UNDP Liberia

UNITED NATIONS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME
EXTERNAL VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT No. SSA /07 /004

Post Title : Consultant for Poverty and Social Impact Assessment (PSIA)
Post Level : Special Service Agreement
Duty Station : Monrovia with field based research
Duration : 8-10 weeks
Start Date : Immediately
Advertised on : 21 June 2007
Application Deadline: 27 June 2007

BACKGROUND

Like many countries with an abundance of natural resources, Liberia's protracted civil war was not one fought for control of these resources. Over the course of the conflict, revenues accrued from these often labour-intensive, extractive industries went to supporting the movements of several warring factions, ultimately leading to United Nations Security Council sanctions on the sale of these commodities. This has been particularly true in the case of diamonds, not only in Liberia, but also her close neighbor Sierra Leone. Efforts are being made by the Government of Liberia to improve the conditions of diamond mining communities as well as the miners themselves, most of whom are small, artisanal miners. With the newly lifted United Nations sanctions, this will be more important than ever as mining activity resumes. The situation in mining communities and amongst the diggers, agents and brokers transcends pure resource distribution in the communities, and involves local and national legal structures and systems. In order to guarantee the effectiveness of proposed legal and social re-structuring, a foundational Poverty and Social Impact Assessment (PSIA) is needed upon which to base reforms.

OBJECTIVES OF THE PSIA

The objective of this PSIA is two fold; primarily to assess the impact of existing legal and managerial/investment arrangements on the lives and livelihoods of the individual miners, and on the other hand of mining communities at large. The Government of Liberia is moving towards a new mineral policy, which will directly impact the miners and mining communities.

In this regard, the PSIA exercise will focus particularly on individuals, households and communities engaged in and dependent on alluvial, artisanal diamond mining for their livelihoods. The exercise will analyze the distribution of revenues from the sales of diamonds to the various players in the sub-sector extending from the laborers, the individual miner to the communities and government. It will appraise the impact of the legal framework governing the exploitation of alluvial artisanal mining, including related land tenure and use issues. The assessment will also address the ongoing labor relations and standard remuneration arrangements for mine workers [boys/diggers] and miners, and other actors engaged in the production/trading cycle of rough diamonds. It will focus on how these two major factors impact the living conditions of the mining communities both at the individual and community level. Given the existing local development structures such as the District Development Committees (DDCs), the assessment will also look into the specific role these DDCs are playing in mining areas and how they can be strengthened specifically towards the support of miners. The PSIA team will also be expected to recommend possible measures to improve upon the existing legal and customary distribution arrangements, highlighting any identified policy gaps which may currently be exacerbating the situation.

METHODOLOGY

The research methodology is expected to be interactive, requiring field visits to mining communities, as well as extensive interaction with key government ministries and agencies to support available statistical and quantitative data. Essential to the methodology are the following:

" Gathering of relevant information from Ministry of Lands, Mines & Energy, Ministry of Justice and Ministry of Labour

" Review the existing legal framework such as the new mineral policy and mining laws

" Conduct, open ended, separate (semi-structured) interviews with laborers, miners, the mining communities, local authorities and DDCs, relevant government Ministries and offices, and other local and national stakeholders

" Engage in participatory collection of base line date. This data will feed the activities that may be undertaken in the future in the same areas, thus becoming their "base-line-indicators."

" Adopt an interactive analytical process where questions will be formulated, answered and analyzed interactively with communities and other stakeholders

SPECIFIC TASKS

1. Review and analyze the existing mining laws and any related legislation and mineral policies on the diamond mining sub-sector. Assess their impact on the lives and livelihoods of all citizens directly or indirectly involved in the mining activities.

2. Determine the contribution of laws, policies and customary labor arrangements, and the absence of a community development component of these policies and laws to illicit mining and trading with close attention to smuggling of rough diamonds.

3. Appraise and analyze the current 'customary' labor relations and remuneration arrangements for mine workers at the level of the mining site, and determine the impact of these relations on individual social and economic development.

4. Assess the impact of a lack of revenue distribution arrangement and its role in curbing savings and capital accumulation in the communities as well as its contribution to the perpetuity of abject poverty in the mining communities.

5. Suggest alternative arrangements that would facilitate a better and more equitable distribution of revenues among the key mining stakeholders as well as providing recommendations to fill the gap in new mining laws and mineral policies, with regards to community development.

6. Evaluate the impact of the existing legal and managerial/administrative arrangements on the national revenue. Identify any opportunity costs, and recommend possible remedial measures and activities.

QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE

1. Bachelor Degree in Development Studies, Agriculture and Forestry, Geography, Economics or related social studies with good field research background.

2. Ability to interact tactfully with local community representatives as well as government Ministries and Agencies

3. Excellent written and oral English

4. Minimum of 5-7 years work experience, specifically natural resource Management, Agriculture, Forestry and Mining

5. Flexibility and willingness to work in challenging working environments
6. Proven background knowledge of social, cultural and poverty dynamics in Liberia
7. Exhibited familiarity with production and trade arrangements of the alluvial diamond mining sector and related human development priorities
8. Familiarity with Liberian customary land use and tenure systems
9. Expertise in:
" Policy analysis
" Poverty assessment
" Economic and Statistical analysis, and
" PSIA and PRSP
It is reminded that the consultants should be fully available for the entire duration of the assignment and not be engaged otherwise.

Fluency in Oral and Written English

Qualified female candidates are especially encouraged to apply.

All applications should be accompanied with up-to-date curriculum vitae, photocopies of certificates and relevant documents including names and addresses of three referees. Please submit application clearly marked on top of the envelope "APPLICATION FOR CONSULTANT FOR POVERTY AND SOCIAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT" to

Deputy Resident Representative for Operations (Attention: HR Unit)
United Nations Development Programme
Simpson Apartment, Sekou Toure Avenue
Mamba Point
Monrovia, Liberia
Attractive and negotiable salaries

Kindly note that only short listed candidates will receive acknowledgement, and be contacted for an interview and /or test.

Email application to this vacancy should be sent to vacancies.lr@undp.org. Please insert Vacancy Announcement Number in the Subject of the Email or written application. Applications without the Vacancy announcement Number or with the incorrect Vacancy Announcement number will be accepted. Attach photocopies of qualifications (i.e technical certificates and academicals) and a one-page cover letter indicating your interest and suitability for the position.

cc: ALL UN Agencies and UNDP Programmes / Projects and all Counties.

Note: All applications/queries must be addressed to: vacancies.lr@undp.org
Also you can download the P11 Form here