International Consultant - Communication and Awareness Consultant for the UNDP/ GEF ‘Mainstreaming Biodiversity in the Management of Coastal Zones in the Republic of Mauritius’ project( Re-Advertisement of Job 81727)

The objective of the project is to mainstream the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity and ecosystem services into coastal zone management and into the operations and policies of the tourism and physical development sectors in the Republic of Mauritius through a ‘land- and seascape wide’ integrated management approach based on the Environmental Sensitive Areas’ (ESAs) inventory and assessment. More specifically, the project will achieve this through a three-pronged approach:

• support the incorporation of ESA recommendations into policies and enforceable regulations pertaining to integrated coastal zone management (ICZM), thereby mitigating threats to biodiversity and ecosystem functions and resilience with a special focus on tourism and physical development in the coastal zone;
• support the effective management of marine protected areas (MPAs) across the RM, given that they contain an important proportion of critically sensitive ESAs; and
• demonstrate mechanisms to arrest land degradation in sensitive locations, focusing on reducing coastal erosion and sedimentation and helping to restore ecosystem functions in key wetland areas.  

The Project Management Unit (PMU) has been set up with the recruitment of the Project Manager and Project Assistant since June 2017. This unit is headed by a National Project Director nominated by the Ministry of Ocean Economy, Marine Resources, Fisheries and Shipping. The full team of the PMU has been reinforced by a Chief Technical Adviser for technical backstopping so as to successfully implement this project.

The Ministry of Ocean Economy, Marine Resources, Fisheries and Shipping was designated as the Implementing Partner for the project. The other responsible parties are the following:

• Ministry of Social Security, National Solidarity, and Environment and Sustainable Development;
• Ministry of Agro Industry and Food Security;
• Ministry of Tourism;
• Rodrigues Regional Assembly;
• Ministry of Housing and Lands.

The other stakeholders are Mauritius Oceanography Institute, Department of Continental Shelf, Maritime Zones Administration and Exploration, District Councils, Ministry of Arts and Culture, Reef Conservation, Shoals Rodrigues, Mauritian Wildlife Foundation, etc.

Scope of Work

The objective of this consultancy is to develop a Communication and Awareness Strategy and Action Plan for the Mainstreaming Biodiversity into the Management of Coastal Zone in the Republic of Mauritius project through a participatory and consultative approach. It is expected that the Action plan will be implemented during the project cycle i.e by 2021.

A range of user-friendly communication materials (e.g. website, brochures/leaflets, posters, coastal and marine atlas, training tools and guides) will be produced through an inclusive participatory approach, sensitive to the needs of socially, culturally and gender differentiated groups.  These will facilitate local community learning and sharing of local experiences, using a human rights-based approach, and inform the broader public, ensuring that the rationale for the protection and management of these ecosystems becomes widely understood and supported and the role of the ICZM Committees on both islands is clearly understood. The need for some of the ESA information to be excluded from the public domain will be respected.  

Mechanisms for maintaining websites, including protocols and procedures and long-term hosting body, will be determined. Materials will be developed in relation to:

• The development and implementation of plans for Rodrigues and Black River District, Mauritius (Activities 1.2.1. and 1.2.2 below) and will include both general information on ICZM planning and location specific information, to illustrate the value of coastal and marine ecosystem services (using the results of activity);
• MPAs, in line with the activities described under Output 2 building on materials and initiatives developed under previous projects (e.g. materials produced for MPAs by a consortium of NGOs under the UNDP-GEF MPA Partnerships Project). The information produced will feed back into the knowledge management system and centres to be developed and supported under 1.1.1. ,and will be disseminated through the Marine Park centre(s) on Mauritius and the SEMPA Interpretation Centre currently being established on Rodrigues;
• The ecosystem service values of coastal wetlands, including policy recommendations, and theresults of the work undertaken through Output 3.2 for replication on other coastal wetlands. Knowledge and policy briefs will be prepared to promote effective implementation of policies and mechanisms to protect coastal wetlands.

A strategy for communication and awareness and its subsequent Action Plan is necessary to identify the key target audiences and the most effective mechanisms, media and outputs for each audience. Particular attention should be given to coastal communities who tend to be overlooked and the potential for disseminating materials through, for example, the network of Social and Community Welfare Centres and Women’s Associations in coastal Village Council Areas. It may be appropriate to designate specific focal individuals in the communities to assist with this. This activity will make use of and further develop materials and ideas from past and current education and communications initiatives and will be developed as a collaborative effort with the Information and Education Division and the ICZM Division of MOESDDBM, the ICZM Committee, NPCS for wetlands, the RRA, and NGOs including Reef Conservation, MMCS, Eco-Sud and Shoals Rodrigues and MWF.

