Consultant Programme Policy (AAP)

DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS17 November 2026-23:59-GMT Greenwich Mean Time (Ouagadougou)

WFP celebrates and embraces diversity. It is committed to the principle of equal employment opportunity for all its employees and encourages qualified candidates to apply irrespective of race, colour, national origin, ethnic or social background, genetic information, gender, gender identity and/or expression, sexual orientation, religion or belief, HIV status or disability.

ABOUT WFP

The World Food Programme is the world’s largest humanitarian organization saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to build a pathway to peace, stability and prosperity, for people recovering from conflict, disasters and the impact of extreme weather shocks.

At WFP, people are at the heart of everything we do and the vision of the future WFP workforce is one of diverse, committed, skilled, and high performing teams, selected on merit, operating in a healthy and inclusive work environment, living WFP's values (Integrity, Collaboration, Commitment, Humanity, and Inclusion) and working with partners to save and change the lives of those WFP serves.

To learn more about WFP, visit our website: and follow us on social media to keep up with our latest news: YouTube, LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, TikTok.

WHY JOIN WFP?

WFP is a 2020 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate.

WFP offers a highly inclusive, diverse, and multicultural working environment.

WFP invests in the personal & professional development of its employees through a range of training, accreditation, coaching, mentorship, and other programs as well as through internal mobility opportunities.

A career path in WFP provides an exciting opportunity to work across the various country, regional and global offices around the world, and with passionate colleagues who work tirelessly to ensure that effective humanitarian assistance reaches millions of people across the globe.

We offer an attractive compensation package (please refer to the Terms and Conditions section of this vacancy announcement).

BACKGROUND & PURPOSE OF ASSIGNMENT

Burkina Faso faces a complex crisis where protracted conflict is compounded by climate change chock that together are the main drivers of the growing food insecurity in Burkina Faso, with nearly 3 million food insecure people. Indeed, the Sahel is one of the most structurally vulnerable and food-insecure regions in Africa. The climate crisis, coupled with water scarcity, deforestation, environmental pollution, overfarming, and unsustainable agricultural practices, has led to accelerating land degradation and desertification.

As climate-related risks to food security, nutrition and livelihoods increase, so does our ability to predict them. However, despite progress in early warning, acting early enough to anticipate the effects of climate risks remains a major challenge. In response, organizations such as the WFP are implementing or have implemented early warning and anticipatory action systems, innovations that use climate forecasts and other related information to trigger anticipatory action before a shock occurs. The WFP's AA portfolio now includes 28 countries where, in collaboration with national and local government partners, the WFP is implementing projects aimed at linking early warning systems with anticipatory actions integrated into national risk management for natural disasters such as droughts, floods and cyclones. Burkina Faso is part of Phase II (2024–2028) of the multi-country programme aimed at scaling up anticipatory action for food security in Africa. This initiative covers Burkina Faso, Niger, Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania, and Zimbabwe, with support from the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (NORAD). Within this framework, WFP is working closely with governments and partners to expand anticipatory action across Africa, helping to protect lives, food security, and livelihoods from predictable climate hazards, while enhancing the efficiency of humanitarian and development financing.

In Burkina Faso anticipatory action is a key entry point for reducing vulnerability to climate shocks, which disproportionately affect the most vulnerable and food insecure populations, undermining development gains. Together with government counterparts and partners such as UNDRR, FAO and OCHA, WFP has built an AA portfolio to help government strengthen early warning and AA systems and link to pre-established funding. A national AA architecture is now being established, with a new AA strategy at its heart, and capacity to anticipate and respond to shock is being built with numerous technical services. WFP and partners continue to provide technical assistance to government in this regard with national ownership at the core of all actions.

PURPOSE OF THE ASSIGNMENT

Under the direct supervision of the Head of EPR, the job holder will manage the AA portfolio and build likages ot overall preparedness efforts. S/he will be responsible for and ensure timely implementation of all resources allocated to anticipatry action actvities in close coordination with the Budget and Programming; Research, Assessment, and Monitoring; and Finance units and in synergies with other sections of the Programme Unit.

The objective of this role will be to ensure that the AA activities are implemented in accordance with project timelines and integrates other disaster risk reduction (DRR) and climate and disaster risk financing. The AA expert will work on various areas of work within the project, including early warning systems for drought and/or floods, identification of anticipatory actions to mitigate the impacts of drought and/or floods, climate services, integration of vulnerability assessments to help target interventions, report writing, liaising with implementing partners and government agencies, organizing and participating in multi-stakeholder platforms, and overall responsibility for achieving project deliverables on time and within budget.

ACCOUNTABILITIES/RESPONSABILITIES

Advocacy & Policy Integration :Lead advocacy efforts and facilitate integration of AA into national and sub-national frameworks, including roadmap development and crisis calendars.

Government & Stakeholder Engagement : Liaise with government technical services to align with national priorities, support decentralized structures, and strengthen collaborative approaches.

