UNICEF works in over 190 countries and territories to save children’s lives, defend their rights, and help them fulfill their potential, from early childhood through adolescence.

At UNICEF, we are committed, passionate, and proud of what we do for as long as we are needed. Promoting the rights of every child is not just a job – it is a calling.

UNICEF is a place where careers are built: we offer our staff diverse opportunities for professional and personal development that will help them reinforce a sense of purpose while serving children and communities across the world. We welcome everyone who wants to belong and grow in a diverse and passionate culture, coupled with an attractive compensation and benefits package.

Visit our website to learn more about what we do at UNICEF.

For every child, the right to a Champion

How can you make a difference?

The Nutrition Specialist (P-3 TA) will be based in UNICEF’s Gaza Field Office and report to the Nutrition Manager, Gaza. The position will provide technical, programmatic and operational support for UNICEF’s nutrition response in Gaza, supporting lifesaving and recovery interventions for children, adolescents, pregnant and breastfeeding women affected by the ongoing humanitarian crisis. Working closely with government counterparts, UN agencies, NGOs, Nutrition Cluster partners and health facilities, the Specialist will oversee implementation, monitoring and quality assurance of nutrition programmes, with a particular focus on emergency nutrition response, NICU and neonatal nutrition, adolescent nutrition, Accountability to Affected Populations (AAP) and Community Feedback Mechanisms (CFM), H& N extenders workforce management, and strengthening nutrition information systems and decision-making through Power BI and data analytics. The post requires a high degree of technical expertise, coordination and autonomy to ensure effective programme delivery, partner management, evidence generation and donor accountability in a highly complex and rapidly evolving emergency context.

Summary of key functions/accountabilities:

Programme Development, Emergency Preparedness and Strategic Planning
Programme Management, Monitoring and Quality Assurance
Technical Support for Emergency Nutrition and Health Facility-Based Nutrition
Adolescent Nutrition, Children Over Five
Nutrition Information Management, Data Analysis and Power BI
Accountability to Affected Populations (AAP) and Community Engagement
Partnership Development, Coordination and Advocacy
Supply Chain and Operational Support
Capacity Building, Knowledge Management and Innovation

Key Deliverables

The Nutrition Specialist will contribute to:

Effective implementation of UNICEF emergency nutrition response in Gaza.
Strengthened neonatal and NICU nutrition programming.
Development and operationalization of adolescent nutrition initiatives.
Functioning nutrition AAP and CFM systems with documented feedback utilization.
Improved integration of nutrition across sectors (e.g. Health, WASH, Child Protection, Social Policy, Education).
Effective management and performance oversight of nutrition and health extenders.
Operational Power BI nutrition dashboards and routine analytical products. Knowledge management products.
Timely donor reporting, programme monitoring and partner management.
Improved quality, coverage and accountability of UNICEF-supported nutrition interventions.

If you would like to know more about this position, please review the complete Job Description here: Download File TOR for P3 TA_Final version.pdf

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…

Minimum requirements:

Education: Master or equivalent (Advanced University Degree) in one of the following fields is required: nutrition, public health, nutritional epidemiology, global/international health and nutrition, health policy, health/nutrition research, policy and/or management, health sciences, or another health-related science field.
Work Experience: At least 5 years of progressively responsible professional experience in nutrition, public health, maternal and child nutrition or emergency nutrition programming. Demonstrated experience in humanitarian nutrition programming and emergency response. Experience managing partnerships, programme implementation and donor-funded projects.
Skills: Experience in programme management, emergency nutrition, data analysis, strategic planning, partnership coordination, capacity building is required.
Language Requirements: Fluency in English is required.

Desirables:

Language: Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish), preferably Arabic, is an asset.
Experience supporting health facility and NICU nutrition programming is an asset.
Experience in adolescent nutrition programming is highly desirable.
Experience in AAP, community engagement and feedback systems is desirable.
Experience using Power BI and nutrition information management systems is strongly desirable.
Previous UNICEF or UN experience is an asset.
Relevant experience at country level, particularly in development, fragile settings and humanitarian contexts.

