Media Officer - 'Love in time of Corona' Project at Search For Common Ground’s International

Locations: Maiduguri- Borno, Delta, Jos - Plateau,
Programs: Africa - West
Duration: 12 Months
Full Time - Local

About the Project

• Search for Common Ground (Search) in partnership with the European Union will implement  a rapid-response “Love in the Time of Corona” campaign that will support an effective, conflict-sensitive response to the COVID-19 pandemic in a way that prevents further deterioration of social cohesion in fragile contexts in Africa, namely in Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and Nigeria.
• This  action has a two-fold purpose: on the one hand, it aims to render the response to the pandemic in the targeted countries more effective by ensuring citizen acceptance of the response through access to reliable information on the other, it will mitigate the negative impact of the crisis on social cohesion and prevent it from exacerbating existing conflict dynamics.
• The Media products will Demystify myths around Covid19 disease; Inspiring hope to vulnerable communities in the covid19 context; Show best practices in coping with Covid19 fears and uncertainties and Incorporate satire to share key information on Covid19 prevention.

About the Position

• Search intends to recruit 3 Media Officers (Maiduguri, Delta and Jos) who will be responsible for the capacity-building, relationship-building, coaching of partner radio stations and co-production of radio programs under the project.
• The position holder will support local radio stations in their planning, production, publicity, outreach and broadcast of two weekly radio programs: a weekly live radio talk show and a weekly radio drama, monitor the work and airing of partner radio stations, monitor the airing of spots and jingles and collect feedback from listeners.
• S/he will work under the direct supervision of the National Media Manager and will work closely with the Design, Monitoring and Evaluation team, and other project team members. The position holder will supervise and closely monitor the work of the radio producers based in the partner FM radio station.

Roles and Responsibilities

• Support the media manager in managing the COVID-19 ‘Love in time of Corona Project’ media outreach activities, including programmatic, compliance, personnel, financial, and administrative matters.
• Ensures all activities are conducted in accordance with Search policies and donor rules and regulations
• Nurture positive relationships with partner radio station and producers of these radio station
• Support local radio stations in their planning, production, publicity, outreach and broadcast of two weekly radio programs: a weekly live radio talk show and a weekly radio drama.
• Radio talk show: The program will bring health experts from the public and private sector, Ministry of information, Ministry of health, NCDC officials, Economists, caregivers, Transport workers, Market Leaders, Opinion Leaders,  citizens, community leaders, and civil society together to discuss COVID-19 issues. These issues will be selected to correspond with topics focused on in the project as a whole.
• Develop activity work plans, radio program production and broadcast plans and strategies;
• Lead the curriculum process using Search’s common ground approach to develop the intended outcomes, knowledge, attitude and behaviour change objectives for the radio programs, determine the target audience, and key messages of the radio programs;
• Develop and implement the promotion, publicity and outreach plan and strategy to promote and publicize the radio programs and spots/jingles among its target audience;
• Support the Media Manager and Grants Coordinator to prepare Terms of Reference and Contracts for the Partner FM stations and the Radio Producers;
• Oversee and ensure the quality of the production of the radio programs;
• Keep track of media logs, monitor the broadcast of the radio programs and provide regular feedback to the partner FM radio station;
• Provide necessary support to the Social Media Coordinator to manage social media profiles relating to the project, including publishing and distributing content, running campaigns and monitoring progress;
• Listen and report all aired episodes of radio program and provide constructive feedback to the producers and presenters;
• Provide regular coaching and mentoring support to the radio producers and presenters;
• Coordinate with the program teams to integrate program messages into media programming streams;
• Track organization’s news coverage through online and traditional sources;
• Provide support in writing, formatting and editing communications/media/outreach materials;
• Develop relations with media actors and assist in mobilizing media for events where necessary;
• Capture photos and success stories in all Search meetings, trainings and events;
• Provide monitoring data to the DM&E manager and share success stories and impact stories as a result of radio programs;
• Provide media reports and documentation and share progress, challenges, and lessons learned  to support the Project Manager to write periodic progress reports;

Note: As job descriptions cannot be exhaustive, the position holder may be required to undertake other duties that are broadly in line with the above key duties.

Requirements
Educational Background:

• Bachelor's degree in Radio Production, Media, Journalism, Communication, Development Communications or a related area;

Experience Required:

• At least 2 years of experience in producing and coordinating radio programs and radio teams;
• Track record of producing successful radio programs in Nigeria, preferably using radio magazine, discussions, talk  shows formats;
• Ability to communicate in local languages will be a big advantage;
• Experience of producing and coordinating health-related programs/campaign will be an added advantage;
• Significant experience designing and conducting training courses in journalism and media;
• Experience in media program design, including drama, sports, news & current affairs;
• Track record in delivering effective media/communications/advocacy strategies in support of  campaigns and advocacy programmes;

Relevant Skills and Abilities:

• Understand key opportunities in Nigerian media markets and a thorough understanding of requirements of different kinds of media i.e. print, TV, radio, and online;
• A good understanding of target audience, intended outcome programming, behaviour change communications, and edutainment approaches;
• Excellent written and verbal communications skills;
• Ability to work effectively in a team environment and strong interpersonal skills.