements of visiting each nutrition prevention site once per month; each school once per quarter; and each FFA/Resilience site twice per month.
  • Supporting the preparation of documentation and accompanying donor and senior-level missions in collaboration with Country Office and Blantyre Sub-Office colleagues to visit WFP programme sites within their respective district.
  • Producing a weekly report of all data collected/sites monitored every Friday of the month. Note that staff who do not produce their weekly report will not be permitted to visit the field the following week until reports are submitted. This is a key performance indicator. Reports should be comprehensive and include details on project implementation, key trends, highlighting any issues/foreseen gaps as well as proposing solutions. This includes the submission of pictures showing “before and after “impact of activities, and creative videos where possible, etc.
  • Immediately reporting –– to the Head of Section and/or the Head of Programme in Blantyre Sub-Office any irregularities or concerns reported at the sites.

  • Participating/leading meetings with Government District, Cooperating Partners, and other stakeholders within the targeted district. The SPA is responsible for overall coordination and fostering linkages to other programmes.
  • Monitoring and reviewing all commodity movements such as food deliveries, storage, transport, and distribution at the sites as well as verifying that the amounts received have been properly recorded (if damaged or suspected to be damaged).
  • Supervising the efficient distribution of food/cash items at the site and ensuring proper distribution of entitlements; verifying that appropriate entitlements are distributed and providing feedback to the Head of Section, Head of Programme for BTSO, and others on the distributions.
  • Monitoring and ensuring that all assets created through different WFP activities meet the minimum quality standards, including in terms of management and proper utilization.

Planning, Implementation and Coordination of Programs

  • Planning and coordination of all WFP activities within the assigned district.
  • Guiding, supporting, and following the planning processes for counterparts at district level for all WFP-supported programme interventions including school meals, resilience, nutrition prevention, and emergency response/MVAC. SPA is responsible for ensuring integration and complementarity in the implementation among these interventions as well as with other partners efforts.
  • Participating in and providing on-the-job training in the facilitation of Seasonal Livelihood Programming (SLPs) and Community-Based Participatory Planning (CBPPs) sessions where appropriate/required.
  • Guiding cooperating partners in the preparation of the distribution plans for the food/cash transfers and non-food items for the interventions as well as reviewing prepared reports and providing initial clearance prior to them being submitted to the BTSO.
  • Guiding and supporting the preparation and design of the district livelihood programming workshops, implementation review meetings, and coordination meetings.

Engagement, Reporting, and Documentation

  • Representing WFP in all relevant district level meetings/coordination forums, as well as producing/submitting an overview of the discussions to the Head of Section, Head of Programme at the Blantyre Sub-Office.
  • Supporting district authorities in the consolidation and submission of reliable, consistent and regular periodic report (monthly, quarterly and end of project) both narrative and financial to WFP. This includes the monthly review of evidence on financial expenditures using a signed Face form to the Programme focal point to ensure timely submission and payments.  
  • Supporting the management of Cooperating Partner’s performance monitoring and documentation based on the provisions of the field level agreement, ensuring that their monthly invoices are correctly filled before submitting to Programme focal point to ensure timely submission and payments.
  • Supporting the collection and documentation of best practices during the project implementation processes to be used for WFP public information products, networking, advocacy, instilling ownership (for government partners), partnership development, and the development of scale up strategies.

Supervisory Role

  • Supervising and provide technical support to the Field Monitor Assistant(s) (FMA) within the district.
  • Ensuring compliance with WFP policies, criteria and procedures with respect to the management of WFP food assistance programs.
  • Developing proper filing systems for letters, reports, project documents, and other key documentation.

General

  • Ensuring that project implementation adheres to the WFP’s general principles and policies; and AAP, gender and women’s empowerment policies in particular.
  • Perform other related duties as required.

STANDARD MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

Education: Completion of secondary school education with a post-secondary certificate in the related functional area. OR a first-level university degree in international affairs, development, economics, statistics, M&E, social sciences or related functional area. Completion of specialized training in quantitative analysis and data management is an added advantage.  

Experience: At least 5 years of progressively responsible experience in M&E and/or related work where multiple projects are involved.

Language: Fluency in both oral and written communication in English. Knowledge of the local language or UN official language is an added advantage.

4Ps CORE ORGANISATIONAL CAPABILITIES

Purpose

  • Understand and communicate the Strategic Objectives: Coaches team in the most effective ways to communicate WFP’s Strategic Objectives to WFP team and partners in the field.
  •  Be a force for positive change: Implements new methods or tools to improve team’s work processes and productivity.
  •  Make the mission inspiring to our team: Maps team’s activities and tasks to specific successes in beneficiary communities to showcase positive impact.
  •  Make our mission visible in everyday actions: Explains to teammates how each unit contributes to the overall WFP mission.

People

  • Look for ways to strengthen people's skills: Identifies skill development opportunities such as training modules or on-the-job experiences for self, colleagues and direct reports.
  •  Create an inclusive culture: Facilitates team building activities to build rapport in own unit.
  •  Be a coach & provide constructive feedback: Facilitates the pairing of junior colleagues with coaches within own team.
  •  Create an “I will”/”We will” spirit: Proactively anticipates potential challenges and develops mitigation plans to ensure that team meets goals and targets.

Performance

  • Encourage innovation & creative solutions: Identifies opportunities to be creative in own work and to help team be more innovative and accurate in their respective tasks and areas of work.
  •  Focus on getting results: Monitors team’s deliverables and provides feedback to ensure outcomes are delivered consistently and accurately.
  •  Make commitments and make good on commitments: Provides accurate guidance to team on expected responsibilities and tasks, whilst also upholding own commitment to the team.
  •  Be Decisive: Sets an example and provides guidance to junior team members on when to escalate issues when faced with challenging issues in the workplace or in the field.

Partnership

  • Connect and share across WFP units: Facilitates partnerships with other WFP units to accomplish missions in the field.
  •  Build strong external partnerships: Sets an example and provides guidance to team on how to build relationships with external partners.
  •  Be politically agile & adaptable: Articulates to colleagues or direct reports the value of contributing to other WFP teams and agency partnerships in fulfilling WFP’s goals and objectives.
  •  Be clear about the value WFP brings to partnerships: Organizes, monitors, and prioritizes own and team’s efforts to ensure that they will fulfil the needs of internal and external partners.

FUNCTIONAL CAPABILITIES

Capability Name Description of the behaviour expected for the proficiency level
Programme Lifecycle & Food Assistance Demonstrates ability to identify key variables and contextual factors that affect food assistance problems and programmes throughout the lifecycle to inform quality programme design or re-design.
Transfer Modalities (Food, Cash, Vouchers) Demonstrates ability to implement, under guidance, food assistance programmes deploying the full range of transfer modalities with an understanding of basic principles guiding modality selection and implementation.
Broad Knowledge of Specialized Areas Understands basic technical concepts and data and their relevance to food assistance programmes.
Emergency Programming Displays capacity to provide inputs into the development, implementation and realignment of high quality emergency programmes.
Strategic Policy Engagement w/Government Understands and applies basic principles of engagement with government counterparts at the national or local level.

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Female applicants 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.

This vacancy is now closed.
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