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Unleashing the Blue Economy of the Caribbean (UBEC)

Terms of reference

social SPECIALIST

 

1. Background

The Blue Economy is defined as an approach to promote sustainable and integrated use of marine resources for economic growth, improved livelihoods, and job generation while preserving the health of ocean ecosystems.  It covers a range of interdependent sectors, including fisheries, coastal tourism, and waste management.  Fisheries, for example, provide the hospitality industry with quality and affordable seafood, while the tourism sector supports fisher livelihoods and generates employment. Waste management, meanwhile, is crucial to the health of fisheries and other marine resources and ecosystems which are, in turn, critical for the beaches and other natural assets that attract holiday makers. Going forward, anticipating and adapting to the impacts of climate change will be an essential component of the blue economy, ensuring that low-carbon and climate-resilient measures are incorporated across sectors to ensure sustainability of marine resources and continued generation of their benefits.

The Government of Saint Lucia recognizes that the sustainable management and protection of its extensive ocean space and associated marine and coastal resources, particularly in the face of increasing climate change, are crucial to economic growth, job creation, and diversification. On its pathway towards blue growth, Saint Lucia has embarked on several projects and strategic plans that helped advance protection of its blue space and grow the island’s blue economy.

 

1. Project Description

The Unleashing the Blue Economy of the Caribbean (UBEC) will be implemented as a Series of Projects (SOP) in three distinct five-year phases over a fifteen-year period (each project will have a life cycle of five years) involving multi-sectoral blue economy investments to support Caribbean countries to strengthen their climate resilience and accelerate economic recovery from the impacts of COVID-19. Phase 1 of UBEC, to be implemented between fiscal years 2022 and 2028, involves Grenada, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and the OECS Commission and focuses on three interrelated blue economy sectors: tourism, fisheries, and waste management.

The project development objective of the SOP and Phase I is to strengthen the enabling environment for the blue economy, economic recovery, and resilience of selected coastal assets in participating countries and provide immediate and effective response to an eligible emergency. Phase I of the SOP is designed to foster economic recovery and support marine and coastal resilience in Grenada, Saint Lucia, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines by strengthening the sustainability and competitiveness of two critical, interconnected sectors – tourism and fisheries – and one underlying enabling infrastructure service, waste management. The SOP will achieve its objectives by: 1) strengthening regional and national policies and institutional frameworks to bring back business and attract new investments, (2) scaling up innovative financing mechanisms aimed at enhancing employment and productivity in the tourism, fisheries, and waste management value chains through establishment of a regional MSME matching grant program  and a regional climate-risk fisheries insurance scheme, (3) supporting investment in coastal infrastructure to reduce risk and leverage private investment in blue economy activities and strengthen climate resilience, and (4) adopting a contingency emergency response mechanism to respond to future extreme weather events. 

The SOP consists of four components: (i) Strengthening Governance, Policies, and Capacity Building; (ii) Scale Up Access to Finance and Infrastructure Investment; (iii) Contingent Emergency Response Component (CERC); and (iv) Project Management, Monitoring & Evaluation, and Communication.

1. The Project Implementation Unit

The Government of Saint Lucia (GoSLU) is establishing a Project Implementation Unit (PIU) in the Department of Finance at the Ministry of Finance (MoF) responsible for implementing the UBEC project national-level activities and coordinating with relevant ministries, including but not limited to Ministry of Tourism, Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, Ministry of Economic Development, Ministry of Enterprise Development, and Saint Lucia Solid Waste Management Authority. The PIU will have the following positions: Project Manager, Financial Management Specialist, Procurement Officer, Environment Safeguards Specialist, Social Safeguards Specialist, Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist, and Communications Specialist.

The PIU will be a fully integrated part of the MoF structure, relying on UBEC resources to deliver UBEC Project activities, including project planning, financial management, procurement, monitoring and evaluation, environmental and social safeguards, and reporting in accordance with both Government and World Bank requirements.

