Programme Policy Officer (Field Coordination)

JOB TITLE & GRADE LEVEL: Programme Policy Officer (Field Coordination), NOB
TYPE OF CONTRACT: Fixed Term
UNIT/DIVISION: Programme Unit – Blantyre Sub-Office
DUTY STATION (City, Country): Blantyre, Malawi
REPORTS TO: Deputy Country Director and Head of Programme
DURATION: 12 months (Renewable)

ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT:

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) is the world’s largest humanitarian agency, fighting hunger worldwide. WFP Malawi is undergoing a strategic repositioning aimed at strengthening its alignment with national priorities, enhancing inter-agency collaboration, and supporting the Government of Malawi in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030, with a particular emphasis on Zero Hunger (SDG 2), in line with Malawi Vision 2063 and its first ten-year implementation plan (MIP-1).

WFP’s Malawi Country Strategic Plan (CSP) 2024–2028 seeks to ensure the food and nutrition security of vulnerable people and communities while building resilience through the transformation of food systems. Aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF) 2024–2028, the CSP sets out five mutually reinforcing outcomes and continues WFP’s strategic shift from direct implementer to enabler of nationally owned, sustainable systems, with phased handover of interventions informed by capacity assessments.

The CSP prioritises the most food-insecure districts, largely located in the southern region, while leaving room for scale-up and expansion. The Blantyre Sub-Office is WFP’s operational hub for field implementation in its area of coverage, where the full range of CSP activities is delivered: crisis response and anticipatory action (Activity 1), assistance to refugees, asylum seekers and host communities (Activity 2), nutrition (Activity 3), Home-Grown School Feeding (Activity 4) and the integrated resilience package (Activity 5).

Delivering these activities as a layered, integrated package at district and community level, and progressively strengthening the capacity of district councils to lead them, is central to the CSP’s theory of change and to WFP’s evolving role as an enabler.

JOB PURPOSE:

To advance this agenda, WFP Malawi seeks to recruit a Programme Policy Officer (Field Coordination) to coordinate and oversee the field implementation of CSP Activities 1 to 5 in the Blantyre Sub-Office area of coverage, ensuring integrated, timely, high-quality and compliant delivery, and serving as the link between country office activity managers, district councils and cooperating partners.

THE ROLE:

Under the overall supervision of the Deputy Country Director and Head of Programme with technical guidance from the Deputy Head of Programme and the country office activity managers, and in collaboration with the sub-office Supply Chain, Finance, Administration, Security and RAM teams, the Programme Policy Officer (Field Coordination) will:

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

A. Field programme coordination and integrated delivery

• Coordinate the day-to-day implementation of all CSP activities (Activities 1–5) ensuring interventions are layered and sequenced so that the same communities benefit from complementary support.
• Translate country office annual plans into district implementation plans with clear targets, timelines and responsibilities, and track progress against targets and budgets.
• Apply the three-pronged approach (integrated context analysis, seasonal livelihood programming and community-based participatory planning) to guide geographic targeting and programme design at district and community level.
• Serve as the field focal point for country office activity managers, consolidating field feedback to inform programme adjustments.
• Supervise, coach and manage the performance of all filed programme staff (programme associates, assistants and field monitors), acting as a point of referral for analysis and operational queries.

B. Activity-specific oversight

• Activity 1 – Crisis response and anticipatory action: oversee lean season and emergency responses (e.g., floods and cyclones), targeting and registration, leveraging national shock-responsive social protection systems and the unified beneficiary registry, cash-based and in-kind distributions, “cash plus” asset creation, and district-level anticipatory action and preparedness, including contingency planning and pre-positioning with Supply Chain.
• Activity 2 – Refugees, asylum seekers and host communities: support the delivery of food assistance and cash initiatives and social cohesion activities, in coordination with the activity manager, UNHCR and the relevant ministry.
• Activity 3 – Nutrition: coordinate the field delivery of malnutrition treatment and prevention activities, nutrition top-ups and SBCC with district health offices and district nutrition coordination structures.
• Activity 4 – School meals: oversee HGSF implementation in targeted schools and ECD centres, including cash transfers to schools, school procurement committees, linkages with farmer organisations, food safety and quality, and take-home rations where applicable, working closely with district education offices.
• Activity 5 – Integrated resilience: through the field offices oversee the implementation of Food Assistance for Assets (community planning, technical standards and asset quality), the Integrated Risk Management Programme (micro-insurance, savings groups), Smallholder Agriculture Market Support (aggregation, post-harvest management, market linkages), climate services and graduation of participating households.

