Programme and Policy Officer

DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS

21 September :59-GMT+08:00 Philippine Standard Time (Manila)

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 World Food Programme is the world's largest humanitarian organization saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to build a pathway to peace, stability and prosperity, for people recovering from conflict, disasters and the impact of climate change.

At WFP, people are at the heart of everything we do and the vision of the future WFP workforce is one of diverse, committed, skilled, and high performing teams, selected on merit, operating in a healthy and inclusive work environment, living WFP's values (Integrity, Collaboration, Commitment, Humanity, and Inclusion) and working with partners to save and change the lives of those WFP serves.

To learn more about WFP, visit our website:  and follow us on social media to keep up with our latest news: YouTube, LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, TikTok.

WHY JOIN WFP? 

• WFP is a 2020 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate.

• WFP offers a highly inclusive, diverse, and multicultural working environment.

• WFP invests in the personal & professional development of its employees through a range of training, accreditation, coaching, mentorship, and other programs as well as through internal mobility opportunities.

• A career path in WFP provides an exciting opportunity to work across the various country, regional and global offices around the world, and with passionate colleagues who work tirelessly to ensure that effective humanitarian assistance reaches millions of people across the globe.

• We offer an attractive compensation package (please refer to the Terms and Conditions section of this vacancy announcement).

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE OF THE ASSIGNMENT

WFP is the world's largest humanitarian organization, saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to build a pathway to peace, stability and prosperity for people recovering from conflict, disasters and the impact of climate change. In the Philippines, the World Food Programme is embarking on its second-generation Country Strategic Plan (CSP with three interconnected Strategic Outcomes that focus on: i) enhancing the Government emergency preparedness and response capacity at the national and local levels; ii) strengthening the resilience of vulnerable communities and food systems against climate and other risks; iii) providing the Government and partners with access to WFP services that augment their interventions, upon request. As the WFP Philippines transitions to the new CSP, the Country Office (CO) is committed to building resilience on multiple fronts, including individuals, communities, systems, and institutions. At the same time, WFP stands ready to complement emergency response operations in case of the Government's relief systems get stretched.

Under the CSP, WFP supports the Government to reduce country's vulnerability to climate, economic and conflict-related shocks through: i) enhancing emergency preparedness capacities at the national and local government level, and community level; ii) the design and implementation of multi-sectoral, integrated programmes that include the building of small-scale agricultural infrastructure, climate-smart agriculture and other nature-based solutions by promoting indigenous crops; iii) helping smallholder farmers invest in high-valued local crops, organize in cooperatives, and access potential markets with better prices and terms; iv) technical support to develop multi-hazard impact-based forecasting and early warning systems that can reach the "last-mile" communities, v) strengthening adaptive, shock-responsive and nutrition-sensitive social protection, including institutionalization and operationalization of Anticipatory Action (AA) systems for typhoons and other priority hazards; vi) evidence generation on climate-related vulnerabilities and risks to livelihoods, food security, and nutrition.

In the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), WFP collaborates closely with communities and the government to implement an integrated resilience programme through Food Assistance for Assets (FFA) projects that support the transition out of conflict, reduce food insecurity, and develop sustainable and conflict-sensitive livelihood strategies for the re-integration of former combatants and affected populations.

In addition to its food- and cash-for-work programmes, WFP Philippines is implementing a demand-driven value chain development approach by helping smallholder farmers invest in high-valued local crops, organize in cooperatives, and access potential markets with better prices and terms through Farm2Go and its wider Smallholder Agricultural Market Support (SAMS) programme.

The CO has developed an internal Climate Risk Management Strategy that defines key programmatic priorities and opportunities under the current Philippines Country Strategic Plan The CRM Strategy also highlights the substantial linkages of climate adaptation and resilience programmes with other key PHCO projects including under the EPR and Social Protection teams and the need for strong coordination to take advantage of potential synergies and opportunities for collaboration. 

ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT

The Programme Policy Officer (Agricultural Livelihoods) will report directly to the Head of Climate Change and Resilience, under the overall guidance of the Head of Programme.

The incumbent is expected to be a technical expert in livelihoods and will be responsible for implementing and overseeing innovative agricultural practices and resilience strategies within the Climate Change and Resilience Unit. This role involves close collaboration with government partners, smallholder cooperatives, and academic institutions to enhance food security, promote sustainable and climate-smart agriculture, and support the Country Office's efforts to integrate smallholder farmers into national and regional markets through effective value chain development.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

Within the assigned unit and delegated authority, the Programme Policy Officer (Agricultural Livelihoods)  will be accountable and responsible for the following duties:

• Introduce and oversee the adoption of innovative, climate-smart agricultural practices that are nature-based solutions and tailored to the local ecosystems, thereby improving farming practices amidst the challenges posed by climate change, to enhance community level emergency preparedness.

