Research, Assessment and Monitoring Officer (Head of RAM) - CST II - Islamabad The World Food Programme (WFP) is seeking a Research, Assessment and Monitoring Officer (Head of RAM) to provide strategic and technical leadership in Islamabad, Pakistan. This role focuses on enhancing evidence generation and analysis to inform WFP's emergency response and program adaptation. The officer will collaborate with various teams and build partnerships with national institutions to strengthen food security and social protection systems. The position requires a strong background in food security analysis and monitoring, along with leadership experience in multidisciplinary teams.
Candidate Requirements:- Advanced degree in relevant fields
- At least 8 years of experience in food security analysis
- Experience leading analytical teams
- Knowledge of statistical analysis tools
Excellent communication skills in EnglishDEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS14 October 2026-23:59-GMT+05:00 Pakistan Standard Time (Karachi)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, color, 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 extreme weather shocks.
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).
ABOUT THE JOB
Job Title: Research, Assessment and Monitoring Officer (Head of RAM)
Type of Contract: Consultancy Level II Unit: Programme - RAM Duty station: Islamabad, Pakistan Duration: 11 MonthsDate of Publication: 30 September 2026
End Date:
14 October 2026 This Vacancy Announcement is Open to Non-Pakistani Nationals and UN Personnel Only Qualified women are strongly encouraged to apply.
Note:
This vacancy announcement will also be used to build a roster of prequalified applicants for future similar opportunities. TERMS & CONDITIONSWFP offers a competitive benefits package including salary, medical insurance, among other benefits. BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE OF THE ASSIGNMENT:Research, Assessment and Monitoring (RAM) is central to WFP Pakistan's ability to design, implement and adapt emergency response, nutrition, resilience and social protection programmes. Pakistan faces a complex operating environment characterized by climate-related shocks, economic volatility, recurrent emergencies, malnutrition, food insecurity and an evolving social protection landscape. To support implementation of the Country Strategic Plan and strengthen WFP's positioning as a trusted provider of evidence, analysis and operational decision support, WFP Pakistan seeks an International Head of RAM. The position will provide strategic and technical leadership to strengthen the quality and utilization of evidence across WFP Pakistan. It will strengthen collaboration between RAM and programme teams, establish a coherent evidence-generation agenda and ensure RAM products respond directly to operational and strategic decision-making needs. It will also build strategic national partnerships with Government, academia and other national institutions. A key dimension of the role is also coaching and supporting the national VAM and M&E staff, and developing sustainable data systems and partnerships.
ACCOUNTABILITIES/RESPONSIBILITIES: Evidence Generation and Strategic Analysis
- Lead development of a Country Office Evidence Generation Strategy that links priorities across programme and supply chain, plus broader national priorities.
- Identify key evidence gaps across food security, nutrition, resilience, social protection, emergency preparedness and supply chain.
- Support programme functions to generate actionable evidence to inform programme adaptation and strategic direction.
- Promote the integration of quantitative, qualitative, monitoring, programme and secondary data sources into coherent analysis products.
- Support analytical contributions to the Common Country Analysis, UNSDCF processes and major strategic reviews.
- Promote stronger use of research and evidence in policy engagement and programme design. Decision Support and Response Analysis
- Lead and quality assure food security, nutrition, climate and economic analysis to inform programme design, targeting, operational prioritization and strategic decision-making.
- Ensure evidence-based targeting approaches for geographic areas, households and vulnerable populations, including alignment with national social protection systems and shock-responsive mechanisms.
- Integrate food security, nutrition, market, climate, and socio-economic data to support early warning, anticipatory action, emergency preparedness, disaster risk financing and shock-responsive social protection.
- Provide timely analysis and recommendations to inform emergency response, resilience programming and policy engagement, ensuring RAM products respond directly to operational and management decision-making needs. Monitoring and Learning
- Strengthen linkages between monitoring systems and operational decision making.
- Promote greater use of monitoring findings for programme adaptation and learning.
- Support integration of monitoring, process monitoring, post-distribution monitoring and outcome monitoring into a coherent analytical framework.
- Strengthen learning loops between field operations, Area Offices and Country Office decision-makers.
- Ensure monitoring efforts go beyond corporate reporting requirements and contribute to strategic analysis and programme improvement. Data Systems, Analytics and Innovation
- Strengthen data management, analytics and visualization capabilities across RAM.
- Promote integration of VAM, M&E and programme datasets.
- Improve analytical dashboards and decision-support products.
- Lead adoption and responsible use of emerging and innovative technology, including geospatial analysis, remote sensing, predictive analytics and digital tools, to strengthen evidence generation.
- Promote greater accessibility and utilization of data across the Country Office. Partnerships, Capacity Strengthening and Team Leadership
- Provide strategic leadership and day-to-day management of the RAM unit, fostering a collaborative, proactive and high-performing team.
- Mentor and support the national staff within VAM and M&E, strengthening national capacity and ensuring a sustainable transition of technical and leadership responsibilities.
- Build and maintain strong partnerships with government institutions, UN agencies, donors, academic institutions, research organizations and technical working groups to strengthen food security, nutrition, market and social protection evidence systems.
- Represent WFP in relevant technical and policy forums, enhancing WFP's positioning as a trusted and credible partner for research, analysis, monitoring and evidence-based decision making.
QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE REQUIRED:Education: Advanced University degree in Statistics, Economics, Demography, Public Policy, Development Studies, International Affairs, or relevant fields of study; or First University degree with 2 additional years of relevant work experience and/or training/courses.
Experience:- At least 8 years or more years of progressively responsible experience in food security analysis, vulnerability analysis, economic analysis, monitoring and evaluation, social protection or related fields.
- Demonstrated experience leading multidisciplinary analytical teams.
- Experience linking evidence generation to operational and policy decision-making.
- Experience supporting social protection, shock-responsive systems, disaster risk management or anticipatory action programmes.
- Experience working with governments, development partners and UN agencies.
- Previous experience in South Asia is highly desirable
- Desired Skill: Knowledge of statistical analysis tools such as SPSS, STATA, Tableau, and ArcGIS, etc.
Languages: Excellent written and oral communications skills in English.
HOW TO APPLY:
To be considered, interested candidates are invited to apply via (https://www.wfp.org/careers/job-openings). Only short-listed candidates will be contacted. W
