Social Protection Support (SC5)

Organizational Context

The FAO Representation in Somalia assists the national government in developing policies and programs to achieve Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) related to food security, hunger reduction, agricultural development, and sustainable resource management. The Representation manages a diverse portfolio including policy support, livestock and crop production, natural resource management, nutrition, value chains, food security analysis, and water/land information management. It also implements emergency, resilience-building, and development interventions across five field offices, partnering with federal and state ministries.

Job Purpose

The incumbent will support access to finance, gender, and social protection activities across multiple programs, including TCLP, GCF, CANADA, SDG, Cadre, and Climb. This role involves close liaison with the program team to ensure alignment of these activities with FAO's strategic focus and the FAO-Somalia Country Programming Framework. The position provides essential day-to-day support for the implementation of program activities and overall programming efforts, contributing to the effective delivery of social protection initiatives.

Responsibilities

Ensure program activities in social protection, financial inclusion (e.g., VSLAs), and gender align with FAO's Strategic Framework and Somalia's Country Programming Framework. Provide daily operational support, including reviewing partner reports, facilitating LoA/LoU processes, organizing training and capacity-building events, and promoting knowledge sharing. Support policy development and capacity strengthening with the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs and other stakeholders to advance Somalia’s social protection agenda. Contribute to data collection, research, and documentation of lessons learned, challenges, and best practices in linking social protection with resilience, nutrition, and climate change. Facilitate collaboration between FAO, partners, and communities through coordination of workshops, policy dialogues, and social protection meetings. Conduct field missions to monitor progress, identify challenges, and recommend improvements. Review partner reports against LoA/LoUs and support technical teams in liaising with partners for proper implementation and monitoring. Initiate LoA/LoU payments based on field activities. Develop implementation plans for protection activities, including social protection monitoring, with guidance from technical teams. Support data collection for research on social protection, access to finance, and climate change. Maintain the FAOSO Social Protection knowledge repository on SharePoint. Perform other duties as required.

Work Experience

At least three years of work experience in social protection, access to finance, and the delivery of cash transfers.

Skills

Results Focus, Teamwork, Communication, Building Effective Relationships, Knowledge Sharing and Continuous Improvement. Experience in Social Protection, access to finance, workshop management, and cash transfer delivery. Excellent communication, writing, and reporting skills. Familiarity with Project Cycle Management. Strong organizational and planning skills. Strong teamwork and interpersonal skills.

Explore related opportunities