Econometrician

CONTRACT TYPE: SERVICE CONTRACT
ORGANIZATIONAL: FAO IN KENYA
ELIGIBLE CANDIDATES: All Nationals
DUTY STATION: Nairobi
DURATION: 11 months contract renewable

The 2011 drought, in the Horn of Africa, affected more than 13 million, causing massive food insecurity and famine. Given the complex nature of crises affecting the region, which often occur simultaneously and can be protracted over a long period of time, coordinated action towards adopting a more holistic approach to addressing the underlying causes of food insecurity and malnutrition is needed. Investing in a better understanding and measuring of resilience in this context is essential. This will help policy makers and stakeholders to avoid duplication effort and better understand where and how to invest, based on a reasonable degree of assurance that their investment will be rewarded through improved resilience.

Against this background, FAO in collaboration with UNICEF and WFP have successfully developed and piloted (also in the HoA) an econometric model to analyse resilience, identify the contributing factors that may influence the resilience of HHs and communities and measure the actual impacts of investments on people’s resilience. Preliminary discussions with IGAD management indicate that this analytical model could bring some substantial added value to on-going resilience based programming and M&E efforts undertaken by member states and other stakeholders.

Furthermore, following the demand received from donors and the direct request expressed by IGAD, FAO and some of its UN longstanding partners (e.g. UNICEF and WFP) have agreed to set up a Resilience Analysis Unit (RAU) for building capacity to improve resilience measurement and analysis at the Regional level in the HoA and whose core will be located within IDDRSI M&E.

Under the overall supervision of the general supervision of the FAO Representative in Kenya and the technical guidance of the Resilience Analysis Unit Technical Coordinator Analyst, the consultant will:

• Apply FAO’s methodology at National and Regional level (HOA)
• Present, on behalf of FAO, results of analysis to stakeholders (government, institutions, etc).
• Prepare findings for publication.
• To contribute to field activities for the baseline survey in different states when requested; in particular the consultant will:
  o Be part of the resilience team that will undertake the impact evaluations/resilience analysis;
  o Follow the early phases of data collection in the field. For instance, the consultant will supervise enumerators, data entry operators and supervisors activities, in order to control data activities quality.
  o Actively assist and contribute to the field test of the survey instrument;
  o Actively initiate and produce, upon discussion with partners and programme designers, survey’s instruments.
• To contribute to enhance technical capacity of the staff operating in the IGAD, member states institutions and partners to measure and analyse resilience; in particular the consultant will:
  o Actively assist and contribute to the training of staff operating in the IGAD, member states institutions and partners;
• Contribute to the development of the Resilience measurement tool, by exploring further areas of innovation and by refining actual weakness.
• Curry out other duties as required.

The following are the key outcomes anticipated from the assignment:

• Timely preparation of the Resilience Analysis
• Timely preparation of the Impact Assessment exercises
• Timely data collection
• Timely preparation of the other required analysis

Academic and technical Qualifications
• advance degree in economics/econometrics
• excellent knowledge of survey methodological tools

Languages:
Working knowledge of English. Knowledge of French as an added advantage

As advantage:
Specific competence on the Impact Evaluation of agro-farming projects in post conflict contexts

How to apply:

Send your application to:

Candidates are requested to submit a covering letter quoting the Position Title and Vacancy Announcement No. FAO/009/2013 along with their current/detailed Curriculum Vitae to the following email; Vacancy-Kenya@fao.org
The subject line of the e-mail message should read CONFIDENTIAL – FAO/009/2013.

If making a hard copy submission, the envelope should be clearly marked CONFIDENTIAL – FAO/009/2013 and sent to the following address:

FAO-Kenya
United Nations Office at Nairobi
UN Complex, Gigiri
P.O. Box 30470-00100
Nairobi, Kenya.

Applications must be received by the deadline. Late applications will not be considered.

Only short listed candidates meeting all essential qualifications will be contacted.