Website SW Nepal
Communication and Outreach Officer
Duty Station: Scott Wilson Nepal Office, Maharajgunj, Kathmandu (Central Office), with frequent field visits to provinces and municipalities
Contract: 1 year (extendable to 5 years based on performance)
Salary: An attractive salary with additional benefits including a provident fund, a gratuity fund, a festival allowance, and medical and accidental insurance will be provided. Applicable taxes shall be deducted as per the law of Nepal
Working Days: 5 days a week (Mon-Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.)
Reporting to: Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning (MEAL) and Knowledge Management Manager, USAID Local Works Support
Introduction:
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Mission to Nepal has awarded S.W. Nepal Pvt. Ltd. (Scott Wilson Nepal/SWN), as prime contractor, a contract to provide dedicated, long-term support to USAID’s flagship locally-led development program, Local Works. This five-year initiative commences on January 8, 2024.
Local Works is a locally-led development program aimed at capacitating local actors—including individuals, communities, networks, civil society organizations (CSOs), private entities, and governments—to take the lead in the development process, including priority setting, developing solutions, decision-making, and overall management. Since 2015, Local Works has operated in 32 countries, aligning with legislation from Congress to integrate locally-led development practice into the agency’s operations and programs, reflecting what Administrator Samantha Power states: “If we truly want to make aid inclusive, local voices need to be at the center of everything we do.”
The USAID Local Works Support, facilitated by S.W. Nepal Pvt. Ltd., will offer important services such as organizational capacity development (OCD), third-party monitoring, risk assessment, and local works coordination. More specifically, USAID Local Works Support will assess and capacitate local actors in areas like human resource management, financial management, and operations. This initiative aims to improve cooperation, coordination, and co-creation among local actors, including the USAID Mission to Nepal, local beneficiaries, and local governments. This will be achieved through targeted communication, outreach, and information-sharing activities. All activities and components under the Local Works Support will be underpinned with a focused effort to raise awareness and uphold gender equality and social inclusion (GESI) and diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA).
Purpose of the Position:
The Communication and Outreach Officer will work under the guidance of the MEAL and Knowledge Management Manager in Component C (Local Works Coordination). The primary responsibility of the COO is to develop and implement a communication and outreach strategy to effectively share the overall results,
challenges and lessons learned with the wider audience, adhering to the USAID Local Works Branding and Marking Plan. The officer will be responsible for conducting a communication and outreach campaign to promote the successes and results of the Local Works program.
The Communication and Outreach Officer should have strong communication skills in both written and verbal English and Nepali. The officer should be able to collaborate with team members, the management team, and stakeholders.
Scope of Work (SoW) and Responsibilities:
- Develop and implement a communication and outreach strategy aligned with the overall program goals and USAID communication guidelines.
- Responsible for content generation, organization, and dissemination efforts across various platforms, e.g. social media and direct media outreach, working closely with the MEL and Knowledge Management Manager, and Chief of Party.
- Develop an annual communication and outreach plan that is in compliance with USAID standards and to guide the USAID Local Works Support’s communication and outreach requirements.
- Carry out activities in accordance with the Communication and Outreach Plan, and ensure USAID Branding and Marking in all activities of USAID Local Works Support.
- Conduct research and analysis to identify key target audiences and their information needs.
- Collaborate with the MEAL and Knowledge Management Manager, program staff, stakeholders, and partners to ensure consistent messaging and effective communication.
- Responsible for capturing USAID/Nepal Local Works success stories, ideas, photography, short videos, and other content as communications and outreach products, for monthly, quarterly, and annual reporting, as well as social media posts, presentations, etc compiling USAID Branding and Marking Plan.
- Manage and maintain the SWNs’ website and social media channels related to LWS.
- Track and measure the effectiveness of communication and outreach activities.
- Responsible for organizing and reporting the annual 2 workshops and a video documentary of 2 minutes.
- Ensure all communication content assimilates gender equality and social inclusion (GESI) and disability, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA)-related data and/or information.
- Conduct regular field visits to capture content and support visitors and consultants, including photographers and videographers.
- Capacity building of Local Works Implementing Partners (IPs) on USAID’s communications, outreach, branding, and marking requirements.
- Establish, as necessary, and manage knowledge management repositories, communications products, or photo libraries.
- Perform other tasks as assigned
Qualifications and Requirements:
- At least a bachelor’s degree in communication, journalism, media study, development studies, public relations, or a related field. (Master’s degree preferred).
- 4-5 years of progressive experience in the development sector, contributing to project- or organization-level communications and outreach products for a variety of audiences.
- Proficiency in content creation tools and social media platforms.
- Familiarity with USAID Communication and Outreach, and Branding and Marking Plan
- Familiarity with integrating GESI considerations in communications.
- Experience in report/deliverable preparation, management, editing, and dissemination across several platforms with concise, and engaging content.
- Experience in handling social media applications. Photography skills are required.
- A professional history of dealing with journalists or national or international media outlets will be considered an asset;
- Skilled in photography, and editing and designing applications such as InDesign, Photoshop, Canva, etc.
- Commitment to SWN’s mission and values.
Core Competencies and Technical Expertise
- Excellent ability to work effectively under pressure, prioritize and implement multiple tasks within strict deadlines, and produce high-quality deliverables.
- Excellent verbal and written communication skills in English and Nepali.
- Strong at using MS Word, MS Excel, and MS PowerPoint.
- Proactive and detail-oriented individual with a dedication to identifying solutions to problems.
- Ability and willingness for field travel.
- Positive attitude and a good sense of humor.
TO APPLY
Interested candidates are encouraged to apply by emailing your CV, indicating your current address in Kathmandu, no later than March 3, 2024, at lws@swnepal.com.np, before 5 p.m. A cover letter is not required at this stage.
Only shortlisted candidates who meet the criteria will be contacted for the interview. We encourage candidates of diverse backgrounds, including women and differently-abled ones, to apply.
The potential applicants are encouraged to visit www.swnepal.com.np for more details on our team, location, and services.