Food Technologist, NOB, Dakar

Food Technologist NOB, Dakar

👉 Vacancy Announcement n°:  178331

📢 Job Title: Food Technologist, NOB

📌Type of Contract: Fixed Term

✅ Unit / Division: Programme

⚡ Duty Station: Dakar, Senegal (with frequent travel in the region)

✨ Duration: 12 months

⏰ Closing date: 27 November 2022

ABOUT WFP

The United Nations World Food Programme is the world's largest humanitarian agency fighting hunger worldwide. The mission of WFP is to end global hunger. 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. To learn more about WFP, visit our website and follow us on social media to keep up with our latest news: LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.

COUNTRY CONTEXT/ ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT

The WFP Regional Bureau for West & Africa covers a region that extends from Mauritania to Chad and along the coast from Cameroon to Senegal. It consists of 19 countries; The West Africa Regional Bureau (RBD) is based in Dakar and provides strategic guidance, technical support, and direction to country operations in these countries.

WFP Nutrition Policy has been approved in 2017, with a focus on supporting countries to achieve zero hunger through improved nutrition, with prevention and treatment of all forms of malnutrition at its centre. In support of this shift in programming, WFP is willing to play a bigger role in addressing micronutrient deficiencies around the world through its programmes. This includes making sure that food rations distributed are nutrient rich, and that, as far as possible, the food purchased by WFP internationally, regionally and locally is appropriately fortified. 

In this context, the Regional Bureau Dakar has invested for the past few years on a number of value chain projects looking at supporting the local production of fortified foods. These projects support linkages between local smallholder farmers and farmers cooperatives with local industries, laboratories, and markets.

WFP is partnering with the Rockefeller Foundation (RF) for a project titled ‘Catalyzing good food through school feeding and food-based programs’. The overarching goal of this project is to improve the nutritional quality of diets, food-based safety net sustainability, equity of national food systems, and positive economic impact for local communities. This will be achieved by leveraging institutional food procurement mechanisms, strengthening supply chains, and influencing healthy eating behaviour through food-based programmes, primarily school meals programmes.

In Benin and Ghana, the overall objective of this project is to improve the quality of school children’s and the general population’s diets, creating sustainable market for local nutritious crops and influence food consumption behaviour through school meal programmes and other programmes/project. This will be done through a multi-sectoral approach, working both on the demand and supply sides, especially fortified rice and grains, and other fortified food products in institutional feeding programmes and markets.

To implement the project, the Regional Bureau is looking for an experienced Food Technologist who can provide both support and technical advice to Benin and Ghana country offices on local production of nutritious foods and food fortification.

MAIN ACCOUNTABILITIES/RESPONSIBILITIES

Under the overall guidance of the Senior Regional Nutrition Advisor, the Food technologist will report to the Food Technologist Capacity building officer and will work in close collaboration with the whole Nutrition Unit as well as the other units of the WFP RBD, especially with the SBP (school-based programmes) team. Specifically, the Food Technologist’s main responsibilities include:

Provide Technical Support to WFP country offices on the implementation on the Rockefeller project in the areas of Food technology and fortification:

• Provide support to COs in:
  • Feasibility analysis and capacity assessments of staple food fortification and other potential food fortification vehicles
  • Capacity strengthening on pro-smallholder farmers local procurement (support to SAMS) to improve food quality
  • Building capacity on quality control following the WFP FSQA (Food Safety & Quality Assurance) guidelines
  • support capacity building on quality control/assurance at institutional/legal level, focusing on production and processing techniques to be used throughout the value chains of all products in the canteen food basket, to ensure compliance with WFP quality standards
  • Fortification of rice grains and other staple foods and support to the local production of vitamin A-enriched oil
• Support COs in assisting Government’s capacity to analyse value-chain in view of developing good food local procurement strategies for commodities currently in the school meals menu and other available commodities
• Work closely and provide technical support to project coordinators and country Food Technologists for the Rockefeller project in the area of local production and fortification
• Support coordination of the project with other RBD and HQ units involved (nutrition, SBP, gender, partnership)

Support the development of the regional strategy on local production and fortification for West Africa within the Nutrition Food technologists’ team:

• Support Country Offices of the Western Africa region in the writing of proposals for new projects on local production of fortified foods and in including fortification in the CSPs.
• Support implementation of fortification and local production projects at CO levels
• Support Country offices to build up links between local producers and school feeding programs
• Any other task as required.

SPECIFIC QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE REQUIRED

Education:

Advanced university degree in Food Science, Food Technology, Health Sciences, Food Safety and Quality, Nutrition or other related field, or First University degree with additional years of related work experience and/or training/courses 

Experience:

At least three (3) years of relevant professional work experience related to food fortification or research and development working with public and private sectors. Experience working on support to national government is desirable. Experience at the regional or country level in Western and Central Africa is desirable.  For holders of a first university degree at least three (5) years of relevant professional work experience in the same field.

Languages:  Fluency in English and French (Level C - reading, writing & speaking)

Other specific job requirements:

• Strong program management skills; Experience in capacity development especially of government counterparts and private sector on aspects related to food fortification, local production, value chain approach.
• Ability to engage effectively at working level with a wide range of actors including those in the international humanitarian community and governments.
• Maturity, initiative, courtesy, tact and ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with people of different national and cultural backgrounds
• Communication: able to engage with various stakeholders from different sectors and backgrounds.
• Ability to work under tight deadlines and simultaneously manage multiple tasks in an autonomous manner

Before you apply...

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, color, national origin, ethnic or social background, genetic information, gender, gender identity and/or expression, sexual orientation, religion or belief, HIV status, physical or mental disability.

All employment decisions are made based on 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.

Special notice on office relocation: WFP and other UN Agencies will be moving to the new United Nations House, presently under construction in Diamniadio, 30 kilometers from downtown Dakar. The name of the duty station for this position will remain Dakar, Senegal.

⏰ Closing date: 28 November 2022

Why work at WFP

• Meaningful and impactful careers - Our day-to-day work makes a difference in the lives of the people we serve.

• Continuous learning and training - We provide learning tools for our staff to continually develop their careers.

• Multicultural and stimulating working environment - We encourage gender and cultural diversity to make our teams stronger.