Senior Regional Nutrition & HIV Adviser P5

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) is the world's largest humanitarian agency, fighting hunger worldwide. WFP is committed to ensuring children, women and other vulnerable groups have access to appropriate nutrition, particularly when affected by HIV or TB. We are seeking to fill the position of Senior Regional Nutrition & HIV Adviser at the P5 level, which will be based in our Regional Bureau in Johannesburg, South Africa.

The Senior Adviser will report to the Regional Director (or designate) with the functional supervision of the Chief of Nutrition at Headquarters and be responsible for the following key duties in support of the Regional Bureau and the Country Offices in the region:

• Advise and support the Regional Bureau and Country Offices on the implementation of the WFP Strategic Plan, Nutrition Policy, HIV/AIDS & TB policy and related policies and guidance (including policy on social protection and safety nets), specifically on repositioning WFP on HIV and nutrition support in the changing HIV prevention and treatment landscape in this region with the highest HIV prevalence and caseload in the world, as well as scaling up nutrition through contributing to situation analyses, defining regional and country level strategies, technical review of programme documents, innovative programme design and implementation, strategic partnerships and coordinated planning within WFP;
• Represent and advocate for WFP’s mandate, comparative advantages, approaches and technical knowhow related to nutrition and HIV at regional, national and interagency technical meetings, and build and maintain strategic partnerships (SUN, REACH, private sector, Regional networks, research institutes and donors, etc.);
• Specifically, enhance the interagency coordination to execute WFP’s UNAIDS co-sponsor responsibilities to strengthen synergies in advocacy, strategic and programmatically sound development of HIV, food and nutrition interventions in collaboration with WFP country offices (COs) and their national counterparts;
• Provide senior level technical guidance and direct support to Country Offices to strengthen national nutrition and HIV governance, including technical review and design of national policy frameworks, development of strategic partnerships with Governments, UN, research institutes and private sector, and development and delivery of advocacy strategies;
• Advise and support Country Offices to develop and implement state of the art evidence based and innovative nutrition and HIV programmes and projects in close coordination and collaboration with UN and other key stakeholders, in line with and in support of national policies and programmes;
• Provide senior level technical expertise and direct programme support to Country Offices in the design, formulation, implementation and evaluation of WFP strategies and operations (Country Strategic Plans, EMOP and PRRO, CP, etc.) with a specific focus on enhancing nutritional outcomes;
• Ensure that programmes are compliant with WFP policies, criteria and procedures with regard to food and nutrition, including use of appropriate nutrition products, ration scales and that national and international standards, protocols and guidelines are respected and adhered to and implemented correctly;
• Provide Country Offices with technical and strategic support to update and develop the national standards, protocols and guidelines, and national nutrition and HIV research as required;
• Assist Country Offices to identify assessment, information, and research and knowledge needs, and where feasible coordinate, support, conduct and/or lead nutrition surveys, evaluation, research activities and needs assessments;
• Support Country offices with the design and implementation of the monitoring and evaluation of WFP nutrition specific and sensitiveand HIV/AIDS programmes, with a focus on sound data collection, analysis, interpretation and documentation for programme and knowledge management, and further operational research or programme gaps, participate in and/or lead major evaluation exercises, programme reviews and annual sector review meetings with key stakeholders including donors, governments, UN and private sector;
• Assist Regional Bureau and Country Offices with the preparedness actions such as early warning, risk analysis and contingency planning and make the necessary recommendations. Periodically monitor the management of nutrition risks and report on any action taken;
• Ensure exchange of knowledge, information, experience and best practices in nutrition and HIV programming between the HQ, Regional Bureau and Country Offices in the region, and facilitate the development of a regional-wide application with evidence-based programmes standards, guidance and tools throughout all Country Offices;
• Contribute to the elaboration of fundraising strategies and resource mobilization specifically for nutrition and HIV, including support to COs in their bids to access funding for HIV, Food and Nutrition programming through the Global Fund, PEPFAR, donor liaison and private sector partnerships, proposals, donor reports, and other documents such as the Standard Project Reports, Blue Book and Project Briefs as required;
• Help strengthen nutrition and HIV capacity among WFP staff and its partners, including the government through initiating, planning and implementing capacity building activities and knowledge management;
• Provide information on relevant training activities in the region, in liaison with the Training Unit and Headquarters technical units, and assist in identifying training and funding opportunities for Regional Bureau and Country Office programme staff;
• Supervise staff and perform other duties as required.

Qualifications & Experience Required

Education:

• Advanced University degree in Nutrition, Public Health, Food Technology, Medicine or other related fields.

Experience:

• At least 11 years (of which 4 international) of progressively responsible professional experience in nutrition, HIV and TB management, public health management, development projects, emergency assistance, and/or operational aspects of national, bilateral or multilateral food assistance, with a strong preference for significant experience working in humanitarian and development of nutrition and/or HIV programmes;
• Experience in working with senior management and governments to develop nutritional strategies and establish policies;
• Experience in leading and managing nutrition and/or HIV, food security, and food assistance programmes and projects in emergency, protracted relief and recovery and/or development contexts;
• Experience in representing agency at global forums and/or presenting at international/national venues;
• Leadership experience in building and managing multi-functional teams and projects;
• Experience with survey methodologies, nutrition assessment, operation research and relevant data analysis and interpretation;
• Experience with qualitative and quantitative research methods is desirable.

Technical Skills & Knowledge:

• Strong knowledge of applied nutrition and recent developments in the field;
• Knowledge of HIV and TB and recent developments in the field;
• Proven capacity to advocate for food-based nutrition interventions and recognised technical leadership in the wider nutrition community of academia, UN, governments and donors;
• Understanding of donor policies, strategies, and programme priorities;
• Proficiency in MS Office (Word, Excel, Powerpoint, Outlook) and nutrition/public health software (i.e. EPI Info, STATA, SPSS);
• General knowledge of UN system mandates, policies, rules, regulations and procedures governing administration is highly desirable.

Competencies:

• Excellent written and oral communications and presentation skills;
• Ability to build strategic partnerships with WFP partners, NGOs, academia, government officials and other entities with shared interest in nutrition;
• Strong interpersonal skills demonstrated by the ability to gain the assistance and cooperation of others in a team endeavour through demonstrated technical leadership;
• Ability to deal patiently and tactfully with people of different national and cultural backgrounds.

Language:

• Fluency in oral and written English with an intermediate knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian and Spanish) or Portuguese (one of WFP’s working languages);
• Working knowledge of French is desirable.

Terms and Conditions

Selected candidate will be employed on a fixed-term contract with a probationary period of one year.WFP offers an attractive compensation and benefits package, including basic salary, post adjustment, relocation entitlement, travel and shipment allowances, 30 days’ annual leave, home leave, an education grant for dependent children, pension plan and medical insurance. For more details please visit icsc.un.org.

HOW TO APPLY:

Go to: http://i-recruitment.wfp.org/vacancies/15-0017982

Step 1: Register and create your online CV.

Step 2: Click on “Description” to read the position requirements and “Apply” to submit your application.

NOTE: You must complete Step 1 and 2 in order for your application to be considered for this vacancy.

Deadline for applications:6 August 2015

WFP has zero tolerance for discrimination and does not discriminate on the basis of HIV/AIDS status. Qualified female applicants and qualified applicants from developing countries are encouraged to apply.

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.

REF: 15-0017982

Fighting Hunger Worldwide

www.wfp.org