Organizational Setting
The FAO Sub-Regional office for West Africa (SFW) responsible for developing, promoting and implementing FAO agreed strategies to help countries and sub-regional organizations address food security, nutrition, agriculture and rural development priorities in West Africa. The Office has a multidisciplinary team of technical experts, in agriculture, forestry, fisheries, land and water, and pastoralism, who provide technical support to the 15 member countries of ECOWAS in their fight against poverty and the promotion of food and nutritional security; as well as to a wider 17 member countries of the Inter-State Committee for Drought Control in the Sahel (CILSS) in strengthening the resilience of the Sahel countries.
There is growing international recognition that the agricultural sectors (including crops, forestry, fisheries and aquaculture and livestock) play a central role in responding to climate change, as these sectors are among the foremost priorities in the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) submitted by African countries under the UNFCCC. In this regard, SFW Strategy has as one of its priority areas “Sustainable Management of the Environment and Natural Resources (SMENR)” that intends to support countries address issues related to climate change mitigation and adaptation, the preservation of biodiversity, and the collection, management and sharing on the environment and natural resources data in the sub-region.
SFW is increasingly receiving requests from countries in West Africa for providing technical support in the development of concept notes and project proposals to key environmental donors (GCF and GEF and Adaptation Fund) as well as their implementation. As an accredited agency to the GEF, GCF and Adaptation Fund, FAO intends to expand its portfolio to assist countries in fulfilling their ambitions on climate action, notably, with UNFCCC, as well as the NDCs in the Paris Agreement.
The portfolio of SFW comprises more than 60 projects funded by GEF. To succeed in the engagement with countries and the Secretariat of GEF, the FAO intends to strengthen its climate team at SFW.
FAO SFW Multidisciplinary Team and Call purpose
The purpose of this call is to provide FAO’s Sub-Regional Office for West Africa and its country offices with qualified technical experts to be part of multidisciplinary team, to enhance FAO’s support to the design and implementation of projects related to the Land and water fields in the sub-region, with a particular focus on GEF, Adaptation Fund and GCF.
The recruited technical experts will be based at SFW office (Dakar, Senegal), required to travel for field missions in respective countries of intervention and where relevant.


Reporting Lines
The Technical Expert will work under the overall guidance of the Senior Policy Officer at SFW and the technical supervision of the Land and Water Officer at SFW, and in close collaboration with projects implementation teams at country level.

Technical Focus
Strengthen the implementation oversight of GEF and GCF projects by supporting SFW in the provision of technical support to the countries offices in the Environment field, particularly on land and water-related initiatives.


Tasks and responsibilities
• Engage with projects teams, as well as related country offices, and provide them with additional technical support to enhance the Implementation of the assigned projects, particularly on land and water.
• Provide technical support/analysis to various assessments, studies and initiatives and provides technical backstopping to GEF field projects;
• Collaborate in the development of improved/updated tools, systems, processes, and databases;
• Participate on multi-disciplinary teams, on working groups and committees and promotes best practices;
• Contribute to the collection and promotion of knowledge sharing and best practices and influences partners in stakeholder consultations;
• Undertake field trip to supervise the projects implementation and technically support the project management unit
• Ensure the 1st technical review of projects documents and provide advice on needed improvements.
• Perform other relevant duties as required
Candidates will be assessed against the following.


Minimum Requirements
• Advanced University (Master) degree in environmental sciences, natural resource management, water resources management or a related field as appropriate. A university degree combined with 2 years of relevant experience may be considered in lieu of an advanced university degree
• At least 5 years (for advanced university degree) or 7 years (for university degree) of relevant experience in project cycle management. A formal training/certification in Project Management is an advantage.
• Full proficiency of English (level C) and intermediate knowledge of French (level B) are required.


FAO Core Competencies
• Results Focus
• Teamwork
• Communication
• Building Effective Relationships
• Knowledge Sharing and Continuous Improvement


Technical/Functional Skills
• Work experience in more than one location or area of work, particularly in field positions in Sub-Saharan Africa is desirable;
• Experience and knowledge in water, land, climate change, or natural resources management issues;
• Experience in advising and providing technical guidance on the implementation of environmental projects ;
• Experience in formulation or implementation of projects in sub-Saharan Africa, especially for GEF, GCF and other environmetal funds.
• Experience in resource mobilisation, preferably in the areas of land, water, natural resources, biodiversity conservation and climate change mitigation and adaptation.
• Experience in designing, implementing, monitoring and evaluating projects linked to land, water, natural resources management, biodiversity conservation or climate change. Doing that within the UN System is a plus;
• Experience working with other UN agencies, RECs and FAO country Offices in project implementation
Selection Criteria
• Relevant experience in the implementation, design or evaluation of substantial development projects and programmes with a focus on Environment or water resources management. Experience on GCF, GEF or
• Investment Financing Institutions (IFI) is an advantage.
• Experience working in/with the countries of the sub-Saharan Africa is an advantage.
Please note that all candidates should adhere to FAO Values of Commitment to FAO, Respect for All and Integrity and Transparency.



Additional information
FAO does not charge any fee at any stage of the recruitment process (application, interview, processing)
Please note that FAO will only consider academic credentials or degrees obtained from an educational institution recognized in the IAU/UNESCO list
Please note that FAO only considers higher educational qualifications obtained from an institution accredited/recognized in the World Higher Education Database (WHED), a list updated by the International
Association of Universities (IAU) / United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The list can be accessed at http://www.whed.net/
For more information, visit the FAO employment website
Appointment will be subject to certification that the candidate is medically fit for appointment, accreditation, any residency or visa requirements, and security clearances.


How to apply
To apply, visit the recruitment website at Jobs at FAO and complete your online profile. We strongly recommend that your profile is accurate, complete and includes your employment records, academic qualifications, and language skills.


• Candidates are requested to attach a letter of motivation to the online profile
• Once your profile is completed, please apply, and submit your application
• Candidates may be requested to provide performance assessments and authorization to conduct verification checks of past and present work, character, education, military and police records to ascertain any and all information which may be pertinent to the employment qualifications
• Incomplete applications will not be considered
• Personal information provided on your application may be shared within FAO and with other companies acting on FAO’s behalf to provide employment support services such as pre-screening of applications, assessment tests, background checks and other related services. You will be asked to provide your consent before submitting your application. You may withdraw consent at any time, by withdrawing your application, in such case FAO will no longer be able to consider your application
• Only applications received through the FAO recruitment portal will be considered
• Your application will be screened based on the information provided in your online profile
• We encourage applicants to submit the application well before the deadline date.



If you need help or have queries, please create a one-time registration with FAO’s client support team for further assistance: https://fao.service-now.com/csp
FAO is a non-smoking environment.