 

1. Tasks and responsibilities

 

The Social Specialist will be responsible for ensuring that the Project’s ultimate social impacts are achieved, and that any adverse impacts are effectively avoided and/or mitigated in a timely manner. The duties/responsibilities of the Social Specialist include, but are not limited to:

 

General

• Coordinate the implementation, monitoring and reporting of E&S compliance with the Environmental Specialist;
• Implementation of the Environmental and Social Commitment Plan (ESCP) of Saint Lucia and the E&S instruments ESMF, SEP, LMP, RPF, including the implementation of the Grievance Redress Mechanism (GRM) as described in the SEP, and the one dedicated to Project workers, as described in the LMP;
• In coordination with the Environmental Specialist, lead the update of E&S instruments (ESMF, SEP, LMP, RPF) as needed;
• Monitor the implementation of the ESCP, ESMF, SEP, LMP, RPF and the ESMPs to be developed under the UBEC project;
• Review, and ensure that relevant aspects of the ESCP and ESS instruments are duly incorporated into the procurement documents. Support with monitoring to ensure that the consultants and contractors comply with the ESHS specifications of their respective contracts.
• In collaboration with the technical coordinator, monitor and evaluation officer, and other team members, monitor and report on the implementation of the Citizen Engagement (CE) indicator;
• Provide contributions to the regular semi-annual and annual progress reports on projects’ implementation as required by the Government of Saint Lucia and the World Bank;
• Lead the organization and implementation of training to project workers on Environmental and Social Standards, stakeholder engagement, GRM, sexual exploitation and abuse and sexual harassment (SEA/SH) and other topics of relevance for E&S compliance; and
• Perform other duties in line with the scope of the project leading to compliance with environmental and social safeguards and related instruments.

 

Site specific actions for subprojects to be financed under UBEC

• For site-specific subprojects, screen potential social risks and impacts using the screening tools in the ESMF and as necessary lead the preparation, consultation, adoption, disclosure of site- specific environmental and social impact assessments (ESIAs) and Environmental and Social Management Plans (ESMPs) in coordination with other PIU staff and relevant stakeholders.
• Advise on anticipated E&S impacts and possible mitigation measures, and on the preparation of bidding and contracting documents to include social aspects.
• Participate in the evaluation of subproject proposals and advise on social eligibility and acceptability of proposals, based on guidance provided in the ESMF.
• Work with the PIU procurement staff to ensure that social aspects are incorporated as appropriate in contracts for goods and services and that suppliers and contractors are fully aware of their responsibilities in this regard.
• During implementation of the approved subprojects, undertake regular social monitoring to verify whether and how provisions of the ESMF and associated ESMPs as well as SEP, LMP and RPF (as applicable) are followed by all relevant stakeholders (designers, contractors, beneficiaries, etc.).
• Ensure that subcontractors follow ESMPs and other appropriate measures during construction, rehabilitation, and other small scale civil works.
• Report regularly to the Project Manager in writing on the results of monitoring visits, promptly identify any environmental and/or social issues or cases of non-compliance and make recommendations for dealing with those issues.

 

Technical Assistance

• Give technical assistance so that all terms of reference (ToR) for studies, capacity building, training and any technical assistance activities carried out under the Project duly incorporate and take into consideration, the requirements (as applicable) of the E&S Standards of the Environmental and Social Framework (ESF) of the Bank.

 

Responsibilities related to LMP

• Ensure the implementation of the labor management procedures set forth in the LMP.
• Ensure that all project workers, including those of the PIU, sign a Code of Conduct as part of their contracts, including provisions on sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment and violence against children.
• Lead the implementation, monitoring and reporting of the GRM of the LMP.

 

Responsibilities related to the RPF

• For each subproject to be implemented under the UBEC Program, screen and assess the risk of resettlement and restrictions to access to fishers, tourism tour operators and yachting sector to areas in which they usually earn a livelihood, due to stregthened regulations and policies.
• Support the development, consultation, adoption and disclosure of Resettlement Actions Plans (RAPs) for those subprojects causing impacts covered under ESS5 and in line with the RPF.
• Monitor that no construction activities are undertaken before compensation is given to all affected persons.
• Monitor and report on the implementation of RAPs.

