Programme Policy Officer - Head of Programme

DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS

31 March 2026-23:59-GMT+01:00 West Africa Standard Time (Kinshasa)

WFP celebrates and embraces diversity. It is committed to the principle of equal employment opportunity for all its employees and encourages qualified candidates to apply irrespective of race, colour, national origin, ethnic or social background, genetic information, gender, gender identity and/or expression, sexual orientation, religion or belief, HIV status or disability.

ABOUT WFP
The World Food Programme is the world’s largest humanitarian organization saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to build a pathway to peace, stability and prosperity, for people recovering from conflict, disasters and the impact of climate change.

At WFP, people are at the heart of everything we do and the vision of the future WFP workforce is one of diverse, committed, skilled, and high performing teams, selected on merit, operating in a healthy and inclusive work environment, living WFP's values (Integrity, Collaboration, Commitment, Humanity, and Inclusion) and working with partners to save and change the lives of those WFP serves.
To learn more about WFP, visit our website: https://www.wfp.org and follow us on social media to keep up with our latest news: YouTube, LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, TikTok.

WHY JOIN WFP?

• WFP is a 2020 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate.
• WFP offers a highly inclusive, diverse, and multicultural working environment.
• WFP invests in the personal & professional development of its employees through a range of training, accreditation, coaching, mentorship, and other programs as well as through internal mobility opportunities.
• A career path in WFP provides an exciting opportunity to work across the various country, regional and global offices around the world, and with passionate colleagues who work tirelessly to ensure that effective humanitarian assistance reaches millions of people across the globe.
• We offer an attractive compensation package (please refer to the Terms and Conditions section of this vacancy announcement).

ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT:

This job is based in Kananga Field Office (DRC CO) and the job holder will report to the Head of Field Office. Job holders operate with a high degree of independence, manage more junior staff to ensure that programme and policy objectives are achieved in full. They are usually involved in a wide variety of programme and policy activities and analytical work, some of which may be of a considerable complexity. At this level job holders are expected to contribute to performance improvement.

The WFP Kananga Area Office, located in the Grand Kasaï, operates in an environment marked by chronic household vulnerability, persistent food insecurity, and high levels of malnutrition. Despite considerable agricultural potential, the region continues to face structural challenges: limited access to quality inputs, weak infrastructure, widespread poverty, and pressures linked to population displacement.

Since 2017, WFP has implemented interventions ranging from emergency humanitarian assistance to early recovery and resilience programmes. These efforts aim to strengthen community capacities to anticipate, absorb, and transform shocks, while promoting sustainable livelihoods and greater social cohesion.

In the current context, the Head of Programme in Kananga is responsible for overseeing the entire programme portfolio across the Grand Kasaï region. This includes ensuring coherence between emergency response and resilience-building, positioning WFP as the partner of choice for donors and communities, and reinforcing institutional relations with government authorities and other stakeholders.

This position reflects WFP’s transition from an emergency-driven approach to a more durable and integrated strategy, where resilience becomes the key lever to reduce humanitarian needs and support local development. The Head of Programme plays a pivotal role in consolidating achievements, fostering multisectoral collaboration, and ensuring that WFP’s interventions contribute to long-term stability and community empowerment in the Grand Kasaï.

JOB PURPOSE:

To head the programme activities that effectively meet food assistance needs.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES (not all-inclusive, within delegated authority):

