DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS
6 November 2025-23:59-GMT+08:00 Philippine Standard Time (Manila)WFP celebrates and embraces diversity. It is committed to the principle of equal employment opportunity for all its employees and encourages qualified candidates to apply irrespective of race, colour, national origin, ethnic or social background, genetic information, gender, gender identity and/or expression, sexual orientation, religion or belief, HIV status or disability.
ABOUT WFP
The World Food Programme is the world’s largest humanitarian organization saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to build a pathway to peace, stability and prosperity, for people recovering from conflict, disasters and the impact of climate change.
At WFP, people are at the heart of everything we do and the vision of the future WFP workforce is one of diverse, committed, skilled, and high performing teams, selected on merit, operating in a healthy and inclusive work environment, living WFP's values (Integrity, Collaboration, Commitment, Humanity, and Inclusion) and working with partners to save and change the lives of those WFP serves.
To learn more about WFP, visit our website: https://www.wfp.org and follow us on social media to keep up with our latest news: YouTube, LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, TikTok.
WHY JOIN WFP?
WFP is a 2020 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate.
WFP offers a highly inclusive, diverse, and multicultural working environment.
WFP invests in the personal & professional development of its employees through a range of training, accreditation, coaching, mentorship, and other programs as well as through internal mobility opportunities.
A career path in WFP provides an exciting opportunity to work across the various country, regional and global offices around the world, and with passionate colleagues who work tirelessly to ensure that effective humanitarian assistance reaches millions of people across the globe.
We offer an attractive compensation package (please refer to the Terms and Conditions section of this vacancy announcement).
In the Philippines, WFP’s efforts are guided by its work outlined in the Philippines Country Strategic Plan (CSP) 2024-2028. WFP focuses on strengthening government systems at the national, local government unit and Bangsamoro Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) levels to further build the resilience of vulnerable individuals and communities.
The CSP is aligned with national strategies and policies as well as the United Nations Sustainable Development Framework and is guided by three interrelated outcomes:
By 2028, communities exposed to shocks and stressors in the Philippines are better able to meet food, nutrition and other essential needs with inclusive and equitable emergency preparedness and response capacity at the national and local levels.
By 2028, communities vulnerable to food and nutrition insecurity in the Philippines are more resilient and can better manage risks affecting human capital gains and food systems, inclusively and equitably.
The Government and partners in the Philippines access WFP services that augment their interventions, upon request.
These strategic objectives are framed within the context of the Philippines being on the verge of becoming and upper-middle income country, while at the same time being one of the world’s most disaster-prone countries. Disasters remain a leading cause of hunger, affecting all aspects of food security: economic and physical access to food, availability and stability of supplies, and nutrition.
While WFP Philippines maintains a strong capacity to respond directly when significant shocks occur, the overall emphasis of the Country Office lies on systems strengthening (disaster risk management, social protection and food systems) at national, LGU and BARMM levels. WFP utilizes its field operations expertise to support the Government in delivering on key food programmes linked to its mandate and the CSP, including supporting the conceptualization and roll out of national priority programmes such as Walang Gutom 2027 and LAWA (Local Adaptation to Water Access) at BINHI (Breaking Insufficiency through Nutritious Harvest for the Impoverished) and modelling globally proven programmes such as home-grown school feeding – linking local smallholder farmers production to the institutional demand of school meals programmes. WFP engages at the national level on policy dialogue, supporting legislative advances in areas such as school meals, anticipatory action and rice fortification.
JOB TITLE: Programme Policy Officer (Market Systems and Livelihoods)
TYPE OF CONTRACT: Fixed-Term Appointment
JOB GRADE: NOA
DUTY STATION (City, Country): Cotabato, Philippines
DURATION: 12 months with possible extension
This position is open to Filipino nationals only.
ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT:
Smallholder farmers and fisherfolk in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) have limited resources, information, and training to increase their yield and undertake value- adding activities necessary to improve their livelihoods. The economic insufficiencies deprive them of resources to spend on food security, nutrition, housing, education, healthcare, and other non-food essentials. Moreover, inadequate agricultural infrastructure, poor soil and water management practices and land tenurial issues impedes smallholders’ abilities to become self-reliant. Improved climate-smart agricultural practices and equitable inclusion of women and men smallholder farmers and fisherfolk into value chains is a crucial missing link to sustainably solve the prevalent poverty index and quell the low nutritional indicators that have affected the BARMM region for decades.
