Community Liaison and Contracting Specialist

Community Liaison and Contracting Specialist

Apply nowJob no: 493443
Work type: Fixed Term
Location: South Pacific Island countries
Categories: Roads and Highways, Project Management, Community and Social Development

• Pioneering Australian company
• Leadership role
• Value-driven working environment

About SMEC

SMEC is a professional services firm with Australian origins and a global footprint that provides high-quality consultancy services for major infrastructure projects.

SMEC is ranked among the world's top infrastructure design firms and continues to win industry awards for technical excellence, design innovation and the management of environmental and social risks.

The SMEC Profile:

• It is our culture to celebrate diversity, employ great people and work on interesting projects
• We are a private company, wholly owned by our people
• We have an established network of over 70 permanent offices around the world and over 5,000 employees
• We offer our people opportunities to work, both in Australia and internationally, in the areas of: Transport; Water; Geotechnics and Tunnels; Environment; Urban Development; Hydropower and Energy; Social Development; Government and Advisory Services; and Mining, Oil and Gas.

The role 

The Transport Sector Support Program (TSSP) in Vanuatu is an Australian Government Aid initiative working with the Public Works Department (PWD) to maintain rural roads with a view to increasing access to social services and stimulating economic development.  SMEC International Pty Ltd is the managing contractor currently implementing Phase 2 of the Program and is seeking a qualified Community Liaison and Contracting Specialist.

As the Community Liaison and Contracting Specialist your role will be to assist the Public Works Department (PWD) and its stakeholders to develop their capacity to deliver sustainable civil works by engaging with local communities and the local private sector.  The role will seek to assist PWD develop the processes and procedures that will facilitate community and private sector contracting in a manner that is culturally sensitive, socially inclusive, equitable, transparent and sustainable. Ni-Vanuatu citizens are strongly encouraged to apply.  Some of the key functions of the role are:

• Working in partnership with PWD's Senior Social and Environment Officers, develop a Community Contracting Framework that includes policies, procedures and directions for community engagement, contracting and liaison practices.
• Work in partnership with the Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist to implement community engagement and participation strategies to support data and information collection.
• Develop processes for PWD engagement with communities, provincial authorities and other key stakeholders on the subject of prioritisation and implementation of road civil works programs.
• Assist PWD to ensure environmental and social safeguard issues are effectively applied across PWD and in accordance with the PWD Business Plan and the Program objectives.
• Assist in the development of policies, procedures and awareness campaigns to address cross-cutting issues (particularly those relevant to the transport sector)
• Develop a social safeguards framework for the Program.

Suitable applicants will have:

• Relevant tertiary qualifications in an area such as community development, environmental science, public administration etc.
• At least 10 years of experience in remote location community development and community liaison
• Experience in community contracting, preferably in the road sector
• Experience working in the Pacific or the demonstrated experience to adapt to working in different cultural settings
• The ability to create a dynamic work environment, and experience mentoring and motivating people
• Strong written and spoken communication skills, preferably in both English and Bislama

This position has been classified as a short-term adviser position and is currently scheduled to undertake a six month input in 2014 commencing in approximately March or April 2014. This position is categorised as a C3 under the Australian Government Adviser Remuneration Framework. Further information about the Adviser Remuneration Framework can be found at http://aid.dfat.gov.au/publications/pages/3994_1809_6357_1618_6763.aspx

How to apply

All applications must be submitted online. To apply, click on the "Apply Now" link below and follow the prompts.

For any enquiries about the position, or for a copy of the terms of reference, please email vtssp2@gmail.com. Please include the job title 'Community Liaison and Contracting Specialist' in the subject line of your email.  

To find out more about SMEC, please visit our careers page at http://www.smec.com.

SMEC is an equal opportunity employer. Diversity is a source of strength for our people, our clients, our partners and our communities.

Advertised: 26 Jan 2014 Central Pacific Standard Time
Applications close: 12 Feb 2014 Central Pacific Standard Time