Organizational Setting

FAO Afghanistan is investing, across all 34 provinces, in resilience reinforcing actions that focus on protecting agriculture livelihoods and local ecosystems, boosting local production of nutritious foods and cash-incomes, and safeguarding critical agriculture sectoral development gains achieved over the past couple of decades through revitalizing rural markets and economy. In 2022-2023, FAO will, under the life-saving assistance Outcome (1) of the UN Transitional Engagement Framework (TEF), focus on the following four priority actions: (i) Safeguarding Wheat Seed Security, (ii) Enhancing Local Production of Nutritious Food, (iii) Livestock Protection and Dairy Sector Support, and (iv) Restoring Irrigation Structures to Boost Cash Incomes. Additionally, FAO will contribute towards resilience building activities under Outcome 2 of the TEF.

There are a total of two (2) positions, one position in each duty station: Kabul and Mazar-e-Sharif.

Reporting Lines

The Senior Social and Environmental Safeguard Specialist will work under the overall supervision of the FAO Representative, and the direct and technical supervision of the Head of Water Resource and Irrigation Team.

Technical Focus

The Senior Social and Environmental Safeguard Specialist will provide relevant technical assistance for the efficient implementation of the Water and Resilience Services.

Tasks and responsibilities

• Raise awareness regarding the purpose of the water resource and irrigation-related works at community level by disseminating information through locally relevant communication channels such as mosques, village meetings, NGOs as well as broadcast and print media.
• Identify primary and secondary stakeholders at local level in consultation with village leadership and conduct meetings with the stakeholders’ representatives.
• Seek the opinions of the beneficiaries on proposed activities; and involve them in planning, design, implementation, supervision and monitoring of the proposed activities.
• Prepare site-specific Environmental and Social Management Plan (ESMP) at every stages viz Survey, design, construction and O&M of the irrigation schemes, flood protection works, watershed management and rain water harvesting works.
• Liaise with the Environmental and Social Safeguard Officer in Kabul to finalize the site specific ESMP in tune with the Environmental and Social Safeguard Framework (ESMF) of the Emergency and Food Security Project (EFSP).
• Provide priority to seek the views of the most disadvantaged and marginalized groups. Encourage an enhanced participation of women (especially female-headed households), landless, disabled and elderly people. Incorporate their ideas in the design for the social structures etc.
• Carry out compliance monitoring of Environmental and Social safeguards based on Environmental code of Practice (ECoP) and ESMF.
• Contribute in the preparation of the technical, social and agriculture inventory for the initial bench marking in tune with the indicators.
• Use socio-environmental findings to determine whether land acquisition including voluntary donation is required to enable the works to proceed.
• Carry out joint diagnostic walkthrough with the Mirabs, community and the technical staff for the identification of the maintenance need as well as institutional and agricultural problems associated with the proposed activities at the farm, tertiary, branch and the main canal levels.
• Facilitate negotiations with the community regarding the cost sharing (cash/kind/labour) as well as roles and responsibilities in the part of both the entities and prepare the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) between them.
• Initiate the formation of the Irrigation Associations (IAs) in the applicable areas conducting the general assembly meetings with the wider participation of the beneficiaries.
• Conduct a training need assessment and train government staff to deliver specific trainings for relevant local government officers, Mirabs, members of IAs and other key stakeholders on the subjects such as canal O&M, Irrigation management, resource mobilization etc.
• Help in identifying alternative livelihood options for the landless and marginalized farmers and oversee the implementation of such livelihood enhancement programmes.
• Mediate for the dispute resolution among the community as well as between the community and the contractor during the works implementation.
• Contribute to periodic reporting.
• Perform any other duties as required.