Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, Federal Government of Somalia
Shock Responsive Safety Net for Human Capital Project (P171346)
SNHCP Liaison Officer under Project Implementation Unit (PIU)

TERMS OF REFERENCE

BACKGROUND

A Liaison Officer (LO) is required to coordinate the implementation of the Shock Responsive Safety Net for Human Capital Project (SNHCP) [known as Baxnaano in Somali] funded by the World Bank. This program will be implemented across the Federal Member States (FMS). The Liaison Officer will act as liaisons between the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs in the Federal Government of Somalia (FGS), as the lead implementing agency of the SNHCP, and Federal Member States (FMS) to facilitate implementation of the SNHCP at regional and district levels smoothly.

Project Overview: FGS has secured a US$ 65 million equivalent grant from the World Bank’s (WB) IDA pre-arrears clearance grant to be applied towards implementation of SNHCP over a three-year period. The SNHCP Program consists of three components.

Component 1: This Component would provide unconditional cash transfers to households that are chronically poor and vulnerable to drought and malnutrition and link them to complementary nutritional support programs. The objectives of the component are: (i) support households to strengthen their resilience and avoid negative coping mechanisms (e.g. selling off existing households’ assets) to meet escalating needs as a result of the drought in the short term; and (ii) promote human capital investment in the medium to long term by linking beneficiary households to complementary nutrition services (where they exist) and continuing to smooth consumption gaps through predictable and reliable provision of cash transfer, even after drought risks are no longer present. Around 200,000 beneficiary households (approximately 1.2 million individuals) with children under five years of age will receive a monthly payment of US$ 20 delivered on a quarterly basis, initially for a one-year duration. The benefit size has been based on estimates and initial data on prices of the minimum expenditure basket (MEB) for food. While food prices vary significantly by region and season, rough estimates indicate that a US$ 20 benefit would cover on average about 50-70 percent of the MEB, based on the December 2018 price data. Mothers or female caregiver of the children would be the direct recipients of the transfer. Implementation of Component 1 will be supported by WFP that will be contracted by MoLSA under a service contract arrangement to deliver nutrition-linked cash transfers.

Component 2: This component would establish the key building blocks of a SP delivery system and advance policy development, as well as strengthen institutional capacity of relevant government ministries to manage and implement it. The objective of the component is to build capacity of FGS/MoLSA to gradually take over full management and implementation of a safety net program and form the foundation for a more comprehensive social protection system in Somalia. The component will provide policy support; technical assistance for the development of safety net delivery systems: a unified social registry, MIS, operational procedures for registration, enrollment, targeting, grievance redress, payment delivery, monitoring, community outreach and information campaign; and capacity building activities. The component will be implemented with TA and implementation support by UNICEF.

Component 3: This component would establish a Project Implementation Unit (PIU), strengthen MoLSA’s coordination arrangements, promote learning and knowledge management through robust M&E and support the design of a pilot productive safety net targeted at youth. Specifically, the PIU would be established at the federal level at MoLSA during the first year. Subsequently, Liaison Officers would be established in the member states. Focus would also be given to strengthening MoLSA’s coordination arrangements within other ministries and stakeholders at the federal level, and between the Federal level and the Member States at the local level.

Project beneficiaries:
The SNHCP is expected to target 200,000 poor and vulnerable households, in selected districts across all FMS, with children under five years of age in selected districts across the Federal Member States and provide them with nutrition-linked cash transfer.

JOB SUMMARY

The SNHCP Liaison Officer will help to coordinate the implementation of project activities at the FMS level between the PIU of the MoLSA, WFP and UNICEF and the relevant representatives of the FMS, as well as other consultants, both individuals and firms, hired under the SNHCP to facilitate effective delivery of project activities to achieve the overall project objectives. The SNHCP Liaison Officer will work closely with the MOLSA PIU team and other implementing partners under Component 1 & 2, namely WFP and UNICEF.

The Liaison Officer will work under the supervision of the Director General at the Federal Member State and will report to Director General at FMS and the PIU Project Manager at MoLSA/FGS. He/She will give quarterly reports to Project Implementation Unit Coordinator at MOLSA and Director General of the recipient ministry.

Duties and Responsibilities

Specific tasks of the Liaison officer include:

⦁ Serve as a point of contact and sensitize the relevant representatives at counterpart ministries at the FMS level, community-based organizations (CBOs) and other social partners on social protection and SNHCP to create champions for Baxnaano at the FMS level

⦁ Facilitate cooperation between the MoLSA/FGS and the relevant representatives at counterpart ministries at the FMS level on SNHCP activities and communicate priorities and concerns of the represented FMS to the PIU at the FGS level;

⦁ Coordinate with the relevant representatives at counterpart ministries at the FMS level, the PIU/MoLSA, and field teams of WFP and relevant UNICEF staff, as well as the CBOs and other social protection partners to support the implementation of the SNHCP in his/her respective FMS;

⦁ Attend and organize relevant meetings to support the implementation and coordination of SHNCP activities, as requested by the representing FMS and the PIU/MoLSA

⦁ Prepare briefing notes, debriefs, reports necessary for the implementation and coordination of SHNCP activities etc. and ensure follow-up on the represented FMS progress, as required;

⦁ Notify the PIU/MoLSA of pending and important issues to be raised during social protection meetings

⦁ Recommend responses and action plans as a result of interacting with the project’s field team and the local community

⦁ Enable the flow of information between all relevant parties, particularly the relevant representatives at counterpart ministries at the FMS level, including on possible observed risks and reporting immediately to the PIU/MoLSA complaints related to the SNHCP in line with SNHCP complaints procedure for the PIU/MoLSA to respond as necessary;

⦁ In collaboration with relevant representatives at counterpart ministries at the FMS level, the PIU/MoLSA, and field teams of WFP and UNICEF, organize and participate in community sensitization and outreach activities to raise awareness to develop greater understanding of SNHCP and enhanced community partnership/commitment for the SNHCP/Baxnaano program;

⦁ Compile and share reports about particular incidents, events, or updates on important issue for the project

⦁ Participate in trainings, workshops, supervision and implementation support missions conducted by the World Bank, and ‘learning-by-doing’ opportunities related to the SNHCP as requested by the PIU;

⦁ Perform any other duties as required by the PIU Project Manager and/or represented FMS authority.

Qualifications

a) Bachelor’s degree in one of the following areas: development studies, social work, management, public administration or business administration or any other relevant fields;

b) 5 years of relevant working experience at the national or international level in project/programme coordination and management areas including humanitarian organizations, international NGOs, and government.

d) Demonstrated knowledge of the Somalia development agenda, mechanisms and principles of social protection, Safety net programs and intra-governmental processes;

e) Proven skills and ability in effectively communicating with and coordinating across diverse groups of stakeholders, including project staff, partners, government authorities, private sector, communities as well as beneficiaries;

f) Excellent communication (spoken and written) skills in Somali and English, including the ability to communicate proactively with key stakeholders, correctly interpret messages from others and respond appropriately. The candidate will demonstrate openness in sharing information;

Application Details: To apply, send your CV to socialp@molsa.gov.so indicating the vacancy number and location for the position you are applying to by 30 April 2020.