Head of Cooperating Partners Management (Programme Policy Officer) – WFP

Job Description

Organization	United Nations World Food Programme
Job Title	Head of Cooperating Partners Management (Programme Policy Officer)
Requisition ID	399369
Location	Sudan – Khartoum
Posted Date	05/02/2023
Closing Date	19/02/2023

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 United Nations World Food Programme is the world’s largest humanitarian agency fighting hunger worldwide.  The mission of WFP is to help the world achieve Zero Hunger in our lifetimes.  Every day, WFP works worldwide to ensure that no child goes to bed hungry and that the poorest and most vulnerable, particularly women and children, can access the nutritious food they need.

WFP Sudan has the potential to reach millions of food insecure people across Sudan – with a total of 9.2 million people assisted in 2022. WFP Sudan, one of the largest and complex operations for WFP globally,  is currently rolling out its five-year Country Strategic Plan (2019-2023), which aims to provide emergency assistance through a hybrid approach (Cash, food and vouchers), along with life-changing types of programmes (Nutrition, Resilience and School Feeding).
 

ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT

As part of Sudan CSP 2019-2023, WFP Sudan offers an integrated package of programmes responding to immediate and protracted crisis while seeking coordinated approaches to improve nutrition, strengthen resilience and support the Government of Sudan and partners in paving the way for sustainable results. Key programme activities include life-saving food assistance (in-kind food and cash-based transfers, including through FFA, School-Based Programme, Nutrition as well as Productive Safety Nets and Post-Harvest Loss reduction.   

JOB PURPOSE

WFP Sudan CO currently has 62 Cooperating Partners (CP), with associated budget reaching over USD 48 million in 2022 alone. This will reach even another record in the coming months, with a new ground-breaking $75 million funding in the works with the African Development Bank and another $300 million from the World Bank. This will require WFP Sudan to invest and hire Head of Cooperating Partners to manage the full-cycle of Field Level Agreements (FLAs) between WFP and the 62+ CPs  and spearhead strategic engagements with these CPs. 

Cooperating Partners in Sudan are evolving and they have become more vocal. WFP will have to shift its approach from the current transactional-type relationship to more strategic partnership that cultivates and engages with diverse partners more effectively and efficiently.  

The RBN oversight mission in 2021 flagged CP management as a priority area of risk and recommended that the CO must work towards ensuring long-term systems that comply with corporate rules and regulations. The oversight mission highlighted the need for transforming the CP Management unit to cover the end-to-end Cooperating Partner management process, while ensuring systematic capacity strengthening to WFP staff as well as that of CPs in the medium and long-term.    

Effective leadership in CP management couldn’t be more important for WFP Sudan at this critical juncture to ensure systematic approaches to the localization agenda within the country context, to enhance capacity strengthening for partners and WFP staff as well as to harmonize partnership management processes with other UN agencies and pursue strategic collaboration. 

The Head of CP Management position will be responsible for initiating and fostering strategic partnership, as well as executing the full process of FLA planning and implementation, while providing leadership, training and mentoring to national staff under her/his supervision as part of long-term capacity strengthening effort across WFP Sudan. 
 

1. Partnerships and Coordination

• Lead and manage strategic and operational partnership engagement processes, ensuring that the latest corporate standard and templates on partnership engagements are used. Propose to Regional and HQ on the need for new/revised procedures and practices on partnership engagements required at Sudan Country Office. 
• Guide and advise the Head of Programme, Strategic Outcome and Activity Managers regarding engagements with partners supporting WFP Sudan to deliver assistance, including liaison with Regional and HQ Partnership and Legal units, as necessary, on appropriate contractual relationships with such actors.
• Lead the partnerships performance reviews process at the Country Office and implement CP management activities that align with the needs of WP Sudan.  
• Lead the Country Office on the use of the UN Partner Portal to ensure the office follows the NGO Corporate Guidance in coordinating with UNHCR, UNICEF and UNFPA focal points on this effort. Provide guidance to the Cooperating Partners and feedback to the RBN/HQ on UNPP use.
• Develop and keep up-to-date Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for CP management and Terms of Reference for the different functions involved in the End-to-End CP management process, ensuring incorporation of new changes, corporate guidelines and the changing country context.