• Contribute towards the development of a wide variety of projects, plans and processes, ensuring alignment with wider programme policies and guidance.
• Provide project management support to specific and defined programmes and projects of considerable size/complexity, ensuring a coordinated approach with wider programmes that complies with WFP standards and procedures.
• Work with the team to establish a robust resilience monitoring and evaluation system, incorporating specific indicators (adaptation, absorption, transformation), tracking beneficiary transition thresholds (from emergency to recovery and resilience), and producing regular analyses to inform decision making.
• Research and analyse a range of policy and operational issues to inform the development of policies, programmes and activities.
• Contribute to the preparation of accurate and timely reporting on programmes and activities that enable informed decision making and consistency of information presented to stakeholders.
• Liaise with internal and external counterparts to ensure effective collaboration, monitor ongoing projects and highlight potential risks to project delivery.
• Strengthen strategic partnerships by working with provincial ministries and the private sector to develop nutritious and sustainable value chains, ensuring alignment with the humanitarian–development–peace nexus and multisectoral convergence.
• Support the capacity building of WFP staff, partners and national government to prepare for and respond emergencies, ensure resilience building, including WFP protection principles, awareness sessions on zero tolerance for fraud, corruption, and abuse (PSEA), as well as on beneficiary rights and responsibilities.
• Ensure coherence and integration between WFP interventions (GFD, FFA, nutrition, school feeding, CBT) and innovative projects (seed systems, RRT, PROSA, IGNITE), to sustainably strengthen household and community capacities to absorb and transform shocks.
• Contribute to the development of multi‑year resilience action plans, taking into account agricultural seasonality, provincial priorities, and participatory community consultations (CBPP, PCD), to guarantee sustainability and a progressive exit strategy.
• Support the creation and strengthening of local management committees, to reinforce social cohesion and conflict management, integrating gender, youth, and conflict‑sensitivity dimensions, reducing inter-communal tensions and fostering community ownership to ensure sustainability of assets and services.
• Identify and mitigate protection risks (child labor, exploitation, gender‑based violence) within resilience activities and propose concrete measures to address them.
• Promote participation and inclusion, ensuring active involvement of women, youth, and marginalized groups in the design, implementation, and monitoring of resilience projects.
• Guide and supervise more junior staff, acting as a point of referral and supporting them with analysis and queries.
• Other as required.

DESIRED EXPERIENCES FOR ENTRY INTO THE ROLE:

• Has deepened technical knowledge through exposure to technical teams.
• Has taken leadership of implementing programmes.
• Has provided input into policy discussions and decisions.

STANDARD MINIMUM ACADEMIC QUALIFICATIONS:

Experience:

Three to five years of experience working in Programme in complex operations.

Education:

Advanced University degree in International Affairs, Economics, Nutrition/Health, Agriculture, Environmental Science, Social Sciences or other field relevant to international development assistance, or First University Degree with two additional years of related work experience and/or trainings/courses.

Language:

Fluency (level C) in French and English languages

WFP LEADERSHIP FRAMEWORK

WFP Leadership Framework guides to the common standards of behavior that guide HOW we work together to accomplish our mission.

Click here to access WFP Leadership Framework

REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION

WFP is committed to supporting individuals with disabilities by providing reasonable accommodations throughout the recruitment process. If you require a reasonable accommodation, please contact: global.inclusion@wfp.org

NO FEE DISCLAIMER

The United Nations does not charge any application, processing, training, interviewing, testing or other fee in connection with the application or recruitment process. Should you receive a solicitation for the payment of a fee, please disregard it. Furthermore, please note that emblems, logos, names and addresses are easily copied and reproduced. Therefore, you are advised to apply particular care when submitting personal information on the web.

REMINDERS BEFORE YOU SUBMIT YOUR APPLICATION

• All applications must be submitted exclusively through our online recruiting system. We do not consider CVs or applications sent by email, LinkedIn, or any other channel.
• We strongly recommend that your Workday profile is accurate and complete, and that all sections are filled in, including your employment history, academic qualifications, language skills, and UN grade (if applicable). Once your profile is completed, please apply, and submit your application.
• If you experience technical issues while submitting your application, you may contact us at global.hrerecruitment@wfp.org. Please note that this email is only for technical issues with an application - unsolicited applications or documents sent to this inbox will not receive a reply.
• At the application stage, the only required documents are your CV and Cover Letter. Additional documents (passport, certificates, recommendation letters, etc.) may be requested later in the process.
• Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and invited to proceed to the next stage of the recruitment process.

All employment decisions are made on the basis of organizational needs, job requirements, merit, and individual qualifications. WFP is committed to providing an inclusive work environment free of sexual exploitation and abuse, all forms of discrimination, any kind of harassment, sexual harassment, and abuse of authority. Therefore, all selected candidates will undergo rigorous reference and background checks.

No appointment under any kind of contract will be offered to members of the UN Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ), International Civil Service Commission (ICSC), FAO Finance Committee, WFP External Auditor, WFP Audit Committee, Joint Inspection Unit (JIU) and other similar bodies within the United Nations system with oversight responsibilities over WFP, both during their service and within three years of ceasing that service.