HLPE report on: “Reducing inequalities for food security and nutrition” - Call for Experts for the Project Team

Open from 21 March 2022 to 26 April 2022 / 3 May 2022

Apply for Project Team Leader | Apply for Project Team Experts

Context: During its 46th plenary session (14–18 October 2019), the Committee on World Food Security (CFS) adopted its four-year Programme of Work (MYPoW 2020-2023), which includes a request to the High Level Panel of Experts on Food Security and Nutrition (HLPE) to produce a report on “Reducing inequalities for food security and nutrition”, which will be discussed at the 51st plenary session of the CFS in October 2023.

The report, which will provide recommendations to the CFS workstream on inequalities, will:

• Analyse quantitative and qualitative evidence relating to how inequalities in access to assets (particularly land, other natural resources and finance), and incomes within the agri-food systems impede opportunities for many actors to overcome food insecurity and malnutrition;
• Analyse the drivers of inequalities and provide recommendations on entry points to address these;
• Identify areas requiring further research and data collection, also in view of the opportunities provided by the ongoing joint effort of the World Bank, FAO and IFAD within the 50 x 2030 Initiative.

The HLPE working processes ensure legitimacy among stakeholders and a high degree of scientific quality: they involve broad stakeholder consultations and the incorporation of different forms of knowledge and expertise, as well as a rigorous scientific peer-review process. For more detailed information on the HLPE Report elaboration process, please consult Section 2 of HLPE procedures.

The indicative timeline for the production of the report is as follows: i) publication of the draft scope of the report for e-consultation in April 2022; ii) appointment of the Project Team in May 2022; iii) publication of the V0 draft of the report for e-consultation in November 2022; iv) peer review of the V1 draft of the report in February 2023; v) launch in June 2023; vi) presentation at CFS 51st plenary session in October 2023.

The proposed scope of the report is available. As part of the report elaboration process, the HLPE is now calling for interested experts to apply to the ad-hoc Project Team for this report. The HLPE is issuing two separate calls, one for Project Team Leader, and the other for Project Team Experts. Selected experts will engage with a high-level multidisciplinary team and the HLPE Steering Committee, composed by 15 world renowned scientists in a variety of food security and nutrition related fields, drawn from academia, research institutions, the public and private sector, civil society and other constituencies. Furthermore, selected experts will be co-authors of the HLPE flagship report and will participate in the CFS public debate on inequalities and security and nutrition as part of the HLPE. Selected experts will participate in the work of the HLPE in their individual capacities, not as representatives of their respective governments, institutions or organizations.

The HLPE Steering Committee will ensure that the selected Project Team Leader and Members cover a diversity of required scientific competencies (see list below), as well as the best possible age, gender and geographical representation balance, while ensuring a compact Team. The competencies available within the Team will be complemented by those available within the Steering Committee. It is expected that two face-to-face or hybrid meetings of three days each will be organized during the course of the elaboration of the report, complemented by weekly or bi-weekly virtual meetings. The assignments are unremunerated, although all related expenses will be covered by the HLPE Secretariat.

Deadline for project team leader applications is 26 April 2022. Deadline for project team expert applications is 3 May 2022. All applications will be treated confidentially.

Call for Project Team Leader of the HLPE Report “Reducing inequalities for food security and nutrition”

The Project team leader of the HLPE report “Reducing inequalities for food security and nutrition” is a senior expert that will be responsible for the timely preparation of the report and for the submission to the HLPE Steering Committee (StC) of its successive drafts and deliverables, under the guidance of the StC and in close coordination with the HLPE Secretariat. Among other specific responsibilities are:

Organize the work of the Project Team, including distribution and monitoring of tasks devoted to team members and contributing to organizing and facilitating Project Team meetings;

Contribute to the selection of the team members, of reviewers and review editors; Manage the resources allocated to the project team, in close collaboration with the HLPE Coordinator;

