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Humanitarian Military Interaction (HMI) - Consultant

Panama

  • Organization: WFP - World Food Programme
  • Location: Panama
  • Grade: Consultancy - International Consultant - Internationally recruited Contractors Agreement
  • Occupational Groups:
    • Humanitarian Aid and Coordination
  • Closing Date: Closed

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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 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.

JOB PURPOSE

 

The current state of humanitarian response is characterized by more frequent natural disasters and the protracted nature of the most severe conflict-driven crises. Due to its mandate, large operational presence, and size, WFP is more regularly operating in complex contexts where state and non-state armed actors are present. This has resulted in the need to operate in the same geographic space.  As a result, WFP is working to establish a dialogue with military entities in areas of operations to ensure our safe and risk reduced field presence. Within this work, establishing and improving the information-sharing (within the framework of WFP's upcoming access strategy in Latin America and the Caribbean) process with military counterpart(s) and ensuring that they are aligned with WFP’s humanitarian principles, is essential to coordinate predictable and systematic WFP staff access to those most in need.

The Humanitarian and Military Interaction (HMI) Officer in the Regional Office will provide technical support to the Country Offices and Regional Bureau management on civil-military coordination, access, and logistics coordination, depending on the arising needs. The HMO Officer will work in close consultation and coordination with the Peace and Conflict, Protection, Programme, Security and Logistic staff in RBP. This position aims to ensure that there is a coordinated, coherent, principled and predictable humanitarian approach to civil-military coordination that enables the implementation of WFP programmes, with the aim of enabling WFP operations.

The HMI Officer will report to Regional SC Officer in the Regional Bureau.

RESPONSIBILITIES - Coordination:

 

Act as WFP’s main focal point for all regional civil-military issues, in close consultation with the Country Offices, and, in particular, the following units: Security, Programme, Protection, and Logistics. Support the Regional Bureau’s management in initiating, where appropriate, and maintaining dialogue and coordination with regional, and international militaries, UN agencies, relevant Cluster representatives and other humanitarian actors to ensure the appropriate level of preparedness and mutual information sharing. Key civil-military interlocutors to draw on include, but are not limited to, the following:
- International, multinational and foreign armed forces active within the region, including holding the primary relationship with US SOUTHCOM’s Joint Task Force Bravo in Honduras.
- National Militaries who have a role in responding to humanitarian crises, either domestically or in bilateral support to neighbouring countries.
- Regional and national Civil-Military counterparts in the humanitarian community.

Specifically, this will require the HMI Officer to:
- Create and implement WFP's civil-military strategy in the region, with close collaboration and contributions from the different RBP Protection, Programme, Security and Logistic units and civil-military focal points including the Caribbean Multi-Country Office HMI Officer. 
- Contribute to the elaboration of the humanitarian access strategy for the region in collaboration with programme, security, supply chain and protection within the Regional Access Cell.
- Liaise and coordinate – at the regional level and where appropriate – with regional authorities, security actors, humanitarian partners and other stakeholders to ensure a coherent, consistent, principled and predictable civil-military approach in the geographical areas covered by WFP operations in Latin America and the Caribbean.
- Establish and maintain contacts with other UN agencies or regionally based staff who are responsible for civil-military relations, including international humanitarian (e.g. ICRC) focal points for Civil-Military Coordination.
- Understand the types of military / civil defence logistics assets that can be used in the region, map their location and understanding the process to request / activate their use.
- Prepare or provide input to requests for Foreign Military Assets (FMA) in the region and support/facilitate their deployment as necessary, acting as the inter-face for the UN, should OCHA be unable or unwilling to.  
- Work closely and constructively with OCHA’s Regional Office, OCHA’s national CMC focal-points and broader humanitarian interagency community.
- In the absence of OCHA due to lack of presence or resources, convene and coordinate a LAC regional CivMil Working Group and leadership on regional CivMil forums (possibly building on the IFRC Panama multi-day Civil Military Relations Advisory & Strategic Workshop in May 2021).
- Support and mentor WFP personnel on all issues connected to civil-military relations. 
- Where possible and appropriate, participate in or support planning activities and training exercises/events with relevant military/national counterparts, including Exercise Tradewinds and CABSEC/SAMSEC security summits.
- Promote greater adherence to humanitarian principles and existing civil-military guidance documents.

