Technical Advisor I: Nutrition Advisor

Global Health Fellows Program II

Technical Advisor I: Nutrition Advisor

Nutrition Division, Office of Health, Infectious Diseases and Nutrition, Bureau for Global Health, United States Agency for International Development

Location: Washington, DC

Assignment: Two year fellowship

GHFP-II-P2-090

The Global Health Fellows Program (GHFP-II) is a five year cooperative agreement implemented and managed by the Public Health Institute in partnership with Global Health Corps, GlobeMed, Management Systems International and PYXERA Global. GHFP-II is supported by the US Agency for International Development (USAID).

GHFP-II’s goal is to improve the effectiveness of USAID health programs by addressing the Agency’s immediate and emerging human capacity needs. The program seeks to accomplish this goal first through the recruitment, placement and support of diverse health professionals at the junior, mid and senior levels. These program participants include fellows, interns, corporate volunteers and Foreign Service National professionals. The program then provides substantial performance management and career development support to participants, including annual working planning assistance, and ensures that professional development opportunities are available.

Looking to the future, GHFP-II also seeks to establish a pool of highly-qualified global health professionals that will ensure the Agency’s ongoing technical leadership and effectiveness. This objective is supported by an extensive outreach program that brings global health opportunities and specialized career advice to a diverse range of interested individuals, with a particular focus on those underrepresented in the field of global health.

BACKGROUND:

The Nutrition Division, located within the Office of Health, Infectious Disease and Nutrition in the Bureau for Global Health (GH), provides global technical leadership to USAID Missions, host governments, partners and stakeholders to improve nutrition and food security strategies, policies and programming. The Division works with various USAID operating units and partners in the implementation of nutrition and food security programs; including the Feed the Future Presidential Initiative, the Global Health Initiative, Title II Cooperating Sponsors/Private Voluntary Organizations; the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief partners; Child Survival and Health Grant Program partners; and host country institutions.

INTRODUCTION:

The Nutrition Advisor serves as a member of the Nutrition Division and provides technical advice and support for nutrition programming with a focus on pregnant women and lactating women, infants, and young children in development contexts, nutrition in emergencies, food/nutrition interactions with HIV and other infectious diseases, prevention of specific micronutrient deficiencies including nutritional anemias, food security, and monitoring and evaluation associated to those areas.

The Nutrition Advisor will contribute to the implementation of Global Health and Feed the Future Presidential initiatives and USAID’s policies and programs as they relate to nutrition and food security. S/he will primarily provide technical assistance to USAID country-level programs to roll-out the new USAID Nutrition Strategy (2014-2025) integrating nutrition with agriculture, health, HIV/AIDS, water and sanitation, agricultural and humanitarian assistance activities. S/he will oversee activities implemented by Washington-funded projects, focusing on monitoring and evaluation of multi-sectoral nutrition activities. S/he will support USAID leadership and input to the Scaling Up Nutrition Movement, the Thousand Days Partnership, and other global nutrition partnerships.

On behalf of the Nutrition Division, s/he will collaborate with other USAID bureaus in accomplishing Agency objectives, including policy and strategic development, program and project planning, design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of nutrition and food security activities. The Nutrition Advisor will receive day-to-day guidance from the Nutrition Team Leader.

ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

The Nutrition Advisor will:

• Provide guidance and recommendations on nutrition-related topics across a broad program portfolio.

• Provide support to the Division’s centrally-managed programs, such as the Food and Nutrition Technical Assistance (FANTA) 3 Project, Strengthening Partnerships, Results and Innovations in Nutrition Globally (SPRING), Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN), and other programs as needed. The focus will be on technical nutrition areas including promotion of early and exclusive breastfeeding and infant and young child feeding; maternal and child anemia, and interventions to address other micronutrient deficiencies.

• Provide assistance to the Nutrition Division toward the Division’s support of the Scaling Up Nutrition Movement, the Thousand Days Partnership, and other global nutrition partnerships, and assist with tracking relevant global activities and responding to requests for information on food security and nutrition.

• Collaborate with the Nutrition Element Team, and with staff from other USAID/Washington bureaus, USAID missions, the U.S. Government (USG) interagency nutrition team, other donors, and implementing organizations, in leading the development of programmatic strategies and guidance related to nutrition programming.

• Coordinate with Nutrition Team members and staff from other divisions/bureaus on the production of communications materials, talking points, briefers, analyses, and reports.

• Support the coordination with GH, the Bureau for Food Security, Office of Food for Peace, the Office of HIV/AIDS, and USAID missions to integrate nutrition into food security, family planning and reproductive health, maternal and child health, water and sanitation, and infectious disease programs.

Training and Professional Development

• Keep abreast of literature and latest developments related to nutrition programming.

• Deepen knowledge of latest developments related to USG nutrition policy and frameworks, especially as they relate to interagency collaboration.

• Participate in interagency working groups and professional meetings, as appropriate to SOW.

• Participate in professional continuing education and skills training within the purview of GHFP-II.

REQUIRED SKILLS, KNOWLEDGE & EXPERIENCE

• Master’s degree in public health, nutrition and food policy, or related disciplines; demonstrated expertise in human nutrition preferred.

• 0-7 years’ experience in food and nutrition programs in health, or food security settings, with or without experience in an international or resource challenged setting.

• Experience in data analysis; monitoring and evaluation; research ethics, design and implementation; and in nutrition communications and outreach in low-resource settings preferred.

• Familiarity with USG policies and procedures; experience working with USAID or other donor-funded programs preferred.

• Strong interpersonal communication, public speaking and writing skills.

• Demonstrated ability to work effectively in diverse contexts, and as part of inter-disciplinary teams.

• High degree of professional judgment, ingenuity, and originality to interpret strategy, to analyze, develop and present work, and to monitor and evaluate programs

• Ability to contribute to required reporting processes with timely input for USAID and USG interagency nutrition efforts.

• Ability to travel domestically and internationally, often on short notice, for at least 25% of time.

• Fluency in a foreign language, French preferred.

• US Citizenship or US Permanent Residency required.

SALARY AND BENEFITS:

Salary based on commensurate experience and earnings history. The Public Health Institute offers a comprehensive benefits package including professional development programs. Please view the 2013 GHFP-II Benefits Booklet.

How to apply:

All applicants are required to apply for this position through GHFP-II’s online recruitment system athttps://www.ghfp.net/recruitment/, which allows you to store your CV, profile and bio data form in our database. A separate cover letter describing your qualifications and experience, interest and familiarity with issues relating to this position, and how this position relates to your career goals is required for each application. All applications must be submitted by 5:00 pm Eastern Time on January 17, 2014.

We are proud to be an EEO/AA Employer