Job no: 498194
Work type: Fixed Term Staff, Temporary Appointment
Location: Angola, Botswana, Burundi, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Egypt, Algeria, Morocco, State of Palestine, Sudan, Syrian Arab Republic, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, Yemen, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, Uruguay, Venezuela, Iran, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Guyana, Barbados, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, United States of America, Republic of South Korea, Switzerland, United Kingdom, Belize, Argentina, Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Japan, Republic of Moldova, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, Ukraine, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Georgia, Greece, Macedonia, TFYR, Montenegro, Albania, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Tuvalu, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Viet Nam, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, Tajikistan, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Kiribati, Kyrgyzstan, India, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Maldives, Malaysia, Cambodia, China, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Fiji, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Somalia, South Africa, South Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania,United Republic, Togo, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mozambique, Namibia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Comoros, Cote d'Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo
Categories: Nutrition, P-3
If you are a committed, creative professional and are passionate about making a lasting difference for children, the world's leading children's rights organization would like to hear from you.
For 70 years, UNICEF has been working on the ground in 190 countries and territories to promote children's survival, protection and development. The world's largest provider of vaccines for developing countries, UNICEF supports child health and nutrition, good water and sanitation, quality basic education for all boys and girls, and the protection of children from violence, exploitation, and AIDS. UNICEF is funded entirely by the voluntary contributions of individuals, businesses, foundations and governments.
The New and Emerging Talent Initiative (NETI) is an entry point for dynamic professionals interested in an international career with UNICEF. Aside from the qualifications indicated in the below job description for this post, all NETI Programme applicants must also meet the following minimum requirements:
Completion of an advanced university degree (Master's degree or equivalent) at the time of application;
Proficiency in English and working knowledge of another official language of the United Nations;
Readiness to be assigned to any UNICEF office worldwide, including hardship duty stations;
At least 5 years of relevant work experience for functions at the P-3 level.
Purpose of the position:
This is a UNICEF Generic Vacancy Announcement (GVA) for the Talent Group for Nutrition Specialists at the P-3 level in Country and Regional Offices and at Headquarters locations (HQ). Talent Groups at UNICEF are exclusive lists of pre-vetted, highly qualified professionals intended to fast-track recruitment processes as positions become available.
Placement in this Talent Group does not guarantee a position within UNICEF; candidates placed into the Talent Group will be reviewed when a relevant position opens and if found suitable, will be offered placement through a direct selection process. Candidates included in the Talent Group will have the chance to be considered for positions inside or outside the NETI Programme. Contracts may be Fixed Term (FT) or Temporary Appointment (TA).
Nutrition Specialist P-3:
The Nutrition Specialist supports the development and preparation of the nutrition programs/projects and is responsible for managing, implementing, monitoring, evaluating and reporting of progress. The Specialist provides technical guidance and management support throughout the programming processes to facilitate the administration and achievement of concrete and sustainable results in maternal, infant and child nutrition programs/projects according to plans, allocation, results based-management approaches and methodology (RBM) and UNICEF's Strategic Plans, standards of performance and accountability framework. Special attention will also be given to improve capacities in nutrition sector/cluster coordination and risk-informed programming, including strengthening government capacity for emergency preparedness and response.
Key expected results
Nutrition Specialists (P-3) in all duty stations are expected to achieve the following key results:
1. Support to program/project development and planning
Contribute to/support the preparation/design and conduct/update of situation analysis for the nutrition sector/s to ensure timely comprehensive and current data on maternal and child nutrition are available to guide policy and development, design and management of nutrition programs/projects. Keep abreast of development trends to enhance program management, efficiency and delivery.
Participate in strategic program discussion on the planning of nutrition programs/projects. Formulate, design and prepare a sector of the nutrition programs/projects proposal, ensuring alignment with the overall UNICEF's Strategic Plans and Country Program and coherence/integration with UN Development Assistance Framework (UNDF), regional strategies and national priorities, plans and competencies.
Establish specific goals, objectives and strategies and implementation plans for the sector/s based on results-based planning terminology and methodology (RBM). Prepare required documentations for program review and approval.
Work closely and collaboratively with internal and external colleagues and partners to discuss strategies and methodologies and to determine national priorities/competencies to ensure the achievement of concrete and sustainable results.
Provide technical and operational support throughout all stages of programming processes and to ensure integration, coherence and harmonization of programs/projects with other UNICEF sectors and achievement of results as planned and allocated.
2. Program management, monitoring and delivery of results?
Plan and/or collaborate with internal and external partners to establish monitoring benchmarks, performance indicators and other UNICEF/UN system indicators and measurement to assess/strengthen performance accountability, coherence and delivery of concrete and sustainable results for the assigned sector in nutrition programs.
