Economist (Policy Analysis)

Job Description - Economist (Policy Analysis) (2401655)Job Description2401655Job Posting Job Posting : 15/May/2024Closure Date Closure Date : 05/Jun/2024, 9:59:00 PMOrganizational Unit : ESAJob Type Job Type : Staff positionType of Requisition : Professional ProjectPrimary Location Primary Location : Italy-RomeDuration : Fixed-term: one year with possibility of extensionPost Number : 2007023CCOG Code : 1L09IMPORTANT NOTICE: Please note that Closure Date and Time displayed above are based on date and time settings of your personal deviceThe length of appointment for internal FAO candidates will be established in accordance with applicable policies pertaining to the extension of appointments_____________________________________________________________________________________________________• 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 persons 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• FAO staff are subject to the authority of the Director-General, who may assign them to any of the activities or offices of the Organization.The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) contributes to the achievement of the 2030 Agenda through the FAO Strategic Framework by supporting the transformation to MORE efficient, inclusive, resilient and sustainable agrifood systems, for better production , better nutrition , a better environment, and a better life , leaving no one behind.Organizational SettingThe Agrifood Economics and Policy Division (ESA) conducts economic research and policy analysis and provides evidence-based support to national, regional and global policy processes and initiatives related to monitoring and analysing food and agricultural policies, agribusiness and value chain development, rural transformation and poverty, food security and nutrition information and analysis, resilience, bioeconomy and climate-smart agriculture. The Division also leads the production of two FAO flagship publications: the State of Food and Agriculture (SOFA) and the State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World (SOFI).This post is located in the Monitoring and Analysing Food and Agricultural Policies (MAFAP) Team of ESA at FAO headquarters in Rome, Italy. The MAFAP programme seeks to establish country-owned and sustainable systems to monitor, analyse and reform food and agricultural policies to enable more effective, efficient and inclusive policy frameworks in 14+ developing and emerging economies. MAFAP works with government institutions, research organizations and other partners to create sustainable policy monitoring systems and carry out a consistent set of policy and public expenditure analyses across a wide range of agricultural value chains. MAFAP analyses are used to inform targeted food and agricultural policy reforms that will result in a more conducive environment for the transformation towards more sustainable agriculture and food systems. As such, MAFAP supports FAO's strategic objectives, in particular the one that enables inclusive and efficient agricultural and food systems and helping eliminate poverty, hunger, food insecurity and malnutrition.Reporting LinesThe Economist (Policy Analysis) reports to the Senior Economist/Project Manager of the Monitoring and Analysing Food and Agricultural Policies (MAFAP) programme, under the overall supervision of the Deputy Director, ESA.Technical FocusThe Economist (Policy Analysis) will support the implementation of the two core components of the MAFAP programme in selected countries; namely: policy monitoring and policy impact analysis. Through in-depth engagement with government counterparts and other national and international actors, she/he will support: the production and update of policy monitoring indicators; analyses of emerging policy issues; and adoption and implementation of policy reforms supported by the rigorous economic analysis and recommendations provided by the MAFAP programme.Key ResultsResearch and analysis of information, data and statistics, and the maintenance and updating of related tools, methodologies, and/or databases to support the delivery of programme products, projects, publications and services.Key Functions• Researches and analyses (agricultural, economic, trade, market, social, environmental, nutrition/food composition and/or gender related) data, statistics and information to provide technical, statistical and/or policy related information and analysis to support the delivery of economic and social development programmes work, products, projects, publications and services.• Produces a variety of technical reports and input for technical documents, publications and/or web pages.• Provides technical, statistical, and/or analytical services on various studies, projects and/or assessments and provides technical backstopping to field projects.• Participates in the development of improved/updated technical, statistical and/or analytical tools, methodologies, systems, databases and/or key social/economic/environmental/nutritional and/or early warning indicators, etc.• Participates in multidisciplinary teams, collaborates with other divisions/offices/centres and agencies on work groups and committees and promotes best practices.• Collaborates in capacity development activities involving the planning and organizing of training workshops, seminars, and major meetings and the preparation of related information, materials, on-line tools and information kits.• Promotes knowledge sharing and best practices at international meetings and conferences and influences partners in stakeholder consultations.• Participates in resource mobilization activities.Specific Functions• Provides technical and policy advice to MAFAP partner countries related to agricultural and food policy trends, reform options and impact on development outcomes, such as poverty, food security and nutrition.