National Coordinator

The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger. Its mandate is to achieve food security for all and ensure that people have regular access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to lead active and healthy lives. With over 194 Member Nations, FAO operates in more than 130 countries worldwide and works with a wide range of partners to support the eradication of hunger and malnutrition. FAO leads efforts in resource mobilization and provides technical support to the government towards the development of the agriculture, fisheries and forestry sectors. 
The Malawi Country Programming Framework 2024-2028 summarizes the development priorities for collaboration between FAO and the Government of Malawi and contributes to national aspirations that are summarized in the Malawi Vision 2063. The right to adequate food is a fundamental human right recognized under international law and it at the core of FAO’s mandate.  However, its effective realization remains elusive in many parts of the world. Currently, monitoring, accountability and enforcement mechanisms in relation to the RtF often face challenges even when in place. These include lack of knowledge on practical implementation measures that leads to a lack of broad-based comprehension of the RtF in practical terms (the RtF being perceived as too abstract), a lack of knowledge of standardized methodologies to track progress (including unharmonized data collection and analysis methods) and how to use them, insufficient public access to information, weak institutionality and limited awareness of the benefits of enforcement mechanisms to rights holders and to duty bearers alike. 
FAO’s Project “Food - Accountability, Rights and Empowerment” (GCP-GLO-1336-GER) aims at addressing these challenges through enhanced monitoring systems and transparency, strengthened accountability and enforcement mechanisms and improved access to justice, in Malawi.

The incumbent will work under the overall supervision of the FAO Representative (FAOR) in Malawi, the direct supervision of the Assistant FAO Representative Programme in Malawi, the technical supervision and support of the FAO Right to Food Team Leader and in close collaboration and consultation with relevant FAO Right to Food Team and other FAO experts. In addition, any outputs containing legal analysis or drafting texts of a legal nature are subject to the clearance of the FAO Development Law Service.

The incumbent will coordinate the entire planning and delivery of project activities in Malawi.

• Conduct a comprehensive mapping of all relevant stakeholders, including government institutions, civil society organizations, academic institutions, justice actors, community-based organizations, and vulnerable groups, to be involved and consulted in the different workstreams of the project (monitoring, policy and legislative research, access to justice, advocacy, and awareness raising in relation to the right to adequate food).
  
• Organize and facilitate inception workshops, coordination meetings, validation workshops, and multi-stakeholder accountability platforms to ensure national ownership, stakeholder buy-in, and effective collaboration.
  
• Lead on logistics, invitations, and mobilization of stakeholders and participants to relevant meetings and workshops.

• Conduct desk research and interviews with relevant national experts to review and systematize national legal and policy frameworks on the right to adequate food, and assess national right to food monitoring mechanisms and indicators to identify alignment with international frameworks, best practices, and existing gaps.
  
• Develop a national right to food action plan based on the analytical identification of key gaps, weaknesses, strengths, and opportunities.
  
• Establish and chair a Right to Food Monitoring Technical Working Group, meeting biannually, to enhance existing monitoring frameworks and indicators.
  
• Co-develop, in collaboration with state institutions, academia, and civil society, a Right to Food Implementation Index to assess and report on the state of implementation of the right to food in Malawi.
  
• Support the development and dissemination of national right to food transparency reports summarizing key findings, trends, and progress in implementation.
  
• Contribute to the development and setup of an online national dashboard featuring disaggregated right to food indicators, contingent on additional resource mobilization.

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• Develop a country profile including national legislation, policies, and jurisprudence related to the implementation of the right to food.
  
• Map key actors operating in formal, customary, and informal justice systems, and identify administrative, judicial, and quasi-judicial mechanisms to access justice in cases of right to food violations.
  
• Document landmark cases to assess the justiciability of the right to food in Malawi.
  
• Assess the main legal, social, and practical obstacles faced by communities whose right to food has been violated in accessing judicial and other justice systems to seek redress.
  
• Adapt and co-develop targeted capacity development materials for justice actors, national human rights institutions, and civil society organizations.
  
• Conduct capacity development activities for the Malawi Human Rights Commission, judiciary, and other relevant justice actors, including the creation of a dedicated Right to Food Unit or staff allocation where feasible.
  
• Facilitate legal literacy sessions and awareness campaigns for right holders, including the development of advocacy materials and grievance redress systems.
  
• Support the creation of a multi-stakeholder social accountability mechanism meeting twice per year, involving the Ministries of Agriculture and Justice, national human rights institutions, civil society, and private sector actors.

• Integrate a right to food module into Malawi’s Farmers Field Schools.
  
