Deputy Food Security Sector Coordinator at the United Nations World Food Programme (UN 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.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Deputy Food Security Sector Coordinator

Job ID: 142481
Location: Maiduguri, Borno
Employment Type: Full-time

Organizational Context

• The Food Security Sector (FSS) in Nigeria is led by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MOARD) at the Federal level and the Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources (MANR) at the State level. The Food Security Sector is co-led by the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations and the World Food Programme.
• The FSS provides an action-oriented forum for bringing together national and international humanitarian partners to improve the timeliness and impact of appropriate humanitarian food security assistance to food insecure population and communities in North-Eastern Nigeria (Adamawa, Borno, and Yobe States).
• Specifically, the FSS helps to ensure coherent, coordinated, and integrated humanitarian responses, driven by the assessed food security needs of the affected population. This is achieved through the following specific activities:
  • Regular sector and technical working group meetings held once at Abuja (Federal level co-ordination), twice a month at state level (state-level co-ordination), and through Mini Coordination Groups.
  • Evidenced-based assessments achieved through the Cadre Harmonize and joint food security assessments.
  • Information management and dissemination-coordinating the who, what, where, when, and for whom (5Ws) translated into maps and gaps analysis, which are shared with partners on regular basis; and
  • Inter-sectorial co-ordination - coordinating with OCHA and other sectors such as

Function Purpose

• The Food Security Sector and coordination in Nigeria is operational at the Federal (Abuja) and State level in Adamawa, Borno, and Yobe States, in the North-Eastern part of the country, where the humanitarian needs and operations are highest, as well as the presence of food security sector partners. Humanitarian Hubs and co-ordination mechanisms have been established. This has been strengthened through the deployment of additional human resources capacity including the Office of the Deputy Humanitarian Co-ordinator.
• According to the increasing scale and complexity of food security response operations in North-Eastern Nigeria, the position of Food Security Sector Deputy Coordinator is conceived to strengthen the exiting capacity of the Food Security Sector, providing support to the Sector Coordinator and sector partners in matters of strategic direction and operational coordination, joint assessments, priority setting, gap analysis, monitoring and reporting.

Duties and Responsibilities
Under the direct supervision of the Food Security Sector Coordinator and the administrative supervision of the Deputy Country Director, WFP, the Deputy Coordinator will perform the following duties and responsibilities:

• Support the FSS Co-ordinator to ensure strategic direction and operational coordination of partners that are involved in food assistance activities, including Government, especially in setting priorities for intervention, operational response planning, overall food assistance response monitoring, gap analysis and reporting.
• Support the FSS Coordinator in promoting and coordinating joint needs assessments, leading strategic joint analysis of the available information and maintaining a database of all partners’ assessments that can be relevant to food security programming.
• Advise the FSS Coordinator on standards for food assistance interventions (either in-kind or CBT) and promote harmonization of targeting criteria, food baskets/amounts of CBT and distribution modalities.
• Undertake advocacy and resource mobilization for the Food Security Sector.
• In the absence of the FSS Coordinator, represent the Food Security Sector in all relevant meetings and for a.
• Maintain close contact with partners and support reporting including the humanitarian Periodic Monitoring Report, Situation Reports, FSS Bulletins and Dash Boards.
• Support the FSS Coordinator in planning and organising the Adamawa, Borno, and Yobe Food Security Sector Working Group (FSWG) Meetings; and
• Undertake any other duties as requested by the FSS Coordinator.

Qualifictations and Competencies
Education:

• Postgraduate Master’s degree in Social Sciences or in a discipline relevant to the mandate of the Organization.

Experience:

• Experience in humanitarian response at a mid - or senior level including in the Food Security Sector.

Position Specific Competencies:

• Ability to establish strategic partnerships.
• Ability to work and plan at strategic as well as operational levels.
• Understanding of the international humanitarian response architecture, including co-ordination mechanisms, humanitarian reform and action, and funding mechanisms (e.g. Strategic Response Plan process, Central Emergency Response Fund and Flash Appeals).
• Ability to work with a diverse group of stakeholders, including government actors and build consensus.
• Coping with pressure: ability to work productively under and to maintain visibly high levels of morale in difficult circumstances.
• Ability to communicate clearly and to adapt to communication style according to audience; and
• Strong experience in Cadre Harmonize/IPC.

Language:

• Working knowledge of English Language.

Skills:

• Excellent organizational skills.
• Good written communication skills, including in emergency settings.
• Demonstrated ability to analyze problems, make appropriate recommendations, effective decisions, including in emergency settings.
• Strong foundation in programme formulation, planning, implementation, management, and evaluation.

Application Closing Date
14th July, 2021.