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Programme Policy Officer (Nutrition and School Meals)

ABOUT WFP

The World Food Programme (WFP) is the leading humanitarian organization saving lives and changing lives, delivering food assistance in emergencies and working with communities to improve nutrition and build resilience.

BACKGROUND

In WFP Nepal, the currents Country Strategic Programme (CSP,2019-2023) establishes as strategic outcome that food-insecure people in targeted areas have improved nutrition throughout the key stages of their lives by 2025. The CSP’s Strategic Outcome 2 (SO2) establishes outputs for targeted populations, including: children aged 6-59 months, pregnant and lactating women and girls and schoolchildren, receive an integrated package of assistance to prevent malnutrition and improve diets; targeted populations in food-insecure areas receive nutrition-sensitive, shock-responsive and gender-transformative social services delivered through a strengthened national social protection framework; and people benefiting from the national social safety net programme receive post-harvest fortified rice. In 2021, the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology of Nepal has joined the global School Meals Coalition which is a network of more than 80 countries including Nepal, that support governments and their partners to improve the quality of school meals and strengthen school meal systems globally, tailored to local contexts, and which promotes the sharing of international best practices. It is a platform for ensuring every child has the opportunity to grow, learn and thrive.
Capacity strengthening activities under SO2 will support the decentralization of the national social protection framework, aligning it with the federal system adopting a multi-sectoral approach to improving nutrition, health and hygiene, healthcare, education, women’s empowerment, as well as the implementation of national rice-fortification programmes. Main government programmes under this portfolio are Mother and Child Health and Nutrition (MCHN), implemented by the Ministry of Health and Population (MoHP), and national school meals programme/ Midday Meals (MDM) implemented by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MoEST). These activities are embedded in the national framework for social protection, MSNP II, and the School Education Sector Plan (SESP) 2021 to 2030, and the School Health and Nutrition (SHN) strategy (2022). WFP will assist the government for the effective implementation of the School Health and Nutrition Strategy, including the MDM component of the SESP, by a secondment of a WFP Programme Policy Officer (PPO).

JOB PURPOSE

The Programme Policy Officer will assist on strengthening both nutrition-specific programmes under the MoHP and nutrition-sensitive school feeding and school health and nutrition programmes under the MoEST, Ministry of Agriculture and Livelihoods and Development (MoALD), Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies (MoICS) and National Planning Commission (NPC) The scope of this secondment is to support SO2 activities through capacity strengthening of both Ministries of Health and Population (MoHP) and Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MoEST) and other related ministries for the effective implementation of programmes that protect vulnerable children and women during critical periods of physical growth and development, promoting health, nutrition, education, and country’s human capital. In Nepal, the MoEST is responsible for the largest social protection and nutrition programme, the midday meals programme, which delivers daily healthy and nutritious school meals for children of basic education (ECD to Grade 6), benefiting approximately 4 million children in Nepal. Whilst MoHP is responsible for the overall national nutrition interventions with particular emphasis on MCHN and rice and food fortification, school health nutrition and nutrition in emergencies, as well as creating linkages with other sectors on nutrition sensitive programming is crucial.
To provide technical support to both the Ministry of Health and Population (MoHP) and the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MoEST) with focus on nutrition-specific and nutrition-sensitive policy and programme activities in line with WFP Nepal’s Country Strategic Plan and provide support to policy and programme activities that effectively meet food assistance needs.

TERMS AND CONDITIONS

Position Title: Programme Policy Officer (Nutrition and School Meals)
Contract Type: Fixed Term (FT)
Grade: NOA
Contract Duration: 12 months (with possibility of extension)
Duty Station: Kathmandu, Nepal (Outposted to Ministry of Health and Population (MoHP)/Ministry of Education Science and Tecnhology (MoEST)
Vacancy Number: 177248
Date of Publication: .4 November 2022
Deadline of Application: 17 November 2022
This vacancy announcement is ONLY for Nepalese Nationals.
WFP offers a competitive benefits package including salary, pension, leave plus a medical insurance (https://newgo.wfp.org/collection/medical-insurance-coverage-scheme-mics-cigna).

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES (not all-inclusive)

The Programme Policy Officer will be placed under the direct supervision of the Strategic Objective Manager (SO Managers – Nutrition and School Meals Programme) with technical support from both the Nutrition and School Meals units, WFP Nepal CO.

