Consultancy for Project Expert, Knowledge Management

Introduction and Context

The African Union Inter-African Bureau for Animal Resources (AU-IBAR) is a specialized technical office of the Department Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy and Sustainable Environment (DARBE) of the African Union Commission (AUC). The vision of AU-IBAR is: “An Africa in which animal resources contribute significantly to integration, prosperity and peace”. Its Mission is: to provide leadership and integrated support services for the development of animal resources in Africa.

AU-IBAR’s mandate is to support and coordinate the sustainable development and utilization of animal resources (livestock, fisheries and wildlife) to enhance nutrition and food security and contribute to the wellbeing and prosperity of the people in the Member States of the AU.

AU-IBAR is the main vehicle for the AU to develop appropriate and independent expertise to support and coordinate the sustainable development and utilization of animal resources to enhance food and nutrition security and contribute to the wellbeing and prosperity of the people in the AU Member States. Under this mandate, AU-IBAR is implementing the Africa Pastoral Markets Development (APMD) Platform, a 4-year pan-African initiative for investment/market-enabled, adaptive transformation for pastoralism.

AU-IBAR recognizes that pastoralists are critical for Inclusive Agricultural Transformation in Africa as: Pastoralists account for 2 – 7% of national GDP and contribute 60 – 80% of meat across Africa (up to 50% of meat exports in many geographies). Demand for meat and milk in SSA expected to increase by more than 250% by 2050. Pastoralists provide valuable ecosystem services, using indigenous climate adaptive practices on marginal lands, sequestering carbon, and managing water in ASAL regions. Despite potential benefits, pastoral programs have focused on humanitarian activities instead of integrating pastoralists with livestock markets.

However, pastoralists are severely marginalized and disproportionately impacted by climate change. Historic investments, though significant, have had limited impact. Given the increasing demand for livestock products, pressure on natural resources, and climate shocks, AU-IBAR is committed to promoting the adoption of a long-term systems lens and coordinated actions within and across countries and sectors/stakeholders to tailor approaches to pastoral communities and archetypes.

With support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (B&MGF), AU-IBAR is hosting and operationalizing the APMD Platform, a 4-year continental initiative, which will build on prior programs and strengthen the pastoral sector enabling environment to:

• Integrate pastoralists with livestock markets, create positive cycles for investment in the value chain, strengthen business continuity, and provide more affordable livestock-sourced products for more consumers.
• Unlock the full potential of up to USD Three Billion of planned pastoral investments over the next 3-5 years
• Strengthen best practice & knowledge sharing for promoting pastoralists’ integration into livestock markets; and
• Identify potential areas to shift long-term funding and investments for better outcomes for pastoralists.

The APMD Platform will strategically influence, promote and provide visibility of market-focused interventions to enhance pastoral integration into livestock markets, among key stakeholders. The platform will achieve that by convening and coordinated actions through multi-stakeholder fora designed to implement priority actions under the three pillars below:

• Policy strengthening and strategic implementation,
• Strengthening the pastoralists integration in livestock marketing, and
• Strengthening and diffusing functional data ecosystems

Objective

For the implementation of this project, AU-IBAR seeks the services of a “Project Expert – Knowledge Management” with experience in organizational development and/or social dynamics for behavior Change. The Knowledge Management expert will lead the development and execution of knowledge management and communication activities to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of Platform across pillars and implementing geographies, with specific support to the behavior change of pastoralists for enhancing their integration into livestock markets. The Project Expert – Knowledge Management will work across multi-functional pillars teams to ensure the platform knowledge is effectively captured and communicated to relevant stakeholders.

