Organizational Setting

The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger. FAO’s goal is to achieve food security for all and ensure that people have regular access to enough high-quality food to lead active, healthy lives. With 195 members – 194 countries and the European Union, FAO works in over 130 countries worldwide and has started working in Viet Nam since 1978 with its Representation (Country Office) opened in Ha Noi.

The Technical Cooperation Programme (TCP) is part of FAO’s regular assistance to the Government of Viet Nam, allowing FAO to respond to the country’s most pressing needs for technical assistance. For the 2024-2025 biennium, FAO Viet Nam, with support from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD), is implementing the project “Drought impact assessment Central Highlands, Viet Nam” in collaboration with the Department of Water Resources (DWR). The aim of the project is to provide MARD/DWR with a tested working tool for agricultural drought impact assessment applicable at province level scale. The project will commission high resolution (20m) water consumption and soil moisture products from the WaPOR portal across a 1,500 km2 trial block in in drought affected districts of Dak Lak and Dak Nong Provinces for analysis by the team.

Reporting Lines

The incumbent will work under the overall supervision of the FAO Representative, the technical supervision of the Lead Technical Officer in FAO-RAP, and the day-to-day management of the Assistant FAO Representative (Programme).

Technical Focus

The overall technical focus of the Remote Sensing and GIS Expert role is to provide technical expertise on applying data from the WaPOR portal on water consumption and soil moisture to the two selected provinces in Viet Nam. Additionally, the incumbent will support the implementation of project activities by providing technical inputs to support capacity development in MARD/DWR.

Tasks and responsibilities

•    Under supervision of the Team Leader, assemble relevant remote sensing layers and associated time series to assist baseline assessments of the trial block area. The baseline assessment is expected to include:
o    Literature review of existing research documents and reports on water scarcity in the region.
o    GIS mapping of water resources and usage patterns.
o    Collection and analysis of relevant operational data over at least 5 consecutive water years for three representative irrigation schemes within the trial block.
o    Collection of landcover data for irrigated and rainfed agricultural land derived from existing statistical records and trained satellite observations.
o    Review of water and energy usage data across economic sectors (agriculture, domestic, industrial) within irrigated and rainfed land disaggregated by gender.
o    Assessment of changing crop water demand and irrigation scheduling adjustments.
o    Selection of drought risk indices to be derived from WaPOR level 3 variables, applicable at pixel level and for eventual quantification at the level of the trial block.
•    Participate in PyWaPOR (python coding for WaPOR) workshops and training/handover exercises conducted under and led by FAO Technical services personnel.
•    Evaluation and analysis of WaPOR level 3 data products as they become available.

CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING

Minimum Requirements    

•    Advanced university degree in GIS, Geography, Environmental Science or related field;
•    At least 10 years relevant experience with at least 5 years in spatial data handling and analysis, satellite data processing and management, GIS and remote sensing applications for water evaluation;
•    Working knowledge of English
•    National of Viet Nam or resident of the country with valid work permit.

FAO Core Competencies

•    Results Focus
•    Teamwork
•    Communication
•    Building Effective Relationships
•    Knowledge Sharing and Continuous Improvement

Technical/Functional Skills

•    Strong experience and knowledge in geospatial data, metadata management and processing, image analysis in a development context, experience in remote sensing and GIS for water management will be an asset;
•    Strong analytical thinking, interpersonal skills as well as technical research and report writing skills;
•    Relevant experience in working in multidisciplinary and multicultural teams, particularly in multilateral organizations;
•    Experience in networking with partners in Viet Nam at all levels (Ministries, donors, private sector, NGOs and local community-based organizations);
•    Relevant experience in coordinating and working with both international and local institutions;
•    Proven ability to deliver quality outputs working under tight deadlines;
•    Relevant experience in delivering training programmes will be an asset.

Level of Education: Bachelor Degree

Work Hours: 8

Experience in Months: No requirements