Myanmar: Nutritionist, P3 – Yangon, Myanmar

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) is the world's largest humanitarian agency, fighting hunger worldwide. We are seeking to fill the Nutritionist position at the P3 level, based in Yangon, Myanmar.

Myanmar, with a population of 51.4 million, is the second largest country in Southeast Asia. The nation’s economy is one of the least developed in the world and is suffering the effects of extended isolation and stagnation. Despite recent progress, undernutrition rates in Myanmar continue to be among the highest of the region. The country has the third highest malnutrition rate in Southeast Asia with 35 percent stunting and 8 percent wasting prevalence for children under the age of five. Micronutrient deficiencies are also common in Myanmar, further adding to the burden of malnutrition. Development processes in Myanmar are compromised by ethnic conflicts and intercommunal violence, which resulted in massive displacement of people. The country is in transition of development, with opportunities to make a difference in the nutritional status of the affected population, working in close collaboration with all stakeholders sharing the common goal of food and nutrition security.

Under the general supervision and guidance of the Deputy Country Director or the designate the Nutritionist will be responsible for the following key duties:

• Provide technical advice to Myanmar Country Office on nutrition specific and nutrition sensitive programme and policy issues including assessment and analysis, the choice of objectives, activities, transfer modalities and commodity choice for nutrition specific and nutrition sensitive programming in line with WFP standards and processes.
• Support the strengthening of national nutrition initiatives, including the development of national government policies related to nutrition as well as nutrition strategies, action plans, protocols and guidelines in line with the SUN Movement and international guidance and current evidence.
• Work with staff in procurement, logistics, finance, other programme units and other divisions to ensure effective design and delivery of WFP nutrition programming.
• Ensure nutrition requirements are integrated in all assessments and analysis, monitoring and evaluation, in close collaboration with VAM and M&E teams.
• Provide support for operational partnerships, including inter-agency collaboration, to ensure a strong multi-sectorial response to nutrition in both emergency and non-emergency settings.
• Prepare accurate and timely reporting and learning, contributing to a knowledge base that informs decision making of WFP and other stakeholders.
• Design, conduct and communicate the nutrition situation clearly and effectively to nutrition stakeholders.
• Represent WFP at regional, national and international meetings to contribute in technical discussions, exchange experiences, advocate for nutrition interventions and identify areas of potential collaboration.
• Build capacity of WFP staff, partners and national governments to prepare for and respond to nutrition problems.
• Support the monitoring and evaluation of WFP activities, provide technical analysis, and interpretation.
• Guide and supervise more junior staff, acting as a point of referral and supporting them on more complex analysis and queries.
• Contribute to emergency preparedness actions, providing technical recommendations on contingency planning, risk analysis and early warning related to nutrition risks.
• Act in an assigned emergency response capacity as required to meet emergency food assistance needs.
• Other duties as required.

Qualifications & Experience Required

Education:

· Advanced University degree in Public Health Nutrition, Nutrition, Food Technology, Medicine or other related/relevant field.

Experience:

Required:

At least 5 years of progressively responsible, relevant experience in the field of nutrition, preferably with experience in international environments

· Experience conducting nutritional assessments, analysing data, and drafting recommendations for program implementation.

· Experience with coordinating donor and inter-agency collaboration.

· Experience developing and implementing nutritional policies and guidelines, and notably for nutrition-specific interventions in emergency, recovery and development contexts.

· Excellent professional communication skills, verbal and written; with experience in writing proposals and preparing high level reports.

· Experience with designing and implementing nutrition specific and culturally sensitive activities.

· Experience with providing technical assistance and capacity building, preferably with Government counterparts

Desirable:

· Experience working with governments on developing nutrition policies and/or implementing nutrition programs (within food security or health).

· Experience in working in diverse operational contexts, nationally and internationally, with specific experience in development and humanitarian contexts.

· Experience in food fortification.

· Experience in coordinating ZHC, SUN, REACH or similar coordination actions at country or global level, across multi-stakeholders.

Technical Skills & Knowledge:

• Knowledge of and ability to apply recent developments in nutrition.
• Ability to provide technical assistance to governments and directly implement evidence-base nutrition policies and programs.
• Knowledge of nutrition analysis, related to both food security analysis and health analysis.
• Knowledge of food systems and value chain transformations, as well as innovative programming, policies and interventions for achieving good nutrition-promoting food systems.
• Knowledge of statistical methods and packages and GIS is desirable.

Language:

• Fluency in oral and written English
• Intermediate knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian and Spanish) or Portuguese (one of WFP’s working languages).

Terms and Conditions

Selected candidate will be employed on a fixed-term contract with a probationary period of one year. He/she will be required to travel abroad sometime to remote and difficult locations.

WFP offers an attractive compensation and benefits package, including basic salary, post adjustment, relocation entitlement, travel and shipment allowances, 30 days’ annual leave, home leave, an education grant for dependent children, pension plan, and medical insurance. For more details please visit icsc.un.org

ApplicationProcedures:

Go to: http://i-recruitment.wfp.org/vacancies/16-0021382

Step 1: Register and create your online CV.

Step 2: Click on “Description” to read the position requirements and “Apply” to submit your application.

NOTE: You must complete Step 1 and 2 in order for your application to be considered for this vacancy.

Deadline for applications: 24 JUNE 2016