Republic of Tajikistan

Learning Environment – Foundation of Quality Education Project 

Consulting services

Contract No MOES/LEARN/IC/2023-04

 

Position: Social development specialist 

 Issuance date: 07/04/2023

Closing date/time: 21/04/2023

 

BASIC FUNCTION OF POSITION:

The Government of the Republic of Tajikistan has received grant funding in the amount of US$50.0 million from the World Bank for the implementation of the "Learning Environment – Foundation of Quality Education Project” (the Project, LEARN) during 2023-2029. The Project will be implemented by the Ministry of Education and Science (MOES), and in close coordination with the Agency for Supervision in the Sphere of Education and Science (ASSES). 

The Project Development Objective is to enhance the quality of teaching and learning environments in selected general secondary schools.

 “Teaching and Learning environment” in this project refers to the complete physical, social, and pedagogical context in which learning is intended to occur. The teaching and learning environment in this project is defined as consisting of the skills and competencies of teachers and physical learning spaces where learning occurs . It is school settings (not just classrooms) and contexts in which students learn and teachers teach within the school premises.

The purpose of this assignment to provide technical assistance and oversight on social development aspects of the project design.   The specialist will provide advice, guidance and oversight to help ensure compliance with the WB social aspects in the development of the Environmental and Social Instruments in compliance with the WB Environmental and Social Standards.  Additionally, the specialist shall advise on design features to ensure active participation of target populations, inclusion of women, vulnerable and marginal sections of the rural population in the project planning and implementation. 

 

MAJOR DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

During the implementation of the assignment, the Environmental Specialist should be guided by the World Bank’s Environmental and Social Framework (ESF) requirements as well as the current legislation of the Republic of Tajikistan and will ensure the effective implementation of the commitments outlined in the Environmental and Social Commitment Plan (ESCP) and line with the Environmental & Social Management Framework (ESMF) and Environmental and Social Management Plans (ESMPs). The Social Development Specialist working in close collaboration with the Environmental Specialist will be responsible for: 

· Providing input to the relevant sections of the draft Project Operational Manual to ensure that social development aspects are adequately addressed.

· Overseeing the work of and providing input (if needed) in the development of the Environmental and Social Management Framework (ESMF), Environmental and Social Commitment Plan (ESCP), Resettlement Policy Framework (RPF); Stakeholder Engagement Plan (SEP), Labour Management Procedures (LMP) for the Project in accordance with the World Bank Environmental and Social Framework (ESF) and relevant Environmental and Social Standards (ESSs) and applicable provisions/ requirements.

· Providing necessary support to the contracted consultants/firm for assessment of the World Bank and Tajikistan’s Environment and Social Assessment policies, legal, and administrative conditions in terms of completeness and appropriateness, and gaps between Tajikistan and World Bank requirements and propose reconciliation provisions under the proposed project. 

· Providing inputs into project implementation to foster the participatory planning and management of project investments to enable rural people to increase their productive assets in ways that contribute to landscape restoration.  The consultant shall pay attention to social development aspects such as participation of poor and marginal groups, gender, identification of social risks, mitigating adverse impacts on disadvantaged groups, etc. The specialist will draw upon good practices such as tools for participatory rural appraisal in this task.

· Ensuring that the Grievance Redress Mechanism (GRM) is established and implemented for project staff, stakeholders, project affected persons, and that staff have been informed of the purpose of the GRM and how to use it within the component;

· Providing inputs into monitoring of the Project Results Framework, especially to monitor relevant social and economic indicators, their means of verification, etc.

 

· Liaising with government and other agencies and organization to facilitate access to and collection of data relevant to social development aspects, e.g., gender, poor and vulnerable groups, participation, institutions, decision-making arrangements, etc., for the purposes project design including monitoring and evaluation.

· Liaising with key organizations including international and national NGOs and agencies working on social development at jamoat and district levels to study their experience and suggest the most effective approaches to support social similar activities in proposed project areas, and also organize meetings with relevant organizations;

· Visiting potential project sites to examine the social conditions and meet with key institutional and community players;

· Participating in relevant seminars, workshops, etc., on related issues to support social development assistance in project design; 

· Coordinate as needed with the environmental specialist in the oversight duties.

· Contributing to the development of the capacity building program for the environmental and social risk management and impact mitigation, preparation and implementation of the ESF documents.

· Submit quarterly/semi-annual/annual reports to the MOES Director and the World Bank Group on the progress of work and the adequacy of measures taken to monitor compliance with the established social parameters during the implementation of the project, identify deficiencies and propose corrective measures;

· Prepare and submit Resettlement Action Plan (RAP) if needed;

· Any other tasks agreed with the MOES.

 

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS REQUIRED FOR THIS POSITION:

The selected candidate will conform to the following qualifications and experience profile:

Education:

· University’s degree in field related to international development with a specific academic background related to social development is highly desirable, e.g., a social science, anthropology, political science, public health;

 

Experience:

· At least five years relevant work experience in social development or closely associated sectors and solid background in social development skills (social inclusion, participatory assessments and planning, quantitative and qualitative methods, stakeholder analysis, etc.) is required;

· At least three-year experience with rural or community-level development projects working with a wide range of stakeholders, international organizations, development agencies, and NGOs would be desirable;

· Experience in delivering training (and developing related materials, e.g., manuals, presentations, etc.) to a variety of audiences (e.g., rural population, government staff and specialists, NGOs) is desirable;

· Experience is designing, implementing and monitoring due functioning ofthe GRM;

· Knowledge of education, environmental, rural development, climate change, and food security issues will be an advantage;

· Experience with carrying out social impact assessments would be an advantage.

 

Personal Qualities:

· Applicants must demonstrate enthusiasm for, and commitment, to social development and in fragile settings, with particular interest in addressing the needs of the most vulnerable. A hands-on and action-oriented approach will be essential;

· Excellent communication and inter-personal skills;

· Excellent team-working skills;

· Ability and willingness to travel to remote areas is essential.

 

Other skills and requirements:

· Fluency in written and spoken in Tajik and Russian, fluency in written and spoken English is desirable.

· Skills in preparing high-quality reports will be an asset.

· Computer skills (MS office, MS Word, MS Excel, Power point, Internet E-mail etc.) is required;  

· Knowledge in GIS software will be an advantage;

· Two reference letters from the most recent employers

ASSIGNMENT DURATION, LOCATION AND REPORTING:

The social development specialist will report to and work under the supervision of the Head of Capital Construction Department and the LEARN Project Coordinator. In addition, he/she will report to the WB Social Development Specialists. The social development specialist is expected to be available for this assignment as soon as LEARN becomes effective (expected in March 2023). This assignment is for a total of 12 (twelve) months starting from the contract signing date and renewable annually based on the specialist’s performance and project needs.

 

APPLICATION AND SELECTION: 

The Consultant(s) will be selected in accordance with the procedures set out in the World Bank Guidelines: Selection and Employment of Consultants by World Bank Borrowers (May 2004, revised October 2006, 2010 and 2011). The attention of interested Consultants is drawn to paragraphs 1.9 and 1.11 of the World Bank’s Guidelines: Selection and Employment of Consultants under IBRD Loans and IDA Credits & Grants by World Bank Borrowers dated January 2011 and revised July 2014 (“Consultant Guidelines”), setting forth the World Bank’s policy on conflict of interest and eligibility.  

 

Qualified applicants are requested to send documents via e-mail: maorif-marketing@mail.ru 

Please, include the position title in the subject of the email.

 

For more information, please call: (+992 37) 2274502 from 8:00 to 17:00 

 

The deadline for submitting documents is 21 April 2023, before 17:00 (Dushanbe time).