Communication Advisor- SEED Programme

Core Team Support: SEED Communication Advisor

Duration: 10 months, ending in October, 2025

Location: Based in Peshawar with optional arrangements for partial remote work

Modality: Input-based contract with maximum Level of Effort (LoE) of 18 person-days per month, substantiated by submission of monthly timesheets

Programme Background 

Sustainable Energy and Economic Development (SEED) is a £37.5 million programme that aims to support provincial economic development and sustainable energy in Pakistan. It will support the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK), to plan and finance the infrastructure and investment it needs for growth, jobs and prosperity. The programme will also address Pakistan’s energy crisis by providing innovative financial solutions to industry for the adoption of sustainable energy practices. Within SEED, ASI has been contracted to deliver the first component - Improved Economic and Urban Planning in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) – with a budget of £15 million. The outcome of the programme will be public and private investment generate greater economic, social, and environmental returns. The programme will be managed by the UK’s Foreign Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO).

Context 

SEED will tackle two binding constraints to economic and urban development in Pakistan: weak planning and an unreliable and unaffordable energy supply. Component 1, the focus of this programme, will deliver specialized technical assistance on areas such as urban and economic planning, expertise in key economic and urban development sectors (e.g., transport, energy, industrial zones, housing, and private sector development), conducting analytical studies, engagement with government counterparts, and ongoing monitoring, evaluation, and learning.

Through this there are opportunities for KP to become more climate resilient and adaptive, by making adaptations to its strategies, its planning systems, and by selecting and implementing specific projects. Additionally, SEED is providing demand driven support to GoKP on various reform initiatives, including pensions and tax reforms. 

 

Objective(s)

SEED is seeking the services of a Communications Advisor to raise the profile of the program, serve communication requirements of program activities, and fulfill communication needs of program stakeholders.

Tasks And Responsibilities   

• Support the development of content such as the production of short videos, articles, blogs, data-bytes and infographics to promote SEED’s activities, impacts, impact stories and knowledge products
• Regularly update the SEED’s online presence - including SEED’s website and social media pages (LinkedIn and X) – with relevant content such as news items, articles, blogs, videos, data-bytes and infographics, including support to live/post event coverage of webinars/seminars organized by SEED
• Provide ongoing support to SEED Output specific communication needs through various tasks including publication design, design of presentation decks, organization of webinars/seminars and workshops, among others.  
• Evaluate results and impact of communications activities; and establishes metrics for gauging impact. 
• Report communication highlights in quarterly and annual progress reports, as well as any other reports submitted by SEED to the client.
• Keep close liaison with FCDO’s communication personnel and ASI communication lead in order to promote engagement and information exchange and to leverage visibility. 
• Ensure uniformity and compliance with UK Aid branding guidelines.  
• Any other tasks relevant to the scope of the assignment
  
  

Management/Reporting 

The consultant will work closely with the SEED core team and will report to the Senior Project Manager and SEED Team Leader. 

,

Experience And Skills 

• 5-10 years of post-Master’s relevant experience at the national or international level in communication, social media management, governance or development economics. 
• Experience in managing communication for development organizations as well as interacting with the government.  
• Substantial experience in managing communication platforms for multinationals.  
• Ability to work independently and meeting tight deadlines. Excellent written and oral skills in English.  
• Preferably speaks Pashto.  
  
  

Values and Obligations

All members of the SEED team are expected to adhere to the following values and obligations:

• At all times working collaboratively and openly with other members of the SEED team, proactively providing guidance, advice and sharing experiences in order to solve problems, overcome challenges and manage risks together.
• Freely and openly sharing information gained from government counterparts, FCDO or other international projects with other members of the team.
• Respecting the confidentiality of the SEED team’s discussions, assessments, decisions and plans or agreements with FCDO; sharing information with external parties only when authorised to do so by the Team Leader or Deputy Team Leader.
• Adhering to decisions taken by the programme’s leadership and taking collective responsibility for implementing those decisions and communicating them to counterparts or other external parties.
• Ensuring they have an accurate understanding of policies and decisions made by FCDO that relate to SEED and respecting and adhering to those policies.
• Complying with the channels set out by ASI for all communications with FCDO through the SEED leadership structure.
• Careful coordination with other team members of communications and meetings with government counterparts to ensure coherence of technical advice and as efficient use of counterparts’ time as possible.
• Constant monitoring of risks to the delivery of SEED activities and achievement of objectives, as well as the reputation of SEED and FCDO, and swift referral of those risks to the Team Leader and Deputy Team Leader.
• Consultants are obliged to look out for, and report human rights abuses known and rumoured to have taken place connected with or undertaken by our counterparts. In the event that consultants gain information about any such abuses they should report the matter in line with the procedure contained in the SEED Human Rights Assessment and Framework document.
• Professional coordination with other internationally funded programmes supporting SEED, including briefing those programmes when requested by the Team Leader or Deputy Team Leader.
• Contributing constructively to team meetings, development of workplans, risk assessment, progress reviews and report writing, as well as external evaluations by FCDO or its independent evaluation advisers.
• Complying with SEED’s media policy of referring all inquiries from the media to the Team Leader and Deputy Leader before responding in any way to those inquiries.
• Minuting all meetings with officials from FCDO and sharing those minutes with the Team Leader and Deputy Team Leader at the earliest opportunity.
• Maximising the impact of the programme’s limited resources by ensuring expenditure on travel, accommodation or other costs is as efficient as possible.
• Complying with financial procedures designed to protect the financial integrity of the programme and notifying the Deputy Team Leader and Project Managers of any incidents that threaten that integrity.
• Complying with ASI’s Duty of Care and security procedures designed to ensure safety of personnel and notifying the Deputy Team Leader and Project Managers of any incidence that threaten the security of personnel or assets of the programme.
  
  

Compliance with Working Policies

• Consultant(s)/Subcontractor(s) shall observe the highest ethical standards during the performance of Services related to this assignment and must comply and apply business practices that follow the Adam Smith International’s Code of Conduct available at: https://www.adamsmithinternational.com/about-us/policies/code-of- conduct-2018/.
• Consultant(s)/Subcontractor(s) shall apply zero tolerance to terrorism or the financing of terrorism; bribery or corruption of any kind; human trafficking or modern slavery; safeguarding or child protection breaches, money laundering, fraud, or tax evasion; and discrimination. They shall use reasonable endeavours to give effect to any reasonable request from Adam Smith International to adjust working practices for this purpose or otherwise to promote positive social or environmental impact.
  
  

Satisfactory Performance

• Consultant(s) and subcontractors shall perform all obligations under the contract with necessary skill, diligence, efficiency, and economy to satisfy acceptable professional standards and in accordance with Good Industry Practice and payments are subject to the satisfaction of ASI in relation to the performance by the Consultant(s)/Subcontractors of obligations under this contract.
• If for any reason ASI is dissatisfied that the Consultant(s)/Subcontractor(s) is not or has not been carrying out their duties, obligations and responsibilities under this contract, an appropriate sum may be withheld from any payment otherwise due to the consultant(s)/subcontractor(s). In such event, ASI shall identify the element(s) of the Services with which it is dissatisfied together with the reasons for such dissatisfaction in coordination with the SEED technical team. Any payment by ASI to the contractor/subcontractor of the amount outstanding will be made upon remedy of any unsatisfactory work or resolution of outstanding queries.
• Should ASI determine after paying for a particular part of the Services that this has not been completed satisfactorily, ASI may recover, or withhold from further payments, an amount not exceeding that previously charged for that part of the Service until the unsatisfactory part of the service is remedied to its satisfaction.