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UNICEF works in over 190 countries and territories to save children’s lives, defend their rights, and help them fulfill their potential, from early childhood through adolescence.

At UNICEF, we are committed, passionate, and proud of what we do. Promoting the rights of every child is not just a job – it is a calling.

UNICEF is a place where careers are built: we offer our staff diverse opportunities for personal and professional development that will help them develop a fulfilling career while delivering on a rewarding mission. We pride ourselves on a culture that helps staff thrive, coupled with an attractive compensation and benefits package.

Visit our website to learn more about what we do at UNICEF.

For every child, an advocate.

The fundamental mission of UNICEF is to promote the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything the organization does — in programmes, in advocacy and in operations. The equity strategy, emphasizing the most disadvantaged and excluded children and families, translates this commitment to children’s rights into action. For UNICEF, equity means that all children have an opportunity to survive, develop and reach their full potential, without discrimination, bias or favoritism. To the degree that any child has an unequal chance in life — in its social, political, economic, civic and cultural dimensions — her or his rights are violated. There is growing evidence that investing in the health, nutrition, education and protection of a society’s most disadvantaged citizens — addressing inequity — not only will give all children the opportunity to fulfill their potential but also will lead to sustained growth and stability of countries. This is why the focus on equity is so vital. It accelerates progress towards realizing the human rights of all children, which is the universal mandate of UNICEF, as outlined by the Convention on the Rights of the Child, while also supporting the equitable development of nations.

Job organizational context:

The Nutrition Officer GJP is to be used in a Country Office (CO) where the Nutrition Programme is a component of the Country Programme (or UNDAF). The Nutrition Officer reports to the Chief of Nutrition or Nutrition Specialist /Manager who is at Level 5/4/3.

How can you make a difference? 

Purpose for the job:

The Nutrition Officer reports to the Chief Nutrition to provide professional technical, operational and administrative assistance throughout the programming process for the nutrition programmes/projects within the Country Programme, from development planning to delivery of results. It is expected to support systems strengthening in the implementation of the National Multi- Sector Nutrition Plan.  In doing so, the incumbent implements a variety of technical and administrative programme tasks to facilitate programme development, implementation, programme progress monitoring, evaluation, and reporting of results.

Key function, accountabilities, and related duties/tasks

Summary of key functions/accountabilities:

1. Support to programme development and planning
2. Programme management, monitoring and delivery of results
3. Technical and operational support to programme implementation
4. Networking and partnership building
5. Innovation, knowledge management and capacity building

 Support to programme development and planning

• Conduct and update the situation analysis for the programme sector(s) for the development, design and management of nutrition related programmes/projects under the umbrella of the national Multi-Sector Nutrition Plan. Research and report on development trends (e.g. political social, economic, nutrition, health) for higher management use to enhance programme management, efficiency and delivery of results.
• Contribute to the development and establishment of sectoral programme goals, objectives, strategies, and results-based planning, through analysis of nutrition needs and areas for intervention; and submission of recommendations for priority and goal setting aligned with UNICEF priorities and in consultation with government.
• Provide technical and operational support throughout all stages of programming processes by executing and administering a variety of technical programme transactions; preparing materials and documentations, and complying with organizational processes and management systems, to support programme planning, results based planning (RBM), and monitoring and evaluation of results.
• Prepare required documentations and materials to facilitate the programme development, proposal writing, review programme implementation and approval process.

Programme management, monitoring and delivery of results.

• Work closely and collaboratively with colleagues and partners to discuss operational and implementation issues. Provide solutions, recommendations and/or alert appropriate officials and stakeholders for higher-level intervention and/or decision-making. Keep record of reports and assessments from national, provincial and local levels for easy reference and/or to capture and institutionalize lessons learned.
• Participate in monitoring and evaluation exercises, programme reviews and annual reviews with the government and other counterparts to assess programmes/projects and to report on required action and interventions at the higher level of programme management.
• Monitor and report on the use of sectoral programme resources (financial, administrative and other assets), verifying compliance with approved allocation, goals, organizational rules, regulations/procedures, donor commitments, standards of accountability, and integrity. Report on issues identified to ensure timely resolution by management and stakeholders. Follow up on unresolved issues to ensure resolution.
• Prepare regular and mandated sectoral programme/project reports for management, donors and partners to keep them informed of programme progress. In addition, prepare quarterly update on the MSNP programme implementation, fund allocation and utilization from government at all levels.

