The Joint Project of Public Services Agency under the Ministry of Justice and UNDP Uzbekistan “Improved Public Services Delivery and Enhanced Governance in Rural Uzbekistan” financed by the EU (the Client) is implemented to improve the living standards of vulnerable people in rural areas, such as women, youth and children, the elderly and people with disabilities through increasing their access to public services and improving the quality of their delivery.

The project also aims to strengthen the citizen engagement by supporting various accountability arrangements that will enhance the participation of all parties in the decision-making process and access to information and increase the transparency of the local governance system in the country.

One of the main components of the project is to raise public awareness about the benefits of using public services (Activity 2.3 of the Project Document - Improving access to information about public services through various channels). Thereby, the approved work plan of the Project provides for the development of the Communication Strategy of the Public Services Agency for 2021-2025 to identify priority and key areas for interaction with general public.

The International Consultant on PR, Communications and Outreach will provide strategic guidance on implementation of Communication Strategy of the Public Services Agency and other related initiatives related to promoting public services, improvement of communication activities and capacity building activities of respective government officials in public services delivery in Uzbekistan in PR, Communications and Outreach fields and knowledge transfer.

Under the direct supervision of the Project Manager, and guidance of the Programme Coordinator the International Consultant will be responsible for the timely and satisfactory implementation of the following tasks and duties:

1. Strategic guidance during the development and implementation of Communication Strategy of the Public Services Agency.
2. Transfer of knowledge and advance international experience on Communications and Outreach.
3. Strategic guidance and technical advice during the implementation of Capacity Building of government officials for PR initiatives.

Activities/Tasks:

Activity 1. Strategic guidance during the development and implementation of Communication Strategy of the Public Services Agency:

• Providing strategic advice and consultations aimed at successful implementation of Communication Strategy of the Public Services Agency;
• Advise during the organization of awareness raising campaigns and events;
• Development set of recommendations on improvement of utilization of PR and Communication tools and media sources;
• Providing an independent assessment and expertise during the development of the PSA Communications and Outreach Strategy and Action Plan.
• Provide advice on innovative PR, Communications and Outreach tools applicable in Uzbekistan.
• Provide expertise support in reviewing draft and acceptance of Communication Strategy of the Public Services Agency.

Activity 2. Knowledge and experience transfer.

• Review and analyze the national and project experience in effective implementation of PR, Communications and Outreach strategies.
• Review and bring the most relevant international experience with at least 3 countries (at least 2 EU and 1 worldwide) to ensure the efficient implementation of PR, Communications and Outreach strategies for effective governance and public services delivery programs.
• Facilitate the national, regional, and international transfer of know-how and experiences in implementing Communications and Outreach mechanisms.
• Prepare a Concept note and facilitate organization of a study tour to some relevant EU and/or CIS countries, for PR specialists of state authorities providing public services to learn best practices in advocating and implementing Communications and Outreach Strategies.
• Support and coach relevant staff of the PSA in media skills, information management, public relations and strategic communication to ensure they are fully equipped for the implementation of the PSA’s PR and Communications Strategy and Action Plan.
• Develop 2 online training courses for: (1) for central PSA and local PSC PR Specialists and (2) PR specialists of Back-office organizations. The course will be presented on the e-learning system and will include the educational content (goal, syllabus, video and audio materials, presentations, case studies, practical exercises, etc.), the intermediate and final tests, and the certificate of completion.
• Advise the government in designing systems for expanding experiences, lessons learned and know-how on implementation of Communications and Outreach initiatives.
• Conduct workshop(s) to the relevant staff of the PSA and its regional branches to agree on the main principles and directions of the PR and Communications Strategy and Implementation Plan.
• Conduct a 2-days in person trainings (2 trainings in different topics) on Communications and Outreach for PSA and back-office organizations (ministries and agencies).

Activity 3. Strategic guidance and technical advice during implementation of PR, Communications and Outreach tools.

• Provide policy and programming advice to the Project team, as well as national counterparts (upon request) regarding effective capacity building of central and local government officials in Communications and Outreach areas for better implementation of functions and optimization of structure.
• Providing strategic advice and consultations in the formulation/tuning and implementation of the project Communications and Outreach Strategy.
• Support the IPSD project team in the development of publications, informational materials and analytical articles on legislation of public services delivery in the international mass media (journals, newspapers, Internet, etc.);
• Participate in the Project events and workshop meetings with national partners and key stakeholders (including international conferences, “round table discussions”, presentation of outputs and other).
• Perform other tasks and requests related to the PR, Communications and Outreach for the IPSD project team and national partners.

• Excellent analytical and interpersonal skills including oral and written communication;
• Strong research, data analysis and reporting skills;
• Understanding of widely accepted formative research, pretesting, and monitoring and evaluation methodologies for effective communication and public relations/advocacy campaigns;
• Demonstrated programme management skills including results-based orientation, preparation of work plans, monitoring and evaluation and leading cross-cultural teams;
• Previous experience working in transition environments would be an advantage;
• Demonstrated strong technical, programming and management skill.

I. Academic Qualifications:

• Master's Degree in communication, social science, behavioural change communication, strategic communication, journalism, public relations, marketing or related fields.

II. Years of experience:

• At least 5 years of experience in implementing and managing public relations, communication or advocacy projects or campaigns in developing countries.
• Experience of working at the government and international organizations.
• Experience of development manual, guide or instructions (at least 3).
• Experience with training (at least 3) and development in challenging and transitional environments.

III. Language requirements:

Fluency in written and spoken English. Knowledge of Russian would be an advantage

Application Process:

Interested candidates need to apply online at www.jobs.undp.org and upload requested documents in Part 4 of Procurement Notice no later than end of February 1, 2022 (New York time). Please combine all your documents into one (1) single PDF document as the system only allows to upload maximum one document. Your on-line applications submission will be acknowledged to your email address provided in application. If you do not receive an e-mail acknowledgement within 24 hours of submission, your application may not have been received. In such cases, please resubmit the application, if necessary.

Link to application at the UNDP Job Site – https://jobs.undp.org/cj_view_job.cfm?cur_job_id=104156

(cut and paste into browser address bar if the link does not work).

Your on-line applications submission will be acknowledged to your email address provided in application. If you do not receive an e-mail acknowledgement within 24 hours of submission, your application may not have been received. In such cases, please resubmit the application, if necessary.

You can review detailed Procurement Notice, Terms of Reference and download templates from the UNDP Procurement Notices Site following the link http://procurement-notices.undp.org/view_notice.cfm?notice_id=87255. (cut and paste into browser address bar if the link does not work).

Application submitted via email, incomplete applications or received after the closing date (February 1, 2021) may not be given consideration.

For more detailed information about UNDP Uzbekistan please visit our website at www.uz.undp.org UNDP is an equal opportunity employer. Qualified female candidates, people with disabilities, and minorities are highly encouraged to apply. UNDP Balance in Manage Policy promotes achievement of gender balance among its staff at all levels.

Requests for clarification must be sent in writing to pu.uz@undp.org, ensuring that the reference number above is included in the subject line. UNDP shall endeavor to provide such responses to clarifications in an expeditious manner, but any delay in such response shall not cause an obligation on the part of UNDP to extend the submission date of the Proposals, unless UNDP deems that such an extension is justified and necessary.