Social Protection and Resilience Specialist

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• FAO is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality, background, and culture
• Qualified female applicants, qualified nationals of non-and under-represented member nations, and person with disabilities are encouraged to apply
• Everyone who works for FAO is required to adhere to the highest standards of integrity and professional conduct and to uphold our values. FAO has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and FAO, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority, and discrimination
• All selected candidates, therefore, will undergo rigorous reference and background checks
• All applications will be treated with the strictest confidentiality
• The incumbent may be re-assigned to different activities and/or duty stations depending on the evolving needs of the Organization

Organizational Setting

The Inclusive Rural Transformation and Gender Equality Division (ESP) coordinates FAO’s work on social protection, gender equality, decent rural employment, rural institutions and people’s empowerment, and the right to food. It is responsible for working with member countries and other partners to reduce rural poverty through strengthening social protection systems, diversifying rural employment opportunities, reducing gender gaps and other social inequalities in agriculture, strengthening producer organizations, improving the rural poor’s access to productive resources and rural services, and achieving the overall goal of realizing the human right to adequate food for all.

The Social Protection (SOCPRO) team is part of the ESP Division. The SOCPRO team provides overall guidance on FAO’s approach to social protection, and technical support to decentralized offices in four core areas: (i) ensuring the expansion of coverage of social protection to rural areas; (ii) promoting policy and programmatic synergies between agriculture, natural resource management and social protection; (iii) promoting nutrition sensitive social protection systems; and (iv) social protection and resilience.

Reporting Lines

Under the general guidance of the Director of ESP and the overall supervision of the SOCPRO Team Leader, the Social Protection and Resilience consultant reports to the Social Policy Officer (Social Protection and Resilience).

Technical Focus

The incumbent is expected to support SOCPRO’s work on social protection and resilience. That includes:

• Supporting member countries strengthening or developing adaptive and shock-responsive social protection systems;
• Supporting member countries strengthening synergies between social protection and anticipatory action and/or emergency response, including through cash and voucher assistance interventions;
• Support member countries in leveraging social protection systems to address the negative impacts of food crisis;
• Supporting member countries fostering synergies between social protection and climate change adaptation and/or climate change mitigation and/or disaster risk reduction interventions in small-scale agriculture; and
• Supporting member countries in assessing the feasibility of implementing agricultural insurance schemes targeting small- scale food producers.

Tasks and responsibilities

They are related to the following areas:

For B level consultants and PSAs

• Technical support: provide technical support to country offices and national stakeholders with the aim of promoting inclusive rural transformation processes through enhanced coordination and alignment between social protection and anticipatory action, emergency response, climate change adaptation, climate change mitigation and disaster risk reduction interventions in rural areas. This will include representing FAO in institutional coordination (only applicable for consultants);
• Operational support: provide operational support in the implementation of global, regional and country level project and programmes on social protection and resilience;
• Capacity development: support capacity development activities on social protection and resilience involving the design and facilitation of training workshops, webinars, seminars, and major meetings and the preparation of related information, materials, on-line tools and information kits on social protection and resilience;
• Advocacy and knowledge sharing: support advocacy efforts through production and sharing of knowledge products and best practices around social protection and resilience;

• Partnerships: participate in multi-disciplinary teams, collaborate with other departments and agencies on social protection and resilience;
• Resource mobilization: contribute to resource mobilization initiatives supporting the development of project proposals and communication material around social protection and resilience.

For C level consultants and PSAs

• Technical support: provide technical support in the development of policy and programmatic tools aimed at promoting Inclusive Rural Transformation processes through enhanced coordination and alignment between social protection and anticipatory action, emergency response, climate change adaptation, climate change mitigation and disaster risk reduction interventions in rural areas;
• Operational support: provide operational support in the implementation of global, regional and country level project and programmes on social protection and resilience. This will include design terms of reference/letters of agreement for delivering services;
• Capacity development: support capacity development activities on social protection and resilience involving the planning and organization of training workshops, webinars, seminars, and major meetings and the preparation of related information, materials, on-line tools and information kits on social protection and resilience;
• Advocacy and knowledge sharing: support advocacy efforts through production and sharing of knowledge products and best practices around social protection and resilience;
• Partnerships: Support the development of key messages and materials to enhance policy outreach and collaboration with other teams and organizations;
• Monitor and Evaluation: Support the monitoring and reporting of results as per the SOCPRO team’s work plan

CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING

Minimum Requirements

• University degree in public policy, political science, economics, sociology or other relevant social sciences and humanitarian action;
• At least one year for Level C and five years for Level B of relevant experience in policy and/ or programme formulation, operational support in social policies, and social protection;
• Working knowledge of English, French or Spanish and limited knowledge of one of the other two or Arabic, Chinese, Russian. For PSA.SBS the working knowledge of only one language might be sufficient.

FAO Core Competencies

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

Please note that all candidates should adhere to FAO Values of Commitment to FAO, Respect for All and Integrity and Transparency