Technical and operational support to programme implementation

• Conduct regular programme field visits and surveys, and exchange information with partners and stakeholders to assess progress and provide technical support. Take appropriate action to resolve issues and/or refer to relevant officials for resolution. Report on critical issues, bottlenecks and potential problems for timely action to achieve results.

• Provide technical and operational support to government counterparts, NGO partners, UN system partners, and other country office partners/donors on the application and understanding of UNICEF policies, strategies, processes, and best practices on nutrition-related issues to support programme implementation, operations and delivery of results.
• Provide technical support in the development of training materials, standard operating procedures and facilitate high level training to ensure recent international evidences, best practices and guidelines are considered.

Networking and partnership building

• Build and sustain effective close working partnerships with nutrition sector government counterparts and national stakeholders through active sharing of information and knowledge to facilitate programme implementation and build capacity of stakeholders to achieve programme goals on maternal and child rights as well as social justice and equity.
• Draft communication and information materials for CO programme advocacy to promote awareness, establish partnership/alliances and support fund raising for nutrition programmes.

• Participate in appropriate inter-agency (United Nation Country Team -UNCT) meetings and events on programming to collaborate with inter-agency partners and colleagues on United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF) operational planning and preparation of nutrition programmes/projects, and to integrate and harmonize UNICEF’s position and strategies with the UNSDCF development and planning process.
• Research information on potential donors and prepare resource mobilization materials and briefs for fund raising and partnership development purposes.

Innovation, knowledge management and capacity building

• Identify, capture, synthesize, and share lessons learned for knowledge development and to build the capacity of stakeholders.
• Apply innovative approaches and promote good practices to support the implementation and delivery of concrete and sustainable programme results including the use of digital technology to improve programme delivery, monitoring and reporting.

• Research, benchmark and report on best and cutting edge practices for development planning of knowledge products and systems.
• Participate as a resource person in capacity building initiatives to enhance the competencies of clients and stakeholders.

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…

Minimum requirements:

Education: A university degree in one of the following fields is required:  nutrition, public health, nutritional epidemiology, global/international health and nutrition, health/nutrition research, policy and/or management, health sciences,  or another nutrition and health-related science field.

Work Experience:

• A minimum of two years of professional experience in a developing country in one or more of the following areas is required: nutrition, public health, nutrition planning and management, or maternal, infant and child health/nutrition care, and system strengthening.
• Experience in systems strengthening in the implementation of the National Multi- Sector Nutrition Plan, an asset. Experience in health/nutrition programme/project development in a UN system agency or organization is an asset.

Language Requirements:

Fluency in English is required. Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish) or a local language is an asset.

For every Child, you demonstrate...

UNICEF's values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, and Accountability (CRITA) and core competencies in Communication, Working with People and Drive for Results.

The UNICEF competencies required for this post are:

Core Competencies

• Demonstrates Self Awareness and Ethical Awareness (1)
• Works Collaboratively with others (1)
• Builds and Maintains Partnerships (1)
• Innovates and Embraces Change (1)
• Thinks and Acts Strategically (1)
• Drive to achieve impactful results (1)
• Manages ambiguity and complexity (1)

Familiarize yourself with our competency framework and its different levels.

UNICEF is here to serve the world’s most disadvantaged children and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, age, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, or any other personal characteristic.

We offer a wide range of measures to include a more diverse workforce, such as paid parental leave, time off for breastfeeding purposes, and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF strongly encourages the use of flexible working arrangements.

Remarks:

Female candidates and candidates from the under-represented ethnic groups are strongly encouraged to apply.

UNICEF’s active commitment to diversity and inclusion is critical to deliver the best results for children. For this position, eligible and suitable [Insert candidates from targeted underrepresented groups] are encouraged to apply.

Government employees who are considered for employment with UNICEF are normally required to resign from their government positions before taking up an assignment with UNICEF. UNICEF reserves the right to withdraw an offer of appointment, without compensation, if a visa or medical clearance is not obtained, or necessary inoculation requirements are not met, within a reasonable period for any reason.