• Work with the Smallholder Market Access and Supply Chain teams to enhance the economic valuation of local production, focusing on market access, value chain integration, and ensuring quality and food safety.

Home Grown School Feeding operations in Luzon & BARMM

• Review school menus in collaboration with SF and SC teams and align farmers' production plans with the ingredients required for the National School Meals Program.

• Support local farmers in building their capacity to plan for and produce locally available products, thereby ensuring a steady supply of fresh, nutritious ingredients for schools.

• Enhance the technical skills of agricultural extension services, grassroots organizations, and farmer cooperatives in line with government policies to inform strategic thinking and decision-making.

• Act as a technical mediator for food production, aggregation centers, and agriculture players involved in the local food production and supply.

Walang Gutom (No Hunger)

• Provide food production methods adapted to the context and needs of the partners. Contribute to the coordination and improvement of the distribution and value chain.

Community-based Risk Reduction and Climate Adaptation

• Advise the government on community based DRR and CCA activities to anticipate the impact of weather-related hazards.

• Provide technical support to the government in scale up and implementation of Project LAWA at BINHI, which aims to strengthen communities' capacity to manage climate induced disasters like El Niño and La Niña.

• Take stock of the lessons learnt from the first phase of the LAWA project, gather new information and channel them to stimulate discussion and assist the government in the scale-up phase by taking action to optimise future outcomes.

• Field-test the Standard Operation Procedures for the implementation of water harvesting infrastructure and integrate them with the input gathered from local government units (LGUs) and other stakeholders.

• Submit Standard Operation Procedures for Small Farm Reservoirs, respond to feedback and facilitate validation and adoption.

• Develop, test and improve a package of services to support the introduction and implementation of BINHI income generating activities made possible by the presence of SFRs. Collaborate on application of a methodology that uses dedicated SOPs, input estimation and training of trainers (ToT).

Cross-sectoral support for CO's units and official partners

• Promote sustainability by sharing, adapting, and extending successful strategies and tools.

• Support in enhancing gender equality, disability and social inclusion in all WFP-supported activities.

• Promote gender transformative approaches wherever feasible.

• Provide technical guidance to create multi-year action plans that align with the Country Strategic Plan (CSP) and national priorities.

• Promote strategic and programmatic partnerships with other agencies, especially FAO and IFAD.

MINIMUM ACADEMIC QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE

Education: Master's degree in agronomics, food security and safety, food production, or in similar fields.

Experience: Minimum of eight (8) years of relevant, extensive and technical experience in sustainable agricultural practices, food safety and security, water conservation and harvesting infrastructure or other community-based solutions to water access; Proven experience in national country capacity strengthening, policy frameworks analysis, technical support, territorial understanding and multistakeholder management; experience in disaster risk reduction and management or community volunteering is desired.

Knowledge and Skills:

• Knowledge in agricultural production, including good agronomic practices (GAP), conservation and climate-smart agriculture (CSA), natural resource management (NRM).

• Expertise in food safety and security, food specifications and regulations

• Compiling technical guidelines and methodologies and Standard Operation Procedures

• Development of training contents/manuals, and relevant information education communication (IEC) materials

• Knowledge in Cash for Work/Training

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Language: Excellent spoken and written communication skills in English is required.

WFP LEADERSHIP FRAMEWORK

 

WFP Leadership Framework guides to the common standards of behavior that guide HOW we work together to accomplish our mission.

Click here to access WFP Leadership Framework

REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION

 

WFP is committed to supporting individuals with disabilities by providing reasonable accommodations throughout the recruitment process. If you require a reasonable accommodation, please contact: 

NO FEE DISCLAIMER

 

The United Nations does not charge any application, processing, training, interviewing, testing or other fee in connection with the application or recruitment process. Should you receive a solicitation for the payment of a fee, please disregard it. Furthermore, please note that emblems, logos, names and addresses are easily copied and reproduced. Therefore, you are advised to apply particular care when submitting personal information on the web.

REMINDERS BEFORE YOU SUBMIT YOUR APPLICATION

• We strongly recommend that your profile is accurate, complete, and includes your employment records, academic qualifications, language skills and UN Grade (if applicable).

• Once your profile is completed, please apply, and submit your application.

• Please make sure you upload your professional CV in the English language

• Kindly note the only documents you will need to submit at this time are your CV and Cover Letter

• Additional documents such as passport, recommendation letters, academic certificates, etc. may potentially be requested at a future time

• Please contact us at in case you face any challenges with submitting your application

• Only shortlisted candidates will be notified

All employment decisions are made on the basis of 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.

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