Child Labour Specialist

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations; United States; Remote; USD 60,000 - 110,000; Part time

Job summary

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations seeks a Child Labour Specialist to support FAO’s work on child labour prevention and elimination in agriculture and rural development contexts. The role involves providing policy and technical assistance, developing knowledge products, and contributing to capacity development and advocacy across FAO’s programmes and partners.

The assignment may involve work across multiple locations and up to 11 months, with extension possible depending on

Qualifications

• Strong writing skills and ability to communicate complex concepts clearly.
• Experience in policy support and programme development for rural development or related fields.
• Familiarity with child labour issues in agriculture and rural contexts.
• Willingness to work across multiple locations and with diverse partners.
• Working knowledge of English, French or Spanish.

Responsibilities

• Contribute to policy and technical support for policies and programmes on child labour in agriculture.
• Support development of evidence and practices to inform policy and sector solutions.
• Create and disseminate knowledge products, capacity development materials and advocacy tools.
• Organize capacity development events and FAO participation in relevant forums.
• Support country and partner requests for programme formulation and private sector engagement.

Skills

Strong writing skills

Policy support

Multistakeholder collaboration

Interdisciplinary work

English/French/Spanish knowledge

Education

Advanced degree in human rights / rural development / social sciences

Bachelor's degree + 2 years relevant experience (Consultants)

Job description

Job Description - Child Labour Specialist (2602134)

Job Description

CALL FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST - VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT : 2602134

Child Labour Specialist

Job Posting

14/Oct/2026

Closure Date

04/Nov/2026, 10:59:00 PM

Organizational Unit : ESP - Rural Transformation and Gender Equality Division

Job Type

Non-staff opportunities

Type of Requisition : Consultant / PSA (Personal Services Agreement)

Primary Location

Various Locations-Various Locations

Duration : Up to 11 months (on a when actually employed basis)

Post Number : N/A

IMPORTANT NOTICE: Please note that Closure Date and Time displayed above are based on date and time settings of your personal device

• 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 person 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 Specialized 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’s commitment to environmental sustainability is integral to our strategic objectives and operations.

Organizational Setting

The Rural Transformation and Gender Equality Division (ESP) coordinates Programme Priority Areas (PPAs) on gender equality, rural women's empowerment and inclusive rural transformation. The Division works with Members and other partners to achieve resilient and inclusive rural livelihoods for people in conditions of vulnerability, reduce gender inequalities and advance women's economic empowerment and promote people-centred climate action and equitable access to natural resources. The Division also leads efforts to integrate the cross-cutting themes of gender, youth and inclusion throughout the work programmes of the Organization. ESP structures its work around three core objectives: 1) build sustainable and resilient livelihoods for vulnerable people in agrifood systems; 2) achieve gender equality and women's empowerment in agrifood systems; and 3) promote equitable, inclusive and sustainable climate action and natural resource management.

Related assignments are located in the Decent Rural Employment Team (DRET), which leads FAO’s corporate work programme on Decent Rural Employment (DRE). In this role, the team and its members interact with relevant Technical Divisions at Headquarters, and Decentralized Offices. All team members contribute to policy support and specialize in specific topics such as migration, youth employment promotion, child labour prevention in agriculture, green jobs, International Labour Standards, etc.

Call for expression of interest for building a roster

The purpose of this call is to populate a roster, for different sub-thematic areas and levels of expertise, made up of talented individuals with experience and background in child labour prevention and remediation, particularly in agriculture and rural development contexts, and related areas of expertise, including private sector engagement, human rights and environmental due diligence, labour rights and safeguard standards, responsible sourcing, supply chain sustainability, decent youth employment, social protection, climate change adaptation, natural resource management, and territorial development approaches. The assignment may involve full-time or part-time functions supporting FAO work across the Organization’s core functions of knowledge generation, capacity development, policy support, technical assistance, advocacy and partnerships. The assignment can be from 1 month up to 11 months. The possibility of extension is subject to satisfactory performance and the Organization’s operational needs and available resources.

Reporting Lines

The Child Labour Specialist will be under the overall supervision of the Director of ESP, and the direct supervision of the DRE Team Leader and one of the FAO Technical Child Labour Focal Points.

Technical Focus

Support to FAO’s work on child labour at global, regional and/or country level.

Tasks and responsibilities

• Contribute to the provision of policy and technical support to Technical Divisions, Decentralized Offices and Countries for the development and implementation of policies, strategies, programmes and projects related to child labour prevention and elimination, particularly in agriculture and rural development contexts;
• Support the development of evidence, good practices and lessons learned to improve the understanding of policies, approaches and institutional frameworks, as well as sectoral (agrifood systems) solutions related to the drivers, risks and mitigation of child labour, including through private sector engagement, due diligence processes and labour rights safeguards;
• Support the development, dissemination and uptake of knowledge products, technical documents, capacity development materials, advocacy tools and communication materials related to child labour, responsible business conduct, labour rights and sustainable agrifood systems;
• Contribute to the organization of capacity development and awareness-raising events and FAO’s participation in global and regional fora relevant to child labour prevention and elimination, responsible supply chains, labour rights and private sector sustainability initiatives;
• Contribute to initiatives like the Alliance 8.7 and the International Partnership for Cooperation on Child Labour in Agriculture;
• Contribute to country and resource partner requests for the formulation of programmes and projects focusing on, or relevant to, child labour prevention and remediation, private sector engagement, human rights and environmental due diligence, and labour rights safeguards standards;
• Provide support to any other tasks as required.

CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING

• For Consultants: Advanced university degree from an institution recognized by the International Association of Universities (IAU)/UNESCO in human rights, rural development, political or social sciences, climate change, natural resource management, agriculture or other related field. Consultants with a bachelor's degree need two additional years of relevant professional experience.
• For PSAs: University degree from an institution recognized by the International Association of Universities (IAU)/UNESCO in human rights, rural development, political or social sciences, climate change, natural resource management, agriculture or other related field.
• At least 1 year for Level C or at least 5 years for Level B of relevant experience in policy assistance and programme development in the field of rural development and/or poverty reduction and/or rural employment, with experience related to child labour.
• Working knowledge (level C) of English, French or Spanish

Technical/Functional Skills

• Familiarity with child labour from a rural development perspective.
• Extent and relevance of experience in specific child labour topics such as child labour prevention and remediation in agriculture, labour rights and safeguarding standards, responsible business conduct, human rights and environmental due diligence, private sector engagement in sustainable supply chains, youth employment as a means of addressing child labour risks, and data collection, monitoring and empirical analysis related to child labour.
• Strong writing skills.
• Extent and relevance of experience in interdisciplinary work and multistakeholder action.
• Work experience in more than one location or area of work a plus.

Selection Criteria

• Extent of knowledge and experience in policy support and technical assistance as well as programme/project development or knowledge generation of child labour.
• Level of knowledge and experience in concepts and methodologies related to risk-based approaches, labour rights in the context of safeguards and due diligence.
• Extent of experience in advocacy, policy support, capacity development and technical assistance related to child labour.
• Experience in working in multidisciplinary and multi-cultural teams.
• Limited knowledge of a second FAO language (English, French, Spanish, Arabic, Chinese, Russian) is an asset.

Please note that all candidates should adhere to FAO Values of Commitment to FAO, Respect for All and Integrity and Transparency

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

• FAO does not charge any fee at any stage of the recruitment process (application, interview, processing)
• Please note that FAO will only consider academic credentials or degrees obtained from an educational institution recognized in the IAU/UNESCO list
• Please note that FAO only considers higher educational qualifications obtained from an institution accredited/recognized in the World Higher Education Database (WHED), a list updated by the International Association of Universities (IAU) / United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The list can be accessed at http://www.whed.net/
• Appointment will be subject to certification that the candidate is medically fit for appointment, accreditation, any residency or visa requirements, and security clearances.