RTI is seeking a Community Engagement Advisor for the East Africa Energy Program under the Power Africa initiative by USAID. This person will be responsible for building capacity in the Ethiopia’s electric utilities to improve community relationships understanding and communication regarding energy-related issues. This position may have responsibilities across the East Africa region but will be based in Ethiopia.
Specific Responsibilities:
Specific Responsibilities:
- To partner with power utilities in identifying gaps related to community and stakeholder engagement in development of power projects.
- To strengthen community engagement practices and planning to address challenges and avoid project delays or derailment.
- Provide technical leadership and drafting of community engagement deliverables (e.g. review of documents, development of terms of reference, roll out of strategies etc.)
- Support utilities to identify strategies that promote community and develop tools to enhance service delivery in the power sector
- Support utilities to identify, strengthen and develop accountability tools that support dialogue, advocacy and oversight
- Contribute to project efforts related to community engagement in planning, budgeting, monitoring, and evaluation of power projects.
- To network with stakeholders in the power sector and support in the implementation of laws, policies acts and legislations relevant to the energy sector.
- To assist power utilities to successfully communicate important issues (such as tariff increases, electricity theft, land rights issues) to relevant communities.
- Participate in strategic meetings with the utilities to understand the issues communities face in terms of service delivery and energy access.
- Ensure that power utility policies, and associated implementation plans, integrate marginalized and indigenous community considerations and embrace gender equity across all offices and in all interventions.
Required
minimum qualification and experience.
Knowledge,
Skills and Abilities
minimum qualification and experience.
Bachelor’s degree in Social Science, Community Development, Development Studies, Business, or other relevant field.- Minimum of 6 years of experience working with the local governance energy projects in Ethiopia to strengthen and develop mechanisms for engagement of civil society in advocacy and oversight.
Knowledge,
Skills and Abilities
- Exceptional project management skills;
- Exceptional and demonstrated ability to understand and communicate diverse perspectives across stakeholders;
- Demonstrated understanding of the energy sector in Ethiopia (preferably on-grid energy);
- Demonstrated ability to identify problems and propose meaningful solutions required; fluent understanding of social and ethnic issues in Ethiopia is essential;
- Excellent oral and written skills in English is required; and
- Excellent oral and written communication skills in Amharic is preferred.