• Conduct training sessions for duty-bearers on their obligations and responsibilities concerning the right to food, ensuring meaningful involvement of vulnerable and marginalized groups, particularly women, youth, and rural communities.
  
• Promote community-based advocacy and awareness campaigns to raise public awareness about citizens’ rights related to food security and nutrition.
  
• Translate and adapt the Voluntary Guidelines on the Right to Food into accessible formats, including radio programs, comics, and school sessions, with a focus on rural women and youth.
  
• Promote the use of community scorecards as a tool for communities to assess agrifood policies and their contribution to the realization of the right to food.
  
• Support the development of a legal aid referral protocol for individuals whose right to food is violated, managed by a university legal clinic in Lilongwe and/or Blantyre.

•    Facilitate Malawi’s participation in international and cross-country workshops, conferences, and exchanges to share best practices, replicable models, and lessons learned on the implementation of the right to food.
In close collaboration with Office of Communications (OCC) branches and appropriate Communication focal points, the incumbent will:

• Document and disseminate successes, replicable models, and lessons learned to inform national priorities and strategies.  
  
• Develop and disseminate communication and outreach materials for awareness raising on the right to food.
  

FAO Standards and guidelines:
Liaison with OCC will be maintained, either directly or through an agreed focal point/coordinator, to ensure compliance with OCC standards, aligned messaging, and appropriate review and clearance processes.
 

All communication materials will follow FAO clearance processes and comply with FAO standards, including:
FAO Strategic Framework 2022-31: https://www.fao.org/strategic-framework/en 
FAO social media policy and guidelines: https://www.fao.org/2/socialmedia  
Social Media Branding Guidelines: https://openknowledge.fao.org/handle/20.500.14283/cb5044en
FAOSTYLE(https://openknowledge.fao.org/handle/20.500.14283/cb8081en
FAO terminology http://www.fao.org/faoterm
FAO Names Of Countries https://www.fao.org/nocs/en
Story guidelines, Story template, UN map standards, FAO logo policy and related branding guidelines (available to staff).

Further guidance regarding FAO communications, policies and procedures can be found through the FAO intranet, OCC section.

Project Coordination and Reporting

• Participate in regular monthly feedback, reporting, and backstopping meetings with FAO Right to Food Team colleagues.
  
• Convene project coordination meetings with national stakeholders and FAO partners.
  
• Draft quarterly and annual reports of activities undertaken at country level, indicating progress, challenges, highlights, key takeaways, findings, and recommendations.
  
• Provide ad hoc inputs to communications materials and FAO reporting requirements as necessary.
  
• Perform other duties as required.

• Advanced university degree from an institution recognized by the International Association of Universities (IAU)/UNESCO in a field of Law, Human Rights, Agriculture, Food Security, Nutrition, Social Science, or a closely related field.
  
• At least five (5) years of relevant experience in national policy and/or research work in relation to human rights, agriculture, food security and nutrition.
  
• Working knowledge (level C) of the English language.
  
• National of Malawi

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

• Knowledge of and experience on the human right to adequate food
  
• Previous experience working with FAO Malawi is an asset
  
• Previous experience in undertaking similar assignments
  
• Strong leadership and facilitation skills

• Relevance and scope of experience in human-rights based approaches.
  
• Previous experience working with FAO or other international organizations
  

FAO seeks gender, geographical and linguistic diversity in its staff and international consultants in order to best serve FAO Members in all regions. 

• To apply, visit the recruitment website at Jobs at FAO [link removed] and complete your online profile. We strongly recommend that your profile is accurate, complete and includes your employment records, academic qualifications, and language skills
  
• Candidates are requested to attach a letter of motivation to the online profile
  
• Once your profile is completed, please apply, and submit your application

• 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 http://www.whed.net/ [link removed]. These qualifications should be in alignment with the International Standard Classification of Education (ISCED) mappings [link removed].
  
• Candidates may be requested to provide performance assessments and authorization to conduct verification checks of past and present work, character, education, military and police records to ascertain any and all information which may be pertinent to the employment qualifications
  
• Incomplete applications will not be considered
  
• Personal information provided on your application may be shared within FAO and with other companies acting on FAO’s behalf to provide employment support services such as pre-screening of applications, assessment tests, background checks and other related services. You will be asked to provide your consent before submitting your application. You may withdraw consent at any time, by withdrawing your application, in such case FAO will no longer be able to consider your application
  
• Only applications received through the FAO recruitment portal will be considered
  
• Your application will be screened based on the information provided in your online profile
  
• We encourage applicants to submit the application well before the deadline date.

If you need help or have queries, please create a one-time registration with FAO’s client support team for further assistance: https://fao.service-now.com/csp [link removed]