General
Description of assignment title
Nutrition Officer
Assignment country
Bangladesh
Expected start date
01/12/2023
Sustainable Development Goal
3. Good health and well-being
Volunteer category
National UN Volunteer Specialist
Host entity
UNICEF
Type
Onsite
Duration
12 months (with possibility of extension)
Number of assignments
1
Duty stations
Cox’s Bazaar
Details
Mission and objectives
UNICEF is mandated by the United Nations General Assembly to advocate for the protection of children’s rights, to help meet their basic needs and to expand their opportunities to reach their full potential. UNICEF is guided by the Convention on the Rights of the Child and strives to establish children’s rights as enduring ethical principles and international standards of behaviour towards children. UNICEF insists that the survival, protection and development of children are universal development imperatives that are integral to human progress. UNICEF mobilizes political will and material resources to help countries, particularly developing countries, ensure a “first call for children” and to build their capacity to form appropriate policies and deliver services for children and their families. UNICEF is committed to ensuring special protection for the most disadvantaged children – victims of war, disasters, extreme poverty, all forms of violence and exploitation, and those with disabilities. UNICEF responds in emergencies to protect the rights of children. In coordination with United Nations partners and humanitarian agencies, UNICEF makes its unique facilities for rapid response available to its partners to relieve the suffering of children and those who provide their care. UNICEF is non-partisan and its cooperation is free of discrimination. In everything it does, the most disadvantaged children and the countries in greatest need have priority. UNICEF aims, through its country programmes, to promote the equal rights of women and girls and to support their full participation in the political, social and economic development of their communities. UNICEF works with all its partners towards the attainment of the sustainable human development goals adopted by the world community and the realization of the vision of peace and social progress enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations.
Context
The sector approach ensures clear leadership, predictability and accountability in international responses to humanitarian emergencies by clarifying the division of labor among organizations and better defining their roles and responsibilities within the different sectors of the response. It aims to make the international humanitarian community better organized and more accountable and professional, so that it can be a better partner for the affected people, host governments, local authorities, local civil society and resourcing partners. In Bangladesh, the influx of Rohingyas has restarted following the attacks on the Myanmar Border Guard Police posts in the Rakhine state on 25 August 2017. According to the Inter-Sector Coordination Group (ISCG) update on 21 September 2017, 430,000 people are estimated to have entered in Bangladesh since 25 August. The 2027 influx of Rohingyas adds to the previous influx of October 2016, coupled with another pre-existing Undocumented Myanmar Nationals (UMNs) and registered Rohingya refugee. As of September 2023, there are over 940,000 Forcibly Displaced Myanmar Nationals (FDMN) in Cox’s Bazar with over 155,000 children under five in all camps needing life-saving and preventive nutrition services. The district is one of the most vulnerable districts, not only for its poor performance in child related indicators but as well for its vulnerability to natural hazards. The aim of the National Nutrition Sector (NC) in Bangladesh is to support the GoB in the coordination of effective emergency preparedness and response to humanitarian crisis that meets core commitments and standards through strengthening the collective capacity of humanitarian actors working in the area of nutrition in Bangladesh. The NC operates under the Government’s policy body for emergencies- the Local Consultative Group – Disaster Emergency Response (LCG-DER). Under the LCG-DER is a Humanitarian Coordination Task Team (HCTT), a government body that functions in a similar way to the Humanitarian Country Team (HCT) mechanism in IASC sector countries. The HCTT is led by the United Nations Resident Coordinator (UNRC) with a co-chair from the Ministry of Disaster Management (MODM). Membership of the HCTT is composed of all sector leads, a representative of the NGOs and donor agencies. UNICEF and the Institute of Public Health Nutrition (IPHN), which sits under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, co-chair the Sector. All meetings are held at the IPHN and the government co-chairs the meetings with UNICEF. The NC consists of over 15 member organizations, including UN agencies, NGOs, national institutes and research/academic institutions. At sub-national level, UNCIEF continues to lead sectoral coordination in Nutrition for the emergency response. A well-run sector including Information Management is a formal deliverable of the Sector Lead Agency and forms a part of the agency’s work. UNICEF, as highlighted in their Core Commitments for Children in Humanitarian Action, is fully committed to interagency humanitarian reform and supports this through provision of leadership and participation in assigned sectors and
Task description
The Nutrition Officer is a Sector Coordination team member and will work closely with Nutrition Sector partners in Cox’s Bazar on coordination at camp level and communication activities of the NS. The Nutrition Officer will be reporting to National Cluster Coordinator. ACCOUNTABILITIES/RESPONSIBILITIES (not all-inclusive, delegate as required): Establishment and maintenance of appropriate nutrition sector (NS) coordination mechanisms at Camp level, Conduct frequent field mission at camp level to provide necessary support to Nutrition Partners and liaise with CiC when required. Liaise with CiC on the nutrition annual work plan at camp level prepared by NS partners. Attend humanitarian coordination meeting organized by CiC at camp level and follow up the implementation of action points related to nutrition. Develop the 2023 Knowledge Management (KM) and communications plan in coordination with the UNICEF Communications Team. Support and coordinate launch events and other communication products needed for the NS, Foster the generation and sharing of knowledge on the NS programme areas, by collecting inputs from Nutrition Sites both camp and Host Community. Create and coordinate a dynamic NS quarterly bulletin, Manage and update contact lists of NS partners focal points of different Technical Working Group (TWG) in Cox’s Bazar, Develop different NS communications products (e.g.. briefing note, talking points, fact sheets, reports, etc.), that effectively convey the desired messages to target audience(s), Support the Nutrition Sector Coordinator, NS Information Management officer (IMO) and NS partners with input for and production of strategic documents, presentations and concept notes, proposals etc.; Update NS website on timely manner. Disseminate NS related products on timely manner via NS website and other social media. Manage an inventory of relevant documents of Nutrition Sector and other relevant Sectors. Support drafting and finalization of NS meetings minutes, trainings and workshops reports.
