Consultancy Job Recruitment At Médecins Du Monde

Brief presentation of the project

Covering around 1,000 km² in Rivers State, southern Nigeria, Ogoniland has been the site of oil industry operations since the late 1950s. Ogoniland has a tragic history of pollution from oil spills and oil well fires, although no systematic scientific information has been available about the ensuing contamination.

In 2011, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) published the report of an independent study conducted at the request of the Federal Government of Nigeria. The study reveals the nature and extent of oil contamination in Ogoniland. The Environmental Assessment of Ogoniland covers contaminated land, groundwater, surface water, sediment, vegetation, air pollution, public health, industry practices and institutional issues. The report represents the best available understanding of what has happened to the environment of Ogoniland – and the corresponding implications for affected populations – and provides clear operational guidance as to how that legacy can be addressed.

The report contains numerous recommendations for public health and on monitoring:

• Everyone who has consumed water from contaminated sources should be requested to undertake a comprehensive medical examination by physicians knowledgeable about the possible adverse health effects of the hydrocarbons detected.

• A focused medical study should be initiated to track the health of the Ogoni community over their lifetimes to ensure any possible health impacts are identified early enough and acted upon.

• People living on rights of way of oil pipelines should be moved from such locations as soon as possible and alternative locations for housing should be found regardless of the legal status of the people involved.

• People involved in bunkering and artisanal should be informed about the disproportionate nature of the short-term financial gain set against the medium to long-term health consequences, both to the individual and to the broader community, and they should be offered alternative employment opportunities.

• A public health registry should be established for the entire Ogoniland population in order to determine health trends and take proactive action individually and/or collectively where impacts relating to long-term exposure to hydrocarbon pollution are evident.

MdM intends exploring the relevance and the feasibility of an intervention in Ogoniland with the aim of implementing public health and monitoring recommendations contained in the UNEP report.

2- Objectives of the consultancy

Objective of the consultancy mission

MdM, in the framework of this project, is looking for (a) consultant(s) to:

• To assess the extent of the implementation of the recommendations for public health and on monitoring made by UNEP in 2011;

• To identify the reasons why recommendations have not been implemented, if appropriate;

• To assess the feasibility for the implementation of some or all recommendations and the role that MdM could play in this implementation;

• To assist MdM in the definition of the broad framework of a potential intervention (objectives, expected results, main activities, partners…)

The maximum total budget available for this consultancy is 25,000 EUR.

3-Sought after profile

We require the following from the candidate research consultancy firms or individual consultants:

• A good experience in fact-finding missions and initial project assessments;
• A good experience in terms of development cooperation;
• A technical expertise in the field of environment, public health (with a focus on the consequences of oil pollution – e.g. benzene – on health and how to address those consequences);
• Professional experience in Africa, ideally in Nigeria;
• Fluency in the following languages: English;
• Other: experience/knowledge of health systems; attachment to a university is an asset.