SCOPE OF WORK

Local empowerment for Government Inclusion and Transparency (LEGIT)

Solid Waste Management Communications Specialist

* Note: Period of Performance is tentatively planned for June 2020, pending complete lifting of Government of Liberia Covid-19 State of Emergency and lockdown.

Project Background

LEGIT is a five-year, USAID-funded activity that focuses on increasing the accountability, transparency, and effectiveness, of sub-national government resources in Liberia by supporting the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) and Governance Commission (GC) as they lead, monitor, and coordinate the implementation of the Government of Liberia’s (GOL) decentralization agenda. USAID/LEGIT is also working with local civil society organizations, and strengthening subnational institutions in Bong, Nimba and Grand Gedeh counties, and Gbarnga, Gompa and Zwedru cities, to be more capable, transparent, and responsive to citizens.

Specifically, USAID/LEGIT is focusing on the following four project objectives:

• Increase the capacity of government institutions to make incremental and sustained progress in the implementation of the national policy on decentralization and local governance;
• Strengthen the capacity of county administrators to coordinate and provide oversight of government activities across sectors;
• Improve capacity of cities to manage revenues and deliver services; and
• Increase citizen participation in planning and decision-making in the delivery of services in counties and cities.

Rationale

Given the challenging economic environment in Liberia which severely limits government spending on essential public services, there is a need and opportunity to support the improvement of service delivery at the local level. The 2018 Local Government Act specifically provides sub-national entities, both cities and counties, with the authority to collect local revenues for service delivery.

One the primary services provided by cities is solid waste management, which USAID/LEGIT initially supported with in-kind grants to its partner cities Gbarnga, Gompa and Zwedru. These grants provided basic training and equipment related to SWM in each city. This support enabled city partners to improve on the delivery of this service, but more is still required. The city corporations still lack sufficient resources, expertise, and equipment to collect, separate, and dispose of solid waste in compliance with Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) requirements. With the expected rapid growth of the city populations across Liberia, due in large part to rural urban migration, managing solid waste is a long-term issue that requires focused attention in the years to come.

Objectives and Required Tasks

Each Solid Waste Management (SWM) Communications Specialist will work with the Gbarnge, Gompa and Zwedru city corporations, in coordination with the MIA Department of Urban Affairs, to design a communications strategy focusing on raising awareness about the importance of SWM. The communications strategy will specifically focus on: (1) recently revised SWM city ordinances: (2) promoting city corporation visions for improving SWM services delivery; and (3) the educating of city residents and businesses on their rights and responsibilities related to SWM, including the timely payment of required fees in exchange for SWM services provided by each city.

This strategy will inform grant-supported town hall meetings and atayee forums organized by each city corporation, along with radio talk shows and jingles on community radio stations.

LEGIT will hire three SWM Communications Specialists; one will work with the Gbarnga City Corpororation, another will work with the Gompa City Corporation, and a third will work with the Zwedru City Corporation.

Specific tasks for each SWM Communication Specialist include:

• Close partnership with city corporations, in coordination with the MIA Department of Urban Affairs, to develop a comprehensive SWM communications strategy for each city. Each strategy should be tailored to the needs of each city, and should be a formal reports not to exceed 15 pages single-spaced. They should be based on consultative process including key stakeholders, including but not limited to small business owners, local and national government officials, and secondary schools, colleges and universities.
• Develop communications materials for distribution to key stakeholders in each city. Materials should include flyers, pamphlets, posters, radio jingles and talk show content for city officials.

Deliverables for each SWM Specialist

• Brief work plan and timeline for the work described in this SOW
• Communication strategy for city corporation (not to exceed 15 pages)
• Communications materials, including flyers, pamphlets, posters, radio jingles and talk show content
• Development and delivery of power point presentation summarizing work completed

Qualifications

• Prior experience in developing communications materials for organizations
• Demonstrated excellence in writing, editing and content creation for print and radio media
• Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively with government partners, civil society organizations and local communities
• Bachelor’s degree in Communications or related field
• Resident of the city where the work will be conducted

Interested candidates should e-mail a cover letter and their resume to LEGIT_Recruitment@dai.com or apply through the system below. with the position title (SWM Communications Specialist) in the subject line. Cover letter should explain how candidate skills and experience are relevant to this SOW, and also indicate the city where the candidate proposes to work.

Deadline for Applications is 5pm, May 15, 2020