Food Security and Agricultural Livelihoods Assessment Specialist

Job Posting

: 08/Jan/2021

Closure Date

: 23/Jan/2021, 12:59:00 AM

Job Type

: Non-staff opportunities

Primary Location

: Lebanon-Beirut

IMPORTANT NOTICE: Please note that Closure Date and Time displayed above are based on date and time settings of your personal device

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FAO is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender and nationality

People with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply

All applications will be treated with the strictest confidentiality

The incumbent may be re-assigned to different activities and/or duty stations depending on the evolving needs of the Organization

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Organizational Setting

Since late 2019, an outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) – an infectious disease caused by a newly discovered coronavirus – has rapidly spread across the world, devastating lives and livelihoods. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is particularly concerned about the potential impacts of the virus and related containment efforts on food security and livelihoods in contexts of high vulnerability and where populations are already experiencing food crises. Within the United Nations Global COVID-19 Humanitarian Response Plan, FAO is seeking USD 350 million to protect the food security of the most vulnerable rural populations in 34 priority countries, most of which are already faced with food crisis contexts.

The FAO Office of Emergencies and Resilience (OER) has recently been awarded a grant by USIAD to establish a global data and analysis facility to create a common understanding of COVID-19 related impacts on agricultural livelihoods and critical value chains in the 34 food crisis countries. At the core of the data and analysis facility is a structured assessment framework which is sequenced to respond to different information needs as the crisis unfolds and interacts with on other stressors and shocks. The assessment framework is driven by a set of questionnaires, which will be administered on a periodic basis over the July 2020 – June 2021 period to monitor key risk factors and to understand the occurring and potential impacts on agricultural production, market chains, food security and livelihoods. It is envisaged that the COVID-19 data facility is expected to pave the way for a sustainable system of data collection and analysis on food availability and livelihoods in food crisis countries beyond the pandemic.

The data and analysis facility information system relies principally on remotely collected data (mobile phone and on-line), collected either by FAO offices themselves or through international service providers. Field assessments may also be conducted at a later stage using data collection tools such as Kobo or ODK.

The national consultant is responsible for leading and coordinating the collection and analysis of data to inform the impacts of COVID-19 on agriculture, food supply and rural livelihoods. He/she will work under the direct supervision of the Resilience and Liaison Officer and the technical supervision of the needs assessments team of the Office of Emergencies and Resilience based in Rome. Overall strategic direction to the data and analysis facility will be guided by a cross-departmental task force within FAO.

Reporting Lines

The Food Security and Agricultural Livelihoods Assessment Specialist shall report to Dr. Maurice Saade, FAO Representative in Lebanon. He/she shall be supervised and supported technically by the OER Regional Needs Assessment Advisor covering the MENA region.

Technical Focus :

 Focus on Leading, monitoring, following-up and coordinating a data collection system designed to monitor the impact of COVID-19 and other shocks on agricultural livelihoods in Lebanon. The data system is part of a multi-country effort to understand the impact of COVID and other shocks on agricultural livelihoods in countries experiencing food crisis. The core tasks are as follows:

• COVID-19 monitoring tools (questionnaires, sample, lists of respondents, enumerators training materials) are contextualized
• Manage the  two rounds food security monitoring surveys  conducted between January and July 2021
• COVID-19 data are analysed and interpreted
• Survey outputs (data, Power Point presentations,   reports, dashboards) are shared with the appropriate audiences

Tasks and responsibilities

• Regularly liaise with the country management team and the regional assessment advisors on the progress of the monitoring exercise and the alignment with strategic, technical and operational requirements
• Coordinate with national stakeholders (government, UN Agencies, NGOs, food security cluster) involved in food security and livelihoods assessments or surveillance
• Contribute to advising and strengthening the capacity of the Ministry of Agriculture and local surveillance systems
• Monitor the publication of studies and data produced by other stakeholders in the country
• Collect and analyse baseline and secondary data to enable comparisons and triangulation. Secondary data can refer to food prices, agricultural inputs prices, international trade, food production and stock changes, food security outcomes, containment measures, social protection measures, remote-sensing-based seasonal monitoring, farming systems etc.
• Define survey objectives and areas of interest based on information gaps and programmatic needs
• Assist in the choice of data collection modalities (Computer-Assisted Telephone Interviews, web surveys, or face-to-face) and interfaces (international service provider, local partner, in-house call centre etc.)
• Search for existing sampling frames and consolidate lists of respondents with phone numbers and manage the two food security monitoring surveys rounds
• Assist in the adaptation of generic questionnaires (agricultural household questionnaire, agricultural inputs suppliers questionnaire and agricultural wholesalers questionnaire) and monitoring tools to context-specific circumstances and objectives
• Contribute to the programming of survey tools using Kobo / ODK.
• Develop training materials and participate in enumerator training sessions
• Communicate with relevant authorities on the implementation of the surveys
• Conduct additional semi-structured interviews with key informants in order to dig for specific issues, as needed
• Contribute to the analysis and interpretation of collected data and in the formulation of appropriate interventions and recommendations based on assessment findings
• Discuss and validate the results with the global assessment team, regional offices and hubs, GIEWS and any other relevant FAO units
• Help draft and review monitoring reports and visual products (e.g. dashboards), using standard templates
• Communicate assessment findings and reports to other actors, including national stakeholders involved in the development of response plans in the country, through Food Security Clusters for instance
• Contribute to COVID-19 response and programme design as requested
• Participate to IPC or Harmonized Framework analyses
• Contribute to forward-planning and scenario building exercises, as requested
• Contribute to FAO corporate learning processes and documentation about COVID-19 impact assessments
• Support data collection and needs assessment activities for other major crises or disasters occurring in supported countries

CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING

Minimum Requirements

• Advanced university degree in agronomy, rural statistics, agricultural economics, relevant social or natural sciences, or other related discipline relevant to the mandate of the Organization;
• Minimum of 5 years of proven knowledge and experience in assessments, surveillance systems, or monitoring and evaluation in the context of emergencies and food crises;
• Working knowledge of English and Arabic. 

FAO Core Competencies

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

Technical/Functional Skills

• Ability to work under pressure and adapt to an evolving and complex humanitarian context and within multidisciplinary and different cultural background teams;
• Strong analytical skills and knowledge of agriculture, food security, livelihoods, food systems and value chains in the context of Lebanon;
• Experience or familiarity with food security and livelihoods assessments methodologies, including surveillance or monitoring systems, Post-Disaster Needs Assessments, Damage and Losses assessments, agricultural production assessment, market analysis, and/or value chain analysis;
• Experience in survey design, sampling, data collection, data analysis, and interpretation for assessment processes in agriculture and food security;
• Expertise in remote data collection including phone or web-based surveys and/or remote-sensing would be a plus;
• Working knowledge of advanced statistics with ability to use statistical software packages (in particular SPSS , STATA and/or  R);
• Experience in using and programming questionnaires in digital data collection tools (Kobo toolbox, ODK);
• Proven data visualization and reporting skills;
• Excellent communication skills, both verbal and written;
• Coordination skills with strong individual planning capacity;
• Knowledge of humanitarian principles

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Please note that all candidates should adhere to FAO Values of Commitment to FAO, Respect for All and Integrity and Transparency

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HOW TO APPLY

To apply, visit the recruitment website at Jobs at FAO and complete your online profile. Incomplete applications will not be considered. Only applications received through the recruitment portal will be considered.

We encourage applicants to submit the application well before the deadline

If you need help please contact: [email protected]