Project Officer (Building Local Resilience in Syria - BLRS)

1A111A11

IMPORTANT NOTICE: Please note that Closure Date and Time displayed above are based on date and time settings of your personal device
The length of appointment for internal FAO candidates will be established in accordance with applicable policies pertaining to the extension of appointments

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________

• 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 persons 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.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) contributes to the achievement of the 2030 Agenda through the FAO Strategic Framework by supporting the transformation to MORE efficient, inclusive, resilient and sustainable agrifood systems, for better production, better nutrition, a better environment, and a better life, leaving no one behind.

Organizational Setting
The main aim of the FAO Syria Country Office is to assist government to develop policies, programmes and projects to achieve food security and to reduce hunger and malnutrition, to develop the agricultural fisheries and forestry sectors, and to use their environmental and natural resources in a sustainable manner.
The FAO Representation in Syria is organized around three main units: Programme, Operations and Administration. The current portfolio of projects in Syria includes activities related to Crop production - protection, Animal Health - Livestock production, Water for production, Environment - Climate Change, Gender - Social Inclusion, and is implemented with humanitarian, transitional and development funding.

Reporting Lines
The Project Officer (Building Local Resilience in Syria - BLRS) will work under the overall supervision of the FAO Representative in Syria, and under the direct supervision of the Chief Technical Advisor of the Smallholders Support Programme, in close collaboration with the technical teams, the concerned field staff at governorates level, Operations and Administrative Units, and in consultation with the relevant Technical Units at FAO headquarters, RNE and the Lead Technical Officer (LTO).

Technical Focus
Contribute to the overall guidance to the project and expert technical advice on timely and high quality implementation and results in Syria according to the Building Local Resilience in Syria (BLRS) project documents.

Key Results
Research, technical analysis and project related services to support the delivery of programme projects, products and services.

Key Functions
• Researches and analyses technical-related issues on the development, the implementation and evaluation of assigned programmes/projects; assists to the review of relevant documents and reports.
• Produces a variety of technical information, data, statistics and documents as well as technical input for reports and web pages.
• Provides technical support/analysis to various assessments, studies and projects and provides technical backstopping to field projects.
• Collaborates in the development of improved/updated tools, systems, processes, and databases.
• Oversees the updating of databases and web pages.
• Participates in multidisciplinary teams and/or leads working groups/teams; collaborates with other divisions and agencies on work groups and committees and promotes best practices.
• Collaborates in, provides technical backstopping to and ensures the quality/effectiveness of capacity development activities within Members such as policy support, organizational development and individual learning events, including preparation of related information, learning materials and online tools.
• Promotes knowledge sharing and best practices at international meetings and conferences and influences partners in stakeholder consultations.
• Performs other duties as required.

Specific Functions
• Acts as a focal point for the initiation of all required planning actions for early start of BLRS project in Syria, including completing FAO administrative tasks for project opening and necessary follow up so as to process all the formality requiring Government of Syria approval.
• Prepares the needed studies and technical design for the project in coordination with the technical team and stakeholders.
• Provides leadership and support for the timely implementation of the planned activities in the targeted areas by the project, to achieve the planned results.
• Coordinates with the technical colleagues responsible for the various components of the project to ensure proper implementation of the project components.
• Prepares the annual work plan for the project in coordination with the technical team and stakeholders.
• Prepares and submits progress and final reports on time as required in the agreement with the donor.
• Monitors carefully the implementation of the project work plan to ensure timely implementation of each planned activity in consultation with the Monitoring and Evaluation (M-E) team, and supervises and contributes to the preparation of reporting documents and their submission to the donor as required in the agreement.
• Notifies the programme management of non-resolvable issues and submits recommendations to resolve them.
• Keeps track of the Letters of Agreement (LOAs) implementation in coordination with the responsible technical colleagues.
• Follows up closely with the project consultants contracted for the implementation of some of the project components.
• Supports coordination and close consultation with the technical staff of the Ministry of Agriculture and Agrarian Reform (MAAR), other key ministries (Ministry of Water Resources and Ministry of Local Administration and Environment) and other local authorities to ensure the efficient implementation of the project components.
• Ensures adequate communication of the achieved results to partners and local communities.
• Collaborates with the Communication Specialist to disseminate project specific reports and products and assist with visibility.
• Conducts and/or supports trainings and workshops and capacity building activities with the Government and key stakeholders.
• Undertakes travel to project sites for planning, assessment and monitoring purposes.
• Ensures that cross-cutting issues such as gender, youth and disability considerations are well mainstreamed in the implementation of all activities in consultation with the technical programme team.
• Ensures close collaboration and coordination with the FAO Gender Team (Gender Expert in RNE, Gender Expert in Damascus and Gender and Community Engagement Officer in Homs), as well as robust integration of the core BLRS project activities with the Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWGs) pilot activities, in relevant locations.
• Liaises closely with relevant units (M-E, Reporting and communication, Gender) in documenting evidence-based impact of FAO interventions in the field.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________
CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING

Minimum Requirements
• Advanced university degree in political sciences, business administration, agricultural economics, development economics, rural sociology, food security, nutrition, sustainable agriculture (including livestock, forestry and fisheries) or related field.
• Five years of relevant experience in technical cooperation's related activities, policy advice and analysis relating to food and nutrition security, agriculture and rural development, fishery, forestry, monitoring and evaluation of policies and programmes.
• Working knowledge (proficient – level C) of English and limited knowledge (intermediate – level B) of another official FAO language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish).

Competencies
• Results Focus
• Team Work
• Communication
• Building effective relationships
• Knowledge Sharing and Continuous Improvement

Technical/Functional Skills
• Work experience in more than one location or area of work, particularly in field positions.
• Extent and relevance of experience in technical cooperation related activities, policy advice and analysis relating to food and nutrition security, agriculture and rural development, monitoring and evaluation of policies and programmes.
• Extent and relevance of experience of experience in working with intergovernmental bodies and multidisciplinary teams.
• Experience in rural livelihoods development would be an asset, including field work and data collection.
• Extent and relevance of experience in supporting the development of farmers' and farmers' enterprises, including demonstrating an understanding of agriculture value chains and linkages with markets.
• Proven experience with UN regulations and procedures will be an added advantage.