In providing the required services, the Communication and Awareness Consultant will be required to:

• Carry out a desk review at national and international level on best practice Communication Strategies and Action Plan in the field of marine biodiversity, Coastal and Marine ESA’s, ICZM planning and MPA management;
• Prepare a brief outline for the Communication and Awareness Strategy for the project in line with the findings of the desk review and consultations with relevant stakeholders;
• Prepare a draft Communication and Awareness Strategy and Action Plan for the project based on the above through a fully participatory and consultative process;
• Prepare marketing activities including product branding;
• Submit the final draft of the Communication and Awareness Strategy and Action Plan for the project reflecting the feedback and comments of the relevant stakeholders;
• Design the communication and awareness materials and media;
• Deliver the awareness raising sessions (including but not limited to training session) on the Communication and Awareness Strategy targeting relevant stakeholders.

Expected Outputs and Deliverables  

The Service provider shall be remunerated in accordance with the following time schedule and deliverables:

Deliverable A: Produce an approved assignment work plan;
Timeline: May 2018;
Fee: 10%;
Means of verification: Approved assignment work plan.

Deliverable B: Report on the desk review on communication strategies and Action Plans at national and international level;
Timeline: June 2019;
Fee: 10%;
Means of verification: Approval of all deliverables by the Project Steering committee.

Deliverable C: Report on the consultation meetings and interviews of all relevant stakeholders;
Timeline: July 2019;
Fee: 10%;
Means of verification: Approval of all deliverables by the Steering committee.

Deliverable D: Draft Communication and Awareness Strategy and Action Plan for the project;
Timeline: July 2019;
Fee: 15%;
Means of verification: Approval of all deliverables by the Steering committee.

Deliverable E: Produce a brand for the project;
Timeline: August 2019;
Fee: 10%
Means of verification: Approval from Project Steering committee.

Deliverable F: Consultation Workshop;
Timeline: August 2019;
Fee: 10%;
Means of verification: Approval of all deliverables by the Steering committee.

Deliverable G: Final Communication Strategy and Action Plan;
Timeline: August 2019;
Fee: 10%;
Means of verification: Approval of all deliverables by the Steering committee.

Deliverable H: Deliver the awareness raising session on the Communication and Awareness Strategy and Action Plan;
Timeline: September 2019;
Fee: 15%;
Means of verification: Approval of all deliverables by the Steering committee.

Deliverable I: Validation Workshop and Final report on the assignment;
Timeline: October 2019;
Fee: 10%;
Means of verification: Approval of all deliverables by the Steering committee.

Important Note

All deliverables shall be submitted in soft copies in a USB flash drive or CD, in both MS Word and in PDF as per requirement of the Client to the address of the Project Manager Mr P Ragen – parmananda.ragen@undp.org and with copy to the National Project Director Mr Daniel Labonne jdplabonne@gmail.com, as well as the UNDP Head of Environment Unit. The Project Manager will be responsible for further distribution. The deliverables should be of high quality in form and substance and with appropriate professional presentation. The Consultant should fully comply with the requirements of UNDP in terms of content and presentation and respect UNDP GEF visibility guidelines, since unsatisfactory performance may result in termination of contract. Tables of content should be cleared with the PMU before reports are produced.

Institutional Arrangement

The selected service provider will provide service to the Ministry of Ocean Economy, Marine Resources, Fisheries and Shipping of the Republic of Mauritius, and report to the National Project Director (NPD) and the Chief Technical Adviser.
All deliverables shall be approved by the NPD, UNDP and the National Steering Committee.

Duration of the Work

The Communication and Awareness Consultant’s work schedule shall be for 85 working person days until October 2019 with the following breakdown, 60 field mission days and 25 days home based.

Duty Station

During the field-based part of the assignment, the Consultant will be based at the PMU Office, Ministry of Ocean Economy, Marine Resources and Shipping, LIC Building, Port Louis and  also at the Ministry of Ocean Economy, Marine resources, Fisheries and Shipping.

• Good interpersonal and communication skill with ability to effectively interact with government, private sectors and others in a multi-disciplinary and multi-cultural environment;
• A good working knowledge of international best practice in conservation, sustainable use and management of marine and coastal biodiversity is desirable;
• Demonstrated ability to take initiative and work independently while also having the skills to work effectively within teams;
• Strong drafting, presentation and reporting skills, excellent written communication skills;
• A good personality with strong leadership skills;
• Be an effective negotiator with excellent oral and presentation skills;
• Strong computer skills.

