Programme Policy Officer - Capacity Strengthening 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:  or more years of relevant postgraduate professional experience related to  food security and/or nutrition and revolving around national capacity strengthening and/or programme and knowledge management.

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

ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT

Since around 2019 to 2020 which corresponds to the middle of the WFP NGCO CSP 2018 to 2022, there has been an increasing demand from national stakeholders for capacity strengthening support from WFP. As a result, there is a need for greater coordination in and across specific sectors (EPR, nutrition, education, SAMS, social protection, supply chain) where WFP has a comparative advantage, to ensure the organisation delivers well-planned, integrated capacity strengthening support to its stakeholders.
The increasing role of WFP in the Zero Hunger initiatives in Nigeria (Zero Hunger Forum and Zero Hunger roundtable) has also blossomed and guiding the national efforts towards achieving zero hunger, the tasks which will need to be pursued more strongly in the CSP 2.0 – 2023 to 2027.

Country Capacity Strengthening (CCS) according to WFP

WFP recognizes strong and sustained national capacities are critical to addressing the multiple causes of hunger and responding to the food security and nutrition needs of vulnerable populations over the long-term. Through its extensive and deep field presence, WFP brings a solid understanding of context, beneficiary needs and local conditions, and regular contact with a wide range of actors who are key in the design and implementation of anti-hunger initiatives. Agenda 2030 provides WFP with an opportunity to leverage this knowledge and expand its role from one of operational partner of choice to one of strategic capacity enabling partner. WFP embraces a Whole of Society approach to zero hunger which means it engages with – and supports capacity strengthening of – a range of state and non-state actors, as relevant to context to support the country capacities required to achieve national SDG2 food security and nutrition objectives and targets, as well as relevant SDG17 objectives.

WFP Approach to CCS

The achievement of international and national development targets hinges on capacities of individuals, organizations and societies to transform in order to reach development objectives. The WFP framework for capacity strengthening recognises that without supportive laws, policies, strategies and procedures (enabling environment), well-functioning organizations (organizational domain), and educated, skilled people (individual domain) state and non-state duty bearers cannot effectively plan, implement and review their efforts to deliver intended products and services to their target groups. Effective CCS support must therefore address all three domains, recognising the interdependencies between them. Single interventions (e.g., trainings) are not likely to make a significant difference unless they represent a key leverage point that can shift an entire system’s behaviour.
Applying this holistic and systems-strengthening approach to its interventions, WFP supports stakeholder capacities along five critical pathways: (i) Policies and legislation; (ii) Institutional effectiveness and accountability; (iii) Strategic planning and financing; (iv) Stakeholder programme design and delivery; and (v) Engagement and participation of communities, civil society and private sector.

Purpose and scope of these Terms of Reference

To deliver against the above, the Country Office is seeking a Country Capacity Strengthening Programme and Policy Officer (NOB) to provide support to its CCS policy and programme activities. The incumbent will operate under the direct supervision of the CSPC Team - Lead to ensure that CCS programme and policy objectives are achieved in full. He/she will likely be involved in a wide variety of CCS programme and policy activities and analytical work, some of which may be of a considerable complexity. The incumbent will be expected to contribute to performance improvement.
The incumbent will be responsible for carrying out the following tasks and responsibilities:

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES (not all-inclusive)

1. Contribute towards the development of a wide variety of country capacity strengthening projects, plans and processes, ensuring alignment with wider programme policies and guidance.
2. Provide project management support to specific and defined country capacity strengthening programmes and projects of considerable size/complexity, ensuring a coordinated approach with wider programmes that complies with WFP standards and procedures.
3. Develop and coordinate CCS data gathering and monitoring systems ensuring that rigorous quality standards are maintained.
4. Research and analyse a range of policy and operational issues to inform the development of country capacity strengthening policies, programmes and activities.
5. Contribute to the preparation of accurate and timely reporting on CCS programmes and activities that enable informed decision making and consistency of information presented to stakeholders.
6. Liaise with internal and external counterparts to ensure effective collaboration, monitor ongoing CCS projects and highlight potential risks to project delivery.
7. Support the identification, development and management of potential partnerships to collaborative working leading to improved CCS packages.
8. Support the capacity strengthening of WFP staff, partners and national government to recognise and address CCS needs, e.g. by providing inputs into specific CCS materials.
9. 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 national capacity strengthening and/or programme and knowledge management;
• Has deepened technical knowledge of CCS in different domains through exposure to technical teams;
• Has taken leadership of implementing CCS programmes;
• Has provided input into policy discussions and decisions, on or related to CCS;
• 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 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.