The Senior Food Assistance Advisor for Southern Africa takes a leadership role in expanding the food assistance portfolio by providing strategic guidance to the region in how to use food as a resource for responding to the needs facing the vulnerable communities that have resulted from a rise in malnutrition across the region. With growing conflicts across the globe, the need for food assistance continues to rise. This role provides a strong advisory role and guidance to NO's aimed at the targeting the use of food as a resource.
Additionally, this role is tasked with advising, guiding and providing direction around the implementation of Food Assistance that is both food and Cash. It calculates the risks and guides offices to ensure accountability to donors and communities. Thus the intent of the role is to assist offices in pre-positioning funding opportunities from various donors through the technical oversight of quality food assistance designs, implementation and close-out of projects promoting food assistance across the globe.
The Senior Food Assistance Adviser is also expected to provide technical, macro-level thought-leadership on Emergency Response, Talent Management, Sustainable Livelihood Programming and Capacity Building in all areas of food assistance programming including Local and Regional Purchase and procurement. The position also requires leveraging WV’s influence and excellence in programming to advocate for increased assistance to the needy. The position further focuses on substantive donor engagement in close collaboration with respective SOs and other regional sector staff (e.g. HEA, Food & Livelihoods Security, and Nutrition
Technical Support:
- Enhance and maintain excellent performance in the management of food assistance projects in compliance with Donor Standards by providing techinical oversight to the NOs through periodic monitoring visits, overseeing the establishment and implementation of compliance systems and procedures and ensuring that audit risks are identified and minimised in a timely manager.
Emergency Response:
- Work with National Offices in the design and implementation of food assistance program during emergency response, focus on Southern Africa Region and in Cat 3 Global Emergencies when there is a need.
Technical Capacity Development:
- Ensuring that Southern Africa Region have adequate food assistance staff capacity to design and implement quality food assistance program.
Strategic Positioning and Engagement:
- Promoting the WV Way – more working with others integration of activities and plans.
- Engagement with GC Sector Teams and TSO.
- Supporting Advocacy, Research and Policy.
- Lessons learnt, Best Practice and Adaptive Learning.
- Formal training and specialist knowledge in Food Programming and related systems strongly preferred strong knowledge of major food assistance donors and regulations ( WFP, USAID. USDA, EC, ECHO etc) and Training in community mobilization, TOT / facilitators recommended.
- 15 Years experience in humanitarian work, ten of which must be in food assistance management as a manager or equivalent.
- Experience in setting up and operationalizing food programs in Category II and Category II emergency relief operations.
- A proven ability in donor relations and networking and fundraising. Effectively develop relationships and relate to donors, NGOs, counterparts and government agencies.
- Requires ability to write and well analyze and express ideas in a sensitive manner within the context of a humanitarian approach.
- Excellent presentation skills.
- Fluency in written and spoken English required.
- Effective in written and verbal communication in English, French and Spanish.
Work Environment/Travel:
- The position requires ability and willingness to travel domestically and internationally up to 50% of the time.