Mass Media & Information Management Coordinator - A Community-Centered Approach to Transforming Criminality and Violence in the Niger Delta

Location: Port Harcourt, Nigeria. Search for Common Ground (Search) is an international non-profit organization that promotes the peaceful transformation of conflict. With headquarters in Washington, DC, and Brussels, Belgium, Search’s mission is to transform how individuals, organizations, and governments deal with conflict—moving away from destructive approaches and towards cooperative solutions. With more than 700 staff worldwide, Search implements projects in more than 30 African countries, Asia, Europe, the Middle East and North Africa, and North America. Position Summary Search is seeking an experienced Mass Media & Information Management Coordinator for an anticipated 18-month project funded by the European Union. The project will be implemented in consortium with co-applicants with the overall goal of fostering inclusive community security approaches to address the systemic drivers of violence and criminality in Bayelsa, Delta, and Rivers States.  The role is expected to lead the implementation of the project’s initiatives on strategic communication comprising real-time monitoring and tracking of the information ecosystem for identifying the drivers of conflict and thereafter production and dissemination of multimedia products utilizing the tracked dynamics. The Coordinator will also be responsible for the coordination and leading capacity-building engagements for the Common Ground Journalists platforms in Rivers, Bayelsa, and Delta States. She/He will be managed by the Consortium Coordinator and Search Media Specialist while collaborating with other teams and units. The anticipated project will bring together four leading peacebuilding and development organizations in the Niger Delta, in a consortium aimed at providing a holistic, community-centered approach to addressing core drivers of criminality, violence, and conflict in the region, with a specific focus on the empowerment and inclusion of youth in the security of their respective communities in the Niger Delta . The consortium partners will leverage existing relationships with the action’s diverse target groups, including at-risk youth, local communities impacted by oil production and oil bunkering, state security actors, the private sector, journalists and media actors, key civil society organizations, and policymakers at the state, regional, national, and international levels, to secure broad-based buy-in and participation in the action. Overall, the project will seek to initiate a shift in how relevant actors think about and approach issues of oil bunkering, criminality, and security in the Niger Delta in favor of more bottom-up, human-centered perspectives. This institutional and social shift is necessary in order to sustainably reduce the prevalence of oil bunkering and other forms of criminality and violence in the region in the long term. The design of the action centers around four activity streams, each addressing a systemic driver of division, violence, and criminality in Bayelsa, Rivers, and Delta States:  Stream 1 will foster intra-community collaboration around issues of social exclusion, lack of economic opportunity, and environmental degradation. Stream 2 will build trust and collaboration between communities, the government, and security actors for more participatory, community-centered security operations.  Stream 3 will leverage arts- and culture-based approaches to foster social cohesion between divided communities, both online and offline. Stream 4 will facilitate policy change to institutionalize community-centered security approaches at the local, state, regional, national, and international levels. The position will be based in Rivers, Delta, and Bayelsa States.

Roles and Responsibilities: Information Management - Real-time monitoring and tracking of the online and offline information ecosystem

Gather, triangulate and analyse findings from the real-time monitoring and tracking of the information ecosystem (online and offline) to understand the emerging dynamics of conflict and criminality in the region particularly related to oil bunkering, artisanal refining and the conflict context.  Develop real time and periodic reports on findings and recommendations from the real time monitoring and tracking of the information ecosystem in the Delta, Bayelsa and Rivers states and the Niger Delta Region. Utilise the information above for development of alternative messages which will inform the content and audience targeting of the action’s multimedia peace campaign Disseminate lessons learned, messages, and outcomes from the programme to communities across Bayelsa, Delta, and Rivers states. Exceptional writing and editing skills, with the ability to gather and synthesize contributions from multiple sources and colleagues effectively into monthly snapshots.

Mass Media

Develop multimedia messages informed by findings from the real-time monitoring and tracking of the information ecosystem and other key findings from other activities across the project states Implement the media component of the project in collaboration with identified media partners  Organize and conduct a multimedia peace campaign to raise public awareness and knowledge around issues as they relate to the project objectives  Create high-quality relevant multimedia products that cut across all platforms which will contribute to changing attitudes and challenging stereotypes.  Responsible for overseeing all the multimedia products which include radio and television production Collaborate with the DMEL team to conduct media mapping, and listenership surveys and draw learnings from use evaluations of Search’s previous radio discussions to adapt the methodology for this project Under the supervision of the Capacity Building & Training Specialist and the National Media Specialist, facilitate the Common Ground Journalism and Conflict sensitive reporting training activities Oversee and coordinate the state-level Common Ground Journalism Forum Ensure that audio and visual media content being collected includes appropriate informed consent and is captured and stored according to the organization’s digital library and data protection protocols, and take prompt action to address issues. Plan and manage projects that use photography, video, and/or other multimedia storytelling to support Search Nigeria’s work.  Explore other innovative channels to promote Search brands and projects and timely share of information to partners, donors and other key stakeholders.

Program Coordination

Provide communications support during outreach events producing materials, livestream on social media or coordinating a press conference for project activities in target states Keep track of current issues and strategies in peacebuilding to leverage opportunities for Search’s communications. Communicate with target groups, communities, partners and stakeholders to understand and address the program’s end-user information and communications needs;

Qualifications

Bachelor’s degree in communications, journalism, international relations, development studies, marketing, or related field; Master’s degree is a plus. Proven experience in online and offline context monitoring and analysis and/or digital listening experience in at least one of the following fields is a must: social cohesion, hate speech, conflict analysis, inter-group dynamics, collective action, human rights, peacebuilding;  Excellent writing and data analysis skills, planning and coordination skills, with proven ability to work Independently. At least 5 years of professional experience in outreach, communications for development, advocacy, social marketing,, media and public relations, and campaigning preferably with an I/NGO;  Experience in commissioning, procuring, contracting, developing and producing marketing/campaign/advertising materials and products; good working knowledge of media buying will be an asset; Understanding of and experience in harnessing traditional and social media for awareness-raising and advocacy, social media savvy;

Other Relevant Requirements

Strong command of the English language, with excellent written and oral communication skills  Excellent copywriting skills for social media and other digital platforms  Demonstrated ability Demonstrated ability to use Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint,) Excellent analytic skills and ability to produce high-quality written materials for different audiences; Creative writing, editing, photography, presentation, public speaking, and active listening skills; Strong interpersonal and communication skills, including the ability to collaborate with multiple offices within an organization and interact with partners, contractors, and other stakeholders at the senior level. Proven ability to work effectively in a team environment and communicate highly. Technical information to both expert and lay audiences, and achieve consensus on communications policy, project, research, and administrative matters. A demonstrated commitment to high professional ethical standards and a diverse workplace; and Ability to prioritize, plan and organize workflow to tight timeframes, handle multiple tasks, and be flexible with changing priorities.

Note: This position is only open to Nigerian nationals. To apply: Interested candidates should send the following to our Current resumeCover Letter (which includes expectations of compensation and projected start date) Posting closes 25th August 2023 Only applicants invited for an interview will be contacted. No phone calls, please. Please see our website: for full details of our work.