Call for Roster- Nutrition Officer

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.

Pakistan was the sixth country in the world to sign and ratify the Convention on the Rights of the Child, less than one year after it was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1989. However, children and adolescents living in Pakistan still face acute challenges. UNICEF supports the Government of Pakistan to accelerate progress for children, work to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and help children realize their rights under the Convention on the Rights of Children. This will be made through, among other things, strong partnerships with provincial authorities, teachers and health professionals, frontline workers and social mobilisers, communities and families, and of course the children and adolescents themselves. In particular, UNICEF will work so that: Every child survives and thrives - being in good health, immunized, protected from polio and accessing nutritious food. Every child learns. Every child is protected from violence and exploitation and registered at birth. Every child lives in a safe and clean environment, with access to safe drinking water and adequate sanitation.

The Nutrition Officer provides 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. 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.

To make a difference, the incumbent shall be responsible for following key strategic functions, accountabilities, and related duties/ tasks;

1. 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. 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. 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 review and approval process.

2. 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 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

3.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.

4. 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 (UNCT) meetings and events on programming to collaborate with inter-agency partners and colleagues on UNDAF operational planning and preparation of nutrition programmes/projects, and to integrate and harmonize UNICEF’s position and strategies with the UNDAF development and planning process. • Research information on potential donors and prepare resource mobilization materials and briefs for fund raising and partnership development purposes.

5. 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. • 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.