WFP, along with its partners, has successfully supported the creation of Bangsamoro Food Security Task Force (BFSTF) which brings together 21 Government Ministries to facilitate innovation, convergence, reforms, and increase investments toward a sustainable food system in the region. It is tasked to carefully coordinate a holistic and comprehensive approach to achieving food security and nutrition of the BARMM.
WFP works with the BFSTF and other key partners to implement an integrated package of interventions designed to increase the food security, resilience and self-reliance of target populations. Specifically, WFP:
Contributes to smallholders’ economic sustainability by promoting their inclusion in value chain through the development and formation of farmer and fisher associations/cooperatives and strengthening access to markets such as the Home-Grown School Feeding (HGSF) Programme and other institutional markets.
Supports resilience-building initiatives by engaging vulnerable communities in the creation of farm-to-market roads; irrigation canals, reforestation, soil conservation and water harvesting structures, climate-smart practices and development of post-harvest facilities.
Strengthens climate risk management by using climate forecasts and other related information to trigger action before a shock occurs, mitigating the impact of disasters on the food security and nutrition of the most vulnerable populations.
Empowers the community and food producers through Social and Behavioural Change (SBC) initiatives to positively enable behavior change towards self-reliance and healthy diets.
JOB PURPOSE:
The Programme Policy Officer (Market Systems and Livelihoods) will lead the implementation of the WFP Philippines’ integrated resilience approach, with a particular focus on enhancing the inclusion of smallholder farmers and fisherfolk in market systems to strengthen their livelihood strategies in BARMM. The holder will be directly reporting to the Head of Integrated Resilience with technical guidance from the Country Office Climate and Resilience Unit.
With strategic oversight from the Head of Integrated Resilience, the holder is expected to oversee and coordinate the linking of economically disadvantaged farmers engaged in community livelihood strategies, with more established farmer groups to foster sustainable livelihoods, enhance local economies, and position communities with greater resilience and economic independence.
The Programme Policy Officer (Market Systems and Livelihoods) will provide technical assistance to the BARMM Government, develop joint strategies, and contribute to capacity building of partners. This role involves team management and professional development of staff members.
KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:
The Programme Policy Officer (Market Systems and Livelihoods) will provide technical support to conduct analysis, oversee coordination, build capacities internally and of partners, oversee timely and high-quality implementation of interventions, and support the monitoring and reporting of key activities. Specific duties include:
Project Management & Capacity Strengthening
Lead the planning and implementation of regenerative agriculture and community livelihood activities while ensuring alignment with corporate guidelines and standard operational procedures, and integrating climate, gender and conflict sensitive elements.
Support regional and local government partners to integrate the results of community planning, climate and gender analysis, and other research products in their Barangay Development Plans including development of training modules to strengthen understanding and ownership of the tools available.
Support the technical capacity building of regional and local government authorities to design and implement anticipatory action, ‘last mile’ climate services and other climate adaptation measures based on government needs and WFP’s geographic and programmatic priorities.
Ensure compliance with Environmental and Social Safeguards (ESS) by conducting ESS screenings of community-resilience projects, developing and monitoring mitigation action plans, training partners on ESS requirements, and manage grievances and reporting.
In coordination with the Gender Programme Policy Officer, advance women’s self-reliance, economic empowerment and inclusion by designing and rolling-out gender responsive interventions that ensure women meaningfully benefit from climate, market and livelihood activities.
Promote financial inclusion by facilitating access to financial services such as savings, credit, insurance, and digital payment platforms, for vulnerable households, particularly smallholder farmers and fisherfolk, to enhance their economic resilience and participation in market systems.
Develop and leverage innovative blended finance models to mobilize public and private sector investments in community resilience, market development, and climate adaptation initiatives, ensuring sustainability and scalability of interventions.
In coordination with the Supply Chain Unit, ensure timely planning and coordination of food assistance (in-kind and/or cash) to project beneficiaries as per agreed distribution plans.
Strengthen coordination and advocacy with partners (e.g. Government, UN, NGOs, academia), and represent WFP in coordination platforms such as the Bangsamoro Food Security and Nutrition Task Force, Project Management Committees and other Technical Working groups.
Document lessons learned, recommendations and lead project implementation reviews with partners to foster adaptive programme management and Government capacity strengthening for great ownership and sustainability of the programmes.
Research and analyse policy and operational issues to support programme design and operational decision-making.
Team Management
Provide day to day supervision and professional development of staff and consultants working in the market and livelihoods team, where necessary support identification of expertise to augment or fill the technical gaps.