Qualifications of the Successful Individual Contractor

Education

• Minimum Bachelor’s degree in Arts, Communication and Public Relation, Journalism, Media or related fields.

Experience

• At least 10 years of proven professional experience in corporate communication;
• Minimum 3 years specific experience at international level in communication related field in an international environment;
• Experience in drafting of communication strategies and action plan will be an advantage;
• Experience in drafting communication strategy in the field of marine biodiversity and/or ICZM
• Demonstrable experience in implementing equivalent GEF or other multilateral donor-funded projects;
• Working experience with private sector and project national stakeholder institutions and agencies is desired;
• Working experience in SIDS particularly in Mauritius.

Languages

• Fluency in both written and spoken English is required;
• Knowledge of French is an asset.

Scope of Price Proposal and Schedule of Payments

The financial offer should be quoted as a lump sum amount, all-inclusive (professional fee, insurance, all travel costs, per diem, etc.). In general, UNDP should not accept travel costs exceeding those of an economy class ticket. Should the consultant wish to travel on a higher class he/she should do so using their own resources.

The contract price is fixed regardless of changes in the cost components. In the case of unforeseeable travel (additional mission for example), payment of travel costs including tickets, accommodation and terminal expenses should be agreed upon prior to travel between UNDP and Individual Consultant and will be reimbursed.

Payments will be effected based on deliverables above.

Recommended Presentation of Offer

The following documents are requested:

• Duly completed Letter of Confirmation of Interest and Availability using the template provided by UNDP;
• Personal CV, indicating all experience from similar projects, as well as the contact details (email and telephone number) of the Candidate and at least three (3) professional references;
• Technical offer: Brief description of why the individual considers him/herself as the most suitable for the assignment (including his/her experience using GEF Protected Areas Scorecards and Tracking Tools), and a methodology on how they will approach and complete the assignment;
• Financial Proposal that indicates the all-inclusive fixed total contract price, supported by a breakdown of costs, as per template provided by UNDP.  

Criteria for Selection of the Best Offer

Individual consultants will be evaluated based on the following methodology:

Cumulative analysis

When using this weighted scoring method, the award of the contract should be made to the individual consultant whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:

• Responsive/compliant/acceptable, and
• Having received the highest score out of a pre-determined set of weighted technical and financial criteria specific to the solicitation.

The Evaluation Criteria for the Shortlisting of applicants is as per the following:

• Education: Max. Point: 10;
• Relevant professional experience in corporate communication: Max. Point: 10;
• Relevant experience at international level in communication related field in an international environment: Max. Point: 10;
• Relevant experience in drafting of communication strategies and action plan: Max. Point: 10;
• Experience in drafting communication strategy in the field of marine biodiversity and/or ICZM: Max. Point: 5;
• Demonstrable experience in implementing equivalent GEF or other multilateral donor-funded projects: Max. Point: 5;
• Working experience with private sector and project national stakeholder institutions and agencies is desired: Max. Point: 5;
• Working experience in SIDS particularly in Mauritius: Max. Point: 5;
• Language (English mandatory/French is a plus): Max. Point: 5;
• Computer skills: Max. Point: 5;
• Suitability of technical approach: Max. Point: 30;
• Total: 100.

Candidates scoring a minimum of 70% of the maximum marks on the above criteria will be short-listed.

The financial offers will be evaluated giving the lowest price proposal 30 marks and marking the other more expensive proposals reverse proportionally to the cheapest offer.

The final scoring of short-listed candidates will take into account the technical score and the financial score:

Criteria: Interview;
Weight (%): 70;
Max. Score: 70.

Criteria: Financial;
Weight (%): 30;
Max. Score: 30.

The candidate ranking highest shall be selected.

Important Note:

• Interested offeror is strongly advised to read the Individual Consultant (IC) Procurement Notice/TOR, which can be viewed at http://procurement-notices.undp.org/
• For more detail about term of references,general terms and conditions of IC and templates to be included when submitting offer;
• Interested offerors above the age of 65 and requiring travelling: UNDP regulations require, at their own cost, to undergo a full medical examination including x-rays. Medical evaluation documentation does not need to be submitted with the other requested documents listed above, but will be requested should the candidate be chosen;
• Interested offeror is required to submit application via UNDP jobsite system, because the application screening and evaluation will be done through UNDP jobsite system;
• Please note that UNDP jobsite system allows only uploading of application document, so please make sure that you merge all your documents into a single file. Your on-line applications submission will be acknowledged where an email address has been provided. If you do not receive an e-mail acknowledgement within 24 hours of submission, your application may not have been received. In such cases, please resubmit the application, if necessary.