National Policy Specialist

Organizational Setting

The FAO Subregional Office for the Pacific Islands (SAP) was established in 1996 in Samoa to coordinate the FAO work in 13 member countries in the Pacific subregion - Cook Islands, Fiji, Federated States of Micronesia, Kiribati, Nauru, Niue, Palau, Republic of the Marshall Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, and one Associate Member, Tokelau. SAP is responsible for developing, implementing and overseeing programmes and projects to address food security, nutrition, agriculture, and rural development priorities. It develops and maintains relations with subregion wide institutions and entities. The Subregional Office is a subsidiary of FAO’s Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific (RAP) in Bangkok.

The main aim of the FAO country offices, which are headed by an FAO Representative, is to assist governments to develop policies, programmes and projects to achieve food security and to reduce hunger and malnutrition, to help develop the agricultural, fisheries and forestry sectors, and to use their environmental and natural resources in a sustainable manner. 

The Global Environment Facility (GEF) has approved the “Integrated Agro-ecosystem approach for enhancing Livelihoods and Climate Resilience in Tuvalu” with GEF total budget of USD 2.64 million and total co-financing of USD 6.6 million. This project will be implemented by FAO in partnership with the Government of Tuvalu, executed and coordinated by the Ministry of Natural Resources, in close collaboration with the Ministry of Home Affairs, Climate Change and Environment, the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development, and the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare.  

The main objective of this project is to reverse land degradation, enhance local livelihoods and increase climate resilience through integrated agro-ecosystem (IAE) approach in all the islands of Tuvalu. The IAE approach emphasises a systems approach to local food production to reduce land degradation and improve the health of agro-ecosystems while ensuring socioeconomic benefits. This overall Objective will be achieved by: 
•    Strengthening enabling framework for implementation of integrated agro-ecosystem approach (Component 1). 
•    Implementing integrated agro-ecosystem approach in all the islands (Component 2). 
•    Ensuring project implementation is supported by an M&E strategy based on measurable and verifiable outcomes and adaptive management principles (Component 3). 

FAO in partnership with the Government of Tuvalu will set up a Project Management Unit within MLGA and will recruit a Project team, international and national constants (long and short term appointments) to co-ordinate and support project implementation. The National Policy Specialist will be recruited as key members of the PMU, to support strengthening of policies and planning mechanisms for the adoption of integrated agro-ecosystem approach throughout the country.   

Reporting Lines 

Under the overall guidance of the FAO Subregional Coordinator (SRC) for the Pacific, and working closely with the Lead Technical Officer (LTO), the Food and Nutrition Policy Specialist and the UNCCD NAP and LDN Specialist, with direct supervision of the National Programme Director (NPD) and the National Programme Coordinator (NPC), the National Policy Specialist will work in parallel on the review of relevant existing policies, strategies and regulatory instruments, focusing on policy gaps in, and coherence of, land, food, and agro-ecosystems aspects.

Technical Focus

The technical focus will be on review of national existing policies, strategies and legislations, focusing on the design of a National Food Systems and Nutrition Policy to embrace the importance of a systems approach to local food production, recognize the importance of the health of ecosystems as the foundation for local food production, as well as for value chains in the agri-food system. The technical focus will also be on contributing to the update of the UNCCD NAP to realign with the 2018-2030 Strategic Framework of the UNCCD, and provide inputs to the design of the national Land Degradation Neutrality (LDN) Strategy.

Tasks and responsibilities

As part of the effort to review the National Food and Nutrition Policy (NFNP 1996) and the Draft Food Security Strategy (FSS 2021-2031) and ii. develop a National Food Systems and Nutrition Policy (NFSNP), the incumbent will be performing the following tasks:

•    Support the establishment and mobilization of a Steering Committee to guide the policy review, the coordination of stakeholder participation in the review process and ensure representation of youth and women, as well as the Non-Communicable Diseases (NCD) Steering Committee;
•    Contribute to the development of an approach for conducting the review of the National Food and Nutrition Policy (NFNP) and the Draft Food Security Strategy (FSS) and the design of the National Food Systems and Nutrition Policy (NFSNP);
•    Assist the piloting—and then full application—of the approach for reviewing the above-mentioned policies (including contribution to the organization of the national-level consultation workshop and the local-level consultations, data and information collection);
•    Collect inputs from Government stakeholders on the revised draft outline of the National Food and Nutrition Policy (NFNP) and the Draft Food Security Strategy (FSS), and expedite agreement and consensus on key components of the National Food Systems and Nutrition Policy (NFSNP);
•    Support the follow-up with the key stakeholders to ensure the NFNP, FSS and NFSNP are approved by the Cabinet and published online;

As part of the effort to review the UNCCD NAP Document (2006), and design the LDN Strategy, the incumbent will be performing the following tasks:

•    Support the establishment and mobilization of a UNCCD NAP Steering Committee, coordinate stakeholder participation in the review process and ensure representation of youth and women;
•    Contribute to the development of an approach for conducting the review of the UNCCD NAP document, including a stocktake of the UNCCD NAP Priority Programme Activities and the Project Profiles and the design of the LDN Strategy;
•    Assist the piloting—and then the full application—of the approach for reviewing the UNCCD NAP document to ensure alignment with the 2018-2030 Strategic Framework of the UNCCD Convention, and in particular, to introduce the concepts of land degradation neutrality (LDN) (including contribution to the organization of the national-level consultation workshop and the local-level consultations, data and information collection);
•    Collect inputs from Government stakeholders on the revised draft outline of the UNCCD NAP Document, and expedite agreement and consensus on key components of the LDN Strategy;
•    Support the follow-up with the key stakeholders to ensure the UNCCD NAP document and LDN Strategy are approved by the Cabinet and published in the NAP Registry of the UNCCD Convention website https://www.unccd.int/our-work/country-profiles/national-action-plans;
•    Perform any other duties deemed necessary for the successful execution of the project.

CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING

Minimum Requirements    

•    University degree in public health, human nutrition, agriculture, or related/relevant field
•    5 years of experience working on policy development and planning, including NAP processes
•    Working knowledge of English
•    National of Tuvalu or resident of the country with valid work permit

FAO Core Competencies

•    Results Focus
•    Teamwork
•    Communication
•    Building Effective Relationships
•    Knowledge Sharing and Continuous Improvement

Technical/Functional Skills

•    Computer literacy required 
•    Knowledge of the UN system and procedures preferred 
•    Efficiency, competence and integrity as well as negotiating skills, tact and diplomacy are essential

Selection Criteria

•    Specific knowledge of land degradation, ecosystem restoration governance, policy, and planning
•    Specific knowledge of food security governance, policy, and planning
•    Prior experience in working across Government Departments