Programme Associate

Programme Associate (Micronutrients), SCL6 – Kathmandu

DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS: 10 October 2026-23:59-GMT+05:45 Nepal Time (Kathmandu)

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• We offer an attractive compensation package (please refer to the Terms and Conditions section of this vacancy announcement).

WFP encourages female candidates and people with disabilities to apply.

Background:

Micronutrient deficiency has detrimental effects on health, learning ability, and productivity and may lead to high social and public costs, reduced productivity in populations due to high rates of illness, disability, and loss of human potential. Food fortification plays a crucial role in reducing micronutrient deficiency by enhancing the nutritional value of commonly consumed foods. This cost-effective and sustainable strategy has the potential to positively impact the health and well-being of individuals, particularly in countries like Nepal where prevalence of micronutrient deficiency is high.

At the same time, millet is a nutrient-rich and climate-resilient crop with strong potential to address Nepal’s persistent micronutrient deficiencies. Recognizing this opportunity, WFP, in partnership with the Government of Nepal (GoN), academia, and the private sector, plans to strengthen millet and sorghum value chains, generate evidence on their nutritional benefits, develop enrichment standards, and promote consumption through Social and Behaviour Change (SBC) initiatives. Through research, product innovation, market development, and integration into school meals and community nutrition programmes, the initiative aims to make nutritious millet-based products more accessible, affordable, and appealing to Nepali households. Through these efforts, WFP will contribute to Country Strategic Plan’s Outcome 2 by improving nutrition outcomes and access to nutritious diets, and to Outcome 3 by supporting climate-resilient food systems, sustainable livelihoods, and local value chain development.

Purpose of the Assignment:

To advance WFP Nepal’s food fortification agenda, WFP seeks a Programme Associate (Micronutrients) who will work under the direct supervision of the Programme Policy Officer (Nutrition Lead) at the Country Office (CY). The incumbent will provide technical, operational, and coordination support to strengthen the implementation and scale-up of rice, millet, and sorghum fortification initiatives in Nepal.

Based at the WFP Country Office, the incumbent will serve for coordinating and supporting fortification-related activities, including quality assurance and monitoring systems, policy and technical discussions, capacity strengthening initiatives, and evidence generation. The assignment aims to promote the sustainable mainstreaming of fortified rice, millet, and sorghum within Nepal’s food system through strengthened partnerships, enhanced institutional capacities, effective knowledge management, and evidence-based implementation, ultimately contributing to improved nutrition outcomes, resilient local food systems, and greater climate resilience.

TERMS AND CONDITION

Position Title: Programme Associate (Micronutrients)

Contract Type: Service Contract

Level: 6

Contract Duration: 12 months (with possibility of extension)

Duty Station: Kathmandu, Nepal

Date of Publication: 27.09.2026
Deadline of Application: 10.10.2026

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES/RESPONSIBILITIES:

Under the direct supervision of the Programme Policy Officer (Nutrition Lead), the job holder will carry out the following tasks:

Capacity Strengthening

Support capacity strengthening of farmers and private sectors on farming and product innovation, production, branding, and market linkage.

Provide technical and operational support to the GoN to develop SBC strategies and knowledge management products to promote consumption of fortified food products.

Facilitate capacity strengthening of local government on millet and sorghum value chain optimization, integrate into fiscal planning, and linkage of products with existing school meal and nutrition-sensitive social protection programmes.

Support knowledge sharing session of the evidence generated by Academia to the GoN and stakeholders (private sectors).

Facilitate dissemination of enrichment/fortification standards set post evidence generation through training/workshop to policy makers, stakeholders (private sectors, market/branding experts), and government officials.

Support capacity strengthening of GoN’s laboratory and regulatory officials on food safety quality (FSQ) assurance and product development.

