Specialist in Planning for Land Degradation Neutrality

• FAO is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality, background and culture.
• Qualified female applicants, qualified nationals of non-and under-represented Members and person with disabilities are encouraged to apply;
• Everyone who works for FAO is required to adhere to the highest standards of integrity and professional conduct, and to uphold FAO’s values
• FAO, as a Specialized Agency of the United Nations, has a zero-tolerance policy for conduct that is incompatible with its status, objectives and mandate, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination
• All selected candidates will undergo rigorous reference and background checks
• All applications will be treated with the strictest confidentiality

Organizational Setting

FAOs Land and Water Division foresees a future whereby governments, development partners, civil society, academic institutions, and the private sector and all farmers, work together to ensure that land, soil, and water resources are used wisely and restored for sustainable and resilient agri-food systems and ecosystem services.
To achieve such a vision, NSL’s Mission is to provide policy guidance and technical assistance to FAO Member countries and support strategic interventions and innovations on efficient and sustainable use of land, soil and water resources for resilient and inclusive agrifood culture and land and water management systems.

The four main Functions of the Division are envisaged to achieve the above Vision and Mission:

• Improve data, information, and use of geospatial applications for monitoring, assessment and analysis of land, soil and water resources.
• Promote good governance through policy advice, inclusive dialogues and processes, institutional capacity development, equitable access to resources, tenure security and other integrated solutions.
• Develop innovation (best practices, tools and technologies) on-farm and across land and water systems.
• Foster advocacy, knowledge sharing and strategic partnerships, and mobilise finance for initiatives and projects in the transition to efficient, inclusive, resilient and agro-ecosystems.

Reporting Lines

The expert will be under the direct supervision of the NSL team leader and the NSL focal point on LDN to the Dryland Sustainable Landscape Impact Program (DSL – IP) while work in close collaboration with the NSL focal point on integrated land use planning. The DSL-IP Program Management Unit will provide an overall supervision to ensure alignment to the program.

Technical Focus

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) was selected to lead the GEF-7 Sustainable Forest Management Impact Programme on Dryland Sustainable Landscapes (GEF DSL-IP). The overall objective of the DSL-IP is to support countries in achieving land degradation neutrality in targeted dryland landscapes while improving livelihoods. Furthermore, the DSL-IP “will support multi-country collaboration on common management challenges that cross borders and that countries identify as priorities during the design process”.

The DSL IP works in 11 countries (child projects) in total: 8 in central, eastern and southern Africa (Angola, Botswana, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Tanzania and Zimbabwe), one in west Africa (Burkina Faso) and two in central Asia (Kazakhstan and Mongolia). The DSL IP Global Coordination Project (GCP) will coordinate and support the implementation of country-specific child projects across these 11 countries and lead the process of engagement with countries not directly participating in the IP. The global component of the program has started being operational in 2022 while the countries projects have become operationalized mainly in 2023.

The expert will be responsible to provide support on Integrated Land Use Planning for Land Degradation Neutrality.

Tasks and responsibilities

Global support to the DSL IP

• Provide technical inputs on integrated land use planning for land degradation neutrality (ILUP for LDN), sustainable land management, on participatory and inclusive processes into documents, concept notes, guides.
• Support the development of a comprehensive series of webinars aiming at strengthening exchanges on countries experience of ILUP for LDN and bringing technical support.
• Organize and deliver targeted training on integrated land use planning for land degradation neutrality, sustainable land management, on participatory and inclusive processes in coordination with program partners and staffs.
• Develop an integrated regional technical support and oversight plan jointly with all workstreams involved in the DSL IP.

DSL IP - country support and technical backstopping

• Support NSL – LDN focal point by reviewing the progress reports submitted by partners to ensure that agreed deliverables in the detailed work plan are technically sound and that recommendations are relevant to the country and consistent throughout the umbrella project.
• Provide technical assistance to country projects by reviewing technical assistance docking documents, ToRs, consultant/service provider workplans and technical proposals, capacity development and implementation plans, by having regular online meetings (onboarding and subsequent) on ILM with the country project team; and by identify child project gaps and needs to plan and support the establishment of ILUP for LDN.
• Support definition and integration ILM and LDN-related indicators into the DSL-IP M&E system/ILAM.
• Perform backstopping missions where needed.

Integrated Land Management Team Support

• Provide regular inputs on ILUP for LDN and DSL-IP in the form of written updates, newsletter article, NSL contribution to FAO overall strategic framework results.

CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING

Minimum Requirements

• University degree in agriculture, natural resources, land management, forestry, social sciences, environmental studies, international affairs or other relevant field
• 5 years of relevant experience in participatory management of land and natural resources, integrated land use planning, sustainable land management and land degradation neutrality
• Working knowledge of English, French or Spanish and limited knowledge of one of the other two or Arabic, Chinese, Russian.

FAO Core Competencies

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

Technical/Functional Skills

• Work experience in more than one field location
• Extent and relevance of experience in integrated land use planning, sustainable land management, land degradation neutrality, and participatory/ inclusive processes
• Extent and relevance of experience in international organization or in multi-partners initiatives or in multi-country program with multiple sectors involved.
• Familiarity with Farmers Field Schools, Forest and Farm Facility and Community Seed Banks approaches.

Please note that all candidates should adhere to FAO Values of Commitment to FAO, Respect for All and Integrity and Transparency

• FAO does not charge any fee at any stage of the recruitment process (application, interview, processing)
• Please note that FAO will only consider academic credentials or degrees obtained from an educational institution recognized in the IAU/UNESCO list
• 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/
• For more information, visit the FAO employment website
• Appointment will be subject to certification that the candidate is medically fit for appointment, accreditation, any residency or visa requirements, and security clearances.

• To apply, visit the recruitment website at Jobs at FAO 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
• 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

FAO IS A NON-SMOKING ENVIRONMENT