Tasks

The Project Expert, Knowledge Management will be expected to:

• Knowledge messages development and sharing
• Content creation and curation through innovative approaches
• Organizational development and/or social dynamics, and behavior change.
• Management of the project knowledge ecosystem

The key responsibilities of the Consultant will include the following:

1. Contribute towards the development and expansion of AU-IBAR knowledge management practices and tools.
2. Support the development and dissemination of knowledge and data through enhanced communication, strengthened knowledge products, and enhanced visibility
3. Ensure that the knowledge content is accurate, up-to-date, and effectively communicates to the pastoral sector stakeholders.
4. Promote the behavior changes due to knowledge development and sharing /communication, towards integration in livestock marketing and pastoral transformation.
5. Lead the dissemination of knowledge products and publications, such as sector reports, case studies, and other informational materials relevant to the pastoral sector and Platform activities
6. Maintain and contribute to updating the APMD-platform information and content management and knowledge sharing platforms.
7. Foster online collaboration through support of online “Community of Practice”.
8. Liaise with gender experts, women’s groups, and partners on gender integration
9. Capacity Building for Media
10. Conduct regular reviews and evaluations to identify areas of improvement/gaps and ensure the alignment of knowledge management strategies with the platform goals
11. Perform any other duties as requested by the Project Coordinator and the Director of AU-IBAR

Expected Outputs and Deliverables

1. Comprehensive APMD-Platform knowledge management and communication strategy, with particular focus on behavior change of pastoral communities.
2. Functional and user-friendly knowledge sharing and documentation tool / system
3. Knowledge products and dissemination
4. Published external information resources
5. Monitoring and evaluation reports on the knowledge management activities and impact
6. Knowledge audits and needs assessments
7. Taxonomy and content curation processes

Duty stations

The Expert will be stationed in the AU-IBAR offices in Nairobi, Kenya with travel on specific assignments agreed with the AU-IBAR Management.

Duration

The duration of this assignment is 6 months. The contract may be renewed subject to availability of funds and satisfactory performance.

Remuneration

The remuneration for this Consultancy shall be an all-inclusive monthly fee equivalent to P2 Step 5 on the AUC Salary Scale and shall not exceed US$ 5,303 per month.
The expert will be responsible for his/her medical and travel insurance cover for the duration of the consultancy. Expenses for travel on official missions will be covered separately by AU-IBAR in accordance with the applicable African Union Commission rules and regulations.

Supervision and Reporting

The candidate will be under the direct supervision of the Project Coordinator and the Senior Knowledge Management Officer under the overall supervision of the Director of AU-IBAR.

Requirements

Academic and Professional Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree in Information Management, Library and Information Science, Communication for Social and Behavior Change, or related fields.
• A post-graduate degree or other qualification in the same or related fields will be considered as an advantage.

General Experience

• Experience working in a multicultural environment and engaging a diverse range of stakeholders
• Excellent drafting, analysis, reporting, communication and presentation skills
• Strong project management skills
• Able to stay update on emerging technologies, industry trends, and best practices in Knowledge and Information Management

Specific / Relevant Experience

• Minimum of five (5) years of experience in knowledge management and information communication, preferably within the pastoral or livestock sector or agriculture sector
• Proved experience in developing knowledge products like case studies, FAQs, infographics, storytelling, social learning, taxonomy development etc.
• Experience in conducting knowledge audits, gap analysis, needs assessments
• Practical experience with knowledge management software, databases, and ICT (Information and Communication Technology) tools.
• High competence to conduct and use findings of research, including data collection, analysis, and synthesis to inform project strategies and knowledge management practices.
• Skillful in building and maintaining relationships with project stakeholders, including government agencies, NGOs, community organizations, etc.
• Experience in working with national, regional and/or international organizations on knowledge sharing initiatives.
• Ability to work effectively in diverse cultural settings and adapt knowledge management approaches to fit targeted contexts and needs.

Other Skills

• Self-starter with the ability to strategically plan own work and follow-up on implementation
• Excellent interpersonal/teamwork skills
• Excellent planning and organizing skills
• Excellent communicating skills in English language is required. Expert must be able to communicate with influence
• Analytical Thinking and Problem Solving
• Job Knowledge and Information Sharing

Language

Proficiency in one of the AU working languages (Arabic, English, French, Kiswahili, Portuguese, and Spanish) and fluency in another AU language is desirable.

Gender Mainstreaming

The AU Commission is an equal opportunity employer and qualified women are strongly encouraged to apply.

Evaluation Criteria

The applications will be evaluated based on the relevant technical qualifications, experience and competence of the candidates.

Criteria Scores (%)

Qualifications 15

General Experience 20

Specific Experience 40

Skills and Competencies 20

Language 5

Total 100

Applicants who meet the technical requirements may be invited for an interview (virtual or in person as is appropriate).