Social and Community Participation Specialist

Phnom Penh

Organization: FAO - Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Location: Phnom Penh
Grade: Consultancy - Consultant - Contractors Agreement
Occupational Groups:
- Social Affairs
- Civil Society and Local governance
Closing Date: Closed

FAO seeks gender, geographical and linguistic diversity in its staff and international consultants in order to best serve FAO Members in all regions.

FAO is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality, background and culture
Qualified female applicants, qualified nationals of non-and under-represented Members and person with disabilities are encouraged to apply
Everyone who works for FAO is required to adhere to the highest standards of integrity and professional conduct, and to uphold FAO's values
FAO, as a Specialized Agency of the United Nations, has a zero-tolerance policy for conduct that is incompatible with its status, objectives and mandate, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination　　
All selected candidates will undergo rigorous reference and background checks
All applications will be treated with the strictest confidentiality
FAO staff are subject to the authority of the Director-General, who may assign them to any of the activities or offices of the Organization.

Organizational Setting

The “School food nutrition guidelines and standards for safeguarding children and adolescents’ right to food” project has set to accomplish two mutually-reinforcing outcomes: 1) improve children’s and adolescents’ diets, through the regular consumption of school food that is better aligned with their food and nutrition needs and situation, and through the adoption of health-promoting food practices, and 2) enhance legal recognition and civil awareness of adequate school meals/food as legal requirements to children’s right to food.

The overall strategy to achieve the outcomes is centred on constructing a global methodology for developing cost-effective, feasible, participatory, context-specific, flexible and (food) systems-based school food nutrition guidelines and standards (NGS), and to promote tools and complementary measures that can enhance their impact, as well as their integration into national legal frameworks anchored in the Right to Food.

The methodology will be piloted in Ghana and Cambodia at subnational level with the purpose of testing, reviewing, improving and measuring results, and documenting lessons learned. Global and country level capacity development, communication and advocacy strategies are planned to further support and complement the results.

Reporting Lines

The Food Environment Specialist works in close coordination with the National Project Coordinator, under direct supervision of the Head of Operations, the overall supervision of the FAO Representative in Cambodia and the technical direction of the Lead Technical officer (LTO) and Project Team based in ESN, Rome.

Technical Focus

Social Behavior and Community Engagement
Nutrition Guidelines and Standards
School Meal Programmes

Tasks and responsibilities

Develop a workplan for the consultancy including timeframes for regular updates to the national coordinator and HQ technical advisor;
Identify existing mechanisms where children and caregivers are actively involved in school affairs;
Design and support the setting of participation mechanisms in pilot schools, with a focus on monitoring the quality of school meals (including use of creative engagements);
Liaise with WFP counterparts as needed;
Perform other duties as required.

CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING

Minimum Requirements

Advanced university degree in social and behavioural science, psychology, sociology, public health or any relevant field.
At least 3 years of relevant working experience in School Meal Programmes;
At least 5 years of relevant working experience in designing behaviour change interventions at community level.
Familiarity with social and community participation strategies and mechanisms.
Working knowledge of English and Khmer
National of Cambodia or resident in the country with a regular work permit.

FAO Core Competencies

Results Focus
Teamwork
Communication
Building Effective Relationships
Knowledge Sharing and Continuous Improvement

Technical/Functional Skills

Extent and relevance of experience in developing and implementing social behaviour change concepts and activities.
Demonstrated knowledge on School Meals Programme and Nutrition Guidelines and Standards will be considered an advantage.
Ability to engage and deal with stakeholders at national, sub-national and district level.
Ability to produce quality reports both in English and Khmer

Please note that all candidates should adhere to FAO Values of Commitment to FAO, Respect for All and Integrity and Transparency.