Behavioral Insights Specialist

Contract

This is a International Consultant contract. More about International Consultant contracts.

Background

Since Sudan's last Universal Periodic Review (UPR), hate-based violence has continued in Sudan in conflict areas such as West Darfur, South Kordofan and Blue Nile. New and escalating violence is also being witnessed in eastern Sudan, in Port Sudan and Kassala. Hate speech is a threat to democratic values, social stability, and peace. Therefore, tackling hate speech is crucial especially with Juba Peace Agreement (JPA) implementation and dissemination among local communities is ahead and laying ground for positive peace and promote for unity is vital in creating healthy peace infrastructure and inclusive society. Fighting hate, discrimination, racism, and inequality is at the core of United Nations principles and the Organization’s work. Hate speech, including online, is a threat to democratic values, social stability, and peace and has become one of the most frequent methods for spreading divisive and discriminatory messages and ideologies.

Hate-based violence has continued in Sudan in conflict areas such as West Darfur, South Kordofan and Blue Nile. New and escalating violence is also being witnessed in eastern Sudan, in Port Sudan and Kassala. Therefore, tackling hate speech is crucial especially after the signing of Juba Peace Agreement (JPA). While freedom of expression is a fundamental human right, equipping youth with the knowledge and skills regarding media ethics, conflict sensitive reporting to identify hate speech and to counteract hate speech messages in their channels will emphasis their role in creating and promoting peaceful societies. Within UNDP framework to consolidate peace, community security and sustainable development in conflict-affected or post-conflict societies, we are committed to support different media channels to raise awareness against hate speech and inspire behavioral change in public attitudes towards unity and positive peace, and draft policy recommendation on how to formulate/advocate deterrent laws against hateful and offensive content.

Stemming from UNDP Sudan’s youth peace ambassadors workshop series, which initially took place in Darfur, youth-led Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) were engaged as implementing partners and served as repositories of peacebuilding knowledge, including online and offline peacebuilding materials with equal and easy access for youth from all genders, and other vulnerable groups such as nomads and returnees. Local CSOs were supported through capacity building on peacebuilding, negotiation techniques, digital content creation and dissemination, community engagement skills, in collaboration with State Universities’ Institutes of Peace Studies. The Darfur Youth Peace Ambassadors workshops looked to support Darfuri youth – male and female – to claim civic spaces from which they have been marginalized, through digital and other forms of engagement on peacebuilding, youth-led community initiatives, and facilitation of youth participation in decision-making forums. UNDP and UNHCR are testing out new approaches (i.e., a combination of digital skills building, IEC materials, youth-led micro-projects, and promoting youth-inclusion in decision-making forums), and implementing in new geographic areas not covered by other peacebuilding/PBF initiatives (i.e., all target locations are those not covered under current PBF Darfur program).

This intervention involves working with youth/youth-led CSOs to identify and implement micro-projects aimed at facilitating community engagement and dialogue – e.g., on non-violence; the impact of spreading rumors, negative stereotyping and hate speech with respect to opposing communities - at locality/village level, thereby mitigating conflict triggers and contributing to peacebuilding. Rather than being prescriptive about the nature of the micro-projects, it will be left to youth to design the modalities they feel would be most useful, relevant, and accessible in their locality/village context, awareness raising campaigns, etc. The key objective will be for youth to lead in bringing opposing communities together, thereby practically demonstrating their peacebuilding skills. The overall objective is to build on the content created for the CSOs and youth peace ambassadors, developing a knowledge product or manual that can be used by relevant stakeholders across the board to combat hate speech, fostering social cohesion and developing a network of digital mediators to reduce the negative effects of hate speech online. By levering behavioral science and design thinking, the digital mediators will be able to identify and counter hate speech narratives through innovative approaches with support from UNDP Sudan’s Accelerator Lab.

Duties and Responsibilities

The scope of the proposed consultancy is to assist in the development a manual which will be used to highlight the harm caused by hate speech, the dangers of the spread of hate speech and how to combat hate speech through behavioral science and behavioral insights. This consultant will take lead on behavioural mapping, identifying behavioural barriers and developing nudges targeting selected behaviours.

Summary of key functions:

• Problem definition: understanding the complexity of hate speech context in Sudan including target audience and actors
• Exploration: work with stakeholders and local community to identify possible solutions
• Capacity development: deliver training on behavioural science methodologies and approaches
• Prototyping: Design and develop workable solutions for hate speech with stakeholders
• Testing: experiment with the tools and solutions developed and integrate feedback

Institutional Arrangement

• The consultant will work closely with the UNDP Country Office team

• The consultant will report to and submit all draft reports to the UNDP Country Office

• Once the draft report is produced, the document will be shared with relevant stakeholders for comments.

• Only after incorporating and/or responding to all the comments the consultant will produce and submit a final document to UNDP Country Office.

• Throughout the consultancy, the consultant will address all issues raised by UNDP

Duration of the Work

The expected duration of this work is 17 working days with a start date of 9th January 2022, and the completion of the document by 9th April 2023.

Duty Station

Home-based

Scope of Price Proposal and Schedule of Payments

The project will be remunerated through a Lump Sum amount which is “all-inclusive”. The Lump Sum is payable upon delivery and clearance of all deliverables. The clearance of deliverables must be obtained by the persons identified in section E above. This contract price is fixed regardless of changes in the cost components.

Evaluation Criteria

The offers received from the candidates will be evaluated using combined scoring method. The combined scoring method assesses the offers with technical merits of the proposals – where the qualifications and methodology will be weighted a maximum of 70%, and later combined with the price offer which will be weighted a max of 30%. Only offers received minimum 70% of technical weightage (49 points) will be invited to submit the financial offer.

Assessment Criteria:

Relevant master’s degree

Minimum of 10 years’ experience in behavioral insights application

Experience communicating and collaborating with a variety of stakeholders

Experience working in complex context

Competencies

Corporate Competencies

• Demonstrates integrity by modeling the UN’s values and ethical standards;
• Promotes the vision, mission, and strategic goals of UNDP;
• Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability;
• Treats all people fairly without favoritism;
• Ability to work with a multi-cultural and diverse team

Required Skills and Experience

• A Master’s degree in social science, development, statistics, behavioral science or a related field.
• A minimum of 10 years experience in behavioral insights application.
• Previous experience working in complex context.
• Capacity to communicate fluently with different stakeholders (civil society, government authorities, local communities, project staff).
• Excellent oral and written communication skills in English.
• Ability to liaise and communicate with a range of national and international partners.