Specialist Statistics
Organizational Context
The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) is a United Nations agency dedicated to ending hunger and transforming agrifood systems for sustainability. The FAO Statistics Division (ESS) establishes standards for food and agriculture statistics. The FAO Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean (RLC) in Santiago, Chile, collaborates with ESS and the Office of the Chief Statistician to enhance national statistical systems in the region, focusing on monitoring food security, nutrition, and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The selected candidate will support the regional statistics program.
Job Purpose
The Consultant will provide technical assistance and support for the compilation, processing, validation, analysis, and dissemination of data, microdata, and metadata concerning food security and nutrition statistics within Latin America and the Caribbean. Working under the supervision of the Regional Advisor on Statistics and in coordination with the regional Better Nutrition team, the role aims to enhance national agricultural statistical systems by applying FAO-endorsed methodologies. This position is crucial for improving the quality and usability of statistical information to address food security and nutrition challenges in the region.
Responsibilities
The Consultant will support the calculation and monitoring of SDG indicators related to hunger and food security (2.1.1 and 2.1.2), and analyze other FAO-custodied indicators for cross-country and temporal comparability. Responsibilities include providing training on data collection, analysis, and use, as well as questionnaire development and survey validation in coordination with FAO HQ. The role involves contributing to the calculation of the cost of a healthy diet and supporting the update of the Healthy Diet Basket. Additionally, the Consultant will assist in compiling, processing, and analyzing dietary diversity indicators, preparing relevant reports and country notes. Technical assistance and training will be provided to National Statistical Offices and counterparts. Support will also be given to the design, review, and pilot testing of agricultural census questionnaires and manuals, and the development of CAPI-based survey instruments using Survey Solutions. Processing, validation, and analysis of large farm datasets using statistical software like R, Stata, or SPSS will be undertaken, contributing to statistical outputs and recommendations.
Work Experience
A minimum of 2 years of relevant experience is required in survey data analysis, food security and nutrition statistics, or technical assistance to national statistical systems. This experience can include internships, research assistantships, and academic projects for Junior Level / Level C Consultant roles.
Skills
Essential skills include a solid knowledge of basic statistics, data presentation, descriptive statistics, probability distributions, correlation, sampling techniques, inference, confidence intervals, hypothesis testing, linear regression, and survey/questionnaire design fundamentals. Proficiency in at least one data analysis program (R, Stata, SPSS, or SAS) and basic statistical programming knowledge is required; Python and SQL are advantageous. Basic knowledge of data sources for food security and nutrition statistics (household surveys, income/expenditure surveys, price data, food balance sheets) and national agricultural statistical systems is needed. Core competencies include Results Focus, Teamwork, Communication, Building Effective Relationships, and Knowledge Sharing.