Regularly liaise across functional units in the Cotabato Field Office and Country Office including Home Grown School Feeding, Social Behaviour Change, Gender, Supply Chain and Research Assessment and Monitoring (RAM) to support effective collaboration, implementation and monitoring of ongoing project activities.
Monitoring & Reporting
Support the RAM team to identify relevant indicators and develop survey tools to monitor the support to economically disadvantaged communities in line with WFP corporate reporting and accountability requirements.
Provide regular technical updates and quarterly briefing notes to management to track progress, risks, budget utilization, and adaptive decisions.
Prepare inputs for donor reporting and contribute to concept notes and funding proposals to scale proven climate, market and livelihood interventions.
Produce short case studies and communications inputs showcasing impact, lessons learned and opportunities for replication, in coordination with CO communications.
Perform other related duties and responsibilities as required which may include workstreams in school feeding, social protection, anticipatory action, emergency response, gender and disability mainstreaming, and other key areas of work, as required and guided by management.
QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE REQUIRED:
EDUCATION: Advanced university degree or a bachelor’s degree in Rural Development, Agriculture and/or fisheries, Agronomy, Climate Change Adaptation, Environmental Economics, or similar field.
EXPERIENCE:
Required: Minimum of one (1) year of relevant experience in development work with an advanced university degree; OR three (3) years of relevant experience with a bachelor's degree.
Preferred: Seven (7) years of relevant experience in development work, including previous management experience in food security and livelihood projects.
KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS:
Strong interpersonal and diplomatic skills with ability to establish effective relations with communities, authorities, colleagues and partners’ staff.
Experience in project design and management, including work experience on designing and implementing interventions at regional and community levels focusing on food security and livelihoods, as well as on M&E and knowledge management, budget management and donor reporting.
Solid understanding of food security, risk and vulnerability assessments, early warning information, and ability to link those to programme design and contingency planning.
Experience leading a small to mid-size team to ensure the effective delivery of objectives.
Experience working with a wide variety of development actors including government, international development organizations (including United Nations agencies), donors and other funding agencies, private sector entities, and/or civil society organizations including community groups and academia.
Experience in providing capacity strengthening to the government in terms of advocacy, policy engagement, and technical assistance.
Excellent research, report writing, analytical and communication skills.
Ability to work independently in a timely and organized manner observing deadlines and achieving results.
Proficiency in Windows, MS Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook).
LANGUAGE: Excellent knowledge of written and spoken English and Filipino; Knowledge on the local language in BARMM is desirable.
COMPENSATION PACKAGE OVERVIEW:
Remuneration will be in accordance with WFP’s salary scale and will be communicated during the offer stage.
Medical coverage, extendable to eligible dependents.
Leave benefits and other applicable entitlements.
WFP LEADERSHIP FRAMEWORK
WFP Leadership Framework guides to the common standards of behavior that guide HOW we work together to accomplish our mission.
Click here to access WFP Leadership Framework
REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION
WFP is committed to supporting individuals with disabilities by providing reasonable accommodations throughout the recruitment process. If you require a reasonable accommodation, please contact: global.inclusion@wfp.org
NO FEE DISCLAIMER
The United Nations does not charge any application, processing, training, interviewing, testing or other fee in connection with the application or recruitment process. Should you receive a solicitation for the payment of a fee, please disregard it. Furthermore, please note that emblems, logos, names and addresses are easily copied and reproduced. Therefore, you are advised to apply particular care when submitting personal information on the web.
REMINDERS BEFORE YOU SUBMIT YOUR APPLICATION
We strongly recommend that your profile is accurate, complete, and includes your employment records, academic qualifications, language skills and UN Grade (if applicable).
Once your profile is completed, please apply, and submit your application.
Please make sure you upload your professional CV in the English language
Kindly note the only documents you will need to submit at this time are your CV and Cover Letter
Additional documents such as passport, recommendation letters, academic certificates, etc. may potentially be requested at a future time
Please contact us at global.hrerecruitment@wfp.org in case you face any challenges with submitting your application
Only shortlisted candidates will be notified
All employment decisions are made on the basis of organizational needs, job requirements, merit, and individual qualifications. WFP is committed to providing an inclusive work environment free of sexual exploitation and abuse, all forms of discrimination, any kind of harassment, sexual harassment, and abuse of authority. Therefore, all selected candidates will undergo rigorous reference and background checks.
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.
