Programme Assistant GIS - Jerusalem - SC L5

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).

Job Title:  Programme Assistant- GIS

Grade:   SC5

Type of contract: Service Contract                           

Duration:  12 Months

Renewal of contract: Subject to WFP needs, staff performance and the availability of funds

Duty Station: East Jerusalem

This vacancy announcement is for Palestinian nationals.

ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT

WFP, through its dual mandate in humanitarian and development, provides life-saving food assistance to the most vulnerable and food insecure non-refugee Palestinians and works to safeguard livelihoods, build resilience, and reconstitute food systems in vulnerable areas. WFP also lends its technical expertise to support national institutions by strengthening their capacities in responding to shocks and building an inclusive social safety net.

To further strengthen the humanitarian-development-peace nexus, WFP is providing climate-smart agricultural assets such as hydroponics and wicking beds to households to increase their calorie intake and enable them to generate income. WFP also scaled up its resilience-building activities to include greenhouses, vegetable farms, sheep, poultry, and technical and vocational trainings for youth and people with disabilities. These projects reduce people’s vulnerability to external shocks, serve as a safety net, and support livelihoods. 

In response to the urgent needs of Palestine, where protracted conflict and economic stagnation have led to widespread food insecurity, WFP delivers life-saving food assistance to the most vulnerable non-refugee Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank. To address the ongoing crisis, WFP also focuses on strengthening livelihoods through resilience-building projects such as climate-smart agriculture and vocational training. Additionally, WFP supports national institutions by enhancing their capacity to respond to shocks and build inclusive social safety nets. By extending its systems to humanitarian and development partners, WFP contributes to broader efforts within the humanitarian-development-peace nexus.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE OF THE ASSIGNMENT:

The context in the West Bank and Gaza has changed significantly due to the ongoing conflict, affecting food security and the food supply chain across different geographical locations. For instance, the Northern Governorate of Gaza is under a strict siege, resulting in severe food insecurity that is distinct from other areas in the Gaza Strip. This situation creates significant challenges in food availability and accessibility, impacting the food security status of the population and WFP operations differently across various locations.

The need to demonstrate the linkages between food security indicators, food supply data, and WFP operations data across these different locations has become critical. This integration is essential to enable knowledge-based planning and decision-making and to model food security determinants and test different scenarios for their implications on food security.

The Geographical Information System (GIS) Unit within VAM is continuously gathering data and updating georeferenced information to ensure that WFP is ready to create detailed cartography as well as spatial analyses of the areas of interest in order to support humanitarian emergency response.

 The GIS Assistant will be responsible for integrating food security outcome indicators data and food supply chain data into geographic maps for Gaza and the West Bank. This role aims to enhance WFP's capacity to conduct spatial risk analysis, develop GIS models and projections, and automate related processes. The GIS Assistant will also integrate maps used in IPC (Integrated Food Security Phase Classification) analyses to provide a comprehensive view of food security in Gaza.

Main duties and responsibilities

Under the overall guidance of the Head of VAM Unit, working under the direct supervision of the National VAM Officer and collaborating with all colleagues within the VAM Unit, the Programme Assistant will mainly be in charge of managing the production of maps and related data layers and will have the following specific duties and responsibilities:

Key responsibilities:

• Collect relevant data, map layers and update georeferenced information from different sources including gathering of GPS coordinates from the field to ensure that WFP is ready to create detailed cartography as well as spatial analyses of the areas of interest to support humanitarian response in Palestine, whenever required. 
• Consolidate spatial data with food insecurity, nutrition and vulnerability by integrating primary food security data with other sources of secondary at national, governorates and lowest admin units.
• Conduct spatial data analysis on food security and nutrition, data collection and map production according to UN cartographic standards, and prepare reports, as required. Maintain and expand the data repository and related metadata.
• Maintain and manage the GIS database for RAM Spatial Data Infrastructure (SDI).
• Work with data to create themes and layers for use in GIS. 
• Ensure the data relevancy and accuracy at the field through consistent checkup and revision.
• Support the development of  geo-referenced map layers and databases.
• Produce relevant maps such as base/admin maps, logistical, operational, security, supply chain, food security and nutrition as well as other socio-economic maps and regularly update them.
• Assist in food security analysis, preparations of reports, maps, dashboards and webmaps
• Collaborate with clients (Internal and External) to identify GIS needs and develop appropriate GIS products. 
• Advocate for data and mapping standards.
• Assist the National VAM Officer in the response and prioritization of requests for map products and services. 
• Properly manage the development, quality control and reproduction of mapping products in appropriate formats for clients.
• Support Cartographic map production, when needed.
• Perform others related duties as required.