RESPONSABILITIES - Operations:

The HMI Consultant will act as the main WFP focal point for civil-military coordination issues in the region, and this will involve:
- In an emergency response, ensure the early establishment of coordination procedures relevant to civil-military coordination and their communication to humanitarian actors through the relevant operational manager(s). 
- In close coordination with the relevant Security Officer(s), as well as UNDSS, promulgating and advocating to security and military forces on the range of planning and operational activities of the WFP / WFP Country Offices, while ensuring alignment with WFP humanitarian principles. Ensure that WFP humanitarian principles, operational priorities and contingency plans when related to civil-military relations, are communicated and duly considered.
- Support Country Offices in the region to identify, monitor and analyse potential triggers for access constraints to enable adequate analysis, preparedness and development of relevant contingency planning. 
- In collaboration with Protection, Programme, Logistics and Security Units in RBP and COs, support Country Offices to integrate civil-military considerations into the overall design of their programmes. 
- Providing assistance on civil-military considerations for the development of implementation plans to assist WFP in emergency response.
- Drafting and facilitating the development of regional and, where relevant, country-specific guidelines on civil-military relations and the use of military assets of national and international forces, for WFP or, where required, for the humanitarian community.
- Assisting and facilitating the development of country-specific guidelines on relations with local armed actors, including in urban contexts, and their commanders, in liaison with local authorities.
- Sensitizing and training of humanitarian, civilian and military actors to ensure a common approach and understanding of WFP humanitarian principles and civil-military parameters. 
- Act as WFP surge focal point in civil-military/access response in the event of a sudden onset natural disaster or other emergency event. 
- Provide guidance and support to the Venezuela operation in the establishment of the necessary coordination mechanisms with Venezuelan military authorities including ZODI command (Zone of Operation for Integrated Defence) in the states where WFP is/will be operating, as well as support local negotiations by training the national civil-military liaison officer who will be recruited.

RESPONSABILITIES - Reporting:

- Creating and maintaining an 'actor mapping' of the actors involved in Civil-Military Coordination in the region: humanitarian partners, armed forces, multinational armed forces, etc.
- Assess the extent of logistics civil-military coordination required during an emergency and the exchange of information for operational planning and de-confliction. 
- Delineate the process and protocol to cease military involvement in logistics coordination and response, include both wide and clear communication of the triggers to all actors (humanitarian and military alike). 
- Monitor and report on the progress of civil-military relations, in agreed formats and timeframes. 
- On a daily basis, in coordination with the Security, Protection, Logistics and Programme Teams, conduct an ongoing assessment of the civil-military environment to identify difficulties and challenges in the interaction between the humanitarian and military communities in the region, with the aim of formulating and implementing a regional access strategy, or in collaboration with Programme, Security, Protection and Logistics colleagues supporting country offices in their access strategies.

STANDARD MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

 

Education: University degree or equivalent experience and training in one or more of the following disciplines: security, international relations, political/social science, business administration, economics, or management. OCHA UN-CMCoord training is an advantage.
 

Work Experience: At least eight years of professional experience in international humanitarian work or in a Civil-Military Coordination, Logistics, Security or other operational management function, or military experience. Substantial exposure or experience in both sectors and proven field references of facilitating humanitarian access is a strong asset.
 

Languages: Fluency in spoken and written Spanish is required, and a working proficiency in and English is necessary. Knowledge of French is a significant asset.
 

Key Competencies: Good analytical and problem solving skills; resourcefulness, initiative, maturity of judgement, tact, negotiating skills; knowledge and experience in the application of Civil-Military Coordination, international policies and practices; ability to cope with situations which may threaten health or safety (own, and others); flexibility in accepting work assignments outside normal desk description; ability to prioritise and to plan, coordinate and monitor own work plan in line with operational requirements; willingness to travel in the region and work in difficult environments/field locations.

TERMS AND CONDITIONS

 

Position: Humanitarian Military Interaction (HMI) - Consultant

Number of openings: 1

Based in: Panama City, Panama

Type of Contract: International CST Level II 

Duration: 11 months

Successful candidates, who would like to be considerered in a roster, will be placed in for 2 years.

HOW TO APPLY

 

To apply, please create a personal account and fill out the profile form with your personal information at http://www1.wfp.org/careers/job-openings. If you are internal applicant, apply through your E-Recruitment profile.

In the application form, ensure filling the mandatory sections, attaching your CV, answering the pre-screening questions and agreeing on the legal statement before submitting your application. Selection of staff is made on a competitive basis on account of potential and performance. All applicants will undergo a rigorous process which includes screening against job requirements, possibly a written assessment and a panel interview.

DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS

 

The deadline to apply to this position is May 30th, 2022.

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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.

This vacancy is now closed.
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