Technical Officer, Nutrition and Food Safety, MCAT (Multiple Locations: Mozambique, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Côte D’ivoire, Senegal, Gabon, Madagascar, Uganda, Kenya, Zimbabwe, South Africa / WHO Roster)
World Health Organization (WHO)
AF/UHP Universal Health Coverage/Healthier Population
Kenya, Uganda, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Mozambique, Madagascar, Senegal, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Burkina Faso, Gabon, Multiple locations
Grade: P4, Mid-level Professional
Occupations: Healthcare
Close on 24 Nov 2021
JOB DESCRIPTION
Objectives of the Programme and of Immediate Strategic Objectives
The overall objective of the Nutrition and Food Safety (NUT) Programme is to provide leadership and action to promote national adoption, adaptation, implementation and monitoring of global and regional standards towards universal access to safe, healthy and sustainable diets by people of all ages in the WHO African Region through effective nutrition actions and services. The Programme supports Member States to develop, implement and monitor integrated, evidence-based policies, strategies, guidelines, multi-sectoral action plans, and programmes to prevent disease and promote health and wellbeing through access to high-impact interventions throughout the individuals’ life course. These focus on the prevention of undernutrition, overweight/obesity, diet-related noncommunicable diseases and foodborne diseases. In collaboration with the AMR Unit, the NUT Programme conducts surveillance on antimicrobial resistance in foodborne bacteria by facilitating collaboration between the agriculture, animal health, human health and environment sectors to deal with food safety aspects of antimicrobial resistance. It promotes preparedness for, and response to, foodborne and nutritional disease outbreaks/emergencies, including in humanitarian settings. The Programme further assists in the generation and use of data for effective programme management and service delivery to address all forms of malnutrition; promotes effective monitoring, evaluation and implementation research for programme strengthening; and ensures the fostering of strategic partnerships and integration with other teams within the organization to enhance people-centred, service delivery and with global and regional partners to ensure harmonized support for nutrition and food safety to Member States. The goal is to enable countries in the WHO African Region to ensure evidence-based policies and strategies are in place through strengthened and resilient health systems to achieve universal access to high-quality, integrated, health services, increase the coverage and quality of effective interventions, and to create mechanisms to measure the impact of those strategies and interventions.
Purpose of the Position
The purpose of the Technical Officer Nutrition and Food Safety position in the Multicountry Assignment Team (MCAT) is to support designated Member States in developing policies and programmes to address populations’ priority needs and challenges in nutrition and food safety; and in integrating essential nutrition actions into health service delivery packages for maternal, newborn, child, adolescent, adult and elderly care. S/he achieves this through supporting the contextualization of people-centred interventions to address the nutrition and food safety priorities of different population subgroups including in emergency situations. Under the leadership of the Nutrition and Food Safety programme at the Regional Office, s/he participates in the adaptation of global guidelines and tools for use in the African Region and then supports his/her assigned countries to adopt and apply them through training and other forms of capacity building. S/he assumes leadership and collaborative roles as appropriate in and across the designated countries to advocate for and facilitate the implementation of WHO technical packages to address nutrition and food safety issues and their risk factors, fostering research and promoting innovations, and strengthening the surveillance, monitoring and evaluation of nutrition and food safety actions.
Organizational Context (Describe the work environment, the role of the individual within the team – team member, specialist, adviser, facilitator, coordinator/manager, representative, expert, authority in the field, etc.) available guidelines and degree of independence in decision making, and nature and purpose of contact within and outside the Organization.
Context –
Under the direct technical supervision of the WHO Representative (WR) in the host country and UHC/HP Director, in consultation with other WRs served by the index Multicounty Assignment Team (MCAT), within the scope of work defined by regional strategies, policy guidelines, and programme objectives (including the WHO Transformation Programme, and the GPW13 towards the attainment of the SDG targets), the incumbent is an organizational specialist who will provide technical guidance, mobilize and coordinate expertise to advise countries; promote, implement and evaluate integrated and evidence based policies, strategies, plans, programmes and initiatives, addressing the countries’ priorities in nutrition and food safety. S/he will implement work assignments guided by the resolutions of the Regional Committee, the World Health Assembly, and WHO AFRO’s regional strategies, plans, programmes and interventions in the area of NUT. The Officer will exchange information and guide a range of internal and external partners, to enhance multi sectoral collaboration in nutrition and food safety. Functional guidelines are available which require interpretation. In this defined programme area, and within the structure, there is a high expectation for independent accomplishment of functional goals.
Contacts – The incumbent works under the technical supervision of the hosting WR and UHC/HP Director and in consultation with other WRs and general Functional supervision of the MCATs Coordinator and collaborates with other MCATs, UHP Programmes and clusters to support integrated efforts in health promotion and prevention of risk factors. The responsibilities of the Officer/NUT, require extensive ongoing contacts with other Officers in the designated countries and other technical clusters, to collaborate, exchange information, promote, and integrate strategies, approaches, plans, and initiatives in the development and implementation of programmes, and capacity building for the provision of nutrition food safety services. S/he will cultivate networks with contacts both inside and outside the Organization, particularly WHO Representatives/Heads of WHO Country Offices and with technical counterparts from other agencies operating in the designated countries, research and teaching institutions, to coordinate and provide technical expertise, and promote collaborative linkages with key national and regional stakeholders, including development partners, national governments and non-governmental organizations, Community-based and community-led organizations. The incumbent forges and strengthens partnerships and networks to enhance multi-sectoral collaboration in nutrition and food safety. The incumbent continually collaborates in cross-Cluster work and task teams to achieve organizational results.
Summary of Assigned Duties
The incumbent will be expected to perform the following duties:
• The incumbent will implement innovative ways of working to facilitate strong collaboration and linkages with programmes, clusters, and partners (WHO Collaborating Centers, research and teaching institutions, regional and sub regional economic entities, NGOs, etc.) to ensure that appropriate, efficient and timely support is provided to countries, even during emergencies.
• Provide technical expertise for strengthening national capacities to develop, implement and monitor evidence-based policies, strategies, action plans and programmes that increase population access to high-impact interventions in nutrition and food safety for the promotion of health and wellbeing throughout the life course;
• Build effective partnerships (within and across designated countries) with other UN agencies, civil society organizations and research institutions to support governments in developing and implementing integrated and multisectoral approaches to improve the safety of food and reduce all forms of malnutrition.
• Provide technical guidance for country adaptation and integration of essential nutrition actions into health service delivery packages for maternal, child, adolescent, adult, and elderly care in collaboration with other regional programmes that provide life course, disease-focused and health systems services;
• Participate in designing, testing and disseminating AFRO-wide approaches to the integration of evidence-based, context-relevant nutrition and food safety content in preservice training curricula for physicians, nurses, midwives, dieticians, nutritionists, food scientists, and public health specialists;
• Support country capacity building for age-appropriate nutritional assessment and the prevention and management of wasting, other forms of malnutrition and diet/nutrition-related diseases in stable and humanitarian settings.
• Support countries to develop and implement food safety guidelines and tools to prevent, assess and manage foodborne risks;
• In the context of emergencies and outbreaks, provide nutrition and food safety content and support its integration and implementation within the humanitarian response, in collaboration with the EPR (health) cluster and the partner agencies working in food security, nutrition, food safety, water and sanitation, disease control, etc.;
• Identify, document and share experiences, best practices and impact case studies with countries, the Regional Office, other MCATs, and partners;
• Support the development and strengthening of strategic partnerships in designated countries, including drafting interagency proposals for resource mobilization to support nutrition and food safety activities and contributing to joint support for programme implementation, monitoring and evaluation;
• Support the development of related work-plans and budgetary proposals, as required within the framework of WHO staff Rules and Regulations; financial rules and AFRO accepted procedures and ensure the integration of VfM assessment, analysis and reporting in all the activities implemented;
• Perform other related responsibilities, as assigned, including replacing and backstopping for others as required.
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS
WHO Competencies:
• Moving forward in a changing environment
• Promoting the Organization’s position in Health Leadership
• Producing Results
• Building and Promoting Partnerships across the Organization and Beyond
• Communication
• Respecting and promoting individual and cultural differences
Functional Knowledge and Skills
• Expert knowledge and ability to provide training in the management of malnutrition with medical complications;
• Proven experience in nutrition in emergencies;
• Capacity to translate scientific evidence for clinical and public health application;
• Proven experience in multisectoral action.
• Proven ability to innovate and to motivate, guide and foster national capacity building and partnership
Education
Essential: Postgraduate degree in Clinical or Public Nutrition and related fields, or in Food Science and Technology.
Desirable:
• University degree in Medicine, Public Health or Food and Nutrition
Experience
Essential:
• A minimum of seven years’ experience managing the development and implementation of national programmes in nutrition or food safety, including nutrition monitoring and surveillance, especially in the African Region;
• Track record of delivering nutrition actions in routine health care services or in foodborne disease surveillance and screening.
Desirable:
Work experiences that are diverse, incorporating private sector, NGOs, other UN, or governmental Health related agencies will be an advantage.
Use of Language Skills
Excellent knowledge of English and/or French or Portuguese with a good working knowledge of the other language.
Other Skills (e.g. IT)
Working level of computer literacy with proven ability to use standard office software packages, including eHealth tools.