Health, Safety, Social and Environmental Associate - Social Development

This role combines stakeholder engagement, risk management, and strategic communication to anchor global project activities within the communities they affect. The incumbent facilitates effective interaction with stakeholders, mitigates conflict, and ensures project activities align with social inclusion, human rights, and gender-specific policies.

Responsibilities

• Support the ongoing community stakeholders identification and mapping of their needs, engagement, direct and indirect project impact.
• Support the implement the Stakeholder Engagement Plan (SEP), ensuring full integration of gender-specific stakeholder protocols and mainstreaming guidelines provided by the project manager.
• Conduct regular field visits to meet with community stakeholders, maintaining an open line of communication.
• Proactively respond to enquiries, mediate concerns, and, in consultation to the project management, apply solutions to minimize potential community disruptions.
• Arrange, facilitate, and attend community stakeholder meetings and ensure consultation, providing timely collection and recording of feedback for project improvement.
• In cooperation with the project team, organise public hearings and town hall meetings according to the project and community needs.
• In cooperation with the project team, promote inclusive engagement by identifying and establishing tailored communication channels for vulnerable, marginalized, and hard-to-reach groups within the community.
• Conduct field-based perception surveys and assessments to gather community feedback, as needed, providing data-driven insights to the team, overall helping refine project communication strategies and enhance risk management.
• Assess risks associated with community liaison and contribute to co-create response actions, to ensure project continuity and community relations.
• Report to the project manager community-related grievances or emerging issues to the project team in a timely manner, collect inputs from the project team and integrate them into communication to mitigate negative impacts on project implementation.
• Monitor local community dynamics and media/social media chatter to counter misinformation or rumors regarding project activities before they escalate.
• Support the project team to prepare, and disseminate communication materials that clearly articulate project scope, benefits, and temporary impacts to relevant community members.
• Respond to stakeholder inquiries, ensuring timely, accurate, and transparent communication, and maintaining a log of interactions to track trends and inform project management decision-making.
• Support the preparation of detailed monthly reports to the Project Manager, capturing key engagement metrics, emerging social issues, and the status of community relationships.
• In liaison with the Project Manager, document significant project milestones and community impacts through photography, stories, and testimonials, ensuring this material is utilized for project visibility and reporting.

Requirements

• Completion of secondary school is required.
• A university degree (Bachelor or Master’s), or equivalent in Sociology, Development Studies, or a related field is desired, and may substitute for some years of experience.
• A minimum of six (6) years of experience in communication/liaison, community mobilization, or a relevant field is required.
• Prior experience working with national and international organizations is a significant advantage.
• Fluent English language proficiency is required.

Skills

• Stakeholder Engagement
• Risk Management
• Strategic Communications
• Social Mobilization
• Conflict Mitigation
• Social Inclusion Policies
• Human Rights Policies
• Gender-specific Policies
• Communication Liaison
• Experience with National Organizations
• Experience with International Organizations

Languages

English