Participate in monitoring and evaluation exercises, program reviews and annual reviews with government and other counterparts to assess progress and to determine required action/interventions to achieve results.
Prepare/assess monitoring and evaluation reports to identify gaps, strengths/weaknesses in program and management, identify lessons learned and use knowledge gained for development planning and timely intervention to achieve goals.
Actively monitor programs/projects through field visits, surveys and/or exchange of information with partners/stakeholders to assess progress, identify bottlenecks and potential problems and take timely decisions to resolve issues and/or refer to relevant officials for timely resolution.
Monitor and verify the optimum/appropriate use of sectoral program resources (financial, administrative and other assets) confirming compliance with organizational rules, regulations/procedures and donor commitments, standards of accountability and integrity and ensuring timely reporting and liquidation of resources.
Prepare regular/mandated program/project reports for management, donors and partners to keep them informed of program progress.
3. Technical and operational support to program implementation
Provide technical guidance and operational support to government counterparts, NGO partners, UN system partners and other country office partners/donors on interpretation, application and understanding of UNICEF policies, strategies, processes and best practices and approaches on nutrition and related issues to support program development planning, management, implementation and delivery of results.
Participate in discussions with national partners/clients/stakeholders to promote nutrition and development issues especially in the areas of emergency preparedness and maternal, newborn and child survival and development.
Draft policy papers, briefs and other strategic program materials for management use, information and/or consideration.
Participate in emergency preparedness initiatives program development and contingency planning and/or to respond to emergencies in country or where designated.
4. Networking and partnership building
Build and sustain effective close working partnerships with nutrition sector government counterparts, national stakeholders and global partners/allies/donors/academia through active networking, advocacy and effective communication to build capacity and exchange knowledge/expertise to facilitate the achievement of program goals and social justice and equity for the rights of mothers, newborn and children.
Prepare communication and information materials for CO program advocacy to promote awareness, establish partnership/alliances and support fund raising for nutrition programs (maternal, newborn and child survival and development).
Participate and/or represent UNICEF in appropriate inter-agency (UNCT) discussions and planning on nutrition and related issues to collaborate with inter-agency partners/colleagues on UNDAF planning and preparation of nutrition programs/projects ensuring organizational position, interests and priorities are fully considered and integrated in the UNDAF process in development planning and agenda setting.
5. Innovation, knowledge management and capacity building
Apply/introduce innovative approaches and good practice to build the capacity of partners and stakeholders and to support the implementation and delivery of concrete and sustainable program results.
Keep abreast, research, benchmark and implement best and cutting edge practices in nutrition management, cluster coordination and information systems. Assess, institutionalize and share best practices and knowledge learned.
Contribute to the development and implementation of policies and procedures to ensure optimum efficiency and efficacy of sustainable programs and projects.
Organize and implement capacity building initiatives to enhance the competencies of clients/stakeholders to promote sustainable results on nutrition related programs/projects.
Qualifications of Successful Candidate:?
An Advanced university degree in in Nutrition, Public Health, Health Sciences, Nutritional Epidemiology, or other relevant discipline(s).
Five years of relevant professional experience in nutrition, public health, policy development, planning, management and/or research in relevant areas of maternal, infant and child nutrition at the international level, some of which preferably in a developing country is required
Proficiency in English and working knowledge of another official language of the United Nations
Experience in development or humanitarian settings is an asset
Demonstrated experience in nutrition cluster/sector coordination is an asset
Experience in integrated programming, gender and/or knowledge management for nutrition is an asset
Relevant experience in a UN system agency or organization is an asset
Core Values
Commitment
Diversity and Inclusion
Integrity
Core competencies
Communication - Level II
Working with People - Level II
Drive for Results - Level II
Functional Competencies
Leading and Supervising, Level I
Formulating Strategies and Concepts, Level II
Analyzing, Level III
Relating and Networking, Level II
Deciding and Initiating Action, Level II
Applying Technical Expertise, Level III
To view our competency framework, please click here.
Remarks
All applicants will be required to complete a technical test questionnaire at the time of application. Only shortlisted candidates will be notified and will therefore advance to the next stage of the competitive selection process, which involves various additional assessments including a language proficiency test.
Qualified women are strongly encouraged to apply. UNICEF is committed to providing an inclusive working environment that offers all staff, including those with disabilities, full and equal access to employment opportunities.
Preference will be given to candidates under 35 years of age.
For more information on the NETI Programme, please visit the UNICEF website: http://www.unicef.org/neti
Advertised: 29 Jul 2016 Eastern Standard Time
Applications close: 14 Aug 2016 Eastern Standard Time