SWALIM LIAISON SPECIALIST (SC 9)

Job Description

Organizational Setting The key mission of the FAO Representation in Somalia, which is led by FAO Representative (FAOR), is to assist and support the national government to develop policies, strategies and programme aimed at accelerating the Implementation and achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the area of FAO’s global mandate and Strategic Objectives. More specifically, FAO’s response aims to address national needs and priorities in achieving food security, reducing hunger and malnutrition, developing agricultural, fishery and forestry sectors, and ensuring the sustainable use of environmental and natural resources and respond to recurrent emergencies. The current portfolio of activities of the FAO Representation in Somalia includes a wide scope of technical support interventions ranging from policy support through livestock and crop production, to natural resource management, Nutrition, value chain, food security analysis and water and land information management. FAO is also implementing several emergency, resilience-building, and development interventions, with the support of its five field offices and close to four hundred staff in partnership with the Federal and State line ministries. Reporting Lines Under the overall guidance of the FAO Representative, the direct supervision of the SWALIM Technical Advisor and in coordination with ILWRM Project Coordinator. Technical Focus The SWALIM Liaison Officer will be responsible for following-up all SWALIM activities in Somaliland. Tasks and responsibilities

§ Under the overall premise of SWALIM transition to the Government, facilitate the triangular interface between FAO/SWALIM, relevant ministries and the recently established Information Management Centre (IMC) for water and land resources (WAL) of Somaliland

§ Liaise with the government institutions to facilitate the smooth transition including coordinating the pertinent SWALIM interventions in general, and ILWRM-II interventions under CadRe project in particular.

§ Closely follow the implementation of the annual workplan of Information Management Centre (IMC), monitor the progress, provide technical input towards consistent improvement of the IMC performance and report back to the supervisor.

§ Provide technical and coordination support to the implementation of IMC Sustainability Plan and contribute to partnership forging aimed at functional excellence and financial soundness, including the access to financing from government annual budgets.

§ Assist IMC in broadening the partners including the private sector.

§ Support the FAO and IMC teams in monitoring the implementation and continuous fine-tuning of the IMC Sustainability Plan (SP).

§ Facilitate the IMC institutionalization as independent Somaliland Government entity through the approval of the IMC Presidential (or Ministerial) Act.

§ Provide technical input and contribute to the implementation of IMC activities related to land and water resources information, WAL resources assessment, capacity development and gender mainstreaming efforts.

§ Support the IMC & FAO teams in the progress monitoring and reporting of the work plan/s as agreed in letter of understanding (LOU/s) between FAO and the Government of Somaliland.

§ Contribute to convening the Inter-Ministerial Coordination Committee (IMCC) meetings, providing both organizational and technical input as required by the effective functioning of the IMCC.

§ Ensure/facilitate proactive engagement of IMC by bridging with SWALIM team and FAO Somaliland office in accessing datasets and information produced by SWALIM and ensuring dissemination to the relevant Somaliland institutions.

§ Jointly with SWALIM team, support the cross-IMCs knowledge sharing process by documenting & disseminating lessons learnt and best practices on continual basis.

§ Bridge FAO and other partners (UN agencies, international organizations, etc.) with IMC and SWALIM team for data accessing, data processing and information products to be used as evidence-base in natural resources projects and programming.

§ Provides field level technical support to the project and partners, identify gaps which need for further support, and advise SWALIM Technical Advisor and ILWRM-II Project Coordinator accordingly.

§ Participate/organise thematic meetings with line ministries and partners and improve stakeholder coordination.

§ Cultivate friendly interactions with SWALIM line ministries, Information Management Centre’s Director, ministries’ seconded staff and other partners/clients accessing SWALIM information products and services. Actively promote and create awareness to partners, including all relevant Somaliland Ministries, and ensure that they can access SWALIM information products in an easy and efficient way.

§ Support IMC to capitalize on available opportunities for SWALIM to more actively engage and collaborate with Somaliland institutions and partners.

§ Ensure that all meetings with ministries and partners are well documented and provide written minutes of the meetings to the SWALIM Technical Advisor and ILWRM Project Coordinator.

§ Participate in the ToT programme and use the acquired technical skills to develop capacity building activities (training courses, on-the-job training, feedback sessions etc.) for Somali Ministries and other stakeholders.

§ Facilitate field missions and field work for SWALIM staff based in other offices as well as international consultants.

§ Respond to inquiries, information and data requests made internally and externally to the FAO Hargeisa office.

§ Assist SWALIM team in preparation of progress reports, technical reports, and financial reports.

§ Capitalize on available opportunities for SWALIM to more actively engage and collaborate with the Somaliland line ministries.

§ Ensure that SWALIM trainings, workshops and meetings are well planned, organized and coordinated and ensure that these are well documented and follow up activities are taken in good time.

§ Preparation of logistical requirements as it arises in advance.

§ Preparations of a monthly progress reports on the activities undertaken, defining action points, and providing recommendations.

§ Reporting any project challenges or constraints in a timely manner.

§ Take responsibility for the project’s equipment, materials, tools, and other items around operation.

§ Reporting of any security-related indicators/incidents that occur or are likely to occur around deployment.

§ Conduct capacity needs assessment as required.

§ Any other related duty as may be assigned by SWALIM Technical Advisor.

Skills and Qualifications
Minimum Requirements • Bachelor’s degree in any of the following fields: Natural resources management, environmental studies, development studies, social sciences, information management, or other relevant discipline from a reputable Institution.• At least 3 years of relevant experience in managing government and stakeholder relations. • Working knowledge (level C) of the FAO official language used for communication within the country (English) and working knowledge of the local language(s) is required.• Nationality of Somalia FAO Core Competencies • Results Focus• Teamwork• Communication• Building Effective Relationships• Knowledge Sharing and Continuous Improvement Selection Criteria • Experience working with local government authorities in project implementation; research in the natural resources mapping; developing and maintaining project records and documentation; and stakeholder engagement preferably in Somalia.