Eligibility criteria
Age
27 – 80
Nationality
Candidate must be a national or legal resident of the country of assignment.
Requirements
Required experience
3 years of experience in • Experience of working in nutrition programme, • Experience of working in Rohingya Refugee context, • Highly Motivated and Strong organizational skills • Experience of working with digital platforms, including engagement platforms, is an asset. • Experience of working with government and/or civil society groups is an asset. • Experience of social mobilization is an asset. • Knowledge of UNICEF’s work and issues related to child rights is an asset.
Area(s) of expertise
Health, Communication, Crisis and emergency response
Driving license
–
Languages
English, Level: Fluent, Required Bengali, Level: Fluent, Required
Required education level
Bachelor degree or equivalent in Nutritional Science, Public Health, Communication, or field related to UNICEF’s mandate.
Competencies and values
• Integrity Accountability • Adaptability and Flexibility • Commitment and Motivation • Commitment to Continuous Learning • Working with teams • Communication • Integrity • Judgement and Decision-making • Planning and Organizing • Professionalism • Respect for Diversity
Other information
Living conditions and remarks
Cox’s Bazar is the prime beach and tourist town in Bangladesh, situated alongside the beach of the Bay of Bengal, beside the Indian ocean, having unbroken 120 Kilometre golden sand beach, reachable through motor transport alongside the wavy water . This town is situated in the Chittagong Division in south-eastern Bangladesh, beside ‘Myanmar (Burma)’. For Bangladeshi’s it doesn’t get much better than Cox’s Bazar, the country’s most popular beach town than the other one ‘Kuakata beach town. It’s sort of a Cancun of the east. It’s choc-a-bloc with massive well-architectured concrete structures, affluent 5 & 3 star hotels, catering largely to the country’s elite and overseas tourists. The beach is only a bit crowded in tourist season, October to March, especially near the hotel-motel zone, but remains virgin during the rest of the year, April to September, when it’s better to take a trip there. Cox’s Bazar is located about 150 km south of Chittagong Metropolitan city, Cox’s Bazar is connected both by air and road with the capital of Bangladesh, Dhaka and the prime port city Chittagong. The official language is Bengali, while English is the working language of UN Agencies.
Inclusivity statement
United Nations Volunteers is an equal opportunity programme that welcomes applications from qualified professionals. We are committed to achieving diversity in terms of gender, care protected characteristics. As part of their adherence to the values of UNV, all UN Volunteers commit themselves to combat any form of discrimination, and to promoting respect for human rights and individual dignity, without distinction of a person’s race, sex, gender identity, religion, nationality, ethnic origin, sexual orientation, disability, pregnancy, age, language, social origin or other status.
Reasonable accommodation
UNICEF offers reasonable accommodation for UN Volunteers with disabilities. This may include, for example, accessible software, travel assistance for missions or personal attendants. We encourage you to disclose your disability during your application in case you need reasonable accommodation during the recruitment process and afterwards in your assignment.
Note on Covid-19 vaccination requirements
In addition to duty station-specific vaccine requirements, appointments are subject to confirmation of fully-vaccinated status against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid-19) with a World Health Organization (WHO)-endorsed vaccine, which must be met prior to taking up the appointment. It does not apply to UN Volunteers who will work remotely and are not expected to work on or visit UNICEF premises, programme delivery locations or directly interact with communities UNICEF works with, nor to travel to perform functions for UNICEF for the duration of their contracts.
