Madagascar: Donor relations Officer (International Regular Consultant)

Context:

Madagascar is a low-income food-deficit country, ranking 155th out of 187 countries in the 2014 Human Development Index. The country has experienced political instability since independence in 1960. In 2013, 72 percent of its 22 million inhabitants lived below the national poverty line. The country is one of the few in the world to have experienced a stagnation in per capita income over the past decades coupled with a rise in absolute poverty.

One quarter of the population – some 5 million people – live in areas highly vulnerable to frequent natural disasters. Because of their adverse impacts on agriculture, these natural hazards are a major threat to food security. Climate change is likely to exacerbate these risks and further increase household vulnerability.

The 2014 FAO/WFP Crop and Food Security Assessment (CFSAM) found that 35.8 percent of the rural population in the eight surveyed regions was food insecure. The highest rates of food insecurity were in the southern and south-western regions (characterized by degraded land and drought) and the south-eastern regions (marked by high poverty and liable to cyclones and flooding).

Successful elections held at the end of 2013 and the appointment of a new government in April 2014 ended the 2009-2013 protracted political crisis and ensuing international sanctions. However, the five years of political crisis have negatively affected government institutional capacity, economic growth and development efforts, which in turn have reduced vulnerable people's access to basic services and their ability to prevent and recover from frequent shocks.

The nutrition situation in Madagascar is of particular concern. Madagascar has the fourth highest rate of stunting in the world, with 47.3 percent of children under five affected. The average national global acute malnutrition (GAM) prevalence is 8.2 percent, while anaemia affects 35 per cent of women aged 15-49 years and 50 percent of children under five. The closure of a significant number of primary health-care centres during the political crisis, coupled with insufficient qualified health staff, has caused a decrease in health service attendance and has raised concerns about maternal and child health. Child and maternal mortality remains high at 62 per 1,000 and 498 per 100,000 respectively. An estimated 60,000 individuals develop Tuberculosis (TB) each year.

Education is another national challenge, with poor indicators and declining trends over the past years. Net enrolment in primary education decreased sharply from 96.2 percent in 2006 to 69.4 percent in 2012. Enrolment rates are significantly lower in the southern regions (53.3 percent in Atsimo Andrefana, 41.6 percent in Anosy and 40.1 percent in Androy). The political crisis negatively impacted disposable income, especially among poor people in urban areas, resulting in increased school drop-outs for boys and girls, and pushed families into adopting negative coping mechanisms such as abandonment of children, child labour and sex work.

After the return to constitutional order in 2014, WFP led participatory processes based on national gap analysis with the government, United Nations agencies, donors and beneficiaries. From these consultations and lessons learned from past interventions, a 2015-2019 Country Strategy was formulated, in close alignment with the new UNDAF and the government's priorities. The Country Strategy constituted the basis for a new Country Programme (CP) and Protracted Relief and Recovery Operation (PRRO) starting in 2015.These programmes have a stronger focus on technical assistance and capacity development to ensure the sustainability of interventions and support fragile state institutions in their transition to development.

The PRRO addresses the needs of disaster-affected populations and provides a continuous support to build the resilience of the most vulnerable and food insecure communities facing recurrent shocks (cyclones/floods, drought, erratic rainfall, locust plagues).

The CP includes three components, which are the following:

1. Support the national school feeding programme through: micronutrient-fortified hot meals for primary schoolchildren; implementation of the essential package of activities; and technical assistance for the Government.
2. Improve Nutritional Outcomes for Vulnerable Groups through MAM and stunting prevention, MAM treatment, nutritional rehabilitation of malnourished TB clients and technical assistance to the Government
3. Increase access to markets for smallholder farmers through the provision of technical assistance, support for value-chain development and improved market information.

Purpose of the assignment

The consultant will assist and report to the Deputy Country Director.

Programme Management:

• Maintain an overview of the pipeline in conjonction with appropriate staff and elaborate all narrative documentation requested related to pipeline

• Ensure the management of the urban school feeding programme in the framework of the CP 200733, including the C&V pilot -with the support of the C&V Unit-.

Donor relation:

• Prepare funding proposals and reports to donors such as CERF, French Embassy, European Union, Norwegian Embassy, other UN agencies

• Respond to various donors requests about programme and contextual information

• Respond to resourcing issues related to a particular project or operation

Reporting / Monitoring:

• Monitor and review regular sources of information (such as external and internal reports produced by UN agencies and NGO's) and data (monitoring and follow up data) required for preparation of donor reporting

• Compile and analyse field level information required for operational reports to donors - identify gaps when appropriate and liaise with programme staff for corrective actions (including the AINA-EU funded programme)

• Prepare Standard Project Reports for the Annual Reporting Exercise, in conjonction with Programme and Logistics Officers

• Assist the Communication Assistant with the elaboration of other reporting products (e.g. executive brief, sitrep, country brief, etc.) by consulting appropriate internal, external data and information

Required qualifications and experience

Advanced University degree in Political Science, International Development,Development Economics, Marketing Communications or other relevant field.

At least 3 years experiences in the field of development, humanitarian…

A strong awareness of current issues in the field of development, and donor funding opportunities

Excellent networking and partnership building skills with experience in networking with local and international NGOs, CSOs, donors, Ministry-level partners, and other organizations;

Knowledge of various donor requirements and proven ability to develop and write winning grants proposals;

Extensive knowledge in Program planning, design development and management;

Proven ability in grant management reporting;

Proven ability to work collaboratively in a multidisciplinary team environment;

Dynamic, self-motivated and be able to work independently;

Team builder and player.

A letter of motivation as well as the Curriculum Vitae are to be sent atwfp.antananarivo@wfp.org**

with the following subject line: “DRO- WFP Madagascar” Closing date : 13 june 2016