C. Cooperating partner management and compliance

• Contribute to cooperating partner selection, field level agreements and budgets; monitor partner performance, conduct spot-checks and capacity assessments, and verify invoices and distribution reports.
• Ensure compliance with WFP standards and procedures, including targeting and beneficiary verification, registration and identity management, cash assurance, distribution monitoring, food safety and quality, and warehouse and commodity accountability.

D. Government and stakeholder engagement

• Act as WFP’s primary programme interlocutor with district councils and sector offices (agriculture, education, health, social welfare and disaster management), traditional leaders and communities.
• Participate in district coordination structures, including District Executive Committees and coordinate with UN agencies and NGOs working in the same districts.
• Strengthen the capacity of district and community structures to plan, implement and sustain programmes, supporting the CSP’s transition and handover objectives.

E. Monitoring, reporting and learning

• Ensure adequate field monitoring coverage in collaboration with RAM/M&E, and follow up on monitoring findings and corrective actions.
• Consolidate timely, accurate sub-office reports (monthly and quarterly progress reports, situation reports, Annual Country Report inputs) and document success stories and lessons learned.
• Contribute to food security, market and emergency assessments, including Malawi Vulnerability Assessment Committee (MVAC) processes, and coordinate donor and government field visits.

F. Protection, accountability and gender

• Ensure the community feedback mechanism functions effectively, that cases are followed up, and that gender-based violence and child protection cases are referred to the appropriate authorities.
• Mainstream gender, disability inclusion, protection, AAP, PSEA and conflict sensitivity across all field activities.

G. Operations, risk and emergency preparedness

• Work with Supply Chain, Finance, Administration and Security on movement planning, logistics and field security arrangements.
• Maintain the field programme risk register and ensure readiness to scale up and deploy rapidly at the onset of a crisis.
• Perform other related duties as required.

OTHER SPECIFIC JOB REQUIREMENTS

The incumbent is expected to deliver the following during the contract period:

• Integrated field implementation plan for 2027, aligned with country office activity plans, approved by the end of Q1.
• Monthly and quarterly sub-office progress reports submitted on time, with consolidated field monitoring follow-up.
• Cooperating partner performance reviews and spot-checks completed as scheduled.
• District-level emergency preparedness and anticipatory action plans updated ahead of the lean and cyclone seasons.
• Documented district capacity strengthening activities and field-level lessons-learned or success-story products.

The position requires extensive travel approximately 50 percent of the time and availability for deployment during emergencies.

DESIRED EXPERIENCES FOR ENTRY INTO THE ROLE:

• Has taken leadership of implementing multi-sectoral field programmes (e.g., food assistance, resilience, school feeding and/or nutrition) at district or field level.
• Has coordinated cooperating partners and government counterparts at subnational level.
• Has experience in emergency response, such as lean season, flood or cyclone responses.
• Has supervised field teams.
• Has deepened technical knowledge through exposure to technical teams (e.g., VAM/RAM, nutrition, resilience).

STANDARD MINIMUM ACADEMIC QUALIFICATIONS:

• Education: Advanced university degree in International Development, Agriculture, Rural Development, Economics, Nutrition, Social Sciences or another field relevant to international development assistance, or First University degree with additional years of related work experience and/or trainings/courses.
• Experience: At least three (3) years of post-graduate, progressively responsible professional experience in field-based humanitarian or development programme implementation, including coordination with district authorities and implementing partners.

KNOWLEDGE & SKILLS:

• Broad knowledge of food assistance programming across crisis response, nutrition, school feeding and resilience, including cash-based transfers.
• Good understanding of Malawi’s decentralised government structures and district coordination mechanisms.
• Strong planning, coordination and problem-solving skills, with the ability to manage multiple activities and partners under pressure.
• Ability to lead and motivate field teams and to supervise junior staff.
• Good analytical and report-writing skills, and the ability to use data to inform decisions.
• Knowledge of, or the ability to quickly assimilate, UN/WFP processes and systems (e.g., COMET, SCOPE, WINGS).

Language: Fluency (level C) in English language

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