Partnerships Officer

DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS

2 December 2025-23:59-GMT+01:00 Central European Time (Rome)

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 climate change.

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:
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).

ABOUT THE SCHOOL MEALS ACCELERATOR

The School Meals Accelerator (the Accelerator) is a new initiative under the School Meals Coalition, launching in 2026 to support low
- and lower-middle-income countries in scaling up and strengthening their national school meal programs. It responds directly to growing government demand for strategic, high-quality technical assistance that ensures long-term sustainability. SMA builds on the momentum of the Coalition, which has mobilized over 110 countries and 140 partners around the school meals agenda, with more than 60 countries making formal national commitments.

Hosted by WFP and supported by a diverse network of partners, the Accelerator will provide demand-led, country-driven support across three core pillars: national program design, partnership alignment, and learning and knowledge. Its goal is to unlock the full potential of school meal programs by enhancing design, scaling investment, and fostering cross-sector collaboration across education, health, agriculture, and food systems. The Accelerator aims to help countries reach an additional 100 million children by 2030 with healthy and nutritious meals in school.

Joining the Accelerator team means being part of a bold, systems-focused effort to drive lasting change. It’s an opportunity to work alongside governments and partners to co-create solutions, strengthen national capacity, and help shape the future of school meals as a strategic investment in children, communities, and inclusive development.

THE ROLE

The School Meals Partnership Officer will be based in the central structure of the Accelerator as part of one of the Rome-based Technical Assistance Cells, acting as a key liaison to country teams. The Officer will play a central role in operationalizing the Accelerator’s country support model by enabling country teams to help governments design, implement, and sustain national school meals programmes through tailored technical assistance and strategic partnerships. By aligning global networks, tools, and expertise with national priorities, the Officer will strengthen collaboration, contribute to strengthening partner ecosystems, and expand the reach of government-led school meals systems. The ultimate goal is to build resilient, locally owned ecosystems that thrive beyond external support.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES (not all-inclusive, within delegated authority):

- Lead the Rome-based technical assistance team and coordinate with country teams to implement and iterate the country support model of the Accelerator.- Provide hands on coaching and support to the Accelerator’s country teams and a range of partners, including WFP Country Offices, to support government priorities for achieving national school health and nutrition commitments. This includes through daily or weekly touchpoints, feedback sessions, development of toolkits and designing access to training and development opportunities.- Support the design and implementation of technical assistance plans through participatory, nationally driven processes that engage broad range of partners from multiple sectors.- Co-develop and refine operational tools, templates, and standards for the Accelerator’s processes. Ensure tools and methodologies are context-sensitive and continuously improved based on country-level feedback.- Identify and work with partners, mapping partner capacities, know-how and tools that might be deployed