Stakeholders’ Engagement Specialist

Organizational Setting

The Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) are collaborating on a 5-year project: Global Transformation of Forests for People and Climate: a focus on West Africa. The project contributes to the implementation of the ECOWAS Convergence Plan for the Sustainable Management and Use of Forest Ecosystems in West Africa, which aims to mobilize political, institutional, financial and technical support to address transboundary forest issues across ECOWAS’s 15 member states.

The overall objective of the project is to strengthen decision-making on forests and land management, and to strengthen capacity at a sub-regional level through ECOWAS and other sub-regional partners to implement elements of the Convergence Plan with focus on three out of the seven priority areas of the Convergence Plan:

• Knowledge of the state of forest ecosystem dynamics;
• Forest and land related laws, policies and strategies at the sub-regional level; and
• Demonstration and dissemination of sustainable forest and land use practices.

Achieving this objective will positively contribute to the livelihoods and climate change resilience thus contributes to the achievement of the SDGs and the Paris Agreement, identified as the broader impact. In addition, identifying lessons learned and good practices will contribute to a longer-term impact through sharing with other sub-regions and globally.

The expected overall results encompass all ECOWAS member countries while specific outputs and activities refer to a selection of countries that show similar ecological characteristics and challenges.

Reporting Lines

The international consultant will work under the general supervision of the Coordinator of the sub regional office for West Africa (SFW) and the direct supervision of the FAOR Nigeria. S/he will work under the technical supervision of the Program officer, BH and responsible of the technical oversight of the project in the Forestry Division at HQ and under the direct technical supervision of the project manager in close collaboration with the FAO experts at country offices, SFW, RAF and Forestry Division (NFO) and with the ECOWAS Directorate of environment and natural resources in Abuja.

Technical Focus

The International Consultant will support the Economic Community Of West African States (ECOWAS) Commission of Agriculture, Environment and Water Resources and the project management unit (PMU) in the overall institutional coordination of the project particularly in terms of connecting the project with all parties involved in the implementation of the ECOWAS Forest convergence plan. S/he will work with the PMU and ECOWAS to build a network of the stakeholders who could be part of the technical Multi Stakeholders’ Advisory Group (MSAG) and to boost the advocacy among the ECOWAS network of parliamentarians for reach out activities and advocacy within their countries

Tasks and responsibilities

• Facilitate, in close collaboration with the project manager, the working relationships between ECOWAS Directorate of Environment and Natural Resources and FAO sub regional office for West Africa (SFW)
• Contribute to the identification of annual project activities, implementation and monitoring of Annual Work Plans
• Provide technical support to ECOWAS role in the coordination and the implementation of the Project's Priority Intervention Areas of the West Africa Forest Ecosystems Convergence Plan
• Lead the identification and mapping of stakeholders and audiences
• Work closely with the Project manager and ECOWAS for continuous advocacy campaigns and leveraging expertise from key stakeholders for a successful participatory implementation of the project different components
• Provide necessary contributions and facilitate multi-stakeholder discussions
• In collaboration with the community-based forest and land management initiatives expert and the PMU in general, actively support the ECOWAS Regional Agency for Agriculture and Food (ARAA) to identify relevant stakeholders for the Multi Stakeholders Advisory Group (MSAG)
• Work closely with ECOWAS and the PMU to boost the advocacy among the ECOWAS network of parliamentarians including organizing workshops/trainings with ECOWAS network of parliamentarians to disseminate and build capacity on flagship work (drivers of deforestation study, legal work, gender)
• Support the project team in preparation and delivery of regional stakeholder workshops to share best practices in sustainable forest management and land use, legal reforms recommendations, and to promote south-south cooperation activities in West Africa and with other parts of the world,
• Support the project team to deliver public consultation events
• Provide contribution to preparation of consultation reports and presentations
• Participate in different workshops and trainings as needed
• Assist with drafting of project key messages for a range of audiences
• Advise and provide support to the Project Team on any other issues arising during the project implementation
• Other duties as required.

CANDIDATES WILL BE ASSESSED AGAINST THE FOLLOWING

Minimum Requirements

• University Degree in the field of social sciences, advocacy, communication/outreach etc. The degree applied in forestry, rural development, natural resource management, environmental related fields will be an asset,
• Professional experience of at least 5 years in advocacy, stakeholders’ mobilization and engagement, outreach, facilitation, networking etc. The experience in the context of forestry, natural resource management, environment, rural development and related fields will be considered an asset
• Working knowledge of English or French and limited knowledge of the other one.

FAO Core Competencies

• Results Focus
• Teamwork
• Communication Skills
• Building Effective Relationships
• Knowledge Sharing and Continuous Improvement

Technical/Functional Skills

• Work experience in more than one location or area of work
• Very good sense of organization and ability to meet tight deadlines;
• Ability to prioritize tasks;
• Ability to work in a harmonious and effective way in a multicultural team;
• Excellent interpersonal skills and ability to maintain effective working relationships with supervisors and colleagues.
• Knowledge of Portuguese is considered an asset
• Knowledge of the ECOWAS Forest Policy, Convergence Plan for the Sustainable Management and Use of Forest Ecosystems in West Africa, Regional Forest Investment Plan, and the Africa Sustainable Forest Management (SFM) Framework
• Work experience in West African context