Technical Leadership on AA & Climate Risk Financing: Provide or mobilize expertise on AA and climate/disaster risk financing, including assessments, strategy development, innovative approaches, and integration into WFP and government frameworks.

Partnership Development & Capacity Building: Establish and maintain operational partnerships, curate engagement with government services, and assess/respond to capacity-building needs.

Evidence Generation & Innovation: Manage research and promote piloting and uptake of innovative approaches within AA and climate risk financing portfolios.

Financial Oversight: Oversee and ensure optimal use of financial resources for AA under Country Strategic Plan Activities 3 and 6 to achieve set objectives within budget.

Budget Analysis & Risk Management: Proactively analyze budgets, partnerships, and operational context to anticipate bottlenecks, recommend solutions, and escalate critical issues to senior management.

Programme Design & Operational Support: Support development of AA plans (activities, costs, targeting, early warnings) and provide technical advice for integration into WFP programmes and DRR structures.

Coordination & Technical Working Groups: Coordinate with stakeholders (e.g., FAO, AGRHYMET, ACMAD, Red Cross) to strengthen AA-related technical working groups and enhance early warning systems.

Resource Mobilization & Training: Contribute to resource mobilization for WFP and government capacity building, and support functional training to enhance staff and partner capabilities.

Any others tasks required.

DELIVERABLES

1. Advocacy & Policy Integration : National and sub-national AA integration roadmap finalized and validated by key stakeholders, including a crisis calendar aligned with government priorities.

2. Government & Stakeholder Engagement : Minutes and action plans from quarterly coordination meetings with government technical services and decentralized structures, showing alignment with national priorities.

3. Technical Leadership on AA & Climate Risk Financing: Technical guidance note or strategy document on AA and climate/disaster risk financing, including recommendations for integration into WFP and government frameworks.

4.Partnership Development & Capacity Building: Partnership matrix and capacity-building plan developed and endorsed, with at least one training session report delivered to government or partner staff.

5. Evidence Generation & Innovation: Research report or pilot project brief documenting innovative AA or climate risk financing approaches, including lessons learned and recommendations for scale-up

6. Financial Oversight: Quarterly financial utilization report for AA activities under CSP Activities 3 and 6, showing budget adherence and corrective actions where needed.

7. Budget Analysis & Risk Management: Risk dashboard and budget analysis report highlighting potential bottlenecks, mitigation measures, and escalated issues for senior management review.

8. Programme Design & Operational Support: Comprehensive AA operational plan (activities, costs, targeting, early warning triggers) integrated into WFP programme documents and DRR structures.

9. Coordination & Technical Working Groups: Updated terms of reference (ToR) and meeting summaries for AA-related technical working groups, including documented improvements to early warning systems.

10. Resource Mobilization & Training : Funding proposal or concept note submitted to donors for AA and capacity-building initiatives, plus training completion report for WFP staff and partner

WFP LEADERSHIP FRAMEWORK

WFP Leadership Framework guides to the common standards of behavior that guide HOW we work together to accomplish our mission.

Click here to access WFP Leadership Framework

REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION

WFP is committed to supporting individuals with disabilities by providing reasonable accommodations throughout the recruitment process. If you require a reasonable accommodation, please contact:

NO FEE DISCLAIMER

The United Nations does not charge any application, processing, training, interviewing, testing or other fee in connection with the application or recruitment process. Should you receive a solicitation for the payment of a fee, please disregard it. Furthermore, please note that emblems, logos, names and addresses are easily copied and reproduced. Therefore, you are advised to apply particular care when submitting personal information on the web.

REMINDERS BEFORE YOU SUBMIT YOUR APPLICATION

All applications must be submitted exclusively through our online recruiting system. We do not consider CVs or applications sent by email, LinkedIn, or any other channel.

We strongly recommend that your Workday profile is accurate and complete, and that all sections are filled in, including your employment history, academic qualifications, language skills, and UN grade (if applicable). Once your profile is completed, please apply, and submit your application.

If you experience technical issues while submitting your application, you may contact us at . Please note that this email is only for technical issues with an application - unsolicited applications or documents sent to this inbox will not receive a reply.

At the application stage, the only required documents are your CV and Cover Letter. Additional documents (passport, certificates, recommendation letters, etc.) may be requested later in the process.

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and invited to proceed to the next stage of the recruitment process.

All employment decisions are made on the basis of organizational needs, job requirements, merit, and individual qualifications. WFP is committed to providing an inclusive work environment free of sexual exploitation and abuse, all forms of discrimination, any kind of harassment, sexual harassment, and abuse of authority. Therefore, all selected candidates will undergo rigorous reference and background checks.

No appointment under any kind of contract will be offered to members of the UN Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ), International Civil Service Commission (ICSC), FAO Finance Committee, WFP External Auditor, WFP Audit Committee, Joint Inspection Unit (JIU) and other similar bodies within the United Nations system with oversight responsibilities over WFP, both during their service and within three years of ceasing that service.

JR128350