Background
The President of the Republic of South Sudan declared a State of Emergency on 29 October 2019 covering 29 counties affected by flash floods in South Sudan. The floods resulted to substantial destruction of houses, road networks and destroyed the livelihoods of 10,892 households according to the results of the Rapid Needs Assessment (RNA) conducted by South Sudan Red Cross (SSRC) in collaboration with the State department for Relief and Rehabilitation Commission (RRC).
Since July 2019, South Sudan has experienced unusually heavy rainfall and subsequent flooding, affecting an estimated 908,000 people, of whom 420,000 people are in need of immediate humanitarian assistance. Flooding has affected the states of Jonglei, Upper Nile, Warrap, Northern Bahr el Ghazal, Unity, Lakes, Central and Eastern Equatoria. About 103 000 hectare of cultivated land has been damaged with an estimated loss of 97 000 tonnes of grain, 42 nutrition service centers have suspended operation, and currently assessment indicate that about USD 61.5 million is required to respond.
An estimated 46,000 people were displaced in Maiwut (33,000) and Tonj South (13,000). This aggravated the already dire situation in August when seasonal floods affected more than 364,600 people in different locations including more than 31,600 people in Akobo, Pibor and Uror counties in Jonglei, about 29,000 people in Aweil Centre County in Northern Bahr el Ghazal, about 4,000 people in Mayendit County in Unity and some 300,000 people in Gogrial West, Gogrial East and Tonj North counties in Warrap. The heavy rains destroyed shelters, crops, water sources, public infrastructure like schools and health facilities, increased the risk of water-borne diseases among communities, and rendered many roads impassable, constraining access to affected areas. (OCHA, 27 Sep 2019)
Floods caused by torrential rains have worsened the living conditions of South Sudanese people in many parts of the country in the past few months. Some of the areas affected include Lafon, Torit and Kapoeta South counties in Eastern Equatoria; Ayod, Akobo, Bor South, Duk, Twic East, Pibor, Pochalla and Uror counties in Jonglei; Aweil Center and Aweil North in Northern Bahr el Ghazal; Abiemnhom, Mayom, Mayendit and Panyijiar in Unity; Maban in Upper Nile; and Gogrial East, Gogrial West and Tonj North in Warrap. (OCHA, 11 Oct 2019)
According to UNHCR, unprecedented heavy flooding in South Sudan’s Maban County has affected nearly 200,000 people, including refugees and host population. (UNHCR, 18 Oct 2019) Torrential rains have left wide swaths of Greater Jonglei devastated and its inhabitants displaced. With more precipitation on the forecasted horizon, there are fears that the situation may deteriorate further. Of the nearly one million people in South Sudan affected by the floods, UNICEF estimates that around 490,000 are children (UNMISS, 29 Oct 2019.)
Following the declaration of the State of Emergency and given the huge challenges with regards to emergency coordination hampered by the absence of a National and State Contingency/Response Plans and of a coordination structure that is weak and with limited capacity, the Government of South Sudan through the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Disaster Management (MHADM) requested for UNDP support on coordination, data/information management, recovery planning, and initial recovery interventions. The CO has already responded by giving intermittent technical support and by conducting a PDNA training that will be the basis for the development of the disaster recovery framework and plan. The CO is mobilizing on supporting the Government and partners on the other aspects needed to have a more coherent and coordinated response (and with a strong capacity development orientation) to the emergency situation.
Duties and Responsibilities
Purpose of the consultancy
The Communication and Programming Support Officer is responsible for communicating all information on flood response and recovery efforts and in supporting the design and programming of risk management initiatives.
He/she will provide make establish different channels for disseminating information and in communicating targeted and harmonized messages to the people and partners. He/She will be the main information source by partners.
Key tasks
Working directly under the guidance and oversight of the Office of the Under Secretary of the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Disaster Management and the UNCT-deployed International DRM Advisor, the Communication and Programming Support Officer is expected to undertake the following:
Communication
- Develop and implement a Communication Plan;
- Produce, facilitate, and promote user-friendly public awareness materials/products/templates in simple formats and support the preparation of situational reports, publications, etc.;
- Strategize on a more effective engagement with the media (monitoring and managing information from global media channels, use of local media for facilitating DRM implementation; etc.);
- Facilitate and promote activities that will increase the visibility of the Government.
- Write, edit, and distribute content, including publications, press releases, website content, annual reports, speeches, and other marketing material that communicates the aspect of flood response and recovery and of MHADM activities, products and/or services;
- Respond to media inquiries, arrange interviews, and ensure the proper dissemination of the PDNA report, national recovery plan, and national contingency plan;
- Develop Establish and maintain effective relationships with journalists, and maintain a media database.
- Seek opportunities to enhance the reputation of MHADM, and coordinate publicity events as required.
- Maintain records of media coverage and collate analytics and metrics.
- Proficiency in design and publishing software.
- Manage conflict as it arises and escalate to management.
Programming Support
- Support the analysis of the coordination mechanism and institutional architecture for emergency response and recovery and provide technical advice in enhancing the effectiveness of coordination structures and activities, as well as, the appropriateness of response activities;
- Support the conduct of coordination meetings, including the preparation of the agenda and relevant documentation, and in following-through with decisions taken;
- Lead the transmission of necessary data/information to the national level and support the undertaking of local level analysis and report preparation on response and recovery;
- Support the review existing national level contingency planning and preparedness processes with a view to identifying the nature and scope of inclusion of preparedness and contingency planning;
- Provide relevant substantive inputs to knowledge management and networking, including responding to MHADM requests for information on best practice;
- Provide inputs for the production and dissemination of reports on MHADM and UNCT activities on DRM, emergency response, and resilience;
Deliverables
- Monthly progress report
- Flood response and recovery Communication Plan and media database. And marketing material
- Flood response and recovery situational reports, publications,
- Monthly media digest media coverage including infographic, press releases, website content
- Proficiency in design and publishing software.
- End of assignment report/annual report
Competencies
- Experience in the production of situation reports, etc. with a task of disseminating them widely through traditional media, but also in social media;
- Knowledge of desktop publishing;
- Ability to establish priorities and to plan, coordinate information collection and monitor own work plan;
- Ability to work, establish and maintain strategic partnerships with government institutions, donors, civil society partners and other UN agencies;
- Excellent communication, writing skills, and analytical skills;
- Good interpersonal skills and result oriented;
- Ability to work under pressure;
- Experience in the usage of computers and office software packages
Required Skills and Experience
Education
- Bachelor’s degree in Journalism, Communication, Development Communication, or related field.
Experience
- At least 3 years relevant experience in a relevant communications role
Language
- Proficiency in English is a must.
Application Procedure:
The application package containing the following (to be uploaded as one file):
A cover letter with a brief description of why the Offer considers her/himself the most suitable for the assignment;
Personal CV, indicating all past experience from similar projects and specifying the relevant assignment period (from/to), as well as the email and telephone contacts of at least three (3) professional references;
Note: The above documents need to be scanned in one file and uploaded to the online application as one document.
Evaluation Process:
Applicants are reviewed based on relevance of qualifications, required Skills and Experience stated above and based on the technical evaluation criteria outlined below. Applicants will be evaluated based on cumulative scoring. When using this weighted scoring method, the award of the contract will be made to the individual consultant whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:
- Being responsive/compliant/acceptable; and
- Having received the highest score out of a pre-determined set of weighted technical and financial criteria specific to the solicitation where technical criteria weighs 70% and Financial criteria/ Proposal weighs 30%.
Technical Evaluation - Total 70% (700 points)
Relevant Educational experience Weight = 20%; Maximum Points: 200
Relevant work experience as per TOR requirements Weight = 40%; Maximum Points: 400
Competencies, skills and language Weight = 10%; Maximum Points: 100
Having reviewed applications received, UNDP will conduct a desk review of the top five shortlisted candidates. Candidates obtaining a minimum of 70% (49 points) of the maximum obtainable points for the technical criteria (70 points) shall be considered for the financial evaluation.
Financial Evaluation - Total 30% (300 points)
The following formula will be used to evaluate financial proposal:
p = y (µ/z), where
p = points for the financial proposal being evaluated
y = maximum number of points for the financial proposal
µ = price of the lowest priced proposal
z = price of the proposal being evaluated
Contract Award:
Candidate obtaining the highest combined scores in the Technical and Financial evaluation will be considered qualified and offered to enter into contract with UNDP.
Institutional Arrangement:
The consultant will work under the guidance and direct supervision of the head of the HDIG Unit and will be responsible for the fulfilment of the deliverables as specified above.
The Consultant will be responsible for providing her/his own laptop.