For every Child, you demonstrate...

UNICEF's Core Values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust and Accountability and Sustainability (CRITAS) underpin everything we do and how we do it. Get acquainted with Our Values Charter: UNICEF Values

UNICEF competencies required for this post are…

(1) Builds and maintains partnerships
(2) Demonstrates self-awareness and ethical awareness
(3) Drive to achieve results for impact
(4) Innovates and embraces change
(5) Manages ambiguity and complexity
(6) Thinks and acts strategically
(7) Works collaboratively with others

Familiarize yourself with our competency framework and its different levels.

UNICEF promotes and advocates for the protection of the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything it does and is mandated to support the realization of the rights of every child, including those most disadvantaged, and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, minority, or any other status.

UNICEF encourages applications from all qualified candidates, regardless of gender, nationality, religious or ethnic backgrounds, and from people with disabilities, including neurodivergence. We offer a wide range of benefits to our staff, including paid parental leave, breastfeeding breaks and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF provides reasonable accommodation throughout the recruitment process. If you require any accommodation, please submit your request through the accessibility email button on the UNICEF Careers webpage Accessibility | UNICEF. Should you be shortlisted, please get in touch with the recruiter directly to share further details, enabling us to make the necessary arrangements in advance.

UNICEF does not hire candidates who are married to children (persons under 18). UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination based on gender, nationality, age, race, sexual orientation, religious or ethnic background or disabilities. UNICEF is committed to promote the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles. Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check, and selected candidates with disabilities may be requested to submit supporting documentation in relation to their disability confidentially.

UNICEF appointments are subject to medical clearance. Issuance of a visa by the host country of the duty station is required for IP positions and will be facilitated by UNICEF. Appointments are conditional on the selected candidates willingness to comply with current or future vaccination requirements, should UNICEF mandate it for personnel. Failure to comply with such requirements, where applicable and without a duly approved medical exemption from the relevant UN authority, will result in the cancellation of the selection or may lead to other administrative measures, including separation from service.

Remarks:

As per Article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity.

UNICEF is committed to fostering an inclusive, representative, and welcoming workforce. For this position, eligible and suitable male are encouraged to apply.

Government employees who are considered for employment with UNICEF are normally required to resign from their government positions before taking up an assignment with UNICEF. UNICEF reserves the right to withdraw an offer of appointment, without compensation, if a visa or medical clearance is not obtained, or necessary inoculation requirements are not met, within a reasonable period for any reason.

UNICEF does not charge a processing fee at any stage of its recruitment, selection, and hiring processes (i.e., application stage, interview stage, validation stage, or appointment and training). UNICEF will not ask for applicants' bank account information.

Mobility is a condition of international professional employment with UNICEF and an underlying premise of the international civil service.

Humanitarian action is a cross-cutting priority within UNICEF's Strategic Plan. UNICEF is committed to stay and deliver in humanitarian contexts. Therefore, all staff, at all levels across all functional areas, can be called upon to be deployed to support humanitarian response, contributing to both strengthening resilience of communities and capacity of national authorities.

Eligible staff members on fixed-term, continuing or permanent contracts applying to IP TA positions in a duty station designated as L2/L3, may be able to retain a lien and their fixed-term entitlements, subject to approval by their Head of Office. The conditions of the temporary assignment will vary depending on the status of their post and relocation entitlements may be limited as per the relevant policies.

All UNICEF positions are advertised, and only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process. An internal candidate performing at the level of the post in the relevant functional area, or an internal/external candidate in the corresponding Talent Group, may be selected, if suitable for the post, without assessment of other candidates.

Additional information about working for UNICEF can be found here.

Nutrition Specialist, P-3, TA (364 days), #00131951, Gaza, State of Palestine - MENA