Programme Associate (EPR)

The Programme Associate (EPR) supports emergency preparedness and response activities and acts as a cooperating partner management focal point for field level agreements and operational partnerships in WFP Liberia. The role involves coordination with multiple internal and external stakeholders to ensure effective programme delivery and emergency readiness.

Responsibilities

• Support the development, update and implementation of emergency preparedness plans, contingency planning tools, response protocols and related operational documents, ensuring alignment with WFP policies and humanitarian standards.
• Provide project management support for preparedness and emergency response activities, including simulation exercises, learning activities, operational planning and follow-up of preparedness action plans.
• Maintain regular communication with M&E unit, Field Office, programme teams and partners to collect updates on humanitarian needs, operational challenges, response gaps and support requirements.
• Support information management for preparedness and response activities, including early warning monitoring, risk tracking, emergency preparedness checklists, response dashboards, action trackers and lessons learned documentation.
• Compile, analyze and present emergency-related data to support decision-making, management updates, operational planning and communication with stakeholders.
• Support the preparation of emergency-related documents, including Concepts of Operations, situation updates, response plans, briefing notes, funding inputs, donor updates and internal reports.
• Coordinate with internal units and external partners, including NDMA and other government entities, NGOs and UN agencies, to support coherent preparedness and response planning and identify risks to operational delivery.
• Support sudden-onset emergency follow-up by escalating critical information, preparing situation updates, tracking priority actions and supporting mobilization of operational support requested by management or Field Offices.
• Contribute to capacity strengthening for WFP staff, cooperating partners and government counterparts on emergency preparedness, response coordination, contingency planning, information management and operational readiness.
• Support field missions related to preparedness, emergency response implementation, partner readiness, operational troubleshooting and follow-up of corrective actions.
• Follow standard emergency preparedness practices to ensure WFP can quickly respond and deploy needed resources and partners to affected areas at the onset of a crisis.
• Perform other EPR and programme duties as required.
• Support the overall coordination and follow-up of cooperating partner management processes for the Country Office, including FLAs, MoUs, LoUs and other programme partnership arrangements.
• Review draft partnership documentation, budgets and supporting materials before signature to identify completeness, consistency and compliance issues, and flag required corrections to activity managers and relevant units.
• Maintain up-to-date partner information management tools, including partner databases, agreement trackers, partner profiles, agreement archives and related documentation.
• Track agreement start and end dates and liaise with activity managers, Field Office and relevant units to support timely amendments, extensions, closures or other actions required before agreement expiry.
• Maintain and regularly share an agreement tracking sheet with management, Field Office and relevant Country Office stakeholders to support visibility on agreement status and required actions.
• Coordinate with Finance and relevant activity managers to support timely creation and follow-up of financial commitments, budget revisions and other system actions related to programme agreements.
• Support partner mapping exercises to strengthen operational and strategic engagement with partners and inform planning, coordination and emergency readiness.
• Support annual or periodic calls for expressions of interest, partner identification, UNPP registration and verification follow-up, due diligence planning and partner selection documentation, as applicable.
• Provide secretariat support to the Cooperating Partner Committee (CPC), including preparation of documentation, meeting agendas, minutes, decision tracking and follow-up on recommendations.
• Serve as focal point for UNPP and support Partner Connect roll-out or partner management tools, including partner guidance and training materials in coordination with relevant units.
• Support partner performance reviews, spot checks, risk follow-up and improvement plans in liaison with Field Office, activity managers, Finance, Risk Management and other units.
• Maintain regular communication with cooperating partners on agreement requirements, reporting obligations, due diligence, documentation and follow-up actions.
• Organize or support partner orientation and capacity strengthening sessions on agreement clauses, budgets, invoicing, reporting, compliance and operational partnership requirements.

Requirements

• Completion of secondary school education.
• A post-secondary certificate in emergency management, international development, public administration, social sciences, economics, project management, logistics, food security or another related functional area is desirable.
• At least six years of progressively responsible experience in programme implementation, emergency preparedness and response, food assistance, partner management, project management, field operations, administration or related areas.
• Experience supporting implementation of programmes with technical teams, Field Offices, government counterparts, NGOs, cooperating partners or UN agencies.
• Experience preparing or reviewing partnership agreements, budgets, reports, partner documentation, compliance follow-up or operational trackers is desirable.
• Experience supporting emergency preparedness, response planning, contingency planning, operational readiness, early warning, needs analysis or response coordination is desirable.
• Experience maintaining databases, trackers and archives and preparing analytical reports, management briefs or dashboards.
• Experience supporting partner capacity strengthening, partner meetings, spot checks, performance reviews or improvement plans is an asset.
• Experience using Excel and basic database tools is required.
• Familiarity with WFP systems such as UNPP, Partner Connect, COMET, WINGS, SCOPE or related tools is an asset.
• Fluency in oral and written English.
• Knowledge of local Liberian languages would be an asset.
• Good communication, coordination and facilitation skills.
• Good analytical skills and ability to interpret operational, financial and programme data.
• Good computer skills, including use of spreadsheets, trackers, databases and reporting tools.
• Ability to work under pressure and manage multiple deadlines in a challenging operating environment.
• Ability to preserve confidentiality and handle sensitive partner and programme documentation appropriately.
• Initiative, attention to detail and ability to proactively identify bottlenecks and recommend practical solutions.
• Ability to build effective working relationships across functions and with external partners.

Skills

• Programme Implementation
• Emergency Preparedness
• Response Planning
• Food Assistance
• Partner Management
• Project Management
• Field Operations Experience
• Administration
• Partnership Agreements
• Budget Preparation
• Report Writing
• Compliance Follow-up
• Operational Tracking Tools
• Contingency Planning
• Early Warning Systems
• Needs Analysis
• Response Coordination
• Database Management
• Analytical Reporting
• Management Briefings
• Dashboard Preparation
• Partner Capacity Building
• Performance Review
• Excel
• Basic Database Tools
• WFP Systems Knowledge
• UNPP
• Partner Connect
• COMET
• WINGS
• SCOPE
• Communications Skills
• Coordination Skills
• Facilitation Skills
• Data Interpretation
• Spreadsheet Applications
• Reporting Tools
• Confidentiality Management

Languages

English