Statistician

Statistician

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The Statistics Division (ESS) develops and advocates for the implementation of methodologies and standards for data collection, validation, processing and analysis in the food and agriculture statistics domains. It plays a key role in the compilation, processing and dissemination of internationally comparable data, and provides essential capacity building to support member countries.

The Division disseminates publications, working papers and statistical yearbooks covering agriculture and food security statistics, including prices, investments, production, trade and agri‑environmental data.

The ESS Director, who also serves as FAO Chief Statistician, supports the Chief Statistician’s functions: strengthening governance of FAO’s data and statistical system, fostering consistency within the Strategic Framework, ensuring statistical excellence through standards and quality assurance, and positioning FAO in global data discussions.

Location

Rome, Italy (FAO headquarters).

Reporting Lines

The Statistician reports to the Senior Statistician and team leader of the Food Security and Nutrition Statistics team, under the overall guidance of the Director of ESS.

Technical Focus

The Statistician will provide technical guidance and direct contributions to developing and improving CoAHD methodologies, supporting data analysis and validation, and coordinating capacity development activities with national counterparts and international partners. The role will contribute directly to institutionalizing CoAHD monitoring within national statistical systems and to the global production and dissemination of related indicators.

Key Results

• Research and analysis of information, data and statistics; statistical methods, statistical and econometric modelling.
• Development and maintenance of specialized tools, methodologies, systems and/or databases and technical assistance services to support programme implementation and monitoring.

Key Functions

• Collect, review, process and analyse key social/economic/environmental indicators using traditional statistical methods or data science techniques.
• Develop improved technical, statistical and analytical tools, systems and databases.
• Conduct research, data collection, validation, analysis and reporting to support technical standards, instruments and innovative methodologies.
• Produce technical reports and provide input to documents, publications and web pages.
• Respond to requests and provide technical or policy advice to regional, subregional and country offices.
• Participate in multidisciplinary teams, collaborate with other divisions and promote best practices.
• Provide capacity development services, including training workshops and seminars.
• Participate in committees and working groups, providing expertise on technical networks and policy bodies.
• Support meetings, consultations, conferences, and provide required materials and assistance to partners.
• Participate in resource mobilization activities.
• Promote international cooperation, best practices, knowledge sharing and technical expertise at international meetings.

Specific Functions

• Provide methodological guidance for compiling, validating and analysing CoAHD indicators at global and national levels.
• Coordinate implementation of CoAHD monitoring systems at national level; engage with counterparts and support country workplans and Letters of Agreement.
• Support partner countries with analytical strategies, training, technical assistance, and quality assurance of data collection and processing.
• Support partner countries in disseminating results.
• Develop and maintain analytical tools, manuals and reproducible scripts for processing food price, expenditure and income data.
• Contribute to inter‑agency collaboration and methodological harmonization with partners such as the World Bank and Tufts University.
• Maintain working relationships with senior officers from national governments, donors and project partners.
• Prepare briefs, papers and communication materials for ESS websites and deliver presentations at international fora.

Minimum Requirements

• Advanced university degree (Master’s or equivalent) in statistics, mathematics, economics, agricultural economics, data science or related field.
• Five years of relevant experience in compiling and analysing food security, consumer price data or socio‑economic statistics in national or international organisations.
• Working proficiency (Level C) in English and intermediate proficiency (Level B) in another FAO official language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish).

Competencies

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

Technical/Functional Skills

• Experience in multiple locations or fields, especially in field positions.
• Experience with capacity development programmes and ability to conduct training and tailored technical assistance.
• Strong command of statistical methods: descriptive statistics, probability distributions, sampling, inference, regression, ANOVA, chi‑square and nonlinear models.
• Knowledge of data sources for food security and socio‑economic statistics.
• Experience compiling, validating and analysing food security and socio‑economic data.
• Ability to work under minimal supervision, present statistics clearly and produce high‑quality papers in English.
• Proficiency in R and Stata for data processing and analysis.
• Experience designing and delivering capacity development programmes at country level.
• Analytical problem‑solving skills.

Job Posting

Posted: 23 December 2025

Closure Date: 15 January 2026, 12:59 AM

Organisational Unit

ESS

Job Type

Staff position – Professional Project, Grade Level P‑3, Fixed‑term: one year with possibility of extension

SENIORITY LEVEL

Mid‑Senior level

EMPLOYMENT TYPE

Full‑time

JOB FUNCTION

Research, Analyst, and Information Technology

INDUSTRIES

Non‑profit Organisations

EEO & Diversity Statements

• FAO is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality, background and culture.
• Qualified female applicants, qualified nationals of non‑and under‑represented Members and persons with disabilities are encouraged to apply.
• Everyone who works for FAO is required to adhere to the highest standards of integrity and professional conduct, and to uphold FAO's values.
• FAO, as a specialised Agency of the United Nations, has a zero‑tolerance policy for conduct that is incompatible with its status, objectives and mandate, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination.
• All selected candidates will undergo rigorous reference and background checks.
• All applications will be treated with the strictest confidentiality.
• FAO staff are subject to the authority of the Director‑General, who may assign them to any of the activities or offices of the Organisation.

Environmental Sustainability Commitment

FAO’s commitment to environmental sustainability is integral to its strategic objectives and operations. FAO contributes to the achievement of the 2030 Agenda through the FAO Strategic Framework by supporting the transformation to more efficient, inclusive, resilient and sustainable agri‑food systems, for better production, better nutrition, a better environment and a better life.