 

Stakeholder engagement

• Ensure the implementation of the stakeholder process set forth in the SEP.
• Share Project information and conduct consultations with the relevant Project affected parties and other interested parties on a regular basis to ensure that issues are addressed in a timely manner and that project beneficiaries are kept abreast of developments, in line with the stakeholder engagement process identified in the SEP.
• Systematically document all community consultations and meetings held with project beneficiaries, local communities and other stakeholders in the form of minutes of the meetings.
• Ensure that stakeholders’ feedback is integrated into ESMPs and other site-specific documents, as needed.
• Lead the implementation, monitoring and reporting of the GRM of the SEP.

 

Outputs/deliverables

• Monthly reports;
• Documentation of all consulting processes and instruments produced, including Grievances and GRM logs;
• Biannual reports that consolidate the E&S performance of the Project and as inputs to the project’s biannual report. The social inputs for the biannual report will include but not limited to, the implementation of the ESCP, ESMF, SEP, LMP, RPF and the ESMPs to be developed under the UBEC project, as well as stakeholder engagement activities, functioning of the grievance mechanism(s) and citizen engagement.

 

1. Duration, location, coordination and reporting arrangements

 

• Duration. The Social specialist is a full-time position required for five (5) years, renewable annually based on performance.
• The contract is subject to a probationary period of six months and may be subject to satisfactory achievement of key deliverables.
• Performance will initially be reviewed after six months, and thereafter subject to annual reviews.
• This is a full-time position based in Castries, Saint Lucia and may involve travel to other communities.
• The Social Specialist will work from the Project Implementation Unit (PIU) of the UBEC where he/she will be assigned a workstation and will participate in face-to-face or virtual meetings, as is the case. He/she will also be required to visit subproject work sites to monitor E&S compliance.
• The social specialist will frequently and adequately coordinate with the Environmental Specialist and other PIU staff, as relevant.
• Reporting arrangements. The Social Specialist will report directly to the Project Manager.

 

1. Qualifications

 

1. Requirements

• Bachelor’s Degree in sociology, international development, or another related social science field.
• At least three (3) years of experience with of implementing, monitoring, and reporting social issues.
• Demonstrated understanding of social issues of development projects.
• Proven experience in stakeholder/citizen engagement, community outreach, consultations and GRM.
• Knowledge and capacity in outreach and awareness/capacity building programs for governmental organizations, NGOs and/or local communities.
• Knowledge of Saint Lucia ‘s policies and legislation related to social issues.
• Ability to communicate fluently in English, verbally and in writing.
• Ability to converse in French creole
• Sound Information Technology (IT) skills, in particular experience with the Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint).
• Ability to uphold ethical standards.
• Experience working in development projects that have applied World Bank, Caribbean Development Bank, Inter-American Development Bank or other institution’s safeguards policies, will be considered a plus.

 

1. Favorable attributes

• Capacity to work simultaneously on a variety of issues and tasks, independently adjusting to priorities and achieving agreed objectives and deadlines.
• Ability to be flexible and proactive with work assignments.
• Demonstrated ability to work in a team.
• Excellent interpersonal and communications skills.

Commitment and passion for social issues.

1. Applying for this post

Applications for the post should be made to:

Permanent Secretary

Ministry of Finance, Economic Development and the Youth Economy

4^th Floor Finance Administrative Center

Pointe Seraphine

Castries

Saint Lucia

Tel: 1 (758) 468- 5503

Email: Olivia.alfred@govt.lc

 

Applications must include the following format and content:

1. A brief covering letter introducing yourself and explaining why you are interested in this post (maximum 1 page).
2. A resume (CV) showing personal details, work experience, and education, along with the names of three work related references (maximum 3 pages).

Note: unsuitable candidates will not be acknowledged. Applicants whose minimum qualifications and experience conform to the Terms of Reference will be short-listed and invited to attend an interview for further consideration.