INTERNSHIP TITLE: Programmatic Internship –Communication Strategy development
INTERN WORKSITE LOCATION: Niamey, Niger
DATES OF INTERNSHIP: Fall 2016 (flexible)
LENGTH OF INTERNSHIP: Three to six months (flexible)
INTERNS SUPERVISOR & CONTACT INFORMATION:
The intern will report to the Deputy Country Director
The intern will work closely with the Niger Coms Officer and all program teams
FUNDING AVAILABLE FOR THE INTERNSHIP:
- Mercy Corps responsibilities
For the duration of this internship assignment the intern will receive:
- Accommodation in Niger
- Local business related travel
- International emergency med-evac insurance through ISOS
- Intern responsibilities
Intern will remain responsible for all costs associated with:
- Living costs (other than accommodation),
- International travel to Niger
- Personal related travel costs,
- Visa fees,
- Medical insurance valid during stay in Niger
PROJECT DESCRIPTION:
Mercy Corps has been operational in Niger since September 2005. With a focus on food security, health, nutrition, livelihoods, governance, decentralization and emergency response, Mercy Corps’ goal in Niger is to “Empower Nigerien communities to be resilient in the face of shocks and stresses and responsible for sustainable, inclusive, and equitable development”. Mercy Corps intends to establish a strong communication department in Niger, with clear and concise communication strategy that would ensure our programs’ impact, initiatives are well captured and transformed into story telling messages, factsheets, brochures, leaflets, videos, etc. to inform our donors, stakeholders, governments and relevant audiences about the excellent accomplishment of Mercy Corps’ programs in Niger. In order to achieve the above objective and ensure quality and effective communication strategy and its implementation processes are put in place in Niger, Mercy Corps Niger is looking for skillful interns to support this process, build staff capacity of local staff, learn as well from all staff.
Specific activities will be:
- Write up a communication strategy for Mercy Corps Niger in close coordination and consultation with Mercy Corps Niger leadership team, Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning teams, HQ communication teams, etc.
- Provide support to the MEL manager in data collection, analysis, organization, presentation and turning the data into success stories, Press Release, Factsheets, catalogues, brochures etc. for internal and external communication
- Blogging and or compiling other written releases or reports for communication
- Work with sector heads to ensure that case studies and success stories from all programs/projects are well documented and communicated periodically.
- Prepare and update programmatic and operational communication materials
- Cataloging stories/quotes for project descriptions and qualitative data use
- Collection, cataloging and organization of programmatic and organizational knowledge and learning
- Conducting, documenting and recording beneficiary interviews and share all learnings from program implementations
- Work closely with program team members to develop and maintain an excellent communication, and facilitate periodic reflection and analysis of program monitoring information that feeds into programming and learning.
- Participate in on-going M&E training and support for all Mercy Corps programs in Niger
- Visit field offices, sites and partners to collect supplementary data, success stories and conduct qualitative research both independently and in teams
- Establish database for private sector partners working with the programs and work closely with the program team to monitor progress and write up stories.
- Maintain professional relationships with local government officials, private sector partners, NGOs, other development organizations, and civil society organizations and communicate regularly on programs’ accomplishments and lessons learned
- Maintain an active advisory role with each program team to help guide them towards robust and relevant data collection to inform communication purposes
- Work closely with MEL Manager, Deputy Country Director and/or Director of Programs and other relevant staffs to ensure that activities’ accomplishments, lessons learned and success stories are timely and effectively captured and reported accordingly, including reports to be submitted to donors, press releases, reportage, podcasts, videos, etc.
- Beneficiaries would likely have to be pre-identified by our staff for interview and write up their story. This would include human interest stories that reflect our work and/or major impacts Mercy Corps Niger has had from programs’ interventions in the country
LEARNING OBJECTIVES:
At the end of the internship, the intern will be familiar with programs and communication, designing strategies, reports writing, success stories’ writing, commonly used M&E tools, and will understand methodologies for data collection, analysis and reporting requirement.
DELIVERABLES:
- A robust communication strategy is developed, with clear action plans
- Communication strategy is implemented in close collaboration and coordination with all programs/ops teams
- Accomplishments, Impacts, lessons learned and success stories’ reporting tools developed and reports are written (at least one success story for each active programs, and two previous ones)
- Program quarterly/final reports reviewed and finalized and communication pieces drawn out for communication purposes.
- Quality impact data collected and analyzed from existing programs
- An in-country communication team’s capacity is strengthened
IDEAL CANDIDATE SHOULD POSSESS THE FOLLOWING QUALIFICATIONS:
- Graduate study in journalism/communication, social science, management, international development, international relations or other relevant field
- The ideal candidate should have excellent writing abilities, be able to interact with a diverse set of staff, and understand the basics of organizational development.
- She or he should have the ability to design and develop strategies, especially in the area of communication, advocacy and policy
- Previous field experience in West Africa or other French developing countries preferred. Previous work with development organizations is a plus.
- The intern should have a management background (even if only academic) with a focus on capacity building and empowerment. The intern will be creative, flexible, able to work in a team, and possess strong writing skills.
- The intern will become an integral member of the Mercy Corps team with a chance to leave a lasting impact on the program.
- The intern will have patience, perseverance, initiative and a sense of humor
- Proficiency in written and spoken French required
LIVING CONDITIONS:
The intern will be based in Niamey, the capital of Niger. Niamey lies on the east bank of the Niger River, with nearly a million population. Niamey is relatively secure. Living conditions are generally essential with fairly regular electricity with occasional outage. It is possible to find apartments with air conditioning and television. There are reasonably good hotels and foreign food as well as local are available. Mercy Corps’ Niger employees are expected to work a five-day a week and may be required to work evenings and weekends when necessary. Access to health care is limited. The intern will be expected to travel to field offices, by vehicle or flight.
Mercy Corps interns and volunteers represent the agency both during and outside of work hours and are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner and respect local laws, customs and MC’s policies, procedures, and values at all times and in all in-country venues
