M&E and Communication Officer

Result of ServiceStrengthened M&E and Communications for the HSCI project. Work LocationHarare Expected duration17 months Duties and ResponsibilitiesBACKGROUND The United Nations Human Settlements Programme, UN-Habitat, is the agency for human settlements. It is mandated by the UN General Assembly to promote socially and environmentally sustainable towns and cities with the goal of providing adequate shelter for all. UN-HABITAT's Basic Services Section’s main focus is improving delivery of basic services (water, sanitation, waste management, mobility and energy) in African, Asia and Latin America, and promoting policy dialogue, information exchange, water education and awareness raising. UN-HABITAT is also in charge of the promotion of sustainable human settlements development that is environmentally sound. This is done through the promotion of low carbon interventions such as energy efficient design of building, renewable energy technologies and practices, and by assisting national and local governments in adopting building codes that are environmentally friendly. UBSS is responsible for proposing urban basic service solutions (water, sanitation, energy, mobility, waste management, drainage services etc.) including normative, advocacy and operational activities. Lack of access to adequate, affordable, reliable, safe and environmentally sound energy is a severe constraint on sustainable development. Currently, 780 million people lack access to modern energy (electricity) to meet their basic needs. 2.4 billion people without access to clean cooking fuels. 75 % of the buildings that will be standing in Africa in 2050 are yet to be built and effort should be made to make these buildings green and environmentally friendly. Access to reliable energy improves productivity and wealth, as energy services are needed to pump water, to provide adequate sanitation, to improve basis infrastructure and services. The use of renewable energies and energy efficiency measures can contribute effectively to the provision of affordable services and infrastructure for the poor. Today, over 600 million people in Africa still lack access to electricity. More than 830 million people in Asia Pacific region do not have access to safe drinking water. More than 2 billion lack sanitation facilities. In sub-Saharan Africa, over 400 million people have no access to safe water and over 500 million are without adequate sanitation. Low-income urban dwellers living in informal settlements, pay high prices for basic services – water and electricity -, compared to other citizens with high income living in planned and formal settlements. This assignment aims at providing support to the implementation of the Harare Sustainable City Initiative (HSCI), a project managed by UN-Habitat in collaboration with three main implementing partners: Zimbabwe Sunshine Group, Soberlife and Green building council of Zimbabwe. HSCI aims at showcasing good examples of integrated sustainable waste management, resource recovery from waste, urban renewable energy generation for productive uses, and mainstreaming energy and resource efficiency into building policies and building practices. HSCI will demonstrate tangible sustainable zero waste practices, clean energy solutions and energy efficiency principles to encourage replication and upscaling. The project main targets are the citizen of Harare with particular attention to the urban and peri urban poor. The main objective is to provide better living condition to Harare citizens by increasing and improving their access to sustainable waste to wealth services, clean energy provisions and to promote energy and resource efficiency in Zimbabwe’s built environment. Specific objectives are: 1. To promote sustainable waste to wealth practices in the greater Harare. 2. To increase access to clean energy by the urban and peri urban poor in Harare; and 3. To achieve energy and resource efficiencies in Zimbabwe’s built environment. DUTIES, RESPONSIBILITIES AND EXPECTED OUTPUTS Under the supervision of HSCI Project Manager, the M&E and Communication officer will develop, manage and strengthen M&E efforts to meet the project objectives. Apart from M&E functions, the consultant will oversee all communication related activities on the project in developing external communication to guarantee good visibility of the project achievements and impact in Zimbabwe. The incumbent, shall undertake the following tasks: Monitoring and Evaluation • Implement robust project monitoring and evaluation frameworks and strategies that are in compliance with UN Habitat guidelines • Design monitoring and evaluation processes and systems to measure the effects and impact of the HSCI project • Provide recommendations on improving the overall project management cycle, focusing on better M&E systems, processes, and tools to improve on accountability • Develop high-quality and detailed evaluation plans in line with UN Habitat guidelines • Work with project implementing and beneficiaries to understand the scale, depth, and sustainability of the impact of projects. • Develop, implement, and/ or assess the effectiveness of community engagement activities, including feedback and accountability mechanisms. • Lead the development and proper implementation of the indicator tracking table and provide project-based results. • Write and submit high-quality projects reports on project status, achievements and overall performance • Capture, document, analyze and disseminate key learnings, challenges and success during the implementation of the initiatives. . Facilitate focus group discussions with key beneficiaries and project partners to gather project feedback, learnings and success stories Communication • Planning, developing and implementing communication strategies to promote HSCI project • Produce and update HSCI Project Snapshots • Produce and update relevant Capability Statements • Produce articles on HSCI projects and activities • Produce refined contents for Social Media posts as per UN Habitat guidelines • Produce other communication materials as required (photos, videos, etc.). • Provide information products when required • Cover Awareness campaigns for the project • Identify, propose, and lead the development of communications opportunities and media-related that can be employed to promote the work of the HSCI project to maximize project`s visibility and awareness Qualifications/special skillsAn advanced university degree in international development, sociology, business management, journalism or related field is required. A first degree with 2 years qualifying relevant experience will be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree. A minimum of 3 years demonstrated working expedience in M&E and Communications for development or humanitarian organizations is required. Knowledge and experience in graphic design, layout, and document development including creation of basic multimedia content: e.g. filming, audio recording is desirable. Strong teamwork and interpersonal skills to collaborate with multidisciplinary teams and diverse stakeholders is desirable. Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the capacity to prepare comprehensive reports, deliver presentations, and facilitate workshops effectively is required. LanguagesEnglish and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For this post, fluency in written and oral English is required. Working knowledge of Shona is desirable. Additional InformationNot available. No FeeTHE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.