WFP encourages female candidates and people with disabilities to apply.

WFP seeks candidates of the highest integrity and professionalism who share our humanitarian principles. Selection of staff is made on a competitive basis. We are committed to promoting diversity and the principle of equal employment opportunity for all our employees and encourage qualified candidates to apply irrespective of religion or belief, ethnic or social background, gender, gender identity and disability.

This vacancy announcement is for Nationals from the Kyrgyz Republic.

Terms and Conditions:
WFP offers a competitive benefits package including salary, pension, leave plus a medical insurance (https://www.un.org/Depts/OHRM/salaries_allowances/salaries/kyrgyzst.htm).

JOB PURPOSE

Building on successful implementation in previous years, the WFP’s Country Strategic Plan 2023-27 focuses on the institutionalization and sustainability of an optimized national school feeding model through policy support, advocacy, direct technical assistance and horizontal mutual exchanges and learning from other countries in the region, leveraging the WFP-supported school nutrition unit within the Ministry of Education and Science and the National Republican Competency Centre.

This role is focused on the operational day-to-day effective running of the programme in schools currently as well as previously supported and ensures sustainability and long-term national ownership.

The vacancy will also be used to build a roster of candidates for future related position at similar or lower grades.

Supervision received: Under the direct supervision of the Outcome Manager/Team Leader and with overall guidance from the Head of Programme/Head of Sub-office, the Programme Associate works in team spread across office locations in Bishkek/Osh, supervises more junior staff and supports close coordination with partners and counterparts in Government, civil society and donor organisations also actively supporting the national school meals programme.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES

1. Provide technical support and assist in the development and implementation of various activities and processes within the Outcome 4, which leverages schools as platforms to promote a healthy diet and to offer a robust social safety net, supporting alignment with policies and guidelines and facilitating linkages to other programme areas.

2. Provide specialized project management support within WFP’s support to the National School Meals Programme (NSMP) to ensure that the various activities are performed within the established targets following WFP’s policies and procedures.

3. Within the day-to-day implementation of WFP’s NSMP support, prepare a range of reports and data analysis (e.g. status of schools in EMIS, resource utilization, programme status, performance) and highlight trends/issues ensuring deliverables adhere to corporate standards and quality control.

4. Ensure and/or perform accurate, timely recording of data within the specific technical area of work (e.g. assistance programmes, food security and vulnerability assessments) and consistency of information presented to stakeholders.

5. Liaise with internal counterparts to support effective collaboration, implementation and monitoring of ongoing project activities.

6. Coordinate and communicate with local partners, agencies, NGOs and government institutions to perform accurate food security analyses and to ensure efficient delivery of food assistance.

7. Support the capacity building of WFP staff, cooperating partners and national government within the specific technical area.

8. Oversee and/or review the work of other staff, providing practical advice and guidance, to contribute to delivering objectives to agreed standards and deadlines.

9. Follow standard emergency preparedness practices to ensure WFP is able to quickly respond and deploy needed resources to affected areas at the onset of the crisis.

STANDARD MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

EDUCATION

Completion of secondary school education. A post-secondary certificate in the related functional area.

WORK EXPERIENCE

At least six years of progressively responsible experience, of which at least one year was closely related to programme functions, operations or other related field.

DESIRED EXPERIENCES FOR ENTRY INTO THE ROLE:

• Has worked with technical teams (i.e. nutritionists, M&E experts, etc.) and incorporated and further shared respective advice to ensure continuous improvement.
• Has contributed to the implementation of school meals programmes in previous roles or can demonstrate comparable experience that relates to enhancing nutrition, WASH and overall learning environment.
• Has observed or assisted with policy discussions related to access to nutritious meals, active engagement in developing and delivering advocacy messages to local school stakeholders (parents, school directors, …) and/or close work with Government counterparts (incl. posted at Ministry-level desirable.
• Has built a basic understanding of public budget management in the Kyrgyz Republic and can convey messages that promote results-/programme-based budgeting for sustainable school meals programmes.

KEY COMPETENCIES

• Demonstrates ability to identify key variables and contextual factors that affect Government-led school meals programmes throughout the lifecycle to inform quality assurance, incl. programme design or re-design and implementation advice.
• Demonstrates ability to implement, under guidance, school meals programme advice and implementation support, with curiosity and willingness to pilot
• Understands basic technical concepts and data and their relevance to School Meals Programme, incl. in the area of nutrition, social behaviour change communication (SBCC), safety nets.
• Displays capacity to provide inputs into the development, implementation and realignment of high quality emergency programmes.
• Understands and applies basic principles of engagement with government counterparts at the national or local level.

LANGUAGE

• Proficiency (level C) in both oral and written communication in English and fluency in the duty station’s language(s) (Russian or Kyrgyz, both considered an advantage).

All WFP Employees are expected to demonstrate the competencies and standards of behaviour aligned with our core values and defined in the WFP LEADERSHIP FRAMEWORK, namely:

Leading by example with integrity,

Driving results and delivering on commitments,

Fostering inclusive and collaborative teamwork,

Applying strategic thinking,

Building and maintaining sustainable partnerships.

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.

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.

Request for Disability related Reasonable Accommodations:

It is important to WFP to create an accessible and inclusive workplace for everyone. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform essential job functions. If you require reasonable accommodation in completing this application, interviewing, completing any pre-employment testing, or otherwise participating in the selection and hiring process, please direct your request and inquiries to the Diversity and Inclusion team on: [email protected], cc’ing [email protected]. A member of the reasonable accommodation team will contact you to confidentially discuss your needs.

This email is only to be used for any disability related accessibility requirements, and not for sending the application itself. Due to volume of applications, any applications or CVs sent through this email address will not be considered as a formal application and will not receive a reply from WFP.

Please note that WFP may keep candidates who successfully passed recruitment tests and interviews, but were not the first-choice candidate selected for a position, on a roster for similar (or lower-level) upcoming positions or short-term opportunities for direct contracting. Successful candidates will be informed about their inclusion into the roster.

ABOUT WFP

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) 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.

ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT

WFP’s vision is that people in the Kyrgyz Republic will have substantially increased access to national social protection systems that safeguard and foster their ability to meet their food security, nutrition and associated essential needs, and to manage the risks and shocks they face, with ample opportunity to graduate from poverty and contribute to sustainable food systems, national disaster risk management efforts and social cohesion.

WFP, the second largest UN agency in the Kyrgyz Republic, will support and promote the inclusion of people with diverse and often intersecting vulnerabilities and inequalities, by supporting nationally led social and civil protection systems and programmes (strengthening the government’s ability for anticipatory action and ensuring that no one is left behind) and by modelling new approaches within complementary WFP interventions (which can be adopted or transitioned), leveraging WFP’s global expertise in promoting healthy diets and sustainable food systems, climate risk management, warehousing, food safety, smallholder market access and innovations such as private sector-oriented solutions, micro-insurance and digital public goods.

Derived from the UN Cooperation Framework and national priorities, promoting participatory community engagement and nutrition-sensitive approaches, the 2nd generation Country Strategic Plan (2023-27 EN|RU) continues WFP’s human capital development, capacity building and productive asset creation activities to enhance the resilience and livelihoods of the poor and vulnerable, with a focus on food systems strengthening across three core pillars: (i) Social Protection and Active Labour Market strenghtening; (ii) Climate Change Adaption, Disaster Risk Management & Emergency Preparedness; and (iii) Schools as platforms for healthy diets. In addition, a contingent emergency response outcome can be activated in case of need.

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.