Programme Policy Officer (Protection, Gender

Job Description

How can you make a difference?

Under the overall direction and guidance of the Head of Programme and in close collaboration with other teams and units, the PGAAP team lead will be responsible for the following tasks:

Team management

• Oversee the work of the PGAAP team, ensure team workplans are in place, guide team deliverables and supervise staff.
• Develop staff capacity withing the PGAAP team.
• Represent WFP in relevant country-level inter-agency bodies as required.

Protection, Gender and AAP policy and mainstreaming

• Support the Ukraine WFP Country Office in ensuring that policy and programme operations are aligned with WFP policies, Executive Board decisions, and other relevant guidance related to Protection, Gender, and AAP.
• Lead the translation of WFP corporate policies and guidelines for Protection, Gender, and Accountability to Affected Populations (AAP) into country level practices in Ukraine, and develop practical programme guidance and implementation modalities.
• Support senior management to advocate and raise awareness on protection and gender issues within the office.

Capacity strengthening and partnerships

• Work closely with WFP’s partnerships team to ensure existing and prospective NGO partners are vetted and evaluated on aspects related to PSEA, AAP, gender and protection, identify specific partner capacity gaps, develop partner improvement plans and ensure their follow-up.
• Identify capacity strengthening needs in PGAAP and facilitate capacity building for WFP and NGO partner staff and contractors.
• Develop and conduct functional trainings in topics relevant to PGAAP for WFP staff, cooperating partners, and contractors.

Analysis, data and monitoring

• Identify research and data gaps in the area of gender, protection, conflict sensitivity, accountability to affected populations, marginalized groups and relevant topics; develop operational research concepts in collaboration with programme teams and work with internal and external assessment teams to deliver relevant operational research products.
• Work closely with the programme monitoring team to ensure that PGAAP aspects are monitored in accordance with corporate reporting requirements and duly reflected in annual country reports (ACR).
• Undertake field visits as required.

Community engagement, feedback and referrals

• Work within the PGAAP team, with WFP programme activity teams, WFP field offices and NGO partners to ensure that effective and context-tailored community engagement plans are developed, rolled out and followed up.
• Ensure that the WFP community feedback mechanism works efficiently across functional areas and is streamlined and able to respond to protection related issues.
• Ensure integration of up-to-date protection referral pathways into WFP operations in Ukraine, and monitor their functionality.

PSEA and issues escalation

• Act as focal point and key interlocutor for all issues related to PSEA in the WFP programme team and ensure cases are handled and escalated in accordance with corporate protocols.
• Work closely with WFP’s risk and compliance team to make sure protection, fraud, corruption and PSEA cases are handled and escalated in accordance with corporate protocols.
• Any other tasks as required.

Skills

Education: Advanced university degree in one of the following disciplines: law, international development, gender studies, human rights, political or social sciences, or another related field, or First university degree with an additional years of related work experience and/or training/courses.

Experience:

• At least three (3) years of postgraduate professional working experience in the humanitarian and/or development sectors.
• Experience of undertaking capacity building of colleagues or partner organisations.
• Experience in humanitarian and/or development project management and engagement with multiple stakeholders.

Knowledge & Skills:

• Practical knowledge integrating humanitarian protection, gender equality, women’s empowerment, accountability to affected populations, disability, sexual and gender-based violence, conflict-sensitive programming and humanitarian principles into humanitarian assistance.
• Supervision, mentoring and capacity building skills.
• Strong management, analytical, writing, and communication skills.
• Sound knowledge and skills in training and facilitation, including adapting materials for the audience.
• Client orientation with excellent interpersonal and team skills, including mentoring skills.
• Cross-cultural sensitivity.
• Knowledge of UN system policies and functions of protection-mandated agencies is an asset.
• Ability to build relationships with a variety of individuals across functions and experience in coordinating the work of others and self, training, and supporting others.

Language: Fluency (level C) in both in English and Ukrainian languages. Working knowledge (level B) of another UN language is an advantage.