Background information

The African Population and Health Research Center (APHRC) is a leading Africa-based, African-led, international research institution headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya and with a West Africa Regional Office (WARO) in Dakar, Senegal. APHRC conducts policy-relevant research on population, health, education, urbanization and related development issues in sub-Saharan Africa.

Aligned with this mission, the challenging the politics of social exclusion (CPSE) project acts as a critical and neutral knowledge partner to the constellation of key government, civil society, and technical actors working to advance the full realization of forward-looking commitments made by the African member states in several regional and global accords, on comprehensive sexual and reproductive health service access, and the rights of all young people and women in the continent.

CPSE focuses on supporting such engagement for change at regional and sub-regional levels in Eastern, Southern, and Western Africa and seven countries across these sub-regions: Kenya, Rwanda, Zambia, Malawi, Sierra Leone, Burkina Faso, and Liberia. Across these geographies, CPSE encompasses three work pillars: (i) research – the generation of evidence needed to help advance domestication, implementation, and resourcing of continental commitments for SRH; (ii) supporting the use of evidence in advocating for change; and (iii) strengthening core capacities of policy partners to build on evidence and learning in their advocacy.

APHRC intends to engage a suitably qualified proceedings writing and rapporteur to provide high-quality support to CPSE workshop discussions.

Scope of work

Under the Project Lead and Advocacy Unit Manager’s guidance, the rapporteur will attend workshops, training sessions, or conferences sponsored or facilitated by the project and accurately and effectively capture the event proceedings. The rapporteur will take notes via his or her preferred method and then produce an accurate written report of the proceedings based on an agreed pre-set template and format.

Before the event

1. Please become familiar with all the material that is relevant to the meeting speakers and review their presentations.
2. Meet project staff before the event to go over any specific instructions for that event.
3. Review the final report template together with the project staff to guide the rapporteur responsibilities on the day of the conference.

During the event

1. Capture in whatever format (e.g., handwritten notes, typed notes, recorded messages, photographs, handouts, and presentations) all pertinent information for each presentation, including the speaker’s name, title, and organization.
2. The notes should include the presentation’s main points, either spoken (quotes are key) or in the presentation slides. iii. Present an accurate summary of the discussion, highlighting any conclusions, recommendations, or next steps.

After the event

1. Prepare a summary report using the format provided, highlighting the main topics, objectives, and themes of the conference and summarizing the event’s key outcomes, including suggested followup.
2. Based on the event agenda, provide a summary indicating the name, title, and organization of the speaker, main findings, conclusions, or recommendations of the speaker/section.
3. Submit a final, formatted summary report in word format to the Project Lead and Advocacy Unit Manager within two weeks of the event.

Expected output:

The rapporteur will produce a summary report that covers the entirety of the event proceedings.

Deliverables and timeline:

The consultant will be responsible for delivering content, technical quality, and accuracy of the deliverables. All deliverables will be submitted to the Project Lead (for research) or the Advocacy Unit Manager (for policy engagement and communications) depending on the type of meeting.

Required skills, experience, and competencies

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent in mass communication, journalism, public health, or related discipline.
• Minimum three to five years of professional experience in proceedings/ reporting and rapporteur services at an international and national conference/forum/seminar (please provide evidence/ records/references).
• Minimum three to five years in writing, editing and proofreading technical documents on various topics and sectors.
• Experience with or knowledge of key concepts in sexual reproductive and health rights (SRHR) in Sub Saharan Africa.
• Proficiency in computer especially Microsoft Office suite applications.
• Experience in working with government agencies and donors is an advantage.
• He/she should display culture, gender equality, religion, race, nationality, age sensitivity, adaptability, and respect for human rights.

Functional competencies:

• Excellent organizational skills.
• Strong analytical, writing, and communication skills.
• Ability to prepare and deliver reports and presentations promptly.
• Strong motivation and ability to work and deliver under short deadlines.
• Focuses on impact and result for the client and responds positively to critical feedback.

Language

• Excellent oral and written English
• Working knowledge of French and Portuguese is desired

Please note that:

• APHRC shall provide transportation out of Nairobi as well as cater for meals and accommodation.
• The consultant is responsible for all taxes and legal authorizations required to complete this assignment.
• The consultant is obligated to keep confidential contents of meeting discussions, briefing materials, or any materials associated with the consultancy and shall not use them for any other purposes except to complete the assignments.

Application procedure

Qualified and interested candidates are requested to apply (either as a team or individually) through consultancies@aphrc.org  copying procurement@aphrc.org  by 20th April 2021. The application should contain the following:

• A technical proposal with a brief description of why the individual considers him/herself as the most suitable for the assignment, and a detailed, explicit methodology, on how they will approach and complete the assignment;
• The technical proposal should also contain a personal CV, indicating education background/ professional qualifications, experience, as well as the contact details (email and telephone

number) of the candidate and at least three (3) professional references;

• Financial proposal that indicates the all-inclusive fixed total contract price.