Consultant to moderate a virtual media engagement Forum 179 views0 applications

BACKGROUND

Almost a quarter of the world’s population lives in substandard shelter, impacting their health and livelihoods and their children’s education. Since 1976, Habitat for Humanity has helped more than 10 million people worldwide improve their shelter conditions. Yet, Habitat’s construction efforts alone cannot keep pace with the massive and growing need. In fact, no response by governments or private philanthropy alone can meet the shelter needs of 1.6 billion people.

Habitat for Humanity established the Terwilliger Center for Innovation in Shelter (Terwilliger Center) to work with housing market systems by supporting local firms and expanding innovative and client-responsive services, products and financing so that households can improve their shelter more effectively and efficiently. This is based on the understanding that the role of local markets is critical. Indeed, most low-income people already use available market options to put a roof — no matter how frail or insecure— over their heads. These transactions in the local market far outstrip any philanthropic effort to improve shelter. Therefore, Habitat for Humanity strives to make markets work more effectively for people in need of decent, affordable housing. Ultimately, Habitat can have exponentially more impact by improving systems that make better housing possible for millions more families.

HOUSING CONSTRUCTION LABOUR PROGRAMME IN KENYA

The Terwilliger Center and HFH East Africa in Kenya are currently implementing a Market Systems Housing Construction Labour Programme aimed at stimulating improved access and adoption of quality housing construction labour services and improving the job quality and conditions of housing construction workers. The programme focuses on four main components: (I) Facilitating development and uptake of construction material procurement platforms to promote households and construction labourers’ access to quality and reliable building materials; (ii) supporting construction materials and equipment suppliers to up-skill and equip construction labourers as a route to market and to increase user knowledge, (iii) Support linkage of construction labourers to markets through construction labour aggregation platforms; and (iv) collaborate with public and private sector actors to research and dialogue in order to reform the construction market. The programme anticipates that majority of the artisans reached will be youth.

BACKGROUND

The Terwilliger Center and HFH East Africa in Kenya recently partnered with Nation Media Group to feature the Housing Construction Labour Sector in Kenya on NTV’s Wicked Edition Show. NTV’s Wicked Edition Show capitalizes on the relationship between truth and humour and seeks to address serious issues through humour. The show discussed various themes within Kenya’s housing construction labour sector and also featured current partners to the Terwilliger Centre’s Housing Construction labour Programme. Among themes discussed were contracting fundis that are better skilled and more efficient, the construction process, on-site training for artisans, skills and job opportunities in the Housing Construction Labour sector and importance of recognition and certification based on prior learning for housing construction artisans.

This intervention aimed at informing and educating various actors in the housing construction labour sector about solutions that promote quality housing construction labour in Kenya, leading to increased access and adoption of quality, skilled and affordable labour services. The partnership also aimed at demonstrating a case for adoption of media to influence sensitisation and uptake of various market-based solutions; targeted to address challenges affecting access and adoption of quality and affordable housing construction labour. An analysis conducted after the show indicated that partners who participated in the show recorded increased publicity and interest in their solutions. The partners also indicated willingness to adopt use of media to influence behaviour change that leads to uptake of their solutions.

THE VIRTUAL DISSEMINATION FORUM

The Terwilliger Centre wishes to disseminate the results of this intervention in a virtual media engagement forum. Specifically, objectives of the virtual forum will be to:

1. Disseminate the findings, reach and some early impacts of the media intervention,
2. Fill in information gaps form the outreach analysis carried out by Terwilliger Centre,
3. Explore emerging opportunities for further media engagement (including beyond TV)

SCOPE OF WORK

The moderator will;

1. Identify a suitable virtual engagement tool/medium and set up the virtual forum,
2. Working closely with designated programme Specialists, develop a comprehensive agenda, content and discussion guideline for the roundtable,
3. Facilitate the round table forum and guide presentations and discussions in line with the forum’s objectives,
4. Synthesise key emerging discussions relevant to Terwilliger Center’s programme objectives, and guide participants towards key actionable ideas for uptake,
5. Provide a forum report detailing key action points
6. Develop scripting for a national forum to be broadcasted on NTV, with the aim of showcasing results of previous media intervention and innovative actions agreed upon at the media engagement roundtable.

DELIVERABLES:

1. An expertly moderated virtual forum to meet the objectives of the forum and with clear actionable points that will contribute to promoting quality housing construction labour and job quality and conditions of housing construction workers in Kenya,
2. A forum report within two weeks after the forum.
3. A final script for the national forum to be broadcast on NTV.

DURATION OF THE TASK

The moderator will be engaged for 8 days, inclusive of 1 day for developing the roundtable agenda, 1 day for content development, 1 day dry run ,1 day for the virtual forum and debrief with the Terwilliger Centre team, 2 days for report preparation and submission and 2 days for scripting for the national forum broadcasted on national television.

KEY COMPETENCIES

The moderator will be a media engagement expert with experience in facilitating virtual forums and experience and understanding of how media interventions can be harnessed to promote sustainable development programmes.

In addition, the moderator will have:

1. Bachelor’s Degree in Communications or Journalism from a recognized institution
2. Understanding of Kenya’s housing and media sector
3. Demonstrable experience working with a wide range of stakeholders in public and private sector.
4. Proven analytical, interpersonal and communication skills
5. Understanding of Market Systems approaches and experience working with housing programmes is an added advantage