Specialist Statistics

Organizational Setting

FAO is a specialized agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger and supports the 2030 Agenda by helping transform agrifood systems to be more efficient, inclusive, resilient and sustainable.

The FAO Statistics Division (ESS) develops and promotes methodologies and standards for food and agriculture statistics, including the Food Security and Nutrition, Food and Diet, data domains disseminated through FAOSTAT. In close coordination with ESS and the Office of the Chief Statistician (OCS) in Rome, the FAO Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean (RLC), in Santiago, Chile, supports countries in strengthening their statistical systems and in using information to monitor food security, nutrition and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The selected candidate will support the regional statistics programme, in coordination with HQ.

Reporting Lines

The Consultant will work under the immediate supervision of the Regional Advisor on Statistics of FAO RLC and will collaborate with ESS, FAO Country Offices, national statistical offices and other partners

Technical Focus

Under the supervision of the Regional Advisor on Statistics, and in coordination with the Better Nutrition team in the region, the Consultant will provide technical assistance and support related to the compilation, processing, validation, analysis, and dissemination of data, microdata, and metadata for food security and nutrition statistics in Latin America and the Caribbean, in order to improve national agricultural statistical systems following FAO-endorsed methods.

Tasks and responsibilities

Under the guidance of the Regional Advisor on Statistics, the Consultant will contribute to the following tasks:

• Supports the calculation and monitoring of the SDGs on hunger and food security (indicators 2.1.1 and 2.1.2) and data analysis for other indicators under FAO custodianship, ensuring comparability across countries and overtime.
• Training in data collection, analysis and use of results, questionnaire development, survey validation in coordination with FAO HQ and, with the Better Nutrition team, FIES-based Prevalence of Food Insecurity, and SOFI publications, including awareness meetings on the FIES and small area estimation
• Contribute to calculating the cost of a healthy diet, the cost by food group, and the percentage and number of people who cannot afford it; support the update of the Healthy Diet Basket and the review of LAC country data.
• Support the compilation, processing and analysis of dietary diversity indicators, including the Minimum Dietary Diversity for Women (MDD-W), and prepare tables, charts and country notes on healthy diets and dietary quality for the region.
• Provide technical assistance and training to National Statistical Offices and relevant national counterparts — including travel as required by regional needs and under the LARC37 commitments — respond to information requests from FAO Country Offices and national partners.
• Support the design, review and pilot testing of agricultural census questionnaires and manuals, in line with FAO's World Programme for the Census of Agriculture (WCA) guidelines and international standards.
• Support the development, configuration and maintenance of CAPI-based survey instruments using Survey Solutions (SuSo) for agricultural censuses and surveys, including validation rules, skip logic and training materials.
• Support the processing, validation and analysis of large farm datasets from agricultural censuses, surveys and administrative registers, using statistical software such as R, Stata or SPSS, and contribute to the production of statistical tables and analytical outputs, developing reports providing recommendations for improving.

In addition to other tasks as needed.

CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING

Minimum Requirements

• Advanced University degree/University degree from an institution recognized by the International Association of Universities (IAU)/UNESCO in statistics, economics, data science, mathematics, agricultural economics, social sciences, or a closely related field, or any other discipline relevant to the work of the Organization. Consultants with bachelor's degree need two additional years of relevant professional experience
• At least 2 years of relevant experience in survey data analysis, food security and nutrition statistics and/or technical assistance to national statistical systems for Junior Level / Level C Consultant (internships, research assistantships, and academic projects evaluated).
• Working knowledge of English, French, Spanish Arabic, Chinese or Russian (C1)
  (A second FAO language can be inserted if needed for the assignment)

FAO Core Competencies

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

Technical/Functional Skills

• Solid knowledge of basic statistics: data presentation and descriptive statistics; probability distributions (binomial, normal); correlation; sampling (simple random, stratified and cluster); inference, confidence intervals and hypothesis testing; linear regression; and fundamentals of survey and questionnaire design.
• Proficiency in at least one data analysis programme (R, Stata, SPSS or SAS) and basic knowledge of statistical programming; Python and SQL are considered an advantage.
• Basic knowledge of data sources used in food security and nutrition statistics (household surveys, income and expenditure surveys, price data, food balance sheets).
• Basic knowledge of national agricultural statistical systems and their key data sources, such as agricultural censuses, surveys and administrative registers.
• Desirable: familiarity with Rasch models, models, small area estimation techniques, food security indicators (FIES, PoU), Minimum Dietary Diversity for Women (MDD-W), and healthy diet indicators (CoAHD).
• Desirable: Ability to write quickly, clearly and concisely, and to communicate effectively in Spanish; sufficient English to read technical documentation and draft simple texts.
• Ability to work in a team and to receive and apply technical guidance, with increasing autonomy in defined analytical tasks.
• Desirable: Ability to coordinate technical assistance activities with national counterparts, lead meetings and deliver capacity-building and training sessions on food security measurement, including the FIES methodology.
  Considered an advantage: Strong technical writing, analytical synthesis, and data visualization capabilities in Spanish and English, previous experience with FAO or its partners, experience in national statistical services or in technical assistance to countries