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Coordination and Partnership

Liaise with GoN, local government, Department of Food Technology and Quality Control (DFTQC), Food Management and Trading Company Limited (FMTCL), Family Welfare Division (FWD), WFP, Cooperating Partner (CP), and academia to effectively conduct study to generate evidence and knowledge on millet and sorghum value chains, nutritional quality, policies and programmatic interventions.

Support formation of technical working group and facilitate regular meetings to build-up environment of formulation of national standards.

Support coordination among government entities and academia during research such as sample collection as per the set research methodologies, ethical clearance from NHRC.

Facilitate dissemination of the research findings to the government and its relevant entities.

Support organization of, and WFP participation in, relevant national and provincial coordination platforms and forums on food fortification and nutrition

Monitoring, Evaluation and Reporting

Facilitate joint supportive supervision and monitoring visits with federal, provincial and local government counterparts to fortified food production sites, DFTQC laboratories and other relevant field locations.

Prepare and maintain monitoring tools and trackers to ensure research and programme activities progress in line with agreed methodologies and timelines.

Support documentation of lessons learned, good practices and recommendations arising from fortification and value-chain strengthening activities.

Support the design and implementation of studies generating evidence on the nutritional value, feasibility and consumer acceptability of millet- and sorghum-based fortified products.

Support knowledge-sharing sessions to present evidence generated by academia to GoN and other stakeholders, including the private sector.

Support analysis of research findings and help translate evidence into practical policy and programme recommendations for GoN and WFP.

Provide technical inputs to the development of national enrichment/fortification standards for millet and sorghum, working closely with DFTQC and relevant technical committees.

Prepare periodic (monthly/quarterly) progress reports, briefs and updates on fortification and millet/sorghum programme implementation, as required by WFP and donors.

Programme Support

Provide regular programme and business support to nutrition and food fortification team of WFP country office.

Support country office in periodic reporting along with weekly programme input, country brief and others.

Within the specific area of responsibility, prepare range of documents (e.g.briefing notes, presentations and communication materials on fortification and millet/sorghum programming) for internal and external audiences ensuring deliverables adhere to corporate standards and quality control.

Undertake other duties as required to support the day-to-day nutrition and fortification activities of the Country Office, including support to field staff, as needed.

QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE REQUIRED:

Education:

• Completion of secondary school education. A post-secondary certificate in related functional area and/or a bachelor’s degree in food science, nutrition or related fields is desirable.

Experience:

• At least six years of experience in Public Health, Nutrition, food fortification, or related fields.
• Experience and expertise in delivery of nutrition prevention and treatment programmes including social and behavior change communication.
• Experience negotiating, training, communications, advocacy, and resource mobilization.
• Knowledge and experience of UN and Government partnerships will be an asset.
• Has collaborated with technical teams (i.e., nutrition and food fortification), implementing programmes and observed or assisted with policy discussions.undefined

Desired Skills:

• Knowledge of Nepal’s food, nutrition, agriculture, and social protection policy landscape.
• Ability to analyze research findings and translate evidence into policy and programme recommendations.
• Strong stakeholder engagement, negotiation, facilitation, and partnership-building skills.
• Demonstrated ability to coordinate diverse stakeholders across government, academia, private sector, and coperating partner (CP).
• Strong communication, presentation, and report-writing skills in English and Nepali.o Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint) and data management/reporting tools.
• Ability to work effectively in multidisciplinary and multicultural teams while maintaining strong attention to detail and results orientation.
• Nepali Typing skill is an asset.

Languages: Fluency in both written and spoken Nepali and English languages.Knowledge of local languages will be an added value.

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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

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REMINDERS BEFORE YOU SUBMIT YOUR APPLICATION

• All applications must be submitted exclusively through our online recruiting system. We do not consider CVs or applications sent by email, LinkedIn, or any other channel.
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• At the application stage, the only required documents are your CV and Cover Letter. Additional documents (passport, certificates, recommendation letters, etc.) may be requested later in the process.
• Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and invited to proceed to the next stage of the recruitment process.

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.

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