Consultancy for Production of a Strategic Communications Plan together with the Production and Synthesis of Strategic Communications Materials

Terms of Reference (ToR) for Consultancy

Production of a Strategic Communications Plan together with the Production and Synthesis of Strategic Communications Materials for The Colombo Plan Gender Affairs Programme

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1. Background and Context

The Colombo Plan for Cooperative Economic and Social Development in Asia and Pacific (more commonly referred to as The Colombo Plan) was founded in 1951 in Colombo, Sri Lanka, to serve as a cooperative venture for the economic and social advancement of the peoples of South and Southeast Asia. Today, the Colombo Plan is a globally renowned intergovernmental organization with a membership of 28 countries in the Asia-Pacific region and globally.

In May 2014, in an effort to provide support to vulnerable and marginalized women, men, girls and boys and promote a just and equitable society in collaboration with member governments and other stakeholders , the Colombo Plan Council approved the establishment of the Gender Affairs Programme (CPGAP) during the 282^nd Council meeting in May 2014. Accordingly, the CPGAP focuses solely on women and children’s rights, issues, and development in Colombo Plan member countries. The CPGAP has implemented two flagship projects in Afghanistan that are implemented through six local partner organizations.

In recent years, CPGAP has been focusing on the longevity of its flagship projects in Afghanistan to ensure the services provided under the projects are uninterrupted and continue to protect and promote the rights of survivors (or at risk) of gender based violence and trafficking in person. The work carried across Afghanistan addressing some of the most challenging issues facing Afghan women, children, men and vulnerable populations, and has been continuing despite the challenging and increasingly deteriorating security situation in the country. Across the years, CPGAP has also implemented a range of smaller programs across Indonesia, Vietnam and Sri Lanka with a focus on the livelihoods of women, children and their families and on spreading best practices in gender programming across South and Southeast Asia.

2. Purpose and Objectives

CPGAP has been primarily focused on actively managing the implementation of its programmatic portfolio and is now seeking to document the project narratives, lessons and to produce strategic communications materials highlighting the success of our organization’s work. For this purpose, CPGAP is seeking to engage an internationally experienced strategic communications expert who is able to frame the narratives around CPGAPs activities and success stories into compelling strategic communications materials, as well as able to distill a range of more general communications products, such a brochures, pamphlets, infographics, promotional pieces, website blurbs, project and program descriptions and press releases to capture the work carried out by CPGAP. The intention of the consultancy is to produce a body of work suitable for promoting CPGAP across the sectoral stakeholders, especially among donors active in gender programming in the international development sector.

3. Scope of Work and Deliverables

The exact scope of work will be agreed with the successful consultant during the preliminary stages of the consultancy, after scoping interviews with CPGAP leadership. The consultant would be expected, at the least, to study all the most relevant project and strategic materials produced by CPGAP and produce a Strategic Communications Plan for CPGAP, capturing the needs and expectations of the organization. As part of the plan, the consultant will also be expected to synthesize and consolidate the information contained in the programmatic and strategic documentation, and produce at the least the following communications products:

Strategic Communications Products:

• a 10-page promotional brochure in A-4 format, containing narratives, photographs, charts and visual aids, highlighting the history and successes of CPGAP across its programmatic portfolio;

• two-page brief about CPGAP covering its history, most important projects and capturing CPGAP’s impact on women, children and their families across Asia-Pacific (inclusive of relevant graphics, if needed);

• promotional, foldable pamphlet highlighting key historical moments of CPGAP and key programmatic successes featuring colorful, eye-catching graphics;

• a website blurb about CPGAP.

Project Communications Materials

• one/two page project description of each of its key programs in Afghanistan;

• a brochure, inclusive of eye-catching graphics, on each of its two key programs in Afghanistan;

• a project description containing paragraphs on each of the projects implemented across Indonesia, Vietnam and Sri Lanka

• a poster/infographic or a brochure covering all of CPGAPs projects implemented up to date

The list is not exclusive and will be agreed with the consultant based on their assessment of CPGAPs communications needs.

4. Planned Activities

The following is a tentative list of activities that we envision the successful consultant to implement during the course of the consultancy. The list will be subject to a refinement during the proposal/scoping interview stages of the engagement and is not exhaustive; it only presents a tentative list of activities envisioned at the time of writing this ToR and will be revised further:

Activity and Timeframe

• Review and critically read the programmatic and strategic documents of CPGAP – 3 days
• Assess the Strategic Communications needs of CPGAP, inclusive of scoping interviews with CPGAP leadership -3 days
• Preparation of the Strategic Communications Plan (SCP) for CPGAP, delineating the key Strategic and Communications Products required to be produced as part thereof *(at the minimum, the Plan must include the deliverables listed in Section 3 of this ToR) -*3 days
• Review the Strategic Communications Plan, in line with comments received from CPGAP – 2 days
• Prepare, as part of the SCP, a 10-page promotional brochure in A-4 format, containing narratives, photographs, charts and visual aids, highlighting the history and successes of CPGAP across its programmatic portfolio; – 6 days
• Prepare, as part of the SCP, a two-page brief about CPGAP covering its history, most important projects and capturing CPGAP’s impact on women, children and their families across Asia-Pacific (inclusive of relevant graphics, if needed); -1.5 days
• Prepare, as part of the SCP, a promotional, foldable pamphlet highlighting key historical moments of CPGAP and key programmatic successes featuring colorful, eye-catching graphics; – 2.5 days
• Prepare, as part of the SCP, a website blurb about CPGAP.-0.5 days
• Prepare, as part of the SCP, one/two page project description of each of its key programs in Afghanistan;-1.5 days
• Prepare, as part of the SCP, a brochure, inclusive of eye-catching graphics, on each of its two key programs in Afghanistan;-2.5 days
• Prepare, as part of the SCP, project description containing paragraphs on each of the projects implemented across Indonesia, Vietnam and Sri Lanka -1.5 days
• Prepare, as part of the SCP, a poster/infographic or a brochure covering all of CPGAPs projects implemented up to date -2 days
• Hold any additional interviews with CPGAP staff -1 days
• Total Number of days: 30

Please note that in line with any revisions to the deliverables list as part of the SCP, the number of days required to complete the consultancy will also change.

5. Period and Timeframe of the Consultancy

Depending on the scope of work delineated in the actual Strategic Communications Plans, the consultancy should not exceed 4 months in duration. The total amount of billing days should be circa 30, spread across the specified 4 months, as specified in section 4 of this ToR, and subject to any revision of the deliverables list in the finally approved SCP.

The exact number of days required for the consultancy will be delineated after the scoping interviews with the CPGAP leadership and after the approval of the Strategic Communications Plan which will contain the communications products that the consultant will also produce.

6. Qualifications and Requirements

For this assignment, CPGAP is seeking to engage a Strategic Communications Specialist (a consultant or a suitably qualified firm) meeting the following criteria:

• a Masters’ (required) or PhD (preferable) in public or strategic communications or any closely related field from an internationally reputable university;

• at least 15 years of experience in the field of public/strategic communications, with at least 10 years of experience in the international development sector;

• a demonstrated history of producing strategic communications plans and/or materials for international development organizations, such as The World Bank, UN bodies, humanitarian organizations or global NGOs;

• demonstrated history of producing project and program descriptions/narratives, infographics, brochures, pamphlets and blurbs. Samples for each of this product category will be requested from the successful consultant/s ahead of engagement;

• the ability to synthesize qualitative and quantitative information into distilled, lucid and reader-friendly communications products;

• the ability to produce infographics and visual supporting communications products and adding to their user-friendliness

• a demonstrated history of aligning the Strategic Communications Plans with the Strategic Direction of an organization