Access Officer Noa, Port-au-prince, Haiti

Organizational Context

WFP operates in complex and conflict-affected environments where humanitarian access is critical for effective response to food security and nutrition crises. In Haiti, the deteriorating security situation since 2021, marked by increased gang control in Port-au-Prince, has created an extremely challenging operating environment for humanitarian organizations, including WFP and its partners.

Job Purpose

The National Access Officer will play a crucial role in ensuring WFP's ability to deliver life-saving assistance in Haiti by analyzing the humanitarian situation and anticipating its implications on operations. This role involves actively engaging with humanitarian, non-humanitarian, and other key stakeholders to negotiate, maintain, and improve access. The officer will contribute to risk assessments, incident reporting, and the development of strategies to overcome access challenges, ensuring that WFP can reach the most vulnerable populations effectively. This position requires close collaboration with various units, including Security, to map actors, document best practices, and strengthen staff capacity in access and engagement work.

Responsibilities

The Access Officer plays a crucial role in ensuring the World Food Programme (WFP) can effectively deliver humanitarian aid in complex and conflict-affected regions, particularly in Haiti where insecurity has significantly impacted operations. This position involves contributing to the analysis of the humanitarian situation, identifying access challenges, and anticipating their implications for WFP programs. A key responsibility is to support WFP's engagement with various humanitarian, non-humanitarian, and community actors to negotiate, maintain, and improve access for delivering essential goods and services to vulnerable populations. The officer will conduct contextual scans and risk assessments, develop regular reports on access incidents, and maintain an overview of conflict and insecurity to inform operational decision-making. This includes mapping key actors, documenting best practices, and advising management on engagement strategies. The role also involves identifying and mitigating programmatic and operational access risks, supporting the development of strategies to reach beneficiaries, and strengthening coordination with partners. Furthermore, the Access Officer will assist in capacity-building efforts for WFP staff and sub-office access assistants, ensuring consistent and effective access management across all operations. Occasional deployments to field offices are expected to support these critical functions.

Work Experience

Requires one year or more of professional experience in humanitarian work, development, civil work, or community engagement, specifically within Haiti. Experience in humanitarian access negotiations is also necessary.

Skills

Humanitarian Access Negotiation, Contextual Analysis, Risk Assessment, Community Engagement, Stakeholder Engagement, Reporting, Coordination, Capacity Building, Conflict Analysis, Security Analysis, Interagency Coordination, Programmatic Access Strategy, Operational Risk Management, Cross-functional Collaboration, Communication Skills, Problem-Solving, Adaptability, MS Office Proficiency

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