Technical Advisor Early Warning Systems

DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS

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 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.

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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 and purpose of the assignment:

The Climate and Resilience Service in WFP Global HQ provides guidance and support to WFP Country Offices (COs) and governments on activities related to climate risk management, climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction. These services can range from climate analyses to better understand climate change impacts on food security and nutrition, to supporting governments and WFP COs with technical advisory services as well as policy advice on risk reduction, financing and transfer.

One of WFP's flagship programmes for climate risk management is Anticipatory Action (AA), an innovative approach that enables the implementation of actions to prevent and mitigate, to the extent possible, the impact of extreme weather events on the food security and nutrition of the most vulnerable populations. WFP's AA portfolio now includes 44 countries in the regions of Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, where, together with national and local government partners, WFP is linking Early Warning Systems (EWS) with AA  embedded in national disaster risk management policies for critical natural hazards such as droughts, floods and cyclones. In addition to strengthening national capacities for AA, WFP is also working with partners to mainstream AA approaches in humanitarian systems utilizing pooled fund mechanisms such as WFP's AA Trust Fund,  Immediate Response Account, the UN Central Emergency Response Fund, and new prearranged financing initiativies.

To provide advice and support to a large number of COs in strengthening nationally owned EWS and linkages with AA programmes, WFP is seeking a climate scientist with experience in numerical prediction models including seasonal and subseasonal, earth observation data sets, operational weather forecasting, and expert communication and organizational skills. Homebased with a focus on WFPs Southern Africa portfolio, the expert will lead and oversee the implementation of technical EWS projects in WFP COs in the region, ensuring compliance and alignment with regional initiatives and oversight bodies. The expert will as well formulate advocacy documents, funding proposals, and represent WFP in technical working groups performing a key role in supporting the further development of WFP's AA programme.

The expert will be required to provide solid technical leadership in assessing the skill of national/global early warning systems for predicting extreme events across various time horizons, geographies, develop hazard thresholds for severity, and skillful forecast probabilities that indicate the likeliness that a severe weather event will occur. This work will be carried out in coordination with WFP COs, and national authorities. WFP is also an Implementing Entity in World Meteorological Organization (WMO) Systematic Observation Financing Facility (SOFF), which requires technical oversight to COs and their government partners to drive the design, budget, and implementation of Global Basic Observations Network (GBON) compliant project plans. Significant travel is expected from this post as projects are in their initial phases requiring baseline assessments, activity budgets, and the development / implementation of annual work plans.

Accountabilities/Responsibilities:

- Under the Multi Country Project on Anticipatory Action for Food Security (MCP-AA4FS in Southern Africa, the expert will provide advanced technical guidance towards the strengthening of national Early Warning Systems (EWS) that release lifesaving prearranged financing from both national and international funding mechanisms.

- Provide solid technical leadership in EWS skill assessments in collaboration with WFP CO staff at both national and subnational levels across various time-horizons, forecast resolution and frequency for extreme events to ensure access to prearranged finance.

- Formulate work plans, logical frameworks, develop funding proposals, and provide oversight to technical partners driving capacity strengthening solutions to government partners as outlined in the MCP-AA4FS project.

- In partnership with national meteorological services, lead the design of downscaling, calibration and visualization techniques and services  for the use of global model forecasts and local climate data.

- Develop and/or review probabilistic forecast triggers; hazard and impact-based thresholds; and the aggregation of these sub-national indicators into risk profiles to inform the potential scale of AA. 

- Provide technical oversight and linkages to global HQ policies and international partnerships for government-led national technical working groups (TWG) designing and operationalizing national AA frameworks.

- Under the Systematic Observation Financing Facility (SOFF) project, lead the technical component of the implementation phase according to the 5-year project plans that aim to rehabilitate and/or replace the existing meteorological observation network including upper-air stations to be GBON compliant.

- Represent WFP within regional initiatives including the South Africa Development Community (SADC) towards enhanced integration of AA triggers in the annual Southern Africa Regional Climate Outlook Forum (SARCOF) processes.

- Technically lead the joint ECHO Programme on Strengthened Early Warning and Anticipatory Action in Southern Africa, with a focus on Thematic Pillar 2 (Harmonization of AA trigger models) activities, such as hosting the Sub-Technical Working Group on AA Triggers and Climate Services and supporting the facilitation of regional impact-based forecasting (IbF) trainings.

- Build and maintain effective partnerships with internal and external stakeholders, including identify, develop and nurture strategic and operational partnerships to identify opportunities for collaborative approaches with regional EWS experts from other agencies (e.g. FAO, OCHA Centre for Humanitarian Data, Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement) with the aim of harmonizing existing AA trigger models or conducting expert peer review processes of new AA trigger models being developed for SADC member states.

- Provide solid technical support towards the implementation of WFP's financial architecture for emergency response ensuring AA programmes are aligned to complimentary insurance and emergency response financing.

- Technical lead for the implementation of the Early Warnings for All (EW4All) Africa Action Plan in southern Africa's first mover countries;

- Responsible for all project reporting, advocacy materials and evidence on EWS impacts.

- Represent WFP at technical workshops, donor and government meetings, enhancing WFP's status in different fora.

- Significant travel within the East and Southern Africa region will also be required.

Deliverables at the end of the contract :

Effective technical leadership provided to the MCP-AA4FS and SOFF programmes in Southern Africa.

At least one advocacy document developed demonstrating the impact of EWS.

New funding proposal(s) for EWS successfully developed and submitted.

Annual report on AA and EWS regional achievements and plans completed.

Successful alignment with complimentary climate programmes in the region.

Technical oversight of the EW4ALL initiative and ECHO AA programme.

Qualifications and experience required :

Education : Advanced University degree preferably in hydrology, meteorology, climate, or related fields with additional five years of related work experience and/or trainings/courses.      

Experience : Minimum of ten years of progressively responsible professional experience in early warning systems, seasonal monitoring, flood analysis, numerical weather prediction, or weather forecasting, preferably within the southern Africa region. Experience across multiple technical areas is highly desirable.

Knowledge and skills : Demonstrated experience with downscaling, calibration, and bias correction of global weather models for subnational forecasts; Working knowledge of hydrological models for flood forecasting (including duration and extent); Proficiency in the use and application of remote sensing data (e.g., rainfall estimates, NDVI, LST); Experience managing technical projects, budgets, and workplans, and collaborating with diverse technical and non-technical stakeholders; Strong knowledge of analytical programming languages (e.g., R, Python); Excellent oral and written communication skills in English; Experience working with national meteorological services in southern Africa; Experience with WFP and/or Anticipatory Action programmes;. Ability to work independently and as part of a multicultural team.

Languages : Fluent in English including strong writing skills, working knowledge of French or Portuguese is an advantage.

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REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION

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REMINDERS BEFORE YOU SUBMIT YOUR APPLICATION

• All applications must be submitted exclusively through our online recruitment system. We do not accept CVs or spontaneous applications by email.

• If you experience challenges while submitting your online application, please contact us at for technical support only.

• Please note that applications sent to this email address cannot be considered.

• We strongly recommend that your profile is accurate, complete, and includes your employment records, academic qualifications, language skills and UN Grade (if applicable).

• Once your profile is completed, please apply, and submit your application.

• Kindly note the only documents you will need to submit at this time are your CV and Cover Letter

• Additional documents such as passport, recommendation letters, academic certificates, etc. may potentially be requested at a future time

• Only shortlisted candidates will be notified

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.