International Situational Analyst

The food and nutrition situation in Eswatini has remained challenging and may continue to deteriorate, especially with regard to chronic malnutrition, if corrective actions are not taken now. According to MICS (2014), the prevalence of the chronic malnutrition is at 25.5 percent amongst the under five children. Malnutrition is a result of complex, cross-cutting social and economic issues which require coordinated efforts for effective interventions. Although many institutions and organizations are involved in nutrition activities in the country, there is little or no coordination among them. Therefore, there is need to have a strong coordination mechanism for guiding the development and implementation of food and nutrition interventions that will ensure a well-nourished, healthy and productive nation and minimize or eliminate all forms of malnutrition. In an effort to respond to the nutritional needs of the Swazi population, the government established the National Nutrition Council (NNC) through the Act of Parliament of 1945 which is mandated to promote and coordinate food and nutrition activities and to technically advise the government accordingly.

The National Nutrition is expected to contribute to improved food and nutrition security in Eswatini through strengthened institutional structure as well as the development of the legal framework. This will be achieved specifically through conducting a situational analysis on NNC operations as well as development of strategic documents. To be able to undertake all these duties and deliver as expected by the various stakeholders that it convenes, National Nutrition Council needs a strong technical as well as strategic team to effectively spearhead all processes and coordinate all the stakeholders. In addition, National Nutrition Council will need to have an institutional home and strategic direction to deliver on its mandate. Through this TCPf support, the NNC will be able to mobilize adequate financial resources that complement the government’s contribution if it is to function effectively and have a decisive impact on improving nutrition across the life cycle. Therefore, this project will contribute to the strengthening of the National Nutrition Council to promote a comprehensive national response to the prevailing household food insecurity and malnutrition through coordinated multi-sectoral action.

The overall impact will be improved coordination and implementation of nutrition interventions for improved health and nutrition status of the population. The government of Eswatini will also make informed decisions in the allocation of resources for food and nutrition security in the country.

Reporting Lines

The consultant shall be under overall supervision of the FAO Representative for Eswatini (FAOR), the direct supervision of the Assistant FAOR and the technical supervision of FAO’s the Sub-Regional Office for Southern Africa (SFS)’s Nutrition Officer with FAO RAF and the Nutrition and Food Systems Division (ESN) and in close consultation with the National Project Coordinator (NPC).

Technical Focus

Operational and logistics implementation of programme activities.

Tasks and responsibilities

Conduct a systematic and effective situational analysis on the National Nutrition Council including its institutionalization, staff capacities (skills, systems, resources mobilization) and functional operations for the Council to fulfill its core functions.

• Provide strategic advice to the Directorate on the overall direction and priorities of the National Nutrition Council (NNC).

First mission\: 5 days

• Collect any relevant information for undertaking the analysis and consult all stakeholders to inform the analysis report;
• Conduct comprehensive interviews with Ministry of Health (MOH) staff, NNC staff to understand the current mode of operation for NNC;
• Conduct interviews with senior Government officials from MOH (Permanent Secretary, Directors of technical departments, HODs) as well as with key partners of NNC to understand what they expect from NNC and how it should function;
• Review the institutional capacity, organizational set-up, and administrative systems for NNC including the their mandate and ToRs as stipulated by the parliament act at its formation;
• Facilitate a one day retreat with all stakeholders to discuss the preliminary functions, structure and staffing for NNC;
• Map out the present situation and capacities of NNC on the basis of the above activities;

Second mission\: 5days

• Present thorough analysis of all the situational analysis of NNC that shall be able to handle in a foreseeable future, making concrete proposals on the respective role of NNC with particular attention to the institutional home, structure and functionality of the council;
• Develop a complete list of required competencies (needs assessment) that shall be required in NNC;
• Propose an internal structure for NNC for delivery on their mode of operation;
• Identify logistical requirements (equipment, transport, offices, etc.); and estimate order of magnitude of budgets;
• Present draft report on the situational analysis of NNC with Government counterparts (Ministry of Health);
• Discuss with other key Government of Eswatini counterparts the practical arrangements required for implementing the findings of the analysis;
• Advice on how to position the National Nutrition Council and Eswatini within global and regional policy networks e.g. Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN), Swazi VAC etc.
• Carry out others activities as required by the Project Coordinator and/or the FAOR.

• At least a Master’s Degree in Policy Development;
• Minimum of 10 years’ (post masters) professional experience in policy related activities;
• Working knowledge of English and limited knowledge of one of the other official FAO languages (French, Spanish, Arabic, Chinese, Russian)

• Results Focus
• Teamwork
• Communication
• Building Effective Relationships
• Knowledge Sharing and Continuous Improvement

Technical/Functional Skills

• Relevance of academic qualification.
• Extent of relevant experience in conducting assessments and feasibility studies.
• Extent of relevant technical experience
• Demonstrated experience in assessments and feasibility studies;
• Good communication and presentation skills;
• Ability to meet deadlines

• Ability to work independently as well as an effective team player
• Proficiency in SiSwati is an asset
• Knowledge of local culture
• Ability to write technical documents clearly and concisely