2. FLA/MOU Planning and Implementation

• Lead the execution of the full partnership contracting processes for all CSP activities from begging to end.
• Lead the development of different tools, guidelines, and SOPs that can address audit recommendations and implementation of IRM and NGO guidance recommendations.
• Manage and analyse potential risks in CP engagements and recommend risk mitigation measures for Management’s consideration.
• Be responsible for the issuance of Expression of Interest, Request for Proposals and FLA awards requests, draft agreements and subsequent amendments, ensuring that all agreements and amendments are constructed and issued in line with WFP legal and financial rules and regulations.
• Manage the process of operational and financial amendment and closure of FLAs, MOUs and the project.

3. Budget Management

• Lead the delivery of training, learning sessions and training materials for partners and WFP technical units’ staff on the FLA process, including partnership process, budgeting, proposals, capacity assessments, performance assessment and reporting.
• Manage processes involving payment requests for partners, and ensure payments are processed based on the agreement and agreed payment schedules and are IPSAS compliant.
• Be responsible for reviewing of FLA budget and financial reports against approved budgets and standardised cost structures to provide critical feedback to the cooperating partners, programme unit, and Head of Programme. Monitor budgets in FLA proposals and verify their consistency with the prevailing market rate; assist in discussion/negotiation of costs/fees as required.
• Be responsible for the preparation of monthly activity expenditure reports, trend analysis and expenditure forecasts for the Head/Deputy Head of Programme and DCD for budget monitoring and accountability purposes, in collaboration with Activity managers and the Finance Unit.
   

4. Stakeholder Coordination and engagement

Organize and ensure the holding of regular meetings and/or use other innovative and effective ways to ensure proper information sharing with all partners and guarantee communication with NGO partners to ensure they are properly informed of WFP’s operations status and associated decision-making, including challenges and proposed solutions. 
Develop, foster and sustain productive partnerships with all stakeholders, including government ministries, International and Local Non-governmental organizations
Lead the continuous scoping of the partnership landscape to broaden partnership opportunities with partners with the potential for impact and complementarity, and for high-quality programming and meeting the CSP objectives. 
Provide information and reports on partnerships for programme and management briefings taking points reports and ACR. 

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE

Education:    
Advanced University degree in a relevant subject in social sciences, economics, International Relations, Mathematical sciences and other related fields. 

Experience:    
5 years of relevant progressively responsible experience in CP Management and/or experience in Strategic Outcome and Activity Management experience at the Country Office or field level. 

Knowledge & Skills:    
Technical experience and knowledge in preparing and managing the full process of FLA agreements with partners and reviewing budgets and reports for management, preferably in WFP. 
Skills in translating operational requirements into financial information related to CP and FLA. 
    
Language:    
International Professional: Fluency (level C) in English language. Intermediate knowledge (level B) of a second official UN language: Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian, Spanish, and/or WFP’s working language, Portuguese. 
 

TERMS AND CONDITIONS

Limited Fixed-Term Appointment (LFT) position is a non-mobile staff appointment in the international professional category for a limited period of up to 4 years. For this position, all candidates must be nationals of a country other than the country of assignment (Sudan). The position is based in Khartoum, Sudan, and the selected candidate will be expected to relocate. Incumbents of LFT positions are not eligible to apply for other mobile positions advertised internally through the Reassignment.
WFP offers an attractive compensation and benefits package in line with ICSC standards (http://icsc.un.org), including basic salary, post adjustment, relocation entitlement, travel and shipment allowances, 30 days’ annual leave, home leave, an education grant for dependent children, a pension plan, and medical insurance.

DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS

Opening date: 05 February 2023

Closing date: 19 February 2023

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WFP has a zero-tolerance approach to conduct such as fraud, sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to WFP’s standards of conduct and will therefore undergo rigorous background verification internally or through third parties. Selected candidates will also be required to provide additional information as part of the verification exercise. Misrepresentation of information provided during the recruitment process may lead to disqualification or termination of employment

WFP will not request payment at any stage of the recruitment process including at the offer stage. Any requests for payment should be refused and reported to local law enforcement authorities for appropriate action.