Duties and Responsibilities
Background: The objective of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) is to combat desertification and land degradation, and to mitigate the effects of drought (DLDD) in affected countries around the world, particularly in Africa, through effective action at all levels. Established in 1994, the UNCCD is the sole legally binding international agreement linking environment and development to sustainable land management. The Global Mechanism (GM) is an institution of the UNCCD, mandated to assist countries in the mobilization of financial resources from the public and private sector for activities that prevent, control or reverse desertification, land degradation and drought. The Global Mechanism is currently steering several activities related to the Green Great Wall Initiative, notably one project entitled “Strengthening Coordination and Implementation of the Great Green Wall Initiative – Phase 2: Enhancing Sustainability and Expansion of the Great Green Wall Initiative’’ (ESEGGWI), funded by the Austrian Development Agency (ADA). The Great Green Wall (GGW) initiative was launched in 2007 under the leadership of the African Union and Pan-African Agency of the GGW. It aims to restore Africa’s degraded landscapes and transform millions of lives in one of the world’s most vulnerable regions, the Sahel. In recent years, the GGW vision has evolved into an integrated ecosystem management approach, striving for a mosaic of different land use and production systems. Hence the GGW should be understood as a strategic comprehensive national and regional development plan focusing not only on environmental protection but also combining economic and social dimensions and ensuring synergies among the various existing policies and programs that contribute to its strategy and goals. The Panafrican Agency for the Great Green Wall (PAGGW) was established in 2010 by eleven (11) member states (Burkina Faso, Chad, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, and Sudan) and is mandated with coordination, monitoring of achievements, and, in collaboration with member states and the African Union, resource mobilization. UNCCD is seeking to hire one (1) GGW National Support Consultant for each of the following nine (09) GGW national bodies: Burkina Faso, Chad, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, and Senegal. This Consultancy announcement is regarding the National GGW Support Consultant for Burkina Faso. Duties and Responsibilities: Under the overall supervision of the Great Green Wall Accelerator’s Programme Management Officer, and the technical coordination of Burkina Faso’s Great Green Wall National Coordinator, the GGW national support consultant, assigned and functionally attached to the GGW directorate, will carry out the tasks and produce the deliverables required. GGW Advocacy & Communications The consultant will support the National Agency of the Great Green Wall in the design, implementation, and monitoring of communication strategies aimed at enhancing visibility, strengthening stakeholder engagement, and supporting advocacy efforts. This includes building the Agency’s capacity to effectively communicate results, mobilize political and public support, and disseminate knowledge, innovations, and success stories related to land restoration, climate resilience, and sustainable livelihoods. A key deliverable under this assignment will be the implementation of a comprehensive national communication strategy, in cases where the communication strategy already exists. In any case the consultant will focus on applying existing regional strategies to the national context through its implementation and ensuring alignment with GGW regional communication objectives. The consultant should ensure compliance with UNCCD national and Panafrican GGW communications guidelines, harmonization of messages between national and regional levels, analysis of target audiences, and segmentation of messages. Particular emphasis will be placed on leveraging both traditional and digital media platforms to highlight progress, clarify strategic goals, and communicate results in a clear, engaging, and accessible manner. The consultant will promote data-driven storytelling by integrating scientific evidence with human-cantered narratives to inspire action, promote transparency, and reinforce accountability. This approach will not only enhance national ownership of the GGW Initiative but also contribute to building a compelling case for continued support from partners, policymakers, and the general public. GGW National Coordination & Stakeholder liaising. The consultant will support the National Agency of the Great Green Wall in enhancing national-level coordination to ensure the effective, coherent, and results-driven implementation of the GGW Initiative. In this role, the consultant will support the establishment, structuring, and operationalization of GGW National Coalitions, which serve as the core coordination mechanisms for national-level implementation of the Great Green Wall Initiative. The national coalition brings together representatives from government institutions, civil society, the private sector, media, academia, scientific communities, and technical and financial partners. The consultant will assist the National Agency in developing inclusive and functional coalitions that enable continuous, autonomous, and coordinated contributions to GGW objectives. They will contribute to the operationalization of the GGW national action plan, the mobilization of stakeholders, data, and funding, accountability, knowledge management, and alignment with regional frameworks. In collaboration with national stakeholders, the consultant will support the participatory identification of priority geographic zones, thematic areas of intervention (e.g., reforestation, sustainable agriculture), and available resources to foster synergy, maximize impact, and improve territorial coverage. This includes promoting access to reliable, up-to-date data, implementation plans, and information on funding flows to support evidence-based decision-making and strategic planning.
Qualifications/special skills
- Advanced degree (Master's or PhD) in a relevant field such as international management, political science, management, environmental science, or sustainable development; monitoring and evaluation, knowledge management, or a related field is required. - At least 7 years of professional experience is required. - Demonstrated expertise in monitoring, evaluation and reporting; knowledge management, digital monitoring solutions, and national programme support for large-scale rural and sustainable development projects is required. - Solid experience designing or strengthening national coordination frameworks with proven stakeholder mapping and partnership analysis experience (actors, funding flows, interventions) is required. - interventions) is required. Experience generating regular coordination progress reports and designing recommendations to improve systems is required. - Capacity-building facilitator experienced training government teams on M&E methods, reporting protocols, and SOP/user guide development is desired. - Advanced Experience in the usage of computers and office software packages is desired. - Geographic Information Systems (GIS), Website design and Data Collection background is an added value.