The key responsibilities include:

1. Support review of national nutrition and school meals policies, strategies, guidelines, manuals, and standard operating procedures (SOP) as appropriate.
2. Gather socio-political insights to support WFP’s effective positioning vis-à-vis national governments, regional and international institutions with the aim to influence the policy agenda.
3. Represent WFP in various technical working groups, platforms, networks, and engagements with relevant stakeholders on School Health and Nutrition agenda, specifically school meals and multisectoral nutrition working to achieve Sustainable Development Goal: 2 and the Zero Hunger agenda.
4. Contribute towards the realization of the MoEST’s commitment to the School Meals Coalition and contribute to the partnership and work with the academia, international organizations, civil society, and the private sector in developing a clear roadmap for Nepal’s involvement in the School Meals Coalition.
5. Contribute to the government’s data collection, analysis, and monitoring systems of nutrition-specific and nutrition sensitive programmes under the MoHP and MoEST and liaise with relevant nutrition and education stakeholders and provide technical assistance
6. Review and analyze government’s policies and guidelines and operational modalities and support WFP staff across the different units in their efforts to support the design of activities relevant to their thematic areas such as climate change adaptation and resilience building, agriculture and livelihoods, evidence policy and innovations, etc and make sure nutrition is mainstreamed across all the sectors
7. Prepare accurate and timely reports on results of WFP’s contribution to government programmes for enabling WFP’s informed decision making on technical assistance activities under SO2 and ensures consistency of information presented to stakeholders.
8. Liaise with internal counterparts to ensure effective collaboration to the MoEST on mainstreaming the school health and nutrition agenda on the Midday Meals programme and assisting the MoHP on implementing the nutrition programmes.
9. Liaise with internal counterparts for providing technical assistance and support the monitoring and evaluation of school meals and nutrition-related activities, providing technical analysis, interpretation, and information as required to support the assessment of impact towards improving affordability of safe nutritious diets for all.
10. Support the identification, development, and management of potential partnerships to promote collaborative working relationship including the provision of high-quality technical assistance and capacity strengthening services.
11. Support the capacity building of national government namely the MoHP and MoEST to prepare for and respond to food and nutrition assistance services.
12. Provide technical and programmatic guidance to MoHP/nutrition and MoEST technical staff, acting as a point of referral and assisting them with analysis and queries.
13. Liaise with other sectors like food security, private sector engagement and support partnership, resource mobilization and advocacy efforts to strengthen implementation of the multisector nutrition plan (MSNP).
14. Perform other duties as assigned by his immediate supervisor.

STANDARD MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

Education: Masters/Advanced University degree in International Affairs, Economics, Nutrition/Health, Agriculture, Environmental Science, Social Sciences or other field relevant to international development assistance, or First University Degree with additional years of related work experience and/or trainings/courses.
Language: National Professional: Fluency (level C) in both written and spoken English and Nepali languages

DESIRED EXPERIENCES FOR ENTRY INTO THE ROLE

• 1 year experience of working directly with government on policies and programmes related to food security, nutrition, policy and strategic analysis and formulation, capacity strengthening, partnerships, resource mobilization. Any additional years of experience in the area of work is desirable.
• Has gained experience in supporting the government on implementing technical programs such as school meals, MCHN, rice fortification, and others relevant to both the nutrition and school health and nutrition portfolios.
• Has implemented nutrition and school meals programmes and provided input into designing operations.
• Strong analytical capacity and policy discussions and decisions on both nutrition and school health and nutrition agendas.

OTHER SPECIFIC JOB REQUIREMENTS

Knowledge & Skills:

• Policy analysis and formulation
• Technical assistance and capacity building support
• Develop external communications and briefing materials
• Advanced technical support and identified opportunities for service delivery excellence to strengthen partnerships.

WFP LEADERSHIP FRAMEWORK: COMMON STANDARDS OF BEHAVIOUR

Leading through Others – Level 1
Leads by example with Integrity
Drives results and Delivers on commitments
Fosters inclusive and collaborative teamwork.
Applies strategic thinking
Builds and maintains sustainable partnerships

FUNCTIONAL CAPABILITIES

Capability Name: Description of the behaviour expected for the proficiency level
Programme Lifecycle & Food Assistance: Demonstrates ability to identify key variables and contextual factors that affect food assistance problems and programmes throughout the lifecycle to inform quality programme design or re-design.
Transfer Modalities (Food, Cash, Voucher): Demonstrates ability to analyse and consolidate quantitative and qualitative information from different sources (e.g., market studies) to inform transfer modality selection and programme development.
Broad Knowledge of Specialized areas (i.e. Nutrition, VAM, etc.): Demonstrates the ability to interpret basic data in the context of WFP specialised fields to contribute to technical programme design, implementation and monitoring.
Emergency Programming: Displays capacity to provide inputs into the development, implementation and realignment of high quality emergency programmes.
Strategic Policy Engagement w/ Government: Develops thorough recommendations using multiple inputs (e.g., government counsel, research, own experience) to strengthen national or subnational entities and government owned food and nutrition security programmes.

HOW TO APPLY

To be considered, interested candidates are invited to apply via (https://www.wfp.org/careers/job-openings).
Only short-listed candidates will be contacted.
We want to ensure the recruitment process is fully accessible. Please contact us at [email protected] to advise us of any accessibility needs you may have.

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WFP is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce. WFP has zero tolerance for sexual exploitation and abuse, any kind of harassment, including sexual harassment, abuse of authority or discrimination. 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.

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.