Senior Technical Advisor_International Consultant CST III at World Food Programme

Vientiane Capital, Vientiane Prefecture, Laos -

Full Time

Start Date

Immediate

Expiry Date

14 Sep, 26

Salary

0.0

Posted On

16 Jun, 26

Experience

10 year(s) or above

Remote Job

Yes

Telecommute

Yes

Sponsor Visa

Skills

Nutrition-Sensitive Agriculture, Climate-Smart Agriculture, Food Systems Transformation, Resilience Building, Multisectoral Coordination, Strategic Advisory, Policy Integration, Value Chain Development, Stakeholder Engagement, Program Monitoring, Evidence Generation, Technical Capacity Building

Industry

Non-profit Organizations

Description

DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS 30 June 2026-23:59-GMT+07:00 Indochina Time (Vientiane) 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. To learn more about WFP, visit our website: https://www.wfp.org and follow us on social media to keep up with our latest news: YouTube, LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, TikTok. 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). JOB TITLE: Senior Technical Advisor, seconded to the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment TYPE OF CONTRACT: Regular Consultant (CST-III) UNIT/DIVISION: Programme DUTY STATION (City, Country): Vientiane, Laos DURATION: 11 months (September 2026 onwards) BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE OF THE ASSIGNMENT: Undernutrition and food insecurity remain persistently high in Lao PDR, with stunting rates among children under five reaching as high as 54 percent in some provinces. Children who are chronically malnourished during the first 1,000 days can suffer irreversible damage to their physical and cognitive development. Improving children’s and women’s nutrition is critical to breaking the intergenerational cycle of undernutrition. Given the negative impacts of chronic undernutrition on health, productivity, educational attainment, and income‑earning potential, addressing this challenge is essential for sustained national economic growth. In line with the 10th National Socio-Economic Development Plan (2026–2030), which emphasizes economic diversification and quality growth, human capital development and poverty reduction, and climate resilience, the National Action Plan on Transition toward Sustainable Food Systems Transformation (2025–2030) has been launched under the leadership of the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment (MAE). This action plan explicitly positions food systems as a cross-cutting driver linking production, nutrition, health, environmental sustainability, climate resilience, and inclusive economic growth. In alignment with these national plans and priorities, and in the context of Lao PDR’s transition toward graduation from Least Developed Country status in 2026, WFP is pursuing a shift from direct implementation toward strengthened national and local capacities under its next Country Strategic Plan (2027–2031). In this regard, the establishment of a senior advisory function embedded within MAE provides a practical mechanism to support this transition agenda while reinforcing government leadership and ownership. The incumbent will also provide high-level strategic and technical support to advance the integration of nutrition-sensitive and climate-smart agriculture, food systems transformation, resilience building, and multisectoral coordination within MAE policies, programmes, and investment frameworks. From a WFP programme perspective, this advisory role is also expected to strengthen coherence and alignment across WFP’s agriculture, nutrition, and resilience-related portfolio under the MAE. ACCOUNTABILITIES/RESPONSIBILITIES: Embedded in the government structure of Ministry of Agriculture and Environment (MAE), the senior technical advisor will support the strengthening of institutional and technical capacity of government counterparts with following responsibilities and duties: · Provide overall strategic and technical advisory support to the MAE including in the area of nutrition-sensitive and climate-smart agriculture, livelihood approaches, resilience building, and food systems transformation. · Guide the integration of nutrition and climate change into agricultural policies, programmes, and investment frameworks aligned with national strategies and development partner priorities and advise on required policy changes. · Support the design, implementation and monitoring as well as quality assurance of programmes related to nutrition-sensitive and climate-resilient agriculture and food systems transformation supported by WFP to MAE. · Gather and promote knowledge products where required to build evidence-base for scalable approaches for the MAE. · Provide technical advice to the current WFP project portfolio such as the AFN-II and BRRRP plus any future projects within the same portfolio; this includes advisory towards budgeting and programming, implementation and monitoring of activities, coordination with relevant other ministries and entities, and reporting. · Support formulation and implementation of strategies promoting diversified, nutrient-dense, and climate-resilient production systems across value chains. · Support development of tools, training materials, and on-the-job mentoring and training. · Facilitate cross-sectoral coordination across agriculture, nutrition, health, education, and social protection sectors to ensure integrated programming and advise Ministry on coordination gaps. · Provide high-level advisory support to government in engaging with development partners (e.g., IFAD, ADB, World Bank, UN agencies) aligning their plans and priorities. · Lead and coordinate with the MAE the development of a transition strategy, including a costed, time-bound plan, considering and integrating national and subnational government planning and budgeting processes to ensure sustainable financing and ownership. · Guide evidence generation, including analytical work, feasibility assessments, and use of data to inform decision-making and programme design as well as adjustment to implementation. · Support development of monitoring frameworks and indicators to track outputs and outcomes of the projects under the Technical Advisors portfolio. · Oversee documentation and dissemination of best practices, lessons learned, and knowledge products to inform scaling and policy development. QUALIFICATIONS and experiences: The successful candidate will be a mature, team-oriented professional with good analytical and communication skills. He/she should be able to strike rapport with personnel at different levels, including the