Office Assistant

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• FAO is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality, background and culture
• Qualified female applicants, qualified nationals of non-and under-represented Members and persons with disabilities are encouraged to apply
• Everyone who works for FAO is required to adhere to the highest standards of integrity and professional conduct, and to uphold FAO's values
• FAO, as a Specialized Agency of the United Nations, has a zero-tolerance policy for conduct that is incompatible with its status, objectives and mandate, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination
• All selected candidates will undergo rigorous reference and background checks
• All applications will be treated with the strictest confidentiality
• FAO staff are subject to the authority of the Director-General, who may assign them to any of the activities or offices of the Organization.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) contributes to the achievement of the Agenda through the FAO Strategic Framework by supporting the transformation to MORE efficient, inclusive, resilient and sustainable agrifood systems, for better production, better nutrition, a better environment, and a better life, leaving no one behind.

Organizational Setting
The Office of Emergencies and Resilience (OER) is responsible for ensuring FAO's efforts to support countries and partners in preparing for and effectively responding to food and agricultural threats and crises by i) increasing the numbers of people reached in Integrated Phase Classification (IPC) 3 and above; and ii) increasing the numbers of people supported to move out of IPC 3 and above from a humanitarian caseload onto pathways of resilience and development. FAO has mainstreamed a humanitarian, development, peace nexus approach and a localization agenda throughout its strategic positioning and programmatic design and implementation at country and regional levels. In this organizational setting, OER is responsible for coordinating the development and maintenance of corporate tools and standards to enable Decentralized Offices (DOs) to assist Member Nations to prepare for and respond to emergencies as well as strengthen capacities of national and subnational institutions and partners for resilience and risk-informed development. OER ensures humanitarian policy coordination and knowledge, liaison with the Inter-Agency Standing Committee as well as with humanitarian resource partners, co-leadership with the World Food Programme (WFP) of the global Food Security Cluster, organizational preparedness, surge capacity and response to large-scale emergencies. OER supports food and nutrition security and sectoral/systems assessments, early warning activities related to emergency and humanitarian analysis and responses. OER plays a major role in the development and leadership of the Organization's programme to increase the resilience of livelihoods to food and agriculture threats and crises of the Organization's programme in areas such as risk governance and coordination, anticipatory actions, disaster risk reduction, early warning and response in agriculture and food chain crises.

Launched at the World Humanitarian Summit by the European Union, FAO and WFP, the Global Network Against Food Crises (GNAFC) is multi-stakeholder initiative composed by humanitarian and development actors united by the commitment to tackle the root causes of food crises and promote sustainable solutions through shared analysis and knowledge, strengthened coordination in evidence-based responses and collective efforts across the Humanitarian, Development and Peace (HDP) nexus. Within this partnership, FAO has a key role in the operationalization of the Global Network at global, regional, and country level with an emphasis on analytical work around food crises to inform decision-making (e.g. Global Report on Food Crises), the identification of innovative approaches to tackle root causes of food crises in a sustainable manner, and then furthering support at the country level for HDP programming and improved coordination.

The position is located in the Global Network Against Food Crises (GNAFC) Team of the Office of Emergencies and Resilience (OER) at FAO headquarters in Rome, Italy.

Main Purpose
The Office Assistant performs a variety of routine administrative transactions and office support functions contributing to the smooth and efficient running of the work unit.

Supervision Received/Exercised
The Office Assistant reports to one or more professional staff and receives guidance from the Emergency and Rehabilitation Officer (Programme) of the GNAFC. He/she acts independently in routine matters and consults with supervisor(s) on new and/or more complex issues and procedures. Supervision received provides technical and procedural guidance and on-the-job learning.
 

Working Relationships
The Office Assistant interacts with a variety of colleagues from within the work unit. Interactions relate to the exchange of routine information and the provision of standard office support services.

Key Functions/Results
• Type, format and draft routine correspondence; collate tables, reports, presentations, publications and other documentation.
• Receive and direct telephone calls and visitors; screen and send e-mails; respond to routine internal and external enquiries and/or refer to appropriate contacts/units.
• Enter, retrieve, structure and update selected information and data from various sources (e.g. Intra-/Internet, office files, etc.); present results in standard format.
• Set up and maintain office files and reference systems according to standard procedures, including an e-book for signatures.
• Initiate, view and track a variety of administrative transactions in the computerized financial/travel/human resources systems.
• Support the organization and administration of meetings, workshops and events (e.g. arranging for meeting rooms and other facilities.
• Assist with arranging for travels: organize transport, logistics, accommodation, documents.
• Ensure availability of office supplies and appropriate maintenance of office equipment.
• Perform other duties as required.

Impact Of Work
The Office Assistant participates as part of a team in the provision of administrative and office support services. Actions reflect on the immediate and wider work unit.

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CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING

Minimum Requirements

Education: Secondary School Education.
Experience: Two years of relevant experience in office support work.
Languages: Working knowledge (proficient - level C) of English. 
IT Skills: Knowledge of MS Office applications, Internet and office technology equipment.

Residency: General Service Staff are recruited locally. To be eligible for this position, candidates must be nationals of the country of the duty station or possess an existing visa/work permit and reside within commuting distance of the duty station at the time of the application. "Commuting distance" means the distance within which staff members can travel daily between their place of work and their residence.

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

Technical Skills
• Good knowledge of communication and documentation standards.
• Good knowledge of corporate computerized financial/travel/human resources systems and administrative procedures and policies.
• Good knowledge of the organizational structure. 

Desirable Qualifications And Skills
 
• Experience in preparing, drafting, formatting and finalizing routine correspondence, ensuring appropriate routing and follow-up in order to respect established deadlines.
• Advanced knowledge of MS Excel.
• Knowledge of recruitment, appointment travel, duty travel process of all categories of staff and affiliate staff 
• Limited knowledge (intermediate - level B) of one of the other FAO languages (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish).
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FAO staff are expected to adhere to FAO Values of Commitment to FAO,

Respect for All and Integrity and Transparency

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ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
• FAO does not charge a fee at any stage of the recruitment process (application, interview, processing)
• Please note that FAO only considers higher educational qualifications obtained from an institution accredited/recognized in the World Higher Education Database (WHED), a list updated by the International Association of Universities (IAU) / United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The list can be accessed at 

• The length of the appointment for internal FAO candidates will be established in accordance with applicable policies pertaining to extension of appointments

• Appointment will be subject to certification that the candidate is medically fit for appointment, accreditation, any residency or visa requirements, and security clearances. 
• General Service Staff are recruited locally. To be eligible for this position, candidates must be nationals of the country of the duty station or possess an existing visa/work permit, and reside within commuting distance of the duty station at the time of the application."Commuting distance" means the distance within which staff members can travel daily between their place of work and their residence.
• No international benefits will be payable as selected candidates are recruited locally and paid in the local currency of the office location
• For additional information visit the FAO employment website:

REMUNERATION
A competitive compensation and benefits package is offered. For information on UN salaries, allowances and benefits, click on the following link: