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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 extreme weather shocks.

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• 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).

Title: Senior Developer of Cloud and Web-based Applications
Org. Unit: Research and Development Department (R&D), ARC
Duty Station: Remote
Contract Type: When Actually Employed (WAE) Consultancy

Duration: 30 billable days over a period of 3 months with the possibility for extension
Reporting to: Biniam Taddese, Risk Analyst

Background and assignment

In 2012, the African Risk Capacity (ARC) was established by treaty as a Specialised Agency of the African Union (AU) to help Member States improve their capacities to better plan, prepare and respond to extreme weather events and natural disasters, therefore protecting the food security of their vulnerable populations. By linking early warning systems with contingency planning and supported by modern financial mechanisms, ARC enables governments to provide targeted responses to disasters in a more timely, cost-effective, objective and transparent manner, thereby reducing response costs and loss of livelihoods.

To date, the ARC Establishment Agreement has been signed by 36 countries across the continent, an indication of the comprehensive endorsement of the work being undertaken by ARC as part of Africa’s new climate and disaster management infrastructure. In 2014, the member governments established ARC Insurance Company Limited (ARC Ltd), the Agency’s financial affiliate, which is licensed as a mutual insurer, to manage the risk taken on through underwriting a pool of weather and other disaster risks.

Together ARC Agency, an international organisation, and ARC Ltd, the dedicated sovereign risk insurance facility, comprise the ARC Group.

ARC uses the satellite weather surveillance software Africa RiskView to estimate the impact of drought on vulnerable populations – and the response costs required to assist them – before a season begins, and as it progresses, so that index-based insurance payouts, based on Africa RiskView, are triggered at or before harvest time if the rains are poor.

In 2020, ARC expanded its portfolio by adding an insurance product tailored for drought risk in pastoral areas and launching the first tropical cyclone (TC) insurance product in Africa. ARC developed a model capable of accurately estimating the risk and economic losses due to tropical cyclone events adapted to the SWIO countries such as Mozambique, Madagascar, Comoros, Mauritius, Seychelles, and Tanzania. ARC's tropical cyclone model covers hazards of winds, storm surges and waves. The first of its kind in Africa, the insurance policy will provide rapid financing and early response to countries affected by tropical cyclones. In addition, ARC has been developing a flood risk and loss estimate model to underpin a sovereign flood insurance product, with a first phase, including 6 countries, completed in 2023. The flood product demand among ARC member states has especially increased in the aftermath of the 2020 flood events in Western and Southern Africa. For countries exposed to tropical cyclones, the flood model will enrich the TC product by providing the loss estimate due to excessive rainfall peril which is not covered in the current ARC TC model. Together the tropical cyclone and flood products will prove vital tools in safeguarding lives and livelihoods and making African countries more resilient to extreme climate events.

Responsibilities

The consultant assignment is to develop a modern and user-friendly interface to access and analyse the outputs of the ARC flood model (Flood Explorer – FLE) and make improvements to the Tropical Cyclone Explorer application (TCE) developed in the previous phases. The two applications must be developed in a coordinated manner, using the same architecture and technologies to minimise the maintenance costs.

In particular, this new assignment aims at developing further the FLE, both backend and frontend, to get a smooth and swift management of incoming data, impact (economic losses and population affected) calculation, and insurance policy data. The application should be able to interact smoothly with the Flood Foresight module running on ARC’s Amazon space.

The consultant will work under the supervision of the Senior Project Manager of the TC/Flood projects, and work closely with other ARC IT staff to develop further the FLE web-based application that should specifically allow users to perform the following tasks:

1.Access to Flood Foresight outputs (forecasts on flood extent, flood impacts, etc.);

2.Process the outputs into easy-to-communicate information;

3.Data pre-processing to accommodate alternative input data (for instance exposure dataset provided by Member States);

4.Visualise input datasets and outputs of the flood model;

5.Calculate economic losses associated with flood event and the estimated population affected;

6.Apply risk transfer parameters to estimate insurance coverage and possible pay-outs;

7.Manage users access rights;

8.Import additional datasets.

With regards to point 6 above, ARC has a user management platform which is used to grant access to Africa RiskView software. The web-application will be expected to interact with this user management platform to ensure differentiated access for authorised users.

In addition to the specific FLE development and TCE improvement tasks mentioned above, the consultant will support the troubleshooting of FLE and TCE applications, particularly during rainy and cyclone seasons when these applications are used in real-time for events monitoring.

The software application can be developed in any suitable web development framework (e.g. Django/Python, Java Server Faces, etc), preferably a language that is modern, object-oriented and has a large developer community.

The consultant will liaise closely with the Senior Project Manager of the TC/Flood projects in terms of the input datasets and the methodologies to be used for running the flood model, the users access rights, and the formatting of the outputs of the model. The outputs will include tables, graphs, and maps. Input datasets will include GIS data in most used formats (like NetCDF, ESRI shapefiles, GeoTiFF, etc.) showing potentially flooded areas and expected water depth at different return periods (expected severity), and exposure data which indicates what could be affected by the flood event.

The consultant must deliver the following:

1.An operational FLE web-based software application for the flood model;

2.A FLE backend module allowing flexibility in input datasets and output post-processing;

3.Report outlining how the FLE software application was developed (including the software architecture and functional design);

4.An improved TCE software application for the TC model;

5.Well documented source code for the FLE and TCE software packages developed;

6.Training of ARC technical staff members on the functionality of the FLE software developed.

Qualifications and experience required

Education:

Advanced University degree in Computer Science or similar relevant discipline with a strong knowledge in developing web-based applications with user-friendly interactive interfaces.

Experience:

Minimum of 8 years of demonstrated experience in programming, cloud-computing and developing web-based user interfaces, with backends in Python, C# or JSP/Java. The prospective consultant must have relevant experience in developing similar applications, especially GIS-based or big data applications. Professional software development certifications are an added advantage. Experience with modelling natural hazards will be a strong asset.

Knowledge & Skills:

•Strong knowledge of object-oriented programming and software design;

•Familiarity with geographical information systems datasets and basic web-based mapping;

•Ability to understand the model algorithm;

•Strong mathematical skills

Languages:

Fluency (level C) in English. Limited knowledge (intermediate/level B) of French will bean advantage.

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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.

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Working with WFP

Our greatest strength is the people working around the world providing access to nutritious food and promoting lasting solutions to those we serve. WFP provides its staff with meaningful and impactful careers, continuous learning and training, and a multicultural and stimulating work environment.

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, physical or mental disability.

About WFP

The United Nations World Food Programme is the 2020 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate. We are 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.

Read more about WFP’s history here, and WFP’s mission here

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