WFP seeks candidates of the highest integrity and professionalism who share our humanitarian principles.

Selection of staff is made on a competitive basis, and we are committed to promoting diversity and gender balance.

ABOUT WFP

Assisting almost 100 million people in around 83 countries each year, the World Food Programme (WFP) is the leading humanitarian organization saving lives and changing lives, delivering food assistance in emergencies and working with communities to improve nutrition and build resilience. WFP partners with governments, other international organizations and UN agencies, the private sector, and more than 1,000 national and international NGOs in its operations to provide food assistance and tackle the underlying causes of hunger.

We are currently seeking to fill an Innovation Advisor position in our Innovation Field Hub, based in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
 

ABOUT THE INNOVATION HUB

WFP believes that new ideas and disruptive approaches are crucial to getting closer to achieving #zerohunger. We recognise the potential of bold, creative innovations in technology, nutrition and agriculture to create extraordinary, life-changing impact for millions of people.

To this end, WFP’s first Field Innovation Hub (the Hub) was established in Tanzania in 2017. Now in its fourth year, the Hub has laid the groundwork for catalysing Tanzania’s innovation ecosystem and changing the way WFP approaches both current and future operations. The Hub’s work is closely aligned with the objectives of WFP Tanzania’s 2017-2021 country strategic plan, which focuses on supporting the Government of Tanzania in its effort to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, and in particular the Zero Hunger 2030 agenda. In 2021, the hub is fully dedicated towards finding opportunities to revolutionise WFP’s activities to increase its impact and effectiveness.  

The Hub’s work in Tanzania focuses on four areas:

1) Identifying, matching and piloting innovation projects: We identify challenges within the domains of WFP’s work such as food distribution in refugee camps, smallholder agriculture, nutrition, logistics, social protection, and emergency preparedness & response. We match these with local & international startups or custom-design solutions together with WFP colleagues and innovation partners. We then provide funding and support to teams to refine & pilot their solutions using human-centered design tools.
2) Exploring transformative innovation: We test new approaches to innovation by leading a pioneering “moonshot” project that aims to uncover radical solutions on longer, 10 year time horizons using techniques such as systems mapping and scenario planning.
3) Build capacity of intra- and entrepreneurs: We support WFP colleagues as well as external (aspiring) entrepreneurs to build their innovation and business skills to develop and test their ideas.
4) Catalysing the Tanzania innovation ecosystem: We play a key role in the Tanzania innovation ecosystem by convening and supporting other hubs and UN agencies through regular events, workshops and technical support.

The Hub complements the global WFP Innovation Accelerator based in Munich, Germany. Since its inception five years ago, the Accelerator has grown to a team of 50 innovators from diverse backgrounds. The Tanzania hub is the first dedicated WFP field team for innovation initiatives and works very closely with the Accelerator and the Country Office team in Tanzania to deliver on its objectives.

JOB PURPOSE:

To initiate, design, and manage policy and programme activities related to innovation projects; both with internal WFP colleagues and external startups.

This post is initially limited to 12 months; an extension may be possible.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES (not all-inclusive)

1. Own a portion of the WFP CO innovation portfolio and drive these projects towards generating impact, including coaching, advice, and hands-on support to teams on pilot design, prototype development and testing.
2. Act as the innovation focal point for 3 key activity units (out of supply chain, smallholder farming, nutrition, emergency response, social protection, refugee operations) at the WFP country office and liaise regularly to identify opportunities for embedding innovation into core activities.
3. Identify and facilitate the review & selection of startups for the Innovation Hub portfolio that have the potential to contribute towards zero hunger and align with the priorities and activities of the WFP Tanzania country office.
4. Manage the budget of allocated innovation projects, ranging from smaller projects up to full internationally-funded pilots up to $100k.
5. Monitor and evaluate the progress and impact of allocated innovation projects by setting and tracking key performance indicators and milestones.
6. Deliver general and specific innovation trainings and coaching to aspiring and successful entrepreneurs as well as WFP colleagues (human centered design, lean startup, leadership development, etc).
7. Be an internal champion for innovation at the country office by promoting new ways of working to increase efficiency, collaboration, and impact.
8. Represent the WFP Field Innovation hub at public events and towards partners and donors.
9. Support other Innovation Hub projects and activities on an as-need basis – work packages can change quickly and we need versatile project managers that are eager to tackle new challenges and opportunities.

The candidate will be based in Dar es Salaam, with travel to the field when needed.

QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE REQUIRED:

Desired profile:

• You are business savvy. You often look at the world through a startup or private sector lens and are keen to bring smart business models to the humanitarian and development sector.
• You are a self-starter. You are full of initiative and great ideas. You need little guidance, are comfortable working independently but are also a great team player. You might have even started a few ventures of your own. 
• You are driven by impact. Making a difference through your job is important to you, and you are passionate about working towards achieving zero hunger
• You have a high affinity with the Tanzanian innovation space and have good connections with key players in the startup, private sector, or (impact) investment space.
• You can clearly formulate a vision and inspire people around you, on a daily basis
• You are able to quickly assess the quality of project proposals and ventures and can quickly formulate recommendations for improvements.
• You have some domain knowledge in one of WFP’s focus areas such as agriculture, nutrition, emergency response or social protection.
• You are good with numbers, and can quickly put together a high level business model for a new idea.
• You are able to successfully run projects in multi-stakeholder environments: manage timelines, budgets, measure impact and stakeholder satisfaction.
• You are able to represent WFP innovation at senior partners, donors and other stakeholders
• You connect easily with people and get them excited about innovation (online & offline)

MINIMUM ACADEMIC QUALIFICATIONS:

Experience:

At least five years of relevant, progressively responsible, professional experience in startup advisory, innovation project management, product design, or management consultancy. Alternatively, practical experience launching and managing a business is highly valued. Exposure to one of WFP’s programmatic focus areas including smallholder agriculture, nutrition, and emergency response is a plus.

Education:

University degree in Business, Economics, Computer Science, Agriculture, Social Sciences or other relevant field. 

Knowledge & skills:

Familiar with human-centered design and lean methodologies. Strong business writing and professional verbal communication skills. Highly organized with the ability to multitask and prioritize. Microsoft Office and Google suite knowledge.

Language:

Ability to communicate effectively at different levels and in Kiswahili and English: from casual startup lingo to professional government communications.

TERMS AND CONDITIONS

Only short-listed candidates will be contacted. 

DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS

Application deadline is 8th March, 2021 

Female applicants and qualified applicants from developing countries are especially encouraged to apply

WFP has zero tolerance for discrimination and does not discriminate on the basis of HIV/AIDS status.

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.