Director (Risk Assessment) | NAFSA

This position is being recruited by Pakistan Single Window (PSW) on behalf of the National Agri-Trade and Food Safety Authority (NAFSA). NAFSA is being established as a strategic national initiative to strengthen Pakistan’s agri-trade ecosystem through enhanced regulatory oversight, facilitation, and modernization of food safety and trade processes. The selected candidate will be part of NAFSA’s foundational team, contributing to the development of systems, processes, and institutional capabilities.

Reporting to the Deputy Director General (Scientific Advisory & Policy Wing), the Director provides senior managerial and coordination support to the Wing to oversee all matters related to risk assessment domain.

Responsibilities:

• Lead the development and evaluation of science based risk assessments and mitigation strategies for foods safety, animal health, plant protection and pesticides.
• Provide support in the strategic direction on risk identification, analysis and control.
• Lead and manage the national program for scientific risk assessment related to plant health, including pest risk analysis (PRA), biosecurity threats, and phytosanitary import/export systems.
• Oversee coordination on risk assessment of foods safety, animal health, plant protection and pesticides related matters at international, national and provincial level.
• Support coordination with provincial nominated departments, academia and development partners on studies, sampling, surveillance design, and technical cooperation as assigned by the DDG SAPW.
• Developing crisis/emergency risk management plans for government and industry
• Provide science based inputs for development of regulations to manage risks related to food safety, plants and animal health.
• Horizon scanning and foresight analysis to identify emerging practices and technologies and evolving international trends related to risk assessment.
• Coordinate capacity-building initiatives for risk assessment in NAFSA including development of technical modules, guidance notes and induction materials.
• Provide Secretariat functions to the Scientific Committee/technical committees/working groups as assigned for risks related domains (including agenda/paper preparation, minutes, action tracking).
• Support the DDG SAPW in translating Wing priorities into annual work plans, project portfolios, timelines and KPIs; monitor delivery and prepare performance dashboards and management reports.
• Ensure performance of functions by sub-ordinates as per their respective job descriptions.
• Perform any other functions assigned by the DDG SAPW / DG to support NAFSA’s SPS and food safety mandate.
Perform any other responsibilities assigned by the reporting officer in support of NAFSA’s mandate.

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Requirements

Education:

• Minimum sixteen years of education (Master’s degree) (M.Phil/PhD preferred) in Food Safety/Food Science, Veterinary Sciences, Plant Health/Plant Protection, Agriculture Entomology, Plant Pathology, Weeds Science, Public Health, Epidemiology, Microbiology, Biotechnology, Biotechnology, Toxicology, Agriculture, or a related discipline from an HEC-recognized institution.
• Research publications in HEC recognized journals
• Demonstrated understanding of SPS systems and international standards (WTO SPS, Codex, WOAH, IPPC) and their application to national regulation and trade facilitation.

Experience:

• Minimum 12 years of relevant experience in scientific/regulatory policy, SPS systems, standards development, risk assessment, or related work, including at least 5 years in a managerial/coordination role.
• Experience coordinating multi-disciplinary technical work streams and producing high-quality technical documentation (e.g., risk assessments, standards, regulatory drafts) under defined governance processes.
• Strong analytical and drafting skills; ability to translate scientific and regulatory concepts into implementable guidance for operational teams.
• Experience working with public sector governance processes, stakeholder consultation and committee secretariat support is an advantage.
• High integrity and professionalism with ability to manage confidential information, conflict-of-interest safeguards and evidence-based decision support.
• Proven performance in developing and implementing risk assessment frameworks.
• Excellent knowledge of international phytosanitary standards (ISPMs), IPPC frameworks, and the SPS Agreement.