Programme Policy Officer (Social Protection), SC9 at World Food Programme: (Deadline 3 April 2025)

Programme Policy Officer (Social Protection), SC9 at World Food Programme: (Deadline 3 April 2025)

DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS

3 April 2025-23:59-GMT+02:00 Central Africa Time (Kigali)

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: https://www.wfp.org 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).

ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT:

The World Food Programme (WFP) is the United Nations frontline agency fighting hunger. WFP reaches more than 150 million people per year – delivering humanitarian food assistance and working with smallholder farmers, communities, and governments to improve nutrition and build resilience to crises. As conflict, climate change and economic shocks drive up the number of hungry people in Eastern Africa, finding innovative solutions to the complex humanitarian and development challenges in the region is essential, now perhaps more than ever.

In Rwanda, WFP supports the Government with its ambitious goals to ensure food security and nutrition and equitable access to sustainable livelihoods for all. In this effort, WFP Rwanda works closely with diverse stakeholders to provide general food and nutrition assistance to over 135,000 refugees, asylum seekers and returnees; to strengthen national disaster risk management, social protection, school meals and nutrition programmes; to transform food systems; and to support emergency preparedness and response.

JOB PURPOSE:

To provide support to policy and programme activities that effectively meet food assistance needs.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES (not all-inclusive, within delegated authority):

Contribute towards the development of a wide variety of projects, plans and processes, ensuring alignment with wider programme policies and guidance.

Provide project management support to specific and defined programmes and projects of considerable size/complexity, ensuring a coordinated approach with wider programmes that complies with WFP standards and procedures.

Contribute to resource mobilization and management through budget and expenditure plans and oversight, and to donor partnership management through particularly the preparation of accurate and timely proposals and reports

Lead effective social protection-related policy and technical dialogue with Government, building a strong and collaborative partnership with the relevant Government ministries and agencies. Support effective coordination by WFP on social protection engagement with Government

Lead the design and delivery of capacity strengthening, as well as supervise analytical and technical deliverables and assignments by external service providers, ensuring high quality and timeliness. Provide technical review and inputs into WFP and partner assignments and deliverables in social protection and adjacent fields.

Research and stay informed on the latest global evidence, and analyse a range of policy and operational issues to inform the development of policies, programmes and activities.

Contribute to the preparation of accurate and timely reporting on programmes and activities that enable informed decision making and consistency of information presented to stakeholders.

Liaise with internal and external counterparts to ensure strong effective social protection sector collaboration, monitor ongoing projects and highlight potential risks to project delivery.

Support the identification, development and management of potential partnerships to collaborative working, including the drafting of funding proposals

Support the capacity building of WFP staff, partners and national government to prepare for and respond to food assistance needs, e.g. through providing inputs into training materials.

Guide and supervise more junior staff, acting as a point of referral and supporting them with analysis and queries.

Other as required.

DESIRED EXPERIENCES FOR ENTRY INTO THE ROLE:

• Has deepened technical knowledge through exposure to technical teams.
• Has taken leadership of implementing programmes.
• Has provided input into policy discussions and decisions.
• Strong technical understanding of social protection, and preferably also of shock-responsive social protection or disaster risk management.
• Experience in building strong and successful working relationships with Government and external partners.
• Ability and interest to engage with different technical teams and programmes to promote programmatic integration across multiple technical sectors.
• Strong interpersonal skills and ability to deal patiently and tactfully with people of different national and cultural backgrounds and to build strong partnerships.
• Strong English communication skills, with an emphasis on public speaking and negotiation.

STANDARD MINIMUM ACADEMIC QUALIFICATIONS:

Education:

Advanced University degree in International Affairs, Economics, Political Science, International Development, 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.

Experience:

3 or more years of relevant post-graduate professional experience in Social Protection or a closely related field OR National development programmes, policies, strategies or plans and institutional structures.

Required demonstrated experience working in close partnership with Government agencies.

Language:

Fluency (Level C) in both oral and written communication in English and Kinyarwanda

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:  [email protected]

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 [email protected] 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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