Programme Assistant

Job Posting Organization:
The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations established to lead international efforts to defeat hunger. Founded in 1945, FAO's mission is to achieve security" style="border-bottom: 1px dotted #007bff !important;">security" style="border-bottom: 1px dotted #007bff !important;">food security for all and ensure that people have regular access to enough high-quality food to lead active, healthy lives. With 195 members, including 194 nations and the European Union, FAO operates in over 130 countries worldwide. The organization provides policy advice and support through its Country Offices, which work under overall corporate guidance and align with the Strategic Framework. These offices advocate for policies and investments in food and agriculture, provide technical assistance, and mobilize resources to support agrifood systems transformation, ensuring effective operations and accountability at the country level.

Job Overview:
The Programme Assistant plays a crucial role in coordinating specialized and complex processes and activities that support the delivery of the Office's work programme, including planning and budgeting activities. This position requires the individual to provide procedural guidance to managers and staff, ensuring that the office's operations run smoothly. The Programme Assistant operates independently, making decisions on work priorities while receiving supervision focused on the quality of work outputs. The role involves close collaboration with colleagues across the organization to maintain consistency and quality in program/project support services, thereby contributing to the overall success of the office's initiatives.

Duties and Responsibilities:
The Programme Assistant is responsible for a variety of tasks that include monitoring both Regular Programme and Project budgets, ensuring proper allocation and reporting of funds, and taking corrective actions as necessary. The incumbent will support budget holders in preparing Periodic Budgetary Reports (PBR) and the biennial Programme of Work and Budget (PWB), as well as project budget revisions. Additionally, the Programme Assistant will manage the initiation, administration, and monitoring of Letters of Agreement throughout the project implementation phase. Responding to routine queries and providing clarifications on program and project matters is also part of the role, along with maintaining office records and synthesizing data for financial analyses. The Programme Assistant will coordinate administrative and financial actions related to staff management, travel, payments, and procurement, and support the dissemination of project outputs and communication materials. Furthermore, the incumbent will provide guidance to junior Programme Assistants and review current procedures to recommend improvements.

Required Qualifications:
Candidates must possess a secondary school education and have at least four years of relevant experience in providing program/project support services. A working knowledge of English at proficiency level C is mandatory. Additionally, candidates should have good knowledge of MS Office applications, internet usage, and office technology equipment. It is important for candidates to be nationals of the country of the duty station or possess a valid visa/work permit and reside within commuting distance of the duty station at the time of application.

Educational Background:
While a secondary school education is the minimum requirement, candidates with an educational background in agriculture, agricultural economics, policy analysis, or program development are considered to have an asset that enhances their candidacy for this position.

Experience:
The position requires a minimum of four years of relevant experience in providing program/project support services. This experience should demonstrate the candidate's ability to manage complex processes and contribute effectively to the office's work program.

Languages:
A working knowledge of English at proficiency level C is mandatory for this position. Additionally, having intermediate knowledge (level B) of another FAO official language such as Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian, or Spanish is considered desirable and can enhance a candidate's profile.

Additional Notes:
This position is classified under the General Service Staff category, which means that candidates must be locally recruited. To be eligible, candidates must be nationals of Malawi or possess an existing visa/work permit and reside within commuting distance of Lilongwe at the time of application. The role is full-time, and the incumbent's work will directly impact the smooth operations and performance of the office's program/project activities.