government, international organizations and other stakeholders. A strong self-motivated individual working with no or minimal supervision, able to travel to the rural areas and meet tight deadlines is required. The person should have excellent skills in written and spoken English, and be fully conversant with computer use. Education: Advanced university degree (master’s or higher) in Agriculture, Agricultural economics, Food Systems, Nutrition, Environmental Science, Climate Change, or a related field. Experience: - Minimum 15 years of progressively responsible experience in agriculture, rural development, or food systems programmes. - Proven experience working with government institutions, specifically the Ministries of Agriculture and Environment, in technical advisory roles. - Demonstrated experience in designing and implementing nutrition-sensitive and climate-resilient agriculture programmes. - Experience in food systems transformation, including value chain development and market linkages. - Strong track record in multisectoral coordination across agriculture, nutrition, and related government sectors. - Experience working with international organizations (e.g., UN agencies, IFIs such as IFAD, ADB, and World Bank) is highly desirable. - Experience in Lao PDR and understanding on the culture are advantages. Knowledge & Skills: - Demonstrated expertise in nutrition-sensitive agriculture, climate-smart/resilient agriculture, and/or food systems transformation. - Strong understanding of Laos-specific context, in terms of the government structure after the restructuring, national and agriculture sector plans and priorities. - Strong familiarity with the current international development frameworks related to food security, nutrition, and climate resilience in Laos. - Excellent analytical, strategic thinking, and problem-solving skills. - Strong communication and stakeholder engagement skills, particularly with government institutions and development partners. - Proven ability to lead complex technical assignments, provide strategic guidance, and deliver high-quality outputs. Languages: - Fluent in English. Knowledge of Lao language is an asset. WFP LEADERSHIP FRAMEWORK WFP Leadership Framework guides to the common standards of behavior that guide HOW we work together to accomplish our mission. Click here to access WFP Leadership Framework REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION WFP is committed to supporting individuals with disabilities by providing reasonable accommodations throughout the recruitment process. If you require a reasonable accommodation, please contact: global.inclusion@wfp.org NO FEE DISCLAIMER The United Nations does not charge any application, processing, training, interviewing, testing or other fee in connection with the application or recruitment process. Should you receive a solicitation for the payment of a fee, please disregard it. Furthermore, please note that emblems, logos, names and addresses are easily copied and reproduced. Therefore, you are advised to apply particular care when submitting personal information on the web. REMINDERS BEFORE YOU SUBMIT YOUR APPLICATION All applications must be submitted exclusively through our online recruiting system. We do not consider CVs or applications sent by email, LinkedIn, or any other channel. We strongly recommend that your Workday profile is accurate and complete, and that all sections are filled in, including your employment history, academic qualifications, language skills, and UN grade (if applicable). Once your profile is completed, please apply, and submit your application. If you experience technical issues while submitting your application, you may contact us at global.hrerecruitment@wfp.org. Please note that this email is only for technical issues with an application - unsolicited applications or documents sent to this inbox will not receive a reply. At the application stage, the only required documents are your CV and Cover Letter. Additional documents (passport, certificates, recommendation letters, etc.) may be requested later in the process. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and invited to proceed to the next stage of the recruitment process. 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. If you used to have an account on our previous platform, please note that you will need to create a new account for future applications. However, this change will not affect any ongoing recruitment processes. To ensure that WFP is able to deliver on its mandate, a range of contract types exist depending on the duration and nature of work. Find out more here. These guidelines are here to help you use AI tools responsibly throughout WFP’s recruitment process. We also want to be transparent about how we use AI on our side. Curious? Find out more here. Our greatest strength is the people working around the world providing access to nutritious food and promoting lasting solutions to those we serve. WFP provides its staff with meaningful and impactful careers, continuous learning and training, and a multicultural and stimulating work environment. 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, physical or mental disability. The United Nations World Food Programme is the 2020 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate. We are 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. Read more about WFP’s history here, and WFP’s mission here Want to hear what it’s like working for WFP? Check out our newsletter highlighting the career stories of our passionate staff here: Pathway to WFP | LinkedIn Integrity, collaboration, commitment, humanity, inclusion. These values inspire everything we do every day, allowing us to work towards a world with zero hunger. You can read more about the values here. Our behaviour guides us in how we accomplish our mission. All WFP employees are expected to demonstrate the standards of behaviour described in the WFP Leadership Framework. Learn more about the WFP Leadership Framework here. WFP is aware of fictitious employment offers being circulated via email or originating from online job boards. Many of these schemes consist of an alleged offer of employment or contract with WFP in return for the payment of fees or providing personal or banking information. Read more.

Responsibilities

Provide high-level strategic and technical advisory support to the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment to integrate nutrition and climate resilience into agricultural policies. Lead the development of transition strategies and strengthen national capacities for sustainable food systems transformation.