Programme Policy Officer (CS) - National Home-Grown School Feeding Program - NOB Abuja

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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.

Through the adoption in 2015 of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) nations are increasingly taking the lead in sustainably improving the wellbeing of their populations and building their own capacities to design and deliver effective anti-hunger solutions. To fulfil its mission to end global hunger, and to support national governments in doing this, WFP provides nations with direct capacity to respond to hunger—when such capacity is missing or inadequate—or increasingly, facilitates national capacity to end hunger and improve food security by supporting national food security and nutrition systems and services.

STANDARD MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

Education: Advanced University degree in International Development, International Relations, Anthropology, Sociology, Social Research Methods or other field relevant to international development assistance, or First University Degree with additional years of related work experience and/or trainings/courses.

Experience: 3 or more years of relevant postgraduate professional experience related to food security and/or nutrition and revolving around school feeding policy and implementation.

Language: Fluency (level C) in English language and the duty station’s language, if different.

Country context and response

Since around 2016 when Nigeria government commenced the flagship Social Investment Programs (SIPs) of which National Home-Grown School Feeding Program (NHGSFP) is an important pillar, WFP has been supporting the strengthening of the program across the areas of school feeding policy, implementation framework, monitoring and evaluation to bring about operational and cost efficiency.
The technical support to this pillar of the SIPs will remain an important component of WFP NGCO work in the second generation CSP 2023 to 2027 in order to reduce out of school children, enhance highly nutritious pupils who will become highly skilled Nigerians to drive the development agenda of the country as well as achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals.

Purpose and scope of these Terms of Reference

To deliver against the above, the Country Office is seeking a Programme and Policy Officer - NHGSFP (NOB) to provide technical support to the government-led National Home-Grown School Feeding Program in Nigeria. The incumbent will operate under the direct supervision of the CSPC Team - Lead to ensure coherence with the NGCO CCS programme and policy objectives are achieved in full. He/she will likely be involved in a wide variety of policy activities and analytical work, some of which may be of a considerable complexity. The incumbent will be expected to contribute to performance improvement.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES (not all-inclusive)

The incumbent will be responsible for carrying out the following tasks and responsibilities:

1. Contribute to the policy development on Nigeria NHGSFP and its revision when necessary.
2. Provide project management support and technical advice for the implementation of the NHHGSFP in Nigeria.

3. Provide capacity strengthening to the NHGSFP team on implementation, menu design and ensuring a coordinated approach with wider programmes that complies with WFP standards and procedures.
4. Develop and coordinate data gathering and monitoring and evaluation systems ensuring will ensure tracking achievement and progress in the NHGSFP pillatr of the SIPs.
5. Research and analyse a range of policy and operational issues to inform the improvement of the government-led NHGSFP.
6. Liaise with internal and external counterparts to ensure effective collaboration towards providing effective technical support to the NHGSFP – RBs, HQs School Based Programs, etc
7. Other as required.

DESIRED EXPERIENCES FOR ENTRY INTO THE ROLE

• 3 or more years of relevant postgraduate professional experience related to national development programmes, policies, strategies or plans and institutional structures, preferably in relation to food security and/or nutrition and revolving around school feeding policy and implementation.
• Has deepened technical knowledge of CCS in different domains through exposure to technical teams;
• Has taken leadership of implementing SF programmes;
• Has provided input into policy discussions and decisions, on or related to SFP;
• Has experience carrying out methodical thematic research and analytical work;
• Has experience in establishing contacts and liaising with partner organisations/companies.
 

TECHNICAL SKILLS & KNOWLEDGE:

• Solid understanding of Agenda 2030 and of SDG2 and SDG17 and respective targets and how the work of WFP can contribute to achieving them
• Knowledge of current thinking and development in school feeding programs, country capacity development and effective knowledge transfer models, concepts and principles relevant to humanitarian/emergency contexts
• Familiarity with WFP’s mandate, Country Strategic Planning process, intervention modalities, programme and project lifecycle tools, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation desirable.
• Solid knowledge of key national and regional contexts and issues;
• Demonstrated data collection and analytical writing skills, including ability to analyse and consolidate quantitative and qualitative information to understand national capacities across a wide range of policy and programme areas and identify gap and needs, as well as WFP’s entry points.
• Good operational, analytical and problem-solving skills;
• Demonstrated ability to produce high-quality written outputs and ability to present English and/or in the language of the region.

SOFT SKILLS:

• Excellent ability to develop and maintain networks with a variety of stakeholders
• Strong facilitation skills for strategic/analytical workshops and group discussions
• Strong analytical, problem solving, communication, and interpersonal skills
• Ability to convey an informed and professional demeanour toward internal and external partners and stakeholders
• Flexibility to adapt individual contributions to accommodate changes in direction from colleagues and internal/external changes
• Ability to participate in open dialogue and value diverse opinions, regardless of background, culture, experience, or country assignment
• Willingness to explore and experiment with new ideas and approaches in own work;
• Ability to work independently in a timely and organised manner
• Ability to work in a team and multi-task as needed.

TERMS AND CONDITIONS

• Qualified female candidates are encouraged to apply.

• Only Nigerian nationals or holders of valid residence and work permits are eligible to apply for this position. (For G level positions, for NO level position candidates must be Nigerian Nationals)
• Applications are to be submitted and received online and in English language only.
• Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.  Canvassing is strictly prohibited. Canvassing of any sort will lead to automatic disqualification of the concerned applicant.

The selected candidate will be employed on a fixed-term contract with a probationary period of one year. WFP offers an attractive compensation package. For more details please visit the International Civil Service Commission's website: http://icsc.un.org  (link: http://www.un.org/Depts/OHRM/salaries_allowances/salaries/nigeria.htm).

DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS

Deadline for submitting application: 1st February 2023 by 11:59pm (Nigerian Time).

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WFP has a zero-tolerance approach to conduct such as fraud, sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to WFP’s standards of conduct and will therefore undergo rigorous background verification internally or through third parties. Selected candidates will also be required to provide additional information as part of the verification exercise. Misrepresentation of information provided during the recruitment process may lead to disqualification or termination of employment

WFP will not request payment at any stage of the recruitment process including at the offer stage. Any requests for payment should be refused and reported to local law enforcement authorities for appropriate action.