Project coordinator for large-scale food fortification initiatives - CST II

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JOB TITLE: Project coordinator for large-scale food fortification initiatives, Consultant Level II
TYPE OF CONTRACT: Regular Consultant
UNIT/DIVISION: Regional Bureau Bangkok, Nutrition Unit
DUTY STATION: Bangkok, Thailand
DURATION: 11 months

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE OF THE ASSIGNMENT:
Globally, more than 2 billion people are affected by micronutrient deficiencies. Asia contributes to a significant burden of micronutrient deficiencies, where one in two women of reproductive age are anaemic1.
In both South Asia and Southeast Asia, the prevalence of all forms of malnutrition – undernutrition, micronutrient deficiencies, overweight, obesity, and associated non-communicable diseases – is still high, with 32.6 million children under five years of age wasted, 78.2 million stunted, and 17.2 million overweight. Obesity affects 231 million adults aged 18 and older, and 419 million women of reproductive age (15-49 years) in the region were anaemic in 2019. Fifty percent of children under five years of age in South Asia are not growing well (either wasted, stunted, or overweight), and 17 percent of children in East Asia and the Pacific suffer from the same fate2.
A large proportion of the population consumes rice and wheat flour as a predominant staple food and lacks dietary diversity, making the region's diets nutritionally inadequate. This is visible in the dietary pattern of children wherein only 14 percent of children aged 6-23 months in South Asia and 41 percent in Southeast Asia achieve a minimum acceptable diet (MAD).
In this context, ensuring the availability, accessibility, affordability, and safety of nutritious foods has become critical in preventing and controlling micronutrient deficiencies. Large-scale food fortification (LSFF)3 helps hundreds of millions of people access essential nutrients early in their lives without changing their food habits and helps them reach their full socio-economic potential.
WFP has been actively involved in large-scale food fortification efforts across Asia and the Pacific for the past fifteen years. Advancing rice fortification has been the primary focus in the region, as rice is the staple for most of Asia's population, including its 560 million poor people4. Despite substantial progress in advancing LSFF in the region, many countries have not yet achieved the full potential of their program outreach, and half the countries in the area do not have legally notified food fortification standards for staples such as rice. There are multiple reasons for the slow progress in advancing LSFF, which include the absence of a robust regulatory environment and production technologies for rice/wheat flour fortification, limited private and public sector capacity (both institutional and individual), weak and fragmented food systems, lack of consumer awareness, inadequate quality assurance and quality control systems, limited coverage of social protection programs (in some countries) and insufficient or lack of public financing for LSFF programs.

Given the dynamic environments, where a range of factors and actors interconnect and evolve, building robust technical capacities is crucial for implementing sustainable and effective fortification strategies. The WFP-Regional Large-Scale Food Fortification (LSFF) Strategy for Asia and the Pacific (2024-2029) presents a focused plan to address malnutrition and micronutrient deficiencies in a region where these issues remain a significant public health concern.
To support the rollout of the large-scale food fortification strategy 2024-2029 and expand the fortification programming footprint in the region, WFP is seeking to hire a Project Coordinator for large-scale food fortification initiatives to coordinate and monitor the scale-up of food fortification initiatives led by WFP in Asia and the Pacific region, including but not limited to BMGF Large-Scale Food Fortification project in Nepal, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, the dsm firmenich and other similar projects focusing on scaling up food fortification. The role is responsible for providing hands-on support to Country Offices on ensuring high-quality program implementation for improved nutritional impact in the region, operationalizing the regional food fortification strategy 2024-2029, and advocacy with Governments, donors, and other relevant stakeholders to facilitate scale-up of food fortification intervention through social protection, school meals, and commercial channels. The role works closely with RB nutrition knowledge management expert to feed evidence and findings from monitoring, ensuring learnings from micronutrient and fortification initiatives are captured and contribute to corporate and global knowledge.

ACCOUNTABILITIES/RESPONSIBILITIES:
The consultant will work under the direct supervision of the Regional Food Fortification Advisor at the Regional Bureau, Bangkok, and will have the following roles and responsibilities:
• Support and coordinate the BMGF project LSFF activities across Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka, ensuring the smooth and timely execution of all fortification initiatives within the project.
• Develop and oversee the implementation of the monitoring plan for the LSFF programs by the Country Office teams in the four countries.
• Monitor regional and country-specific progress towards LSFF targets, providing timely updates and recommendations for adjustments to strategies and implementation plans.
• Provide guidance and direct support, when needed, to all four RBB COs in data analysis. Ensure advanced analysis is conducted (t-tests, chi-square tests, regressions, propensity score matching, etc.) to enhance the validity of the findings.
• Facilitate communication and coordination between country offices, partners, and relevant WFP units, ensuring that the project's lessons are shared and applied throughout the region.
• Provide oversight for project progress and recommend course corrections as needed.
• Develop and implement a regional work plan aligning with the regional food fortification strategy 2024-29, ensuring harmonized and impactful country-level activities.
• Function as the focal point for coordinating fortification efforts for the private sector partnership in the region, ensuring alignment with regional objectives.
• Support the regional food fortification advisor in designing, planning, and implementing new fortification projects, including pilot programs and scale-up strategies, in collaboration with partners.

• Support and lead efforts to develop and disseminate case studies, policy briefs, and other knowledge products that highlight successful examples of rice fortification in the region.
• Actively engage with the SUN Business Network and other private sector entities to support fortification initiatives, focusing on partnerships that strengthen fortification supply chains.
• Contribute to preparing funding proposals, donor reports, and other resource mobilization efforts to secure financial and technical support for fortification programs.
• Ensure accurate and timely reporting to WFP Regional Bureau and HQ Colleagues, donors, and other stakeholders on the region's progress and impact of fortification activities.
• Collaborate with the supply chain and procurement teams to identify and address bottlenecks that may hinder the supply and distribution of fortified foods and materials.
• Support country offices in assessing and enhancing local fortification capacities, including production, storage, and distribution capabilities.

In addition to the above roles, the Consultant will also undertake the following additional activities on ad hoc demand:
• Coordinate with Operations Information Management and Monitoring teams to support COs in developing monitoring and analytical products on LSFF, ensuring that such products enhance evidence generation and appeal to audiences (internal and external).
• Produce regular progress reports for both internal and external audiences on demand.
• Represent the organization at meetings, workshops, and conferences related to the LSFF project wherever necessary.
• Provide technical support to generate related analyses, including Cost and non-affordability of the Diet (CotD) and optimization of the interventions while using fortified commodities for advocacy purposes and leveraging linear programming approaches (LP). Support the training and preparation of country-specific bulletins for the overall program and on-demand for other Countries in the Region.
• Contribute to and support evidence-based decision-making on program design and implementation by making monitoring, reviewing, and evaluation findings accessible and developing innovative, user-friendly, and informative products.
• Work closely with the RBB nutrition team and headquarters (HQ) to ensure that critical analyses related to the LSFF project are conducted, particularly concerning nutrition integration and fortified commodity optimization for advocacy purposes. Support HQ-led initiatives like the Cost of the Diet (CotD), ENHANCE, and MIMI analyses and develop intervention strategies using fortified commodities.
• Collaborate with the Regional Bureau Bangkok’s (RBB) RAM (Research, Assessment, and Monitoring) team to enhance the quality and consistency of monitoring and evaluation (M&E) processes for the LSFF programs. Promoting cross-functional collaboration and harmonizing project monitoring, evidence generation, and data analysis activities.

2) Closely collaborate with the monitoring and evaluation unit in RBB to enhance nutrition integration, namely through fortification, and promote cross-functional fertilization and harmonization of project monitoring and evaluation activities and plans.

3) As needed, support the RBB nutrition team in coordinating the LSFF project with the Country Office and headquarters.

QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE REQUIRED:
Education: A master’s degree in public health, nutrition, statistics, social sciences, international development, or a related field.
Experience: At least six years of progressively responsible international experience in project management/coordination, monitoring and evaluation, data analytics, advocacy, research, or analysis roles.
Knowledge & Skills Languages:
1) Experience in project management and coordination, research, evidence generation, and M and E within a global organization is highly desirable.
3) Experience working in developing South Asian countries, particularly Pakistan, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh, will be an asset.
4) Ability to design and implement monitoring and evaluation tools.
5) Ability to synthesize complex information and communicate it effectively to non-specialist audiences.
6) Proficiency in data analysis software such as SPSS and Stata
6) Strong project coordination and project management skills.
7) Ability to interact with leaders and external audiences with maturity and tact.
8) Collaborative spirit able to liaise with a wide range of people at all levels and across different cultures and to act with credibility and diplomacy
9) Strong time management skills with an ability to plan and anticipate requirements, problems, and obstacles, and an ability to juggle competing priorities successfully and work to tight deadlines.
10) Self-motivated and able to work with a high degree of autonomy.
11) Fully committed and motivated to achieve the aims of the UN World Food Programme.
12) Willing to work in and travel to different field locations and challenging operating environments.
Proven analytical, writing, and communication skills, including for external products; expert proficiency in MS Office. Proficiency in design and publication tools (e.g., Adobe InDesign, Adobe Photoshop, Publisher), document management, and SharePoint would be an asset.

Fluency in written and spoken English (Level C) is required.

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