Call for consultant – Foodborne disease surveillance

Purpose of the Consultancy

To support the Multisectoral Actions in Food Systems (AFS) Unit, within the Department of Nutrition and Food Safety, with the development of a report on emerging topics on foodborne diseases surveillance as add-on to the “Strengthening surveillance of and response to foodborne diseases”¹ published in 2017.

Background

Foodborne diseases are a significant public health problem throughout the world and cause a considerable burden of diseases. WHO studies of the global burden of foodborne diseases in 2010 estimated that 31 foodborne hazards (including viruses, bacteria, parasites, and chemicals) caused 600 million foodborne illnesses globally and 420 000 deaths.

Foodborne disease surveillance and response is the basis for the formulation of interventions and strategies to understand and reduce food-related risks. However, the present paucity of reliable data on foodborne diseases in most countries is a major impediment for evidence-based interventions. A surveillance system employing sentinel sites and regional and international laboratory networks would be a major improvement in most regions. In addition, internationally agreed methods are needed for surveying foodborne diseases and linking them to food contamination on the basis of risk. This requires an interdisciplinary approach that includes all sectors dealing with foodborne diseases and food safety in both the health and agriculture sectors.

Strengthening surveillance of and response to foodborne diseases: a practical manual was published in 2017 by WHO to assist countries to strengthen national food safety systems. In order to meet its purpose, it needs to be updated to incorporate emerging topics for foodborne disease surveillance, such as the application of whole genome sequencing, the use of new technologies, or innovative sampling techniques.

In light of this, the Multisectoral Actions in Food Systems (AFS) Unit under the Department of Nutrition and Food Safety (NFS) is looking for a consultant to support WHO’s work to update this manual.

Work to be performed

The consultant will conduct following tasks:

• Propose a list of emerging topics in foodborne disease surveillance.
• Conduct literature reviews on the selected topics.
• Develop one or more add-on modules to the surveillance manual.
• Develop an interactive navigation summary module.
• Coordinate the publication process, including copy-editing, design, and layout.
• Prepare dissemination materials for this new module (infographic, presentations, or a brief).

Specific requirements on qualification, experience, skills, and languages

Educational qualifications:

Essential: Advanced university degree in epidemiology, microbiology, public health, life science, food safety, or other related areas.

Experience:

Essential:

• 5 years’ experience working in foodborne disease surveillance or related field
• Proven record in preparing technical documents and scientific publications.
• Experience working in a team environment.

Desirable:

• Experience working with international organization, including WHO.

Skills / knowledge:

Computer literacy: word processing, spreadsheet and presentation software. 

Language requirements:

Essential: Expert knowledge of English

Desirable: Additional WHO official languages would be an asset.

Dates and Duty Station

Dates:

Start date: 1 July 2021

End date: 31 December 2021

Duty station:

Off-site

How to apply

Interested parties should submit their CV and short cover letter in PDF format to foodsystems@who.int  with the subject line: consultant foodborne disease surveillance, by 10 June 2021.