Pushpa Acharya

WFP

Date of birth

Profile

Senior nutrition and social protection expert with over three decades of experience in nutrition programming, food security, social protection, evaluation, monitoring and resilience. She has held senior positions with the World Food Programme (WFP), including Chief of Nutrition and HIV Unit for Southern Africa, Head of Nutrition, MCHN, HIV & Gender Unit in Sudan, and Senior Programme Advisor at WFP Headquarters. She has provided technical and strategic expertise to international organisations including IFAD, WFP and FAO, with extensive experience in programme design, evaluation, capacity strengthening, policy development and multisectoral nutrition programming across Asia, Africa and the Middle East.

Experience

  • Independent Consultant – Nutrition and Social Protection (2018–present) — Provides technical expertise in nutrition, social protection, evaluation, monitoring and resilience. Current assignments include technical and social inclusion expertise for IFAD projects and research coordination on nutrition interventions in Nepal.

  • Senior Policy/Programme Officer, Global Food Security Cluster/WFP/FAO, Italy (2016–2017) — Monitored food security cluster performance in emergencies, strengthened partner capacities, supported nutrition, preparedness and early recovery coordination, and managed staff and WFP resources.

  • Senior Programme Advisor, Nutrition Division, WFP HQ, Italy (2015–2016) — Developed WFP's strategy on nutrition-sensitive programming and led multisectoral work on impact pathways and implementation.

  • Chief, Nutrition and HIV Unit, WFP Regional Bureau for Southern Africa (2013–2015) — Led nutrition and HIV programming, monitoring and evaluation, capacity strengthening, learning and innovation, partnerships and regional support.

  • Head, Nutrition, MCHN, HIV & Gender Unit, WFP Sudan (2009–2013) — Led nutrition programmes reaching over one million people, strengthened institutional capacity, managed teams and resources, and supported integration of nutrition into social protection programmes.

  • Previouslyservedinseniorprogrammeandnutritionpositions with WFP Headquarters, WFP Middle East & Northern Africa Regional Bureau, WFP Iraq and Nepal's Department of Health, with responsibilities spanning programme design, emergencynutrition, evaluation, research, policy, capacity building and technical assistance.

Institutional Affilation

  • Independent Consultant – Nutrition and Social Protection

  • International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) – Technical Expert/Social Inclusion Expert

  • WorldFoodProgramme(WFP)–FormerSeniorProgramme Advisor / Senior Policy & Programme Officer

Core Areas of Expertise and Experience

  • Nutrition programming and policy

  • Food security and nutrition-sensitive programming

  • Social protection and resilience

  • Programme evaluation and monitoring & evaluation (M&E)

  • Nutrition assessment, research and data analysis

  • Programme design, implementation and quality assurance

  • Emergency nutrition and humanitarian response

  • Gender, HIV and maternal and child health and nutrition

  • Capacity strengthening and institutional development

  • Strategicplanning,policydevelopmentandmultisectoral coordination

Areas of Interest for contributions

  • Nutrition and food security policy and programming

  • Social protection, resilience and nutrition-sensitive development

  • Monitoring, evaluation and evidence-based programme design

  • Nutrition in humanitarian and emergency settings

Academic Qualification

  • PhD, Human Nutrition, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, USA, 2002

  • MSc, Human Nutrition, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, USA, 1991

  • MSc,OrganicChemistry,TribhuvanUniversity,Kathmandu, Nepal, 1984

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