Serve as the interface between the Project Team and the other components of the HLPE, and especially with the oversight group Convener and the Coordinator;

Be responsible of presenting to the StC the successive drafts of the reports and related deliverables (Issues paper including an annotated outline, V0, V1, V2 and the pre-V0, pre-V1, pre-V2 versions, see Section 2);

Ensure that the guidance of the StC is appropriately followed by the Project Team, while providing feedback to the OG Convener and the Coordinator on the progression of the work and escalating any difficulty;

Ensure adequate consideration of feedback received through e-consultations, peer reviews and StC on at different stages of the report preparation;

Present the HLPE report at the launch and at the CFS plenary sessions, and in other events as requested, and actively contribute to the outreach and dissemination of the report.

More information on the responsibilities of the Project team leader is included in paragraph 1.3.1 of the HLPE’s Internal Procedures and Methodological Guidelines.

Candidates will be assessed based on their capacity to attract and draw relevant information from expert networks, their publication record and international recognition, and their experience and capacity in managing multidisciplinary teams engaged in report writing.

Requirements

The Project Team Leader should be a world-renowned expert in one or more of the following technical areas and their linkage with food security and nutrition:

• Sociology and political economy
• Economics and statistical analysis of inequalities
• Gender analysis
• Legal aspects of inequalities and human rights
• Health and nutrition
• Rural and urban development
• Food systems.

Candidates should possess the following competencies:

• Cross-disciplinary expertise at both national and international levels in the areas relevant for the report;
• Experience providing policy advice and in writing for a policy-maker audience;
• Ability to manage a team of multidisciplinary experts, at distance and under pressure and to help reach consensus on sensitive or controversial issues;
• Ability to work under high pressure to meet tight deadlines and the high quality standards, both in terms of output and of process;
• Ability to devote the required time to the task, especially in conjunction with key milestones of the report’s publication;
• Proven ability to communicate well in English and to present at high level events.

The time commitment of the Project Team Leader position is estimated to be at maximum 20 percent equivalent full time, with peak periods at critical steps of the process to develop the project.

To apply to the HLPE Project Team Leader call, please click here. Deadline for applications is 26 April 2022.

Call for Project Team Experts of the HLPE Report “Reducing inequalities for food security and nutrition”

The Project team experts of the HLPE report “Reducing inequalities for food security and nutrition” are responsible to contribute, according to the agreed division of responsibilities and disciplinary background as guided by the Project Team Leader, to the timely preparation of the report and the submission to the StC of its successive drafts and deliverables, under the guidance of the HLPE Steering Committee and in close coordination with the HLPE Secretariat.

Among other specific responsibilities of project team experts are the following:

• Participate in virtual and face-to-face project team meetings;
• Provide timely written inputs and other contributions to the successive drafts of the report;
• Contribute to addressing comments received at different stages of the report preparation and undertake revisions of the report as directed by the Team Leader;
• Contribute to the presentation of the report in different events and fora and contribute to further outreach and dissemination.

Requirements:

Project team experts will need to be renowned scientists and experts in the linkage between inequalities, food systems and food security and nutrition. Specific technical areas (and their linkage to food security and nutrition) that may be represented in the Project Team are the following:

• Sociology and political economy;
• Economics and statistical analysis of inequalities;
• Gender analysis;
• Legal aspects of inequalities and human rights;
• Health and nutrition;
• Rural and urban development;
• Food systems and food supply chains.

Candidate should possess the following:

• Ability to work well in diverse and remote teams;
• Excellent communication skills orally and in writing in English, especially to policy audiences;
• Ability to work under pressure and respect tight deadlines;
• Previous experience in writing reports and documents to inform food security and nutrition policy.

Candidates must note that the time commitment to the project is expected to be around 10 percent equivalent full time, with peak periods at some critical steps of the process to develop the project. Young experts are encouraged to apply.

To apply to the HLPE Project Team Expert call, please click here. Deadline for applications is 3 May 2022.