• Contributes to the production, update and enhancement of policy monitoring indicators, analysis and methodologies, related to the measurement and analysis of price incentives and public expenditure in support of food and agriculture.• Contributes to the development of technical products, using rigorous economic analysis, on key food and agricultural policy topics, with a focus on agricultural, input, trade, markets and price policies, and prepares related policy recommendations, generally for specific government partners.• Contributes to policy engagement representing the MAFAP Team to promote the uptake of technical policy analyses in national policy processes and dialogues and the adoption of policy reforms driven by these analyses.• Undertakes capacity development activities on MAFAP methodologies to the benefit of government counterparts, other relevant national partners, as well as FAO staff.• Maintains close collaboration and coordination with other FAO units, FAO Representations as well as relevant national and international institutions.• Contributes to forging partnerships around specific policy issues with development partners involved in policy monitoring and analysis, as well as with non-government stakeholders at country level, in particular with civil society organizations, farmers' organizations and the private sector.• Contributes to the preparation of high-level policy meetings, roundtables or other events related to food and agricultural policy monitoring and reform in developing countries.• Provides support to the policy support work of ESA in the framework of corporate initiatives.• Supervises the work of consultants within the MAFAP Team.______________________________________________________________________________________________________CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWINGMinimum Requirements• Advanced university degree in economics, agricultural economics, development studies, international relations or a related field.• Five years of relevant experience in policy and quantitative analysis of food and agricultural issues.• Working knowledge (proficient – level C) of English and limited knowledge (intermediate – level B) of one of the other FAO languages (, Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish).Technical/Functional Skills• Work experience in more than one location or area of work, particularly in field positions.• Extent and relevance of experience in conducting macro and/or micro econometric analyses on topics related to the food and agricultural sector, such as trade, input subsidies, market policies and public expenditures.• Familiarity with relevant ex-ante economy-wide modelling techniques, preferably Computable General Equilibrium (CGE) models, and their potential contribution, data requirement and limitations in evaluating food and agricultural policies and their impact on development outcomes such as poverty, food security and nutrition.• Extent and relevance of experience with policy advice on international development issues and affinity with the topics of agrifood systems transformation, poverty, food security and/or nutrition, preferably in Sub-Saharan Africa and/or South Asia.• Extent and relevance of knowledge of the most important initiatives to analyse agricultural public expenditures in developing countries and experience in conducting such analyses.• Demonstrated ability to analyse complex policy issues and supervise the work of technical experts.• Good programming skills in specialized software such as GAMS, Python, R or other.• Demonstrated experience in drafting technical reports and papers in English.• Working knowledge (proficient – level C) of French is considered a strong asset.______________________________________________________________________________________________________Please note that all candidates should adhere to FAO Values of Commitment to FAO, Respect for All and Integrity and Transparency .______________________________________________________________________________________________________GENERAL INFORMATION• FAO reserves the right not to make an appointment• Extension of fixed term appointments is based on certification of performance and availability of funds• Appointment will be subject to certification that the candidate is medically fit for appointment, accreditation, any residency or visa requirements, and security clearances.___________________________________________________________________________________________________CONDITIONS OF SERVICEA competitive compensation and benefits package is offered. For information on UN salaries, allowances and benefits, click on the following link: https://commonsystem.org/cp/default.aspOther benefits, subject to eligibility, include:• Dependency allowances• Rental subsidy• Education grant for children• Home leave travel• 30 working days of annual leave per year• Pension fund entitlements under the UN Joint Staff Pension Fund• International health insurance; optional life insurance• Disability protectionFAO encourages a positive workplace culture to increase inclusivity and diversity within its workforce. FAO applies measures in which all staff members contribute equally and in full to the work and development of the Organization. This includes:• elements of family-friendly policies• flexible working arrangements• standards of conduct______________________________________________________________________________________________________HOW TO APPLY• 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;• Your application will be screened based on the information provided on your online profile;•  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/• 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#J-18808-Ljbffr