Outcome 1 of WFP’s Country Strategic Plan (CSP) for 2023–2025 in Lebanon focuses on ensuring vulnerable and food-insecure populations in Lebanon can meet their essential food and basic needs. In partnership with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), WFP provides unconditional cash assistance for food and basic needs to Syrian refugees. Simultaneously, WFP supports vulnerable Lebanese households impacted by the economic crisis and armed conflict through a combination of in-kind food assistance and targeted cash transfers leveraging existing national shock-responsive social safety nets. The Emergency Preparedness and Response (EPR) Unit is the main entity in the Country Office responsible for ensuring proper coordination and operational planning of emergency preparedness measures and assistance implementation, while improving the delivery of assistance by considering recommendations from evaluations/missions and consultation with beneficiaries on different matters of concern. Moreover, EPR Unit oversees the effective resource utilization and distribution cycle management according to WFP rules and procedures, while ensuring close monitoring of operational risks, potentially requiring revision of the Activity One Implementation Plans (e.g. CBT transfer values and caseload adjustments, food basket composition, modality choice etc.).
Contract Duration: 12 Months, (Renewable based on availability of funds, business needs and performance)
Job Purpose: To provide support to policy and programme activities that effectively meet food assistance needs of vulnerable populations in Lebanon. The post is based in Beirut Country Office (CO) and the incumbent is to report to the Head of EPR Unit / International Programme Policy Officer, under the overall supervision of the Head of Programmes. The position de-facto serves as the Deputy Head of EPR Unit, overseeing all day-to-day operational activities, including distribution cycle management and emergency preparedness and response planning, requiring close coordination with field offices and other functional units involved in programme implementation. The incumbent will be expected to contribute to strengthening programmatic and strategic partnerships with relevant government ministries (e.g. the Disaster Risk Management Unit), other UN agencies (especially UNHCR) and key sector partners (through coordination with the Food Security and Agricultural Cluster) to ensure that the food and other basic needs of vulnerable women, men, girls and boys in in Lebanon are met. The incumbent will be expected to operate with a high degree of independence, manage more junior staff to ensure that programme and policy objectives are achieved in full. The selected candidate will be involved in a wide variety of programme and policy activities and analytical work, some of which may be of a considerable complexity. At this level job holders are expected to contribute to performance improvement
Key Responsibilities (not all-inclusive, nor exhaustive):
Within delegated authority and under the direct supervision of the Head of EPR Unit, the Programme Policy Officer (NOB) will be responsible for the following duties:
STANDARD MINIMUM ACADEMIC QUALIFICATIONS:
Education: Advanced University degree in International Affairs, Economics, Nutrition/Health, Agriculture, Environmental Science, Social Sciences or other field relevant to international development assistance, or First University Degree with additional years of related work experience and/or trainings/courses.
Experience: At least three (3) or more years of postgraduate professional experience (after completion of Advanced University degree) or, five (5) years or more after completion of First University degree in humanitarian or development organizations (e.g. United Nations, Non-Governmental Organizations, Governmental Institutions etc.), working on emergency relief assistance programme implementation, coordination, strategy and design, demonstrating high performance.
Language: Fluency in both oral and written communication in English and Arabic. Knowledge of French language is an advantage.
Required Experiences for entry into the role:
Desired Experiences for entry into the role:
The UNITED NATIONS WORLD FOOD PROGRAMME (WFP) is the world’s largest humanitarian organization working towards zero hunger by 2030, saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to build a pathway to peace, stability and prosperity for people recovering from conflict, disasters and the impact of climate change. Powered by the passion, dedication and professionalism of our 20,000 staff worldwide, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) works in over 80 countries to bring life-saving food to people displaced by conflict and made destitute by disasters, and help individuals and communities find life-changing solutions to the multiple challenges they face in building better futures. In 2020, WFP assisted 115.5 million people – the largest number since 2012. On any given day, WFP has 5,600 trucks, 30 ships and nearly 100 planes on the move, delivering food and other assistance to those in most need. Every year, we distribute more than 15 billion rations at an estimated average cost per ration of US$ 0.61. We work to enhance nutrition in women and children, support smallholder farmers in improving productivity and reducing losses, help countries and communities prepare for and cope with climate-related shocks, and boost human capital through school feeding programmes. In conflict situations, we bring relief to exhausted populations and use food assistance to build pathways to peace and stability. For its efforts to combat hunger, for its contribution to bettering conditions for peace in conflict-affected areas and for acting as a driving force in efforts to prevent the use of hunger as a weapon of war and conflict, WFP was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2020.