CRS Liberia: SOW SBCC Barrier Analysis Consultant – HELINA

Title: SBCC Barrier Analysis Consultant – Healthy Living through Integrated Nutritional Activities (HELINA)

Location: Monrovia, Liberia

Reports To: HELINA Project Manager

Duration: 20 working days

Start Date: September 6, 2021

About CRS Liberia:

CRS began working in Liberia in 1957, with a permanent country program office opening in 1990 to provide life-saving relief in response to emergencies and to address issues of chronic poverty and injustice through innovative and sustainable development programs. CRS Liberia has since developed programs in peacebuilding, youth livelihoods, health systems strengthening, nutrition, and urban water, sanitation, and hygiene. Key partners include the Catholic Church, the Government of Liberia, local faith-based organizations, and local NGOs.

About HELINA Project:

The HELINA project will improve the nutrition of infants and children under age 2 in households with mothers under 25 years of age by creating an enabling environment for the adoption of key behaviors for improved nutrition among these adolescent girls and young women and other adults in their households. This will be accomplished through a dedicated nutrition curriculum including Infant and Young Child Feeding (IYCF) behaviors and Water, Hygiene, and Sanitation (WASH) behaviors, delivered both at Star of the Sea Clinic and through home visits to select mother participants. CRS is working with the National Catholic Health Council (of which Star of the Sea is a member) and the Liberian Ministry of Health to create this curriculum, as well as developing a framework for adopting this methodology in its other clinics. Finally, a subset of adolescent girls and young women will benefit from entrepreneurship training accompanied by seed funding for their small businesses with the belief that improved stability in their income will lead to increased household food security. This project is being implemented in the Township of WestPoint with Star of the Sea clinic as the facility point of focus

Purpose:

The social behavior change communications (SBCC) consultant will be tasked with conducting a research to determine the most effective methods of communication to reach members of the target community. The goal is to promote the support of adolescent girls and young women in embracing and practising the key behaviors taught in the project. Messaging will be aimed at partners, grandparents, and other adult members of the household and the surrounding neighborhood and may take the form of sketches or other interactive activities. The consultant’s role will be informative research to identify key behaviors the program will actively promote, to identify relevant barriers, motivations, and opportunities, to understand the aspirations of girls and young women with regards to their roles as women, mothers, and income-earners, and to identify the people who provide valued support, counsel and inspiration to girls and young women. There are plans for SBCC activities in the communities, and the consultant/research should identify the most appropriate SBCC activities to be carry out. The consultant is expected to complete his work and submit a final report(s) within a period of 20 working days.

Deliverables/Expectations:

• Conduct interviews, focus group discussions, and key informant interviews as well as using secondary sources to complete the research task.
• Identify the most effective forms of communication and information dissemination in this context.
• Identify key behaviors the program will actively promote.
• Identify relevant barriers, motivations, and opportunities, to understand the aspirations of girls and young women with regards to their roles as women, mothers, and income-earners.
• Identify the people who provide valued support, counsel and inspiration to girls and young women.
• Write and present an SBCC strategy with conclusions based on the research findings, including SBCC activities to be carried out in the project community.

Minimum Qualifications:

• Bachelors’ degree in Public Health and Nutrition, Masters in Public Health (MPH)/Nutrition preferred) or another relevant discipline is required.
• Minimum five years of professional work experience in planning, programming, implementation of programs focused on infant and child Nutrition.
• Demonstrated experience in public health/nutrition Research.
• Demonstrated experience in designing/leading nutrition-related SBCC activities.
• Demonstrated experience in service delivery of essential maternal and child nutrition interventions focused on IYCF (Infant and Young Child Feeding).
• Demonstrated experience in Government or Non-Government Organization (NGO) in planning, implementing, and monitoring/evaluation of Nutrition essential interventions.
• Demonstrated understanding of local context, WestPoint township where the activities are being conducted.
• Ability to deliver high-quality reports to CRS and/or donors.
• Experience working with other international NGOs.
• Demonstrated oral and written communication, analytical, interpersonal, and team management skills.
• Strong attention to detail and organizational skills are required.

NB: all applications should be sent to this email address LR_HR@crs.org, with the position